It’s safe to say football coach Lane Kiffin’s first season at Louisiana State University (LSU) is off to a rocky start.
Two days before LSU’s season opener against Clemson on Sept. 5, the Southeastern Conference (SEC) sued LSU and Kiffin over the team’s attempt to bring back two former Ole Miss players: Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris.
Both players went undrafted in the 2026 National Football League (NFL) Draft and signed with NFL teams before attempting to return to college. Wright signed with the Philadelphia Eagles before joining the Cleveland Browns, while Harris signed with the New Orleans Saints.
Kiffin wanted to bring the two players back to LSU after a Louisiana judge issued a preliminary injunction that temporarily protected athletes seeking to return to college after entering the professional ranks. The SEC argued that LSU could not use the injunction to bypass its conference rules.
The dispute escalated quickly, and the SEC discussed potentially removing LSU from the conference if the school continued violating its rules.
The SEC ultimately didn’t remove LSU, as the school decided not to roster the two athletes, but the lawsuit against the school remained.
As for Wright and Harris, they are unable to compete in college or pro football for the 2026 season. Although LSU didn’t roster them, the NFL deemed them ineligible to visit, try out, or sign with an NFL team since they participated with LSU after NFL training camps opened.
The situation raises a bigger question: where exactly is the line between college and professional sports?
That question comes as the NCAA is changing its eligibility rules. In June 2026, the NCAA adopted a new age-based eligibility model for Division I. Under the new system, eligible athletes can have a five-year period of eligibility based on their age and when they first enroll in college, replacing the previous four-seasons-within-five-years system and eliminating traditional redshirt and season-of-competition rules.
However, the change is being phased in. The new model applies fully to Division I athletes who first enroll in college in fall 2027 or later. Current athletes with eligibility remaining, as well as athletes first enrolling in 2026-27, are evaluated under either the previous rules or the new model, whichever is more favorable to the individual athlete.
The rule change is particularly relevant to the LSU case because Wright and Harris entered college in 2022 and had already used their four seasons of eligibility. They were among athletes arguing in court that they should still have an opportunity to return for another season under the NCAA’s new eligibility structure.
The LSU case shows that NCAA eligibility is only one piece of the puzzle. Conferences can establish their own rules, and professional leagues can have separate eligibility requirements. For Wright and Harris, being allowed to pursue another college season did not mean they could simply move between college and professional football without consequences.
The issue extends beyond LSU and Division I. Beginning with the 2026-27 academic year, Division II adopted an age-based eligibility model that mirrors the new Division I system. Athletes generally have a five-year eligibility period based on age and enrollment rather than the previous four seasons within 10 semesters or 15 quarters.
For Division II athletes at Rollins College, the change is happening now. Rollins athletes competing during the 2026-27 academic year are operating under the new eligibility model, although current athletes with eligibility remaining will have their circumstances evaluated under either the previous rules or the new model, whichever is more favorable.
The change could affect how Rollins athletes plan their college careers, particularly athletes considering transfers, delayed enrollment or how to use their remaining eligibility. It does not, however, automatically give every athlete an additional season. Athletes who exhausted their eligibility under the previous rules by the end of 2025-26 do not receive additional eligibility.
What started as two former Ole Miss players trying to return to college has become a larger debate about who controls athlete eligibility and where the boundary between college and professional sports should be drawn.
As those rules continue to evolve, athletes may have more options, but they also have more rules to navigate.
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