As the SEC entrenched itself deeper in a battle with LSU on Tuesday by seeking the legal authority to potentially expel the Tigers from the conference, you could almost hear the cries emanating from the bayou. That's what many LSU fans want to know, as the SEC has chosen to wage war against the Tigers in a way it never has against a member institution before. The answer is that it's not just about stopping LSU from pushing the boundaries now over a couple of former quasi-professionals who don't look all that much different than a litany of other former Class of 2022 athletes who will be playing college sports this year.
It's about the SEC's ability to police its membership after LSU sought to break a recently implemented conference rule that bans players who have signed NFL, NBA or WNBA contracts. That will be of little solace to LSU fans who feel singled out. But the Tigers are basically pawns in a big-picture battle.
Although it lacks the greater context of a historic moment in college sports, the whataboutism of LSU's frustration is understandable. Coaches and programs around college sports -- and others within the SEC -- have been pushing the boundaries on eligibility and compensation rules for generations. In the NIL and mass-transfer portal era, it has often felt like whoever can create or capitalize on a new loophole the fastest is best positioned for success.
Where was the SEC's fervor to self-police member schools back when Tennessee's attorney general sued the NCAA over its NIL rules? What about the multitude of other schools in both football and basketball that are rostering fifth-year players from the Class of 2022 who needed lawyers to get them eligible? The SEC isn't threatening those schools with expulsion.
Go back in time to the pre-NIL era, and the list of recruiting scandals involving SEC member institutions starts to read like a mafia rap sheet. Where were the league's threats of expulsion and other stiff penalties then? Alabama ($115K for Means), Arkansas (booster paid no-show jobs), Auburn (Eric Ramsey tapes), Florida (Pell slush fund), Georgia (Harrick academic fraud), Kentucky (cash for Chris Mills), Ole Miss (Freeze debacle), Tennessee (cash in Chick-fil-A bags) ... but sure, kick LSU out.
All that used to mostly be the NCAA's job. Now that the NCAA is powerless to enforce its own rules, the SEC is attempting to stand in the gap in a way that it has never needed to before. It should also be noted that the league has put its foot down over a similar issue within the past year.
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