Aldo Giovanni Amato

USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

MTSU kicker Cody Clark has left the team, saying he felt “betrayed” over his scholarship situation.

Clark, who walked on in 2012, was put on scholarship in August 2014, but coach Rick Stockstill did not extend it prior to the 2015 season.

“You thought your starting kicker would have been on scholarship,” Clark said. “I felt betrayed, and I didn’t feel like they saw me as a priority.

“I never felt like I had belief in me from a coach’s standpoint.”

Stockstill, however, said talk of Clark having his scholarship pulled or revoked was false and “was never performance-based.”

“First of all, his scholarship was never revoked,” Stockstill said. “I called him up here to sign his scholarship (in 2014) and like any other walk-ons, he signed a voluntary release of scholarship agreement.

“I go over that and said this is a one-year deal. I told him if I had a scholarship available the next year, I would keep you on.”

After that agreement ended, Stockstill said Clark asked whether he would be on scholarship, and he told him it was a matter of waiting to see if one was available.

Prior to the 2015 season, no scholarship was available for Clark, Stockstill said.

“Cody knew that before school started,” Stockstill said. “He knew it was a one-year deal. It was not a betrayal, it was not a revocation, and he knew it throughout the fall, spring and summer.

“There are a couple of walk-ons I’ve had that I’ve put on scholarship and have stayed on scholarship. There have been others where it didn’t work out, and it was a one-year deal.

“The way I look at it is that we provided him an opportunity to fulfill his dreams of playing college football. He got to play college football; nobody else did or else he would’ve gone there. He did a great job for us as a kicker.”

Clark remains enrolled at MTSU and is scheduled to graduate in May. He said he hopes to use his final season of eligibility at another school.

The Blue Raiders recently signed Ravenwood kicker Crews Holt who could compete for the starting job when spring practice begins March 17.

Reach Aldo Amato at 615-278-5109 and on Twitter @Aldo_Amato.