We're all waiting for the lawsuit nonsense to stop and the games to begin. But at the same time, this particular set of lawsuit nonsense is pretty entertaining.
The SEC has filed a federal lawsuit against LSU, with president Wade Rousse, AD Verge Ausberry, and head coach Lane Kiffin named as defendants, against the school's attempts to roster players who signed NFL contracts. In the lawsuit, the SEC accused Kiffin of recruiting players to play for LSU this season. The players were not named, but are widely known to be former Ole Miss/Browns tight end Dae'Quan Wright, former Ole Miss/Saints defensive lineman Xzavian Harris, and former LSU/Buccaneers defensive end Jack Pyburn. Pyburn was picked up on waivers by the Kansas City Chiefs and is no longer attempting a return to LSU; Wright and Harris are trying to play for the 11th-ranked Tigers in their opener against Clemson, barely more than 48 hours from now.
“Defendants waged a deliberate and coordinated campaign to recruit professional athletes to play football for LSU during the 2026-27 season, including players who had signed NFL contracts with the Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers,” the SEC stated in its complaint, filed in the US District Court for Northern Alabama.
Kiffin has defended the move, arguing that lawsuits granted the eligibility of former Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and current Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and were not contested by the SEC.
The SEC and other conferences have hastily constructed rules preventing ex-professional athletes to return to college athletics, and is expected to argue that it is allowed to create rules separate from the NCAA, and thus is not party to temporary restraining orders against the NCAA. Any coach who rosters a former pro athlete as defined by the conference's rule would face a half-season suspension. Others within the conference have discussed refusing to play schools who do not comply with the rule, up to and including expulsion from the conference.
The SEC asks the US District Court to “enter a preliminary and permanent injunction prohibiting Defendants from violating the Conference’s First Amendment rights by compelling the Conference to associate with conduct that is contrary to the Conference’s purpose and mission," according to language obtained by On3.
The SEC and LSU are expected to appear in court in Louisiana before the judge that granted Wright, Harris and others the right to return to college football, and so it's possible a ruling there would make the federal lawsuit a moot point. Either way, the SEC's legal goal is similar to the one the Big 12 pursued in getting Texas Tech to cut ties with Brendan Sorsby: increase the risk of playing the player(s) in question to a point where the juice is no longer worth the squeeze.