Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I can’t believe the college football season starts in three days. Until then, you can keep yourself occupied by waiting to see if anyone will challenge the SEC and Big Ten’s eligibility rules in court. In today’s SI:AM: 🗽 Breer’s notes from Giants camp 🤯 Misiorowski’s mind-blowing stats 🏈 Seven Heisman contendersIf you’re reading this on SI.com, click here to subscribe and receive SI:AM directly in your inbox each morning.More NCAA legal dramaThe news that a pair of NFL players are trying to join the LSU football team just got a little stranger. Two players who had been fighting for NFL roster spots—tight end Dae’Quan Wright and defensive tackle Zxavian Harris—announced their intention to sign with LSU after being waived by their NFL teams. But now the SEC and Big Ten have adopted rules that prevent players like Wright and Harris from returning to school. Wright and Harris (who both played last season at Ole Miss under current LSU coach Lane Kiffin) are part of a group of players impacted by the NCAA’s recent rule change granting players five years of eligibility. Since the rule was adopted in late June, it has sparked numerous legal challenges from athletes who began school in the fall of 2022. A July 31 ruling by a federal judge in Colorado opened the door for graduated players to go back to school, and a judge in Louisiana last week granted a temporary restraining order that allowed players on NFL rosters to enter the NCAA transfer portal. The Big Ten moved first, unanimously passing a new rule Tuesday that prevents ex-NFL players from returning to school. The SEC followed suit later in the day with a broader prohibition on former NFL, NBA and WNBA players. Interestingly, the SEC’s rule also passed unanimously, meaning LSU’s administration voted against Kiffin (and men’s basketball coach Will Wade, who added former Celtics signee RJ Luis Jr. to the Tigers’ roster). The ACC and Big 12 are poised to meet today and could pass similar rules. The conferences’ decision isn’t the end of the story, though. Darren Heitner, a sports lawyer representing Wright who has been at the forefront of the eligibility challenges, told Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger yesterday that LSU still plans to sign Wright. Ryan Downton, another lawyer representing players in the Louisiana case, told Dellenger that the NCAA should be held in contempt of court “for permitting conferences under its purview to blatantly violate court orders.”The dispute sets the stage for possible additional legal challenges. Kiffin has never been afraid to ruffle a few feathers. Will he sign Wright and Harris, and hope a court rules in his favor? Even if Kiffin decides not to push the buttons of his new bosses so early in his LSU tenure, Wright and Harris could challenge the SEC’s ban in court and possibly end up being allowed to play that way. The NCAA is understandably upset at the idea that an athlete can wear a professional uniform and then go back to wearing a college uniform. But the NCAA isn’t blameless here. Much of this mess stems from the timing of the NCAA’s change to its eligibility rules. Announcing the five-in-five rule in late June, after the NFL draft and on the same day of the first round of the NBA draft, left players in limbo. It was somewhat more straightforward for basketball players, who had time to decide between signing overseas and pursuing a return to college. Fringe NFL prospects like Wright and Harris didn’t know that college football might still be an option for them when they signed professional contracts. For them, going to training camp and fighting for a roster spot seemed like the only way to potentially continue their football careers. They might not have signed undrafted free agent contracts if the NCAA had announced the policy change before the draft. Now they’ll either be done playing football or be the most vilified players in the NCAA. The best of Sports IllustratedKevin D. Liles/Sports Illustrated (Moore); Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated (Toney); Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images (Becker)The top five…… things I saw last night: 5. A nifty diving catch in center by Mike Trout. 4. A classic blooper by the A’s infield. Five guys in white uniforms stood around and watched as an infield pop-up fell to the ground. 3. Oneil Cruz’s solo home run in the top of the ninth to break a 0–0 deadlock. Cruz is the first player to hit a homer off of Padres closer Mason Miller since the Diamondbacks’ Lourdes Gurriel Jr. on Aug. 5 last year. That’s 73 straight games and 287 batters faced between home runs. 2. Orbelín Pineda’s long-range goal to lift Monterrey over the Chicago Fire in the Leagues Cup quarterfinals. 1. Francisco Lindor’s diving catch to preserve a 2–2 tie against the Brewers. Lindor scored the winning run for the Mets in the bottom of the 10th, thanks to an errant throw by Milwaukee third baseman David Hamilton.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow