LSU’s push to bring players back from the NFL has triggered a conference-wide standoff with the SEC — one that at one point reportedly included discussion of expelling the Tigers from the conference altogether.
The controversy stems from new LSU head coach Lane Kiffin’s strategy of recruiting players who had signed with NFL teams but were later cut before the regular season, a move meant to bring more physically developed talent to Baton Rouge. Opposing coaches, NFL teams and the SEC itself pushed back hard, and multiple conferences, including the SEC, quickly passed policies barring “pro” players from returning to college rosters.
LSU fought the rule in court and won an injunction allowing two players, Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, to confirm their eligibility to play. Reports this week indicated the SEC was prepared to vote imminently on whether to remove LSU from the conference entirely over the dispute. SEC filings also suggested LSU’s athletic director had little say over the football program, with Kiffin running things largely on his own.
The Tigers appeared to step back from the plan this week, adding two other players to the roster in a signal they would not bring in the former NFL-affiliated players after all.
Smith Pushes Back on the SEC
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith weighed in on “First Take,” arguing that simply entering the NFL draft or signing with a team shouldn’t disqualify a player from returning to college football unless they actually played.
“Just because you enter a draft — if you haven’t signed a contract with the NFL team, you are not an NFL player,” Smith said. “If you haven’t been on a practice field, if you haven’t competed against NFL players, you are not an NFL player. You should be able to go back to college. That’s the one thing that I do feel.”
Smith went further, suggesting LSU wouldn’t suffer even if the SEC forced the program out.
“And oh, by the way, Notre Dame, and we got love for Notre Dame, they’re an independent,” Smith said. “LSU, you wanna throw them out the SEC? Go ahead and do it. Watch, they ain’t gonna lose. They’ll be just fine… Could you imagine Lane Kiffin as an independent? Out there in the open market for the LSU brand? Please, they’ll get paid… The SEC, sit your a– down! Sit your a– down!”
The dispute comes amid a rocky start to Kiffin’s tenure in Baton Rouge. He drew criticism during his drawn-out decision to leave Ole Miss for LSU before this season’s College Football Playoff, a move that angered fans in Oxford. The eligibility fight has only added to the scrutiny surrounding his first months running the program.
