BATON ROUGE, La. — SEC leaders believe that some form of punishment for LSU remains necessary even with expulsion off the table, a senior conference football administrator told USA TODAY Sports.
The conference created the available penalties by a vote that LSU chose not to take part in. In late August, the presidents and chancellors approved an enforcement framework by a count of 15-0, with LSU abstaining. A head coach may face a suspension of up to half a season. A school could be fined up to 50% of that sport’s annual operating budget. Voting rights on league matters might be revoked. Commissioner Greg Sankey also has the authority to impose additional sanctions.
LSU President Wade Rousse abstained a second time on the two memoranda that explained to member schools how those penalties would be applied.
“No SEC President or Chancellor voted against the direction set forth in these two memoranda,” Sankey said in an affidavit filed last week.
LSU’s football budget exceeded $50 million during the 2024-25 fiscal year, according to documents reviewed by USA TODAY Sports.
SEC Bylaws Allow a Fine of Up to 50% of an Operating Budget
An SEC football official noted that Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris had practiced with coach Lane Kiffin‘s team before LSU left both of them off its final 105-man roster, and said that a fine over that would not be a problem.
Several SEC officials pointed to the way the Big Ten handled Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh in 2023 as a possible model. Harbaugh served a three-game conference suspension that covered the regular-season finale against Ohio State.
“The Big Ten suspended Harbaugh from the Ohio State game,” one of those officials told USA TODAY Sports, raising it as an option for LSU’s Sept. 19 game at Ole Miss.
The senior administrator said that he has spoken with a couple of other athletic directors about the case.
“I hope they’ll suspend Lane. If not, he won’t feel it and won’t care,” the administrator told USA TODAY Sports.
Not everyone at that level of the conference is looking for the same outcome. Another upper-level SEC football supervisor said Kiffin should not have gone against the conference the way he did, called it a bad look, and said he is glad the league isn’t taking the matter any further.
“I ain’t standing on the table for it,” that supervisor told USA TODAY Sports of a two-game suspension.
Kiffin said on “College GameDay” on Sept. 5, the day before LSU opened against Clemson, that he had to make a decision for the big picture at LSU given the uncertainty that adding Wright and Harris could have created.
“That wasn’t easy,” Kiffin said.
Will Wade And LSU Basketball Are Part Of The Conference’s Concerns
The SEC football officials told USA TODAY Sports that the issue extends well beyond Kiffin and the football program. LSU men’s basketball coach Will Wade has also explored adding former professional players, raising concerns among conference leaders about compliance across the entire athletic department.
Wade signed former St. John’s forward RJ Luis Jr. in May. Luis went undrafted in 2025 and signed with the Utah Jazz. He was later traded to the Boston Celtics and appeared in three preseason games. East Baton Rouge Parish District Court Judge Ronald R. Johnson granted Luis a preliminary injunction last month that declared him eligible for the 2026-27 season. Luis averaged 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds at St. John’s during the 2024-25 season and was named the Big East Player of the Year.
Wade returned to LSU on March 26 after spending one season at NC State. He had previously coached the Tigers from 2017 to 2022 before he was fired.
LSU has also added former UCLA guards Donovan Dent and Skyy Clark, both of whom are pursuing a fifth season of eligibility in court.
The 15-0 vote covered athletes who had signed with the NFL, NBA, WNBA, or G League. The SEC’s federal case against LSU remains pending, and its request for a temporary restraining order has not been reset.
