Ole Miss offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil will be eligible to return to action for the Rebels following Saturday's game against Memphis, sources told ESPN.com on Monday.
Tunsil has already missed six games while the NCAA investigates alleged improprieties. The Memphis game will extend his suspension to seven games, which means Tunsil will be back in the lineup for the Texas A&M game Oct. 24.
"I take full responsibility for the mistakes I made and want to thank everyone for their continued support," Tunsil said in a statement released by the university. "I want to apologize to my teammates, coaches and the entire Ole Miss family for how my choices affected our program. This was a learning experience, and I'm looking forward to being back on the field with my team and redeeming myself.
"The last 10 months have been a physical and mental battle for me, but I love playing this game more than anything else. I want to be here for my teammates, who are depending on me to finish what we started together."
Last week, Ole Miss officials said they hoped to have some closure on the length of Tunsil's suspension sometime this week. He was a preseason All-American and ranked one of the top offensive tackle prospects in the 2016 NFL draft. The Rebels are getting the 6-foot-5, 305-pound Tunsil back for what should be a pivotal stretch in the SEC West race. The No. 13 Rebels have lost only to No. 8 Florida but own a win at No. 10 Alabama and have all Western Division foes remaining.
"We have been supportive of Laremy throughout this process, and we are thankful he can return to competition starting with the Texas A&M game," coach Hugh Freeze said in the statement. "More important than his football ability is his character, and I am confident that Laremy will grow from this experience and continue to be a positive member of the University and our football team."
At the crux of the NCAA's investigation, sources told ESPN.com, was a loaner vehicle Tunsil received from Cannon Motors in Oxford, Mississippi, while his car was at a repair shop. Tunsil allegedly kept that loaner vehicle for an extended period of time before returning it to the dealership, and the NCAA deemed it an extra benefit.