The NCAA says their college careers should be over. Two judges have given LSU football and men’s basketball players another chance to play.
LSU has added a fifth-year football player and two fifth-year basketball players who are eligible to compete because of temporary restraining orders issued in two different states.
LSU football coach Lane Kiffin has added depth at defensive end with the addition of Junior Tuihalamaka, who spent the past four seasons at Notre Dame.
Tuihalamaka was a rotational player for the Fighting Irish and is expected to have a similar role at LSU, playing behind starters Princewill Umanmielen and Jordan Ross.
He recorded 55 tackles, nine tackles for loss, four sacks, two fumble recoveries and an interception over his final two seasons at Notre Dame.
Tuihalamaka was more productive as a junior when the Fighting Irish advanced to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. He had a big performance in Notre Dame’s Sugar Bowl victory over Georgia, finishing with five tackles, a sack, 2.5 tackles for loss and a fumble recovery that set up a touchdown.
A shoulder injury limited Tuihalamaka during his senior season, and he went undrafted.
Now, he’s getting another opportunity to play college football because of a temporary restraining order issued by 19th Judicial District Judge William Jorden in Baton Rouge.
Jorden’s ruling allows 33 athletes who entered college in the fall of 2022 to compete for another season.
Tuihalamaka’s eligibility is not affected by a federal appeals court ruling in Colorado that granted the NCAA a stay, temporarily pausing a lower court’s decision to give hundreds of athletes a fifth year of eligibility.
LSU men’s basketball coach Will Wade is also taking advantage of a separate court ruling as he continues to fill out his roster.
The Tigers landed point guard Donovan Dent, who was recently granted a fifth year of eligibility as part of an age-based eligibility lawsuit filed in California.
The six-foot-two Dent averaged 13 points and nearly eight assists last season at UCLA. His 265 assists ranked third nationally and were the second-most in UCLA history.
Dent spent his first three seasons at New Mexico, averaging 20 points per game as a junior and earning Mountain West Conference Player of the Year honors.
He’s the second UCLA player to commit to LSU this week. Fifth-year senior guard Skyy Clark averaged 11.5 points and two assists last season for the Bruins.
Dent and Clark are expected to sign with LSU on Monday, the first day of the fall semester.
For now, both Tuihalamaka and Dent are eligible to compete. But with the NCAA challenging the temporary restraining orders, the legal battle over their eligibility is far from over.
