BATON ROUGE — Lane Kiffin arrived on the set of ESPN's College GameDay around 10 a.m. local time with a look of determination. He still flashed a peace sign at LSU fans who cheered him as he walked, but otherwise didn't break stride.
Draped in a white **** on down and grey slacks, Kiffin was several hours away from making his debut as Tigers head coach. But first, he had some questions to answer about a massive and consequential decision.
On Friday night, LSU decided not to add Dae'Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris to its final roster—a shocking turn after the players, as well as LSU itself, fought a legal battle for the right to take the field as Tigers.
Wright and Harris were just two of hundreds of college athletes who have sued the NCAA to challenge the implementation of its "age-based" eligibility policy, which offered a fifth year of eligibility to college athletes—but didn't include players from the freshman class of 2022 who had already completed, like them. But their lawsuit drew national news because they had signed NFL contracts, though both were waived before making regular-season roster. A multipart legal battle ensued after the SEC issued a ban on players with this NFL experience, and the players and LSU refused to back down.
In a Baton Rouge courthouse Thursday, players won an injunction to suit up Saturday—a court order that prevented both the NCAA and SEC from implementing its rules. During the nine-hour hearing—specifically when SEC commissioner Greg Sankey was on the stand—news broke that the conference had sued LSU in federal court in Alabama, adding another layer to the feud.

#baton #tigers #ncaa

'He's a child': Paul Finebaum has strong words for Lane Kiffin amid SEC lawsuit originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The ongoing feud between Paul Finebaum and Lane Kiffin took another turn on Saturday.
Hours before LSU will host Clemson in Baton Rouge, the ESPN ***** yst Paul Finebaum ripped the controversial college football coach for his willingness to add former NFL players to the Tigers roster.
The jaw-dropping moment on SEC Nation will definitely prompt a response from Kiffin. Finebaum's commentary went in on how LSU has conducted business against the wishes of the SEC and commissioner Greg Sankey, even after the conference barred NFL players from being signed by teams.
"In a time when there is absolute chaos and morale decay in our game (Sankey) stopped what would have been one of the worst moments in the history," Finebaum said.

#kiffin #sporting #source

As its standoff with LSU intensifies, the SEC is receiving some support from beyond the conference and its member universities.
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr is encouraging SEC commissioner Greg Sankey to take "all measures available" against the Tigers if they field a team featuring former NFL players returning to college, and to "use all legal means necessary to protect the University of Georgia, student athletes, and the integrity of college athletics," according to a letter from Carr to Sankey obtained by ESPN on Wednesday, Sept. 2.
Those potential punishments could escalate to suspending and/or removing LSU from the conference, of which it has been a member since the league's founding in 1932.
REQUIRED READING: LSU tested SEC's authority. The conference's response is raising eyebrows
"College athletics are for college athletes only, and we are grateful the SEC has taken swift action to maintain that standard," Carr wrote in the letter, according to ESPN. "However, the rules cannot be ignored or twisted to benefit one coach, one institution, or one program, and we refuse to stand by while that happens."

#conference #athletics

Kansas City Chiefs players Wesley Bissainthe and Omari Evans could get another chance to play college football after a recent court ruling involving the NCAA. Both players went undrafted in 2026 but later joined the Chiefs as free agents. The ruling has opened the door for players in their situation to regain college eligibility.
The case comes from a dispute over NCAA eligibility rules and an extra year of college football. A judge temporarily blocked restrictions that could have prevented the players from returning.
Chiefs' undrafted free agents Wesley Bissainthe and Omari Evans now have a chance to return to college football. The case reached court after several athletes challenged NCAA rules that could prevent them from going back to college sports. The NCAA and several major conferences had opposed the return of players who had entered a professional draft, signed with a professional team or appeared on a pro roster. The players argued that briefly moving into professional football should not cost them their college eligibility.
On Thursday, a Texas judge issued a 14-day restraining order. The order prevents the NCAA, SEC and SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey from blocking 41 athletes from returning to college sports for another season. Wesley Bissainthe and Omari Evans are among those athletes, along with Dallas Cowboys receiver Jordan Hudson.
Dec 31, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; A general view of a Kansas City Chiefs helmet after the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

#college #evans

If kicker Ethan Sanchez plays college football this season, it won't be with the University of Houston.
Sanchez, whose 21 field goals last season were the second-most in school history, will not be pursued by the Cougars for a possible return, a person with knowledge of the situation told the Houston Chronicle on Friday.
Sanchez was among 41 plaintiffs to be granted an extra year of eligibility Thursday when a Dallas judge issued a temporary restraining order that prohibits the NCAA, SEC and its commissioner Greg Sankey from stopping a group of athletes from returning to college for a fifth season.
There's more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.
This article originally published at UH won't pursue reunion with kicker Ethan Sanchez after extra year of eligibility granted.

#sanchez #kicker #granted

A Texas judge has temporarily cleared the way for more than 40 former professional athletes to return to college competition, blocking an SEC eligibility rule that had prevented them from playing this season.
Dallas County Judge Martin Hoffman issued a temporary restraining order Thursday in a lawsuit brought by 41 athletes. The order prevents the NCAA, SEC and Commissioner Greg Sankey from declaring the plaintiffs ineligible based on transfer portal rules or time spent on a professional roster.
"As long as they would have been eligible to continue playing college sports in the following semester if they had a fifth year of eligibility, they are eligible today," Hoffman wrote, according to the ******* ociated Press.
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Why coach Jeff Traylor has made 2026 a year of change for UTSA

#hoffman #professional #athletes #order

Days after the SEC adopted a ruling that barred former professional athletes from returning to college sports, a Dallas judge has signed an order that holds the NCAA, SEC and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey from keeping three athletes from returning to the college level, according to multiple reports on Thursday, Aug. 27.
The NCAA, SEC and Sankey were all named in the order signed by judge Martin Hoffman. Current NFL players Cowboys receiver Jordan Hudson, Chiefs linebacker Wesley Bissainthe and Chiefs receiver Omari Evans were among 41 players named as plaintiffs in the order, along with former student-athletes from men's and women's college basketball.
REQUIRED READING: Lane Kiffin defends recruiting 5th-year players, says they'll 'play for you or someone else'
The judge's order is the first that specifically names a conference when it comes to holding professional players from returning to college football. The order comes after each Power Four conference adopted rules against teams signing former professional players, along with harsh punishments for any team that violates the rule.
LSU football has already landed commitments from Dae'Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, two players who signed undrafted free agent contracts with NFL teams. Former Tigers edge rusher Jack Pyburn also plans to re-join LSU if he fails to make the Buccaneers' roster, per reports.

#signed

The NCAA's new 5‑in‑5 eligibility rule continues to send shockwaves through college athletics, and nowhere is the confusion more visible than in Texas A&M's still‑unfinished 2026–27 basketball roster. The past week delivered another round of twists.
First, former G‑League guard Bryson Warren was ruled ineligible by both the NCAA and the SEC. Warren secured a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) against the NCAA, but the SEC's stance remained unchanged, prompting him to enter the transfer portal and leaving the Aggies with an unexpected roster vacancy.
Meanwhile, former A&M guard Rylan Griffen awaited a ruling in his own lawsuit in the Dallas court system. On Thursday, a judge granted a TRO against the NCAA, the SEC, and commissioner Greg Sankey, effectively telling the governing bodies that if they want to challenge Griffen's eligibility, they'll have to do it in court.
The TRO doesn't prevent the SEC from issuing punishments to schools that play athletes it considers ineligible, but Griffen's case carries a key distinction. He never signed a professional contract. His only pro‑adjacent experience was a summer league deal with the Denver Nuggets, which functions more like a tryout than a guaranteed roster spot. That difference gives him a stronger argument than Warren under the current legal landscape.
Shortly after the TRO news broke, Luke Evangelist of TexAgs reported that Griffen has enrolled in classes at Texas A&M and intends to join the team. His status now hinges on a preliminary injunction hearing scheduled for September 11, which will determine whether he can compete while the broader lawsuit plays out.

#warren #roster #texas

SEC presidents approved stiff penalties to deter schools from signing players with pro experience, with one notable school sitting out: LSU.
LSU abstained from Wednesday's vote on penalties, a source familiar with the vote confirmed. That came a day after the school was part of a unanimous, 16-0 vote to enforce rules against fielding athletes who dropped out of pro leagues.
LSU football coach Lane Kiffin has recruited at least two players made NCAA eligible by a Louisiana court injunction, and LSU men's basketball coach Will Wade was pursuing another player.
Neither Kiffin, Wade nor LSU's administration has offered public comments since the Tuesday night announcement by the SEC that it would enforce the bans against pros. That announcement said commissioner Greg Sankey was "authorized to enforce this expectation with penalties." On Wednesday morning, schools were issued specifics:
• The coach suspended for half of the season.

#schools #announcement

The SEC has joined the Big Ten in preventing former NFL players and other professional athletes from returning to play college sports. The conference announced the new policy Tuesday evening following a meeting of the conference's presidents, chancellors and athletics directors in Birmingham, Alabama.
The new policy was passed unanimously after a 16-0 vote by SEC presidents. The rule's three provisions prohibit former pros from returning to campus. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey has been given the authority to penalize any program that breaks the new rules.
Tuesday's policy announcement from the SEC also comes less than 24 hours after the conference's presidents and chancellors released a statement voicing their opposition to former student-athletes returning to the college ranks after competing professionally.
The SEC announced its institutions are "not permitted" to have an athlete on its roster who has:
Previously declared for the NFL, NBA, or WNBA draft, and did not appropriately withdraw.

#tuesday #birmingham

Months after R.J. Luis announced plans to come back to college basketball and play at LSU, he finally received the court decision he wanted in order to solidify his return.
Luis was granted a temporary injunction by a Louisiana judge on Monday evening, clearing a pathway for the ex-Red Storm standout to compete in the 2026-27 season despite having signed multiple NBA contracts.
The former consensus All-American went undrafted in the 2025 NBA draft and signed a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz, then was traded to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Georges Niang and two second-round picks last August. Luis appeared in three preseason games with the Celtics before he was waived by the team and inked an Exhibit-10 deal to play for their G-League affiliate, the Maine Celtics, but he missed all of last season with an injury.
According to ESPN, Luis's attorneys argued at the hearing that he had not competed in an NBA or G-League regular season game and that he had far less professional experience than other college players who signed from leagues abroad, while the NCAA's representation countered that Luis chose to leave college for the NBA, unlike other international signings.
Days before Luis's hearing, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey wrote to a Louisiana courthouse arguing that athletes like the ex-St. John's standout who have signed professional contracts should not be allowed to compete in college sports.

#luis #season #compete

On Wednesday, WDRB's Eric Crawford reported that many power conference commissioners voiced their opinions on the court rulings allowing the class of 2022 athletes another year of eligibility and the opportunity to transfer.
Among the commissioners, the SEC's Greg Sankey was firm in his stance on the matter. The commissioners of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, and Pac-12 also all joined together against the court case in Kentucky.
"Their joint declaration was among documents filed Tuesday in Jefferson Circuit Court, where Judge Brian Edwards is considering a request from 13 athletes seeking another season of NCAA eligibility," Crawford wrote.
The biggest concern among the commissioners is that the return of the athletes would create "significant roster instability" for the schools and across the sports. This stance by these conference leaders greatly affects Kentucky because Kentucky's 5-for-5target, Mark Mitchell, is in this group of athletes fighting for another year and the ability to transfer.
In a nutshell, Sankey is doing his best to prevent Mitchell from transferring to Kentucky.

#crawford #sankey #eligibility

An Alabama jury determined on Thursday, August 20 that former Alabama men's basketball player Kai Spears was defamed by The New York Times for an article that inaccurately linked him to the scene of a fatal shooting.
As part of the ruling, which came after five hours of deliberation and two weeks of testimony in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Spears was awarded $9.25 million in damages.
In March 2023, the newspaper reported that Spears, a walk-on that season for the top-ranked Crimson Tide, was in the passenger seat of former Alabama star and current Charlotte Hornets forward Brandon Miller's car during the deadly shooting of Jamea Harris in Tuscaloosa. It was later revealed that the passenger in the car was a team manager, not Spears.
REQUIRED READING: SEC commissioner Greg Sankey voices objections to pro athletes returning to college
Spears filed a lawsuit against the outlet for defamation and "false light" invasion of privacy, claiming it caused him emotional distress for linking his name to a high-profile murder. The Times later issued a correction and added an editor's note following Spears' lawsuit.

#later

A remark in Bret Bielema's introductory statement Tuesday at Big Ten Media Days lingered until he was asked about it. When the question arrived minutes later, he knew what he had done.
"Well, I think I just made the headline, right?"
Yes, but not only that — the sixth-year Illinois head coach also stoked the flames of a fiery debate about college football's most dominant conference.
While at the podium discussing the sport's ever-changing landscape, Bielema conveyed his excitement about the state of both his program and the game overall. Soon after that, he took a swing at the SEC, the conference he coached in for five seasons from 2013-17 as Arkansas' frontman.
"They kind of want to live in 2005 forever," he noted mid-sentence. That line followed Bielema touting the vision of Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and acknowledging that his former commissioner, Greg Sankey, has to protect the SEC.

#well #soon

The 2026 Southeastern Conference Spring Academic Honor Roll includes 95 student-athletes from the University of Florida, according to Tuesday's announcement by league commissioner Greg Sankey.
The 2026 SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll is based on grades from the 2025-26 summer, fall and spring terms.
Florida's Big 12 champion lacrosse team leads all sports with 24 student-athletes on the SEC Academic Honor Roll, followed by the baseball team, which has 16 members earning spots on the honor roll. Next up is the men's track and field squad with 14 members and the women's track and field team — which won the SEC Triple Crown this season (SEC ***** les for cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field) — with 11 who made the cut.
The Gators' softball team, which made it to the super regionals this year, earned nine spots on the SEC Academic Honor Roll. Other sport honoree numbers included seven for both women's and men's golf, six for men's tennis and one for women's tennis.
Florida placed a total of 291 student-athletes on the 2025-26 SEC Fall (142), Winter (54) and Spring Academic Honor Rolls combined.

DENVER — College football leaders gathered to debate the merits of expanding to 24 or 16 playoff teams. They need more time, though, to sort out the details of what could be the most important number — money.
Rich Clark, the executive director of the College Football Playoff, said the meetings between commissioners and a few others were “very healthy” but didn’t lead to anything concrete.
“We’ve got a lot on the table to just help us to continue to move the ball forward,” Clark said. “We have a little homework to do coming out of there. ... We have a good idea what we need to bring back to them to help them with their decisions.”
They will keep studying the impact that expanding the playoff from 12 to 16 or 24 teams could have on venues, the schedule, the future of now-imperiled conference ***** le games. And, of course, how much extra games might go for on the open market.
Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey has lobbied for 16 teams, while Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference leaders widely have agreed on their preference for a 24-team scenario that the Big Ten first put forward and still supports.

The NCAA ended up having it both ways in the Brendan Sorsby case. First, it successfully pushed him to the NFL. Second, it seized on the political momentum coming from last week's ruling that restored his eligibility.
As a result, the so-called "Protect College Sports Act" is moving forward in the Senate. But there's still a glitch — neither the SEC nor the Big Ten are happy with the current version of the bill.
Via Amanda Christovich of Front Office Sports, the bill retains the ability for FBS programs to pool media rights and sell them as a package, if at least 75 percent of FBS schools agree to do it.
“We are not opposed to other conferences and universities exploring and opting in to media pooling,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey told the conference's members this week, per Christovich. “However, the media pooling, as written, exposes the SEC to potential lawsuits forcing the conference into the media pooling practice. . . . It forces the SEC and Big Ten to either play intraconference postseason tournaments or play only other non-pooling conferences or universities in the postseason to replace the CFP.”
The two conferences also oppose a portion of the bill that would prevent them from merging into a combined superleague.

The SEC might not possess the best football team, but it has the deepest conference “by far.” That’s commissioner Greg Sankey’s opinion.
Athlon Sports doesn’t seem to agree.
The preseason magazine had Ohio State No. 1 in its preseason rankings, and the Big Ten tied the SEC with eight teams in its top 25.
The SEC did gain a feather in its cap with five teams tucked inside the top 10.
No. 2 Georgia and No. 3 Texas gave the SEC representation inside the top five.