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LSU appears to have stepped back from its stance in a high-stakes dispute with the Southeastern Conference, avoiding the immediate threat of expulsion after agreeing not to roster two players who had appeared on NFL preseason rosters. The pause leaves the wider question unresolved: how far a conference can go in policing member schools.
After the presidents’ call
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The SEC convened university presidents and chancellors by videoconference Thursday amid mounting legal and public attention. After the meeting the league released a brief statement saying, in part, that “those discussions will continue as the conference and its member universities work toward an appropriate resolution.”
The conference did not specify any penalties in that statement and has not confirmed whether a formal vote on expelling LSU actually occurred. The lack of detail suggests LSU will remain a member while the SEC weighs possible sanctions.
How the dispute began
The conflict centers on two players, Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, who joined a larger group of athletes seeking an extra year of NCAA eligibility in a Louisiana state-court filing in August. Both had also signed NFL preseason contracts and briefly appeared on NFL rosters before LSU added them to its program.
Conferences including the SEC responded by announcing a ban on players with recent professional ties. Wright and Harris obtained an injunction last week that protected them from penalties by both the SEC and the NCAA. In turn, the SEC filed suit against LSU in federal court, asking a judge to confirm the conference’s legal authority to punish a member school.
Moves, timing and legal escalation
Amid the uncertainty, LSU head coach Lane Kiffin did not include the two players on the Week 1 roster for the Tigers’ game against Clemson. Still, the SEC intensified its legal action, filing an amended complaint that said conference leaders planned to vote on expulsion.
LSU then altered its roster late Tuesday, adding two different players so Wright and Harris would not be eligible. The university’s president, Wade Rousse, followed on Wednesday with a letter to SEC commissioner Greg Sankey stating LSU did not intend to roster the two athletes this season. A scheduled hearing in the SEC’s federal case against LSU was postponed.
What penalties are on the table
With expulsion apparently off the immediate table, the SEC is focusing instead on disciplinary options it has previously authorized. Those measures include the power for the commissioner to suspend a head coach for up to half a season, levy fines equal to 50% of a sport’s operating budget, or strip a member of its conference voting rights.
It remains unclear whether the SEC will continue pursuing its federal lawsuit against LSU. A university spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
