Texas HC Steve Sarkisian did not need to mention Lane Kiffin by name. Everyone knew where his comments were headed. With LSU preparing to bring former NFL players into its roster and the SEC fighting in court over whether those players can play, Sarkisian made his position clear Monday.
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“The fact that somebody out there is going to take a player off an NFL roster and tell somebody who’s been doing it for nine months to go kick rocks-that doesn’t sit well with me,” Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said. “I think that’s wrong. That is morally wrong. So I think our presidents, ADs, and chancellors got it right, and we’ll support it, and we’ll follow up.”
That argument might have landed differently if Texas did not have its own connection to the same eligibility mess. The comment immediately drew attention to LSU and Kiffin, who has been the most aggressive coach in the country when it comes to this new eligibility loophole.
“Texas quite literally has a player on the roster who has done this exact thing; also Texas has the second most plaintiffs in these cases in the entire country right behind California,” a user wrote on X.
Cole Hutson is a pretty clear example of why this whole eligibility fight has become so messy. The Texas offensive lineman went through the 2026 NFL Draft without hearing his name called, then tried his hand with the pros. He took part in rookie minicamps with both the Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys, but neither team gave him a contract.
Instead of walking away from football, Hutson went to court looking for another season at Texas. A federal judge eventually cleared the way for him to return, and the Longhorns brought him back for 2026. His case isn’t identical to Dae’Quan Wright’s or the other players caught in the current SEC fight, but he did leave college, pursue an NFL opportunity and then return to Austin after the courts opened the door. A user pointed to just that about Sarkisian, who is on an $80.5 million contract till 2031.
Locked on LSU’s Matt Moscona used that example and shared a screenshot of his elegibility fight info from Wikipedia, seemingly targeting Steve Sarkisian. Another user simply wrote: “Someone should remind Sark that he has an NFL player who was in multiple NFL mini-camps in his offensive line room.”
The criticism is not entirely fair if the argument is that Hutson and LSU’s players are identical. They are not. Hutson did not sign an NFL contract, while Wright did. Wright played for Kiffin at Ole Miss before signing with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent. After the Eagles waived him, the Browns claimed Wright, and he later joined LSU’s program.
Still, Sarkisian’s larger point about taking a roster spot from an established player gets awkward when his own team benefited from a court ruling that brought Hutson back.
Sarkisian himself previously explained why he viewed Hutson differently. Hutson had already spent four years at Texas and knew the program, the coaches and the offensive line room. That made his return easier for Sarkisian to accept than bringing in an outsider. That distinction may make sense inside a locker room. It does not completely erase the criticism coming from fans.
“He was literally the first one to do it,” a user on X remarked about the Texas head coach.
Kiffin is still taking the opposite approach. The SEC passed a rule barring players with certain professional football or basketball ties from returning to college. The Big Ten adopted a similar restriction, while the ACC and Big 12 have also taken steps against the practice. The rules are already being challenged in court.
A Louisiana judge has temporarily blocked the SEC from enforcing its restriction against the players involved in the LSU case. A hearing is expected to determine what happens next. Kiffin said LSU’s player leadership committee supported bringing in players who could make the team better.