LSU’s path to adding former NFL players Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris got a lot messier on Thursday, even after a Louisiana judge ruled in favor of dozens of athletes trying to regain college eligibility.
The ruling opened the door for former NFL players to return to college football after entering the draft process, and in some cases after signing NFL contracts. For LSU, that meant a win for transfers Wright and Harris. But the SEC’s lawsuit against LSU and Lane Kiffin quickly complicated the picture, and with rosters due by Friday afternoon, there’s now at least some uncertainty around how fast - or even whether - the Tigers will move.
LSU System President Dr. Wade Rousse did not offer a clean answer.
In a statement posted to X, he said: “LSU respects the judicial process and the court’s decision. Our responsibility is to support our programs while complying with the law and the rules governing our conference.
We will carefully review the court’s order and continue to work constructively with the SEC and NCAA as this matter moves forward. College football does not deserve this kind of ambiguity in eligibility standards, this is just another illustration that congress needs to pass a version of the Protect College Sports Act.”
That language matters. Rousse stopped short of guaranteeing that Harris and Wright would be added to the roster, even though that has been the expectation.
If Kiffin had his way, there would be no mystery. The SEC’s lawsuit, though, says Kiffin and LSU officials were deeply involved in recruiting the professional players and allegedly encouraged them to challenge the NCAA over eligibility. The conference argues that at minimum, that creates a conflict of interest and could damage the sport.
That may be why Rousse’s statement reads so carefully. LSU may not want to rush into anything if there’s a chance the SEC could win in court later and leave the program exposed to sanctions.
So the door is open, but the situation is far from settled. Harris and Wright still appear to have a route onto LSU’s roster, and the expectation is they’ll play for Kiffin in 2026. It just may not happen with the kind of clean, straightforward process LSU hoped for.
No. 11 LSU hosts Clemson at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday on ABC.
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