BIRMINGHAM - Amid a legal battle concerning eligibility for players who have already gone pro, the Southeastern Conference has sued LSU, its head football coach Lane Kiffin and the university's leaders. 

The federal lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Alabama on Thursday. It alleges that LSU's conduct surrounding the ongoing legal fight has harmed the SEC, created a "competitive imbalance," and disrupted student-athletes' expectations.

The conference claims one of the “most fundamental” rules in the SEC is that players rostered on professional teams cannot compete in collegiate sports. 

“College athletics is reserved for students who are actively pursuing an education while competing for their universities,” the suit says. 

Kiffin’s LSU roster was recently enhanced by the additions of former Cleveland Brown Dae'Quan Wright, former New Orleans Saint Zxavian Harris and former Denver Bronco Blake Cotton. The three declared for the draft, signed NFL contracts and spent the summer practicing with their respective professional teams before returning to college football. 

The SEC called the move “a deliberate and coordinated campaign to recruit professional athletes to play football for LSU," and said the former pros have filled roster spots that could have gone to current college athletes. 

The lawsuit says that LSU violated the conference's First Amendment rights by forcing it to "associate its competitions, its brand, its championships, and its media properties with conduct that the Conference has expressly, unanimously, and publicly rejected and repudiated since its inception."

WBRZ reached out to LSU for a comment. A university spokesperson said they have not seen the suit yet, but they will not comment due to pending litigation.