The biggest game on the early schedule is finally here, and it comes with a heavy dose of baggage.
No. 8 LSU and No.
9 Ole Miss both enter Saturday night unbeaten at 2-0, and they’ll meet at 6:30 p.m. on ABC in Oxford in a matchup that has been building since the moment Lane Kiffin left one sideline for the other. LSU has already rolled past No.
23 Clemson, 51-10, and then handled Louisiana Tech, 45-14, after a shaky start. Ole Miss answered with a 41-38 win over No.
24 Louisville in Nashville and a 41-9 rout of Charlotte.
Now the real collision arrives.
This rivalry dates back to 1894, when Ole Miss beat LSU 26-6 in Baton Rouge, and LSU still owns the series edge at 66-44-1. But the Tigers have dropped three straight in Oxford, and every one of those losses came with Kiffin running the Rebels. That history is what gives this one its edge - and what makes the atmosphere around Oxford feel so charged.
“It’s going to be awesome,” LSU linebacker Whit Weeks said after posting seven tackles against Louisiana Tech, along with two forced fumbles and a quarterback hurry. “The first SEC match-up, coach Kiffin’s return. It’s going to be electric for sure.”
The spotlight only gets hotter because Kiffin didn’t just leave Ole Miss - he brought four Rebels with him through the transfer portal: edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen, linebacker TJ Dottery, wide receiver Winnie Watkins Jr., and offensive lineman Devin Harper.
Umanmielen kept his answers short when the subject turned to his old school and what comes next.
“Next game on the schedule,” he said to the first Ole Miss question. “Attack it like we do every other week. Practice hard, practice how you play.”
When asked whether it helps that Ole Miss will carry much of the outside attention, he brushed it off: “Uh, I don’t really care about that.”
There’s more than pride hanging over this one, too. Umanmielen and Harper have both been sued by Ole Miss for breach of contract after signing deals with the school last January for the 2026 season, then signing with LSU instead. Ole Miss is seeking $550,000 from Umanmielen and $400,000 from Harper.
Umanmielen, a fifth-year senior, was a major piece for Ole Miss last season under defensive coordinator Pete Golding. He finished third in the SEC with nine sacks and eighth in tackles for loss with 13. Golding later replaced Kiffin as Ole Miss head coach and went 2-1 in the playoffs, reaching the semifinals.
Asked what it will be like going back into Vaught-Heminway Stadium next week, Umanmielen answered, “TBD (to be determined).”
He gave the same kind of guarded response when asked whether he’s thought about the matchup beyond the next game.
“I mean. I am now. It’s the next game on schedule.”
Umanmielen was also asked about seeing former teammates such as quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacy, both of whom helped Ole Miss in Saturday’s win over Charlotte. Chambliss completed 23 of 26 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns, while Lacy ran for 87 yards on 13 carries and scored twice. Kiffin recruited and developed both players, along with many others still on the Rebels’ roster.
“I’m still cool with some of those guys,” Umanmielen said. “But they’re the next person on the list.”
When asked what he expects from the Ole Miss crowd, he stayed careful again.
“I’m just playing football. I don’t want to say the wrong thing, but I’m going to be playing football for sure.”
Kiffin, as usual, found a way to get a little jab in while also praising the place he left behind. He kept the focus on the task in front of LSU, but made sure to acknowledge the setting and the challenge.
“We’re getting ready to go on the road in the SEC against a really good team that has played really well for years at that place,” Kiffin said, praising Ole Miss and himself simultaneously. “So, this was good.
Like I said, it’s hard to get their attention after last week (following a blowout of Clemson), if there were two really clean games in a row like that. So, I’m glad it happened.”
In Other News...
LSU Is Stuck In An SEC Fight With No Clear End
Pete Thamels latest Week 2 update offered a mixed bag for the SECs heavyweights, with Texas getting healthier up front and still waiting on one key eligibility ruling. Left tackle Trevor Goosby is back from a knee injury, while offensive lineman Cole Hutson is practicing but remains ineligible as his NCAA appeal continues to work through the process.
LSUs news, though, is less about the depth chart and more about the larger picture around the program. After a conference meeting, the Tigers SEC membership situation is still unresolved, and the league is monitoring the issue as legal complications continue to shape the timeline. For LSU, it is the kind of off-field uncertainty that can linger well beyond a single game week, with no clear end in sight yet. [Read more 🡒]
Justin Jefferson Just Added Fuel To LSU's New Identity
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The part that stands out is how openly the Tigers have embraced the idea of being the villain now. Kiffins arrival from Ole Miss has given LSU a different kind of swagger, and Jefferson said the roster still has the kind of talent that can put it in the national championship conversation despite the turnover. For a program built on expectations, the challenge now is proving that the attitude matches the results. [Read more 🡒]
Brian Kelly Just Validated What LSU Fans Loved In Clemson Blowout
A familiar voice chimed in after LSUs season-opening win over Clemson, and Brian Kelly made sure to point toward the parts of the performance that tend to travel well in September. Now working as a CBS Sports analyst after leaving Baton Rouge, Kelly singled out the defense and the running game, two areas that looked especially sharp in LSUs debut under Lane Kiffin.
The praise carried a little extra weight because Kelly was also pointing back to Blake Baker, the defensive coordinator he hired. LSU held Clemson to 145 total yards while piling up 309 on the ground, the kind of balanced showing that gives a new staff a fast way to win over a skeptical fan base and, at least for one night, made Kellys old blueprint look pretty sound. [Read more 🡒]