Lane Kiffin Reacts to 'Villain' Label After Recruiting NFL's Dae'Quan Wright, Zxavian Harris to LSU

LSU head coach Lane Kiffin isn't concerned with labels as he tries to restore his team to national championship contention.

During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, Kiffin was asked about the "villain" label he's received since landing commitments from former Cleveland Browns tight end Dae'Quan Wright and former New Orleans Saints defensive end Zxavian Harrison."

"I don't worry too much about that," Kiffin replied. "I think as you talk about villains, sometimes the difference between the hero and the villain isn't very far apart, and it changes very often. ... When you're trying to do things at the highest level, a lot of times people want you to apologize for what you're doing when you're chasing greatness."

According to the Associated Press, Wright was among a group of athletes who filed a lawsuit in Louisiana seeking a fifth year of college eligibility for members of the high school class of 2022. The court issued a temporary restraining order that paved the way for him and others to return to college athletics.

Kiffin noted on Tuesday that he's not the only coach who is trying to make use of the loopholes in the NCAA's eligibility rules.

Kiffin went on to add that while he understands the concerns about professional athletes trying to gain advantages by returning to college, he feels that doesn't apply to this situation because of the specific circumstances surrounding the 2022 class' chances of a fifth year of eligibility.

"There's a lot of parts that I don't like within that. I don't think professionals should come back to college sports and college football, particularly," Kiffin said. "But in this instance, this is not professionals that have gone and played seasons or just randomly filed an injunction in a state to become eligible. This is part of a specific class that was ruled wronged by the NCAA that was supposed to be five for five."

Still, the situation undoubtedly creates more questions than answers in the ever-changing landscape of college sports, so it will be interesting to see how the NCAA responds going forward.