Louisiana State University (LSU) filled out its 105-man roster for the 2026 college football season without including two players with professional experience.
According to ESPN, LSU used the last two open roster spots on cornerback Aidan Anding and defensive end Gabriel Reliford. Both of these players played for the Tigers last year.
With these two returning players, tight end Dae’Quan Wright and defensive tackle Zxavian Harris will not be able to join the team.
Wright and Harris, who played at Ole Miss under current LSU head coach Lane Kiffin, signed professional contracts with NFL teams.
Wright signed with the Cleveland Browns and Harris with the New Orleans Saints, but both were cut and did not remain with their teams through the NFL’s final roster cuts.
A Louisiana judge legally cleared the two players to seek a fifth year of eligibility after issuing a preliminary injunction stopping the NCAA and SEC from enforcing their new eligibility rules.
In June, the NCAA restricted college athletic eligibility to five seasons within a five-year eligibility period. The SEC implemented a rule in August that stops players who have signed a professional contract or been on a professional roster from being eligible to play in the conference.
Ryan Downton, the attorney for former Ole Miss players, told ESPN that they “are considering their legal options.”
ESPN reporter Adam Schefter said on social media that Wright “still is waiting to hear from the NFL about whether he is eligible to play this season.”
“He never signed with LSU nor joined its roster, and his agent Drew Rosenhaus said multiple teams are now interested in signing him,” he added.
LSU’s final roster additions come before the SEC meets on Thursday to decide whether to expel LSU from the conference, as the school continues to fight the conference over its new eligibility rule.
SEC filed its lawsuit against LSU last week and is asking a judge to issue an injunction preventing the school from rostering or playing players who have signed professional contracts.
“An injunction is necessary to prevent the irreparable harm that the SEC will suffer if it cannot remove a member to avoid association of the Conference’s name, brand, championships, and media properties with the conduct and views that the Conference and its member institutions have condemned for decades,” an updated court filing from the SEC says.
In reaction to the threat of LSU being expelled from the SEC, Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) said, “Throwing LSU out of the SEC would be bone-deep-down-to-the-marrow-stupid.”
“Rocks in my driveway are smarter than that. What planet did the leaders at the SEC just parachute in from? Those people need to change their meds. College sports need commonsense eligibility rules,” Kennedy explained.
On Monday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, retired attorney Mark Pulliam said the SEC’s lawsuit will be “ laughed out of court.”
“It kinda shows that you guys are an evil empire restricting competition, trying to crush people who won’t go along with the program,” he added.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at [email protected].
Photo “LSU Stadium” by Spatms. CC BY-SA 4.0.
