RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. LSU head coach Lane Kiffin is no stranger to controversy.
So when ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Sunday night that if Cleveland Browns tight end Dae’Quan Wright cleared waivers he planned to sign with Kiffin and LSU thanks to an NCAA eligibility loophole that’s allowing a handful of players to go back to college and continue playing despite them having been under contract with an NFL team this offseason, it had many people riled up.
Kiffin was roasted on social media for dipping into the NFL well just weeks before LSU’s season opener. In addition to Wright, LSU is also signing former New Orleans Saints defensive lineman Zxavian Harris, who like Wright, also played for Kiffin last year at Ole Miss.
While the moves may be somewhat controversial, Kiffin defended himself to reporters on Monday.
“[We are recruiting players] through these multiple injunctions around the country, which, this is not a first time in college sports, players were granted a fifth year of eligibility in multiple sports,” Kiffin said on Monday “And through them winning their injunction and entry into the portal, they’re available to recruit. So, ourselves, like many places around the country, are recruiting them.
“At the end of the day, because of these rulings, they’re either going to play for you or they’re going to play somewhere else around the country. We made a decision to recruit them, like probably most people are.”
To Kiffin’s point, if he doesn’t sign any of the players suddenly now eligible for the 2026 season, other teams will. And if he were to sit idly by and watch those players sign with SEC opponents, those same fans giving him flack now would likely be calling him out for not trying to gain a competitive edge.
Kiffin also acknowledged that he doesn’t believe that every player not making an NFL roster should be allowed to return to college and his feelings on the current situation are because of the extraordinary circumstances.
“I think that situations are different,” Kiffin added. “In general, should NFL players come back to college? I believe — and it doesn’t necessarily matter what I believe — that answer would be no. I think every circumstance should be looked at differently. This is a very unique circumstance.
“The judge found that these players should have been told and should have known that they were going to be eligible for a fifth year, which every athlete moving forward in all sports has. They should have known that in December when they were making decisions. Had they known that, they would have stayed.”
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