Will the SEC prevent NFL players from competing in college football?

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

The Southeastern Conference's executive members met on a videoconference Monday evening and have released a joint statement regarding recent eligibility developments, including multiple NFL players returning for another collegiate season.

This conundrum began when a Colorado judge ruled that players from the class of the 2022-23 academic year would be eligible for a fifth year of college football. Since then, new milestones have been achieved on the professional and collegiate level, but not in a good way.

After gearing up and playing for the Cleveland Browns in the NFL preseason, former Ole Miss tight end Dae'Quan Wright was waived so he could return to claim his fifth year of eligibility, just not with the Rebels. Wright is looking to join Lane Kiffin's squad down in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU also secured a commitment from former Ole Miss defensive lineman Zxavian Harris, who claimed he is making a "business decision" to play with the Tigers, after being waived by the New Orleans Saints last month.

Unfortunately, this is where we are in college football.

The whirlwind of decisions, rulings and lawsuits has brought the changing landscape of college athletics into a dark realm many, including myself, would have never imagined. It is a serious threat to the current athletes who are doing things the correct way. However, what is the "right" way to go about things anymore? As a player, if you want to get your way, all you have to do is take the NCAA to court. That is the status of the college football landscape, but it must change fast.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey and others in the conference have taken transparent stances on subjects like NIL, the transfer portal and the developing conflicts with NFL players looking to rejoin college football. Their joint statement disagrees with the decision, but there are no signs of moves to stop these transfers from occurring.

Will the SEC actually implement any rulings to prevent this from happening? That remains the overarching question after the league released this statement on Monday night. Sankey has stated before that no players will be allowed to transfer within the conference, but both Wright and Harris are aiming to transfer "out" of Oxford. Will the conference fold on its regulations? There are too many questions, not enough answers and chaos in college football.

Texas A&M is slated to travel to play LSU again this season in Tiger Stadium and will face Wright and Harris on September 26, if they are granted their respective requests to return to the collegiate level.

Kiffin had some strong words for those opposing the ruling when asked about the program recruiting these players who are in the NFL and chasing eligibility.

"At the end of the day, because of these rulings, they're either going to play for you or they're going to play for someone else around the country," Kiffin said. "So we've made the decision to recruit them like probably most people are."

While it does make things extremely frustrating for those teams not recruiting these players, if the NCAA is allowing it, why not? It is every team for themselves. Time will tell if the SEC could potentially shut the operation down before the upcoming season, but something must be implemented to prevent this from happening moving forward, or it will be another poison that college football has yet to cure.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Dylan on X: @dylanmflippo.

This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Will the SEC prevent NFL players from competing in college football?

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos