Texas A&M coach Mike Elko had a blunt way of describing LSU’s showdown with the SEC over the Tigers’ attempt to roster former NFL rookies.
On his weekly radio show, Elko compared the situation to a kid pushing boundaries until the adults step in. According to On3’s Thomas Goldkamp, he said, "This is a little bit like the son figuring out where the limits are until dad comes home and raises his voice, and then the son goes, 'I was just kidding, I didn't mean any of that,'" Elko said. "I think that's what you're seeing."
The SEC had been considering a vote on expelling LSU after the program pushed to roster Dae'Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, both former NFL rookies. That possibility now appears to be off the table after LSU filled its two remaining roster spots with eligible student-athletes.
LSU did not list the players on its Week 1 roster and officially moved on from Wright and Harris earlier this week as the league’s scrutiny increased. The tension also got a boost from Lane Kiffin, who stoked the controversy during LSU’s blowout of Clemson on Saturday. With LSU up 31-3 at halftime, he told a sideline reporter to "imagine if we had pro players."
Even with all that noise, Elko said he expects the SEC and LSU to move past it.
"LSU will be in the SEC," he said. "LSU will be fired up when we go to Baton Rouge in a couple weeks.
All of those things are going to happen. This is just a little bit of parenting going on right now."
In Other News...
Mike Elko Just Twisted The Knife In LSUs SEC Drama
LSUs attempt to bring two former NFL players, Dae'Quan Weight and Zxavian Harris, onto the roster after they received injunctions to play from the state of Louisiana set off a tense SEC-side legal and competitive stir. The conference responded by filing a federal suit against LSU and Lane Kiffin, and even floated the possibility of expelling LSU from the league before the Tigers ultimately backed away from adding the players.
Texas A&M coach Mike Elko then weighed in on the mess, framing it as a discipline problem in family terms, like a parent and child going through a punishment issue. His comments only added another layer to an already messy conference dispute, one that left LSU trying to clean up the fallout while the rest of the SEC kept a close eye on how far the league was willing to go. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs SEC Clash Just Took A Strange New Turn
Lane Kiffin and LSU found themselves at the center of an odd SEC dustup after the school added NFL players to its roster under the temporary restraining order that granted certain athletes an extra year of eligibility. The move quickly drew scrutiny across the league, and the initial reaction was severe enough that the SEC floated the possibility of removing LSU from the conference over concerns about institutional control.
The league has since backed off that vote, easing the temperature around a situation that had suddenly become one of the most unusual talking points in the SEC. Texas A&M coach Mike Elko weighed in with a comparison to parental discipline, and the latest signs suggest the conflict is starting to settle, even if the fallout from LSU's roster move still lingers in the background. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Roster Decision Just Escalated Into A Bigger SEC Fight
LSUs 2026 roster picture got a little more complicated this week after commitments DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris were left off the list, a move that landed in the middle of a broader fight over player eligibility rules. Both former Ole Miss players are tied to a lawsuit challenging the NCAAs rule changes, and the case has already produced a preliminary injunction that would allow them to play in 2026.
What makes this more than a routine roster wrinkle is the role SEC commissioner Greg Sankeys demands played in the decision, turning a player eligibility dispute into a conference-level issue with LSU in the middle of it. Legal representatives for Wright and Harris have already suggested the matter may not stop there, with further action against the NCAA and SEC still on the table, including the possibility of monetary damages tied to the enforcement push. [Read more 🡒]