By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
Former Cleveland Browns rookie tight end Dae’Quan Wright – the first NFL roster member in history to return to a college team – practiced with LSU on Monday morning for the first time, LSU coach Lane Kiffin said at a press conference on Monday afternoon.
Wright, who was dressed out for a game with Cleveland last Aug. 22, was cut by the Browns on Aug. 23, cleared waivers, then committed and signed with the Tigers and enrolled at LSU, where classes began on Aug. 24. Wright (6-foot-4, 255 pounds) played for Ole Miss last season when Kiffin was the head coach there. He caught 39 passes for 635 yards last season with five touchdowns.
LSU already has star junior tight end and preseason All-American Trey’Dez Green, who caught 33 passes for 433 yards and seven touchdowns last season. But both could be used in alignments.
“It was a walk-through, but he (Wright) practiced this morning,” Kiffin said. “He practiced. The SEC knows that. The SEC’s new rules do not prohibit that.”
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey released new rules and punishments last Tuesday that banned any players who had signed with NFL, NBA or WNBA teams from returning to college to play. Sankey’s grandstanding was against recent temporary restraining orders (TROs) by various judges allowing players who began their college careers in 2022, such as Wright, involved in an elibility lawsuit against the NCAA. Sankey then backed down on Saturday and said he would comply with the TROs, pending a hearing on Thursday in Baton Rouge in connection with those TROs.
Wright could be cleared to continue at LSU in that Thursday hearing, or he could be ruled ineligible, along with many of the other athletes listed as plaintiffs in the suit against the NCAA. If Wright gets a favorable ruling Thursday, he conceivably could play on Saturday when the No. 11 Tigers host No. 23 Clemson in Tiger Stadium (6:30 p.m., ABC).
The NCAA has an acclimatization process for all late signees of five days, so since Wright began practicing on Monday, he could be ready for Saturday, according to the NCAA, but Kiffin would still have to deem him ready to play by Friday afternoon when he sends his player list to the SEC office.
Another player in that lawsuit freed to play for 2026 through a TRO who has transferred to LSU and is also practicing is Junior Tuihalamaka, a senior edge rusher from Notre Dame. He has not been on any NFL rosters this spring or summer and has been practicing with the Tigers since last week. So he could play against Clemson on Saturday.
JACK PYBURN IS NOW A KANSAS CITY CHIEF
Meanwhile, former LSU 2025 edge rusher Jack Pyburn, who is also in the eligibility lawsuit, had said he would return to LSU if he was cut by the NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Pyburn was cut on Sunday after he had played three preseason games for the Bucs and led the NFL with six sacks. But on Monday, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Pyburn on waivers, and he is now a Chief.
LSU also has a commitment from defensive tackle Zxavian Harris, another former Ole Miss player under Kiffin who was on the Saints roster this summer before getting cut early this month. He has not yet practiced with the Tigers.
CORNERBACK BLAKE COTTON COULD BE LSU’s NEXT NFL PLAYER
And Kiffin may have another former NFL roster member also in the eligibility lawsuit against the NCAA practicing soon. That is former Utah cornerback Blake Cotton (6-2, 195). Cotton signed with Denver as an undrafted free agent on June 18 and was released on Aug. 3. Cotton started eight games last season for Utah, making 30 tackles with seven pass breakups.
“It doesn’t mean that anyone would start.
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