“Just Wrong”: Attorney In LSU Athletes' Eligibility Lawsuits Sends Blunt Lane Kiffin Message

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The public conversation surrounding Lane Kiffin has once again intensified. This time, the new LSU head coach is under fire for his attempts to get former pros to play for him at Baton Rouge. However, according to the attorney for the players seeking to play for Kiffin, the LSU head coach is not to blame for the whole fiasco.

“I’ve never met him; I may have seen him in public, Lane Kiffin,” Tony Clayton said during the WAFB podcast on August 29, when asked what he feels about Lane Kiffin’s decision to let the former NFL players play.

“I’ve spoken to him over the phone a time or two, but I don’t know the guy. And to put Lane Kiffin in this mix, they’re wrong. I mean, it’s not him. He’s not running this show. He didn’t orchestrate it. This was the lawyer calling me. We met with those young folks, and we put this together.”

“So to blame the LSU coach, they’re just wrong. From what I hear about this guy, he stays 24/7 with his head in the sand studying football, and that’s where he ought to be. But that’s it; it’s just not accurate to say that LSU has anything to do with what they may experience as some ramifications of these players, but controlling what we do as lawyers hasn’t just happened.”

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Tony Clayton, the Louisiana attorney, represented a class of 33 LSU athletes in a massive eligibility battle against the NCAA. While Kiffin can be called out for a lot of things from his earlier tenures at Tennessee, USC, and Ole Miss, the latest drama is not his doing. Neither did he go out of his way to manufacture the moves, nor did he initiate them. Multiple judges in Louisiana and Texas have issued TROs and injunctions against the NCAA.

Kiffin pointed out on The Pat McAfee Show that over 100 athletes nationwide were cleared by judges. He argued that a conference or school that ignores a valid court order would put itself in a legally perilous position. Besides, Kiffin is unfazed by this drama. His only aim is to make sure his debut in Louisiana is memorable.

“Whoever the first player committed to was going to be the poster child,” Kiffin said. This is going to be Lane Kiffin, and LSU is doing something nobody else is doing.”

The ultimate proof that Kiffin was “not wrong” came when the SEC officially backed down. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey had initially threatened devastating penalties against LSU. It included massive budget cuts and a half-season suspension for Kiffin if they put former NFL players on the roster.

However, a Louisiana judge explicitly blocked these penalties by issuing a TRO. The SEC announced it would fully comply with the court orders. It effectively gave LSU the green light to add players like Wright and Harris to its roster. However, the question of whether the SEC can enforce rules banning such moves remains unresolved.

This fallout stems from a major courtroom showdown involving the NCAA’s newly approved “5-for-5” eligibility rule. Several members of the class of 2022 sued the NCAA for an extra year of eligibility and got an injunction. But the most aggressive pushback came when LSU signed players who were about to play preseason games.

After Kiffin successfully landed commitments from former NFL training camp players like tight end Dae’Quan Wright and defensive tackle Zxavian Harris, the Power Four conferences rushed to block such moves.

In a direct response to Kiffin’s recruiting, the Big Ten and SEC unanimously voted. They quickly passed emergency bylaws banning any players who have signed professional contracts from returning to college sports.

In an official joint statement, conference leadership heavily criticized the practice. “Allowing that to occur will blur the line between college and professional sports and create significant competitive equity concerns,” they said. College sports are for college athletes.”

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