By: Michael Spiers

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

Welcome to college football in 2026.

On Saturday night, LSU looked like one of the best teams in America, dismantling Clemson 51-10 in Lane Kiffin’s debut.

By Tuesday, the Tigers had climbed to No. 8 in the AP poll. And on that same day, the Southeastern Conference was preparing for a meeting that could potentially result in LSU being kicked out of the league. You can’t make this stuff up.

The dispute centers around Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, two former Ole Miss players who signed NFL contracts and spent time with professional teams this summer before attempting to return to college football at LSU.

The SEC says they shouldn’t be eligible. A Louisiana judge has ruled, at least temporarily, that they can play. LSU didn’t use either player against Clemson, but the fight has continued anyway.

And naturally, Lane Kiffin couldn’t resist having a little fun with it.

With LSU leading Clemson 31-3 at halftime Saturday, Kiffin joked during his television interview, “Imagine if we had pro players.”

I’m guessing SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey didn’t find that nearly as funny as Kiffin did.

Now the situation has escalated to the point where SEC presidents and chancellors are scheduled to meet and potentially consider LSU’s future in the conference.

We’re talking about LSU here. A founding member of the SEC. One of the biggest brands in college football; Tiger Stadium, national championships and generations of SEC history.

Personally, I think kicking LSU out would be a massive overreaction. But I also understand the SEC’s position.

A conference has to be able to make rules and expect its members to follow them. If the schools agree on an eligibility rule and one member can simply go to court and have that rule blocked, how does the conference govern itself?

But that’s also why this story is about much more than LSU. College football has changed almost everything about itself in a remarkably short period of time without developing a system capable of governing what it has become.

NIL changed the financial landscape. The transfer portal changed roster building. Revenue sharing changed the relationship between players and schools. Eligibility rules continue to be challenged in court.

And every time the NCAA or a conference tries to draw a line, someone seems ready to file another lawsuit.

So, who’s actually in charge of college football? The NCAA? The conferences? The schools? The courts? I’m not sure anybody knows anymore.

I don’t blame the players for taking advantage of every opportunity available to them. I don’t necessarily blame LSU for challenging a rule it believes is wrong. And I certainly don’t blame the SEC for believing membership in its conference should require following conference rules.

But college football desperately needs some consistency. That’s the bigger story here.

The crazy part is that LSU might actually be really good. The Tigers just embarrassed Clemson and suddenly look like a legitimate playoff contender.

Yet only a few days later, we’re barely talking about football.

Instead, we’re wondering whether one of the SEC’s founding members could actually be thrown out of the conference.

That’s college football in 2026. LSU may be ready to compete for an SEC championship.

First, apparently, the Tigers have to make sure they’re still in the SEC.