Joe signed his NLI on signing day 2014.  

USU as an institution does not release from the NLI.  No matter what people say, Wells can not release Joe alone.  There is an entire athletic 'corporate' department that it has to go through... and USU's policy is to not release.  Ultimately only Coach Wells's boss (John Hartwell) can push through the release, and he won't.

It doesn't matter who paid for what...  

USU has never-ever-once released a kid from an NLI since before Hartwell and Wells took over.

Joe wants to switch schools, he has an in-force NLI contract with USU...  He has to sit a year.

It's that simple.