Louisiana governor makes telling statement about what comes next for LSU, SEC

Louisiana governor makes telling statement about what comes next for LSU, SEC

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Louisiana governor makes telling statement about what comes next for LSU, SEC

LSU locked its 105-man football roster on Tuesday without Dae’Quan Wright or Zxavian Harris, the two former Ole Miss players at the center of its standoff with the SEC. Two days later, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said whatever comes next is up to the conference, in comments posted Thursday by OutKick’s Trey Wallace.

“It’s actually in the SEC’s hands right now,” Landry said. “LSU didn’t create the litigation in Louisiana. LSU did not create the litigation in Alabama, the SEC did. The players that wanted to play created the litigation in Louisiana.”

Wright, Harris and 40 other athletes sued the NCAA in Louisiana state court seeking a fifth year of eligibility. On Sept. 3, Judge William Jorden granted them a preliminary injunction barring the NCAA and SEC from punishing schools that roster them. Both players spent time with NFL teams this summer after playing for Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss last season, and LSU opened its season with a 51-10 win over Clemson without either one on the roster.

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Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks to an audience at Louisiana Tech University on Aug. 25, 2025.

The SEC filed its own lawsuit in federal court in Alabama that same morning, while commissioner Greg Sankey was testifying in the Baton Rouge case. The complaint names LSU’s board of supervisors, President Wade Rousse, athletic director Verge Ausberry and Kiffin, and argues that LSU’s plan violated the conference’s First Amendment right of expressive association. On Tuesday, the league amended it to seek the authority to expel LSU.

 

The SEC’s lawsuit is the one fight LSU cannot end on its own

LSU filled its last two roster spots on Tuesday with returning players Aidan Anding and Gabriel Reliford, and Rousse confirmed the move in a Wednesday letter to Sankey. “The roster is now locked for the season,” Rousse wrote. “LSU complied with SEC rules.”

The federal hearing set for Wednesday was postponed without a new date.

Removing a member takes a two-thirds vote of the league’s presidents, and LSU has belonged to the SEC since its founding in 1933.

Jul 23, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Jul 23, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

With the roster settled, the pieces still in play are the federal lawsuit and the league meeting, both of which the SEC controls.

The conference sued over what it described as LSU’s “unequivocal intent” to put Wright and Harris on the field, and Kiffin kept that option alive by submitting a 103-man roster and leaving two spots open until Tuesday.

Ryan Downton, the attorney for Wright and Harris, told ESPN on Tuesday that the players are considering their legal options.

Related Readings:

LSU president Wade Rousse sends pointed letter to SEC boss Greg Sankey

‘You got to have a mock Saturday’: Lane Kiffin makes unusual request of LSU fans days after Clemson blowout

SEC makes unprecedented move on LSU membership in amended Lane Kiffin lawsuit

 

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