No One Is Backing Down in LSU-SEC Legal Battle

On Saturday, LSU will host a highly anticipated Week 1 matchup against Clemson in Death Valley. It won’t be the only college football battle in Baton Rouge this week.

Arguably the bigger fight—one with potential ripple effects across the SEC and all of college sports—will take place in a Baton Rouge courthouse on Thursday. Judge William Jorden of the 19th Judicial District Court in East Baton Rouge Parish will hear oral arguments over a potential preliminary injunction that would allow multiple players who participated in NFL preseason activities to regain college eligibility this season. At least two of those players are set to be signed by LSU.

On Monday, all parties confirmed their willingness to hold onto their current positions. LSU head coach Lane Kiffin confirmed that, while he is in contact with the SEC, he still intends to play those athletes if eligible. The SEC, meanwhile, released a statement saying it fully intends to defend a new ban on pro players in court Thursday.

It’s the latest step in the escalating legal showdown between LSU’s potential players, the school, and the SEC—one even Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has become involved in. 

It all started two weeks ago, when a judge granted a temporary restraining order preventing the NCAA from enforcing an eligibility ban on dozens of players, including 16 football players—some of whom had participated in NFL preseason. The lawsuit was one of many arguing players who started college in 2022 and exhausted four years of eligibility should be granted a fifth year in line with the NCAA’s new “age-based” eligibility policy. The NCAA has continued fighting these lawsuits in court rather than grandfathering in students whose college careers ended before the new policy took effect.

In the Louisiana case, plaintiff attorneys argued players shouldn’t be penalized for going through the NFL preseason process when they thought they had exhausted their eligibility. The judge agreed, ruling they had to simply return their NFL earnings and sever their contracts to return to school.

The first player from this case to land a spot was tight end Dae’Quan Wright, who was waived by the Browns last week after participating in preseason games. Zxavian Harris, who was waived by the Saints on Aug. 8 and never played a preseason game, is also slated to join the Tigers in Baton Rouge. (Another plaintiff, Jack Pyburn, was also ready to go to LSU, but after being waived by the Buccaneers on Sunday, he was reportedly claimed off waivers by the Chiefs Monday.)

The SEC, however, said not so fast. The league, along with all other power conferences, announced policies last week stating commissioners could impose severe penalties against schools with athletes with professional experience, including those who had merely signed an NFL contract but never appeared in a game. 

But neither the players nor LSU appeared to back down in response to that policy. Plaintiff attorneys filed a motion to add the SEC and commissioner Greg Sankey to the temporary restraining order, which the judge granted on Friday afternoon. The ruling effectively banned the SEC from enforcing its pro player ban until the temporary restraining order was lifted—which will happen as soon as Thursday if the judge rules on the preliminary injunction from the bench. (The plaintiffs also requested the judge consider holding the NCAA in contempt of court for using the SEC to usurp the original TRO.)

Over the weekend, conference attorneys told Wright’s representatives that the SEC planned to abide by all court orders—but it isn’t backing down. “The SEC and Commissioner Sankey are prepared to contest the allegations in the plaintiffs’ petition at Thursday morning’s hearing and defend the SEC’s rights as a voluntary association to fulfill its mission to its member institutions,” the conference said in a statement shared with FOS Monday morning. 

Hours later, LSU head coach Lane Kiffin told reporters during a press conference that, while he is in communication with the SEC office, Wright has begun to participate in practice with the team.

Regarding his decision to continue the fight for these players, Kiffin pointed to the members of his current roster. He described meeting with player leaders and asking them for feedback on the conundrum. “Every one of them was emphatic about, if they can help us win, bring em,” Kiffin said. (An LSU player reportedly confirmed Kiffin’s account.)

Meanwhile, SEC schools or the conference could pursue other avenues, like filing a lawsuit in federal court for clarity on the enforceability of its rules (like the Big 12 did when Texas Tech welcomed back Brendan Sorsby after he obtained a court order to play despite multiple gambling violations). The SEC will also take part in a hearing on a similar case in Dallas on Tuesday. 

Kiffin said he would wait to make a final decision until there is more guidance. The hearing on Thursday comes just a day before the team is required to submit its final roster for the season and two days before kickoff for its first game.

As for whether he intended to follow “SEC orders,” Kiffin said: “Of course we will.” What those orders will be, however, likely depends on Thursday’s ruling.