LSU officials had absolutely no comment on Tuesday when asked about the SEC’s latest move to keep its federal lawsuit against the school alive. That silence came right after the SEC filed a fierce response opposing LSU’s motion to dismiss the whole thing, hitting the Oct. 13 deadline handed down by U.S. District Judge Annemarie Carney Axon. The conference isn’t backing down, making it crystal clear they think this fight is way bigger than just two former players or one meeting.
This Ain’t Just About Two Guys: The SEC’s Big Bombshell
The SEC’s latest filing insists this entire mess goes way beyond the eligibility of Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, those two former professional football players, or even that Sept. 10 meeting with conference presidents and chancellors. Nope, the conference is arguing LSU’s motion to dismiss needs to get tossed out. They’re stating, straight up, that “A live controversy exists between the parties and no doctrine prevents this Court from adjudicating the SEC’s claims against Defendants.” Think about that. They’re not just arguing a point, they’re laying down the law, saying the court absolutely has to hear this out.
The conference isn’t holding back, either. They’re claiming this lawsuit tackles LSU’s alleged total “lack of institutional control” over its athletic programs. Plus, they’re calling out LSU’s “ongoing defiance of the Conference’s Professionalism Rules.” And if that wasn’t enough, the SEC is worried about a “very real threat” that LSU will try to “interfere with any effort to terminate LSU’s membership in the Conference.” This isn’t just a minor disagreement, folks. This is a full-blown war over institutional power and compliance.
LSU’s Defense Doesn’t Cut It, Says the SEC
LSU has been trying to get this lawsuit thrown out, arguing that since those two players, Wright and Harris, never even made it onto their football roster, and the Sept. 10 league meeting went down without a hitch, there’s no real dispute left. But the SEC is having none of it. They maintain that neither of those factors actually resolves the “broader dispute” that’s at the heart of their claims.
The SEC’s filing hammers home that “This case addresses a broader dispute: Defendants’ complete lack of institutional control over LSU’s athletic programs, their ongoing defiance of the Conference’s Professionalism Rules, and the very real threat…that Defendants will interfere with any effort to terminate LSU’s membership in the Conference.” They originally filed this lawsuit back on Sept. 3 in Alabama’s U.S. District Court, looking to protect their First Amendment right of expressive association, which includes their ability to disassociate from LSU without interference. In this latest filing, the SEC doubles down, arguing their claims are “not moot” and are “ripe for adjudication,” meaning the circumstances haven’t changed enough to make the legal issues disappear. They’re also pushing back hard on arguments about sovereign immunity, jurisdiction, and venue, insisting the federal court in Alabama is absolutely the right place for this case.
This whole legal drama started because LSU was pursuing Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, former Ole Miss players who’d spent time with NFL teams. Even though neither player ended up on LSU’s roster, the SEC clearly sees it as a symptom of a much larger problem. What’s next? We’re all waiting to see if Judge Axon agrees with LSU that this should be dismissed, or if the SEC successfully keeps this bombshell lawsuit on the table.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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