Lane Kiffin’s return to Oxford won’t be the only familiar face walking back into Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Saturday.
LSU senior defensive end Princewill Umanmielen is headed back to face his former team, and he made it clear Tuesday that the reunion stops the moment the ball is kicked off. The former Ole Miss transfer said there will be some excitement seeing old teammates, but the matchup turns serious fast.
"Yeah, of course, there's some excitement seeing those guys, but you know, just another week. They're on the opposing side, so ain't no friends on the field," Umanmielen said Tuesday.
That’s the posture LSU is taking into a sold-out, top-10 showdown with the Rebels: same preparation, same mindset, same day-by-day approach. Umanmielen said the Tigers are keeping the focus on practice and the details that carry into Saturday.
"We're just taking it one day at a time. Not worried about game day.
Worried about practice. Trying to treat it like a game day.
So just practicing hard, game day reps, stuff like that," Umanmielen said.
The 6-foot-4, 255-pound pass rusher enters the matchup leading the country with five sacks, and he knows LSU’s defense will need to stay disciplined against an Ole Miss offense he already saw plenty of last season. His message was simple: keep pressure on Trinidad Chambliss, stay in control, and don’t let the Rebels hit the explosive plays that can change a game in a hurry.
"Yeah, they got good players over there for sure that are mobile, (that) know how to move around and facilitate around on defense," Umanmielen said. "We really just gotta keep them in the pocket, things like that, and be grindy and gritty.
Go hard, play each play. (If) something goes wrong, next play mentality."
Umanmielen isn’t the only LSU defender with Ole Miss ties. Fifth-year senior linebacker TJ Dottery also transferred from the Rebels to the Tigers, and the two have been working to pass along whatever useful information they can to their new teammates. That familiarity, Umanmielen said, gives LSU a little extra insight on both sides of the ball.
"Yeah, we got a little, you know, one-two (punch), knowing that we've been over there, so we know a couple of the guys, some of those guys that are there now, but yeah, we're giving our tips and you know, giving out what could be helpful for the offense and defense for sure," Umanmielen said.
Even with that built-in knowledge of Chambliss and the Rebels, he said his own routine hasn’t changed. The prep is still the prep, and he’s treating this week like any other.
"I'm just still attacking it the same way, looking at film, seeing stuff that I've seen haven't seen before. So you know, taking like a regular game," Umanmielen said.
The bigger picture, in Umanmielen’s view, lines up with what Kiffin has said: LSU is walking into a game where the pressure sits on Ole Miss. Saturday will be the first top-10 matchup between the programs since 1962, but Umanmielen said the Tigers are keeping the spotlight on themselves.
"Yeah, it ain't about them, it's about us. We're just gonna play our ball, do our one of 11, and things should go our way for sure," Umanmielen said.
In Other News...
Lane Kiffin Family Drama Just Added Another Twist To LSU Week
The LSU-Ole Miss week already had plenty of juice on its own, and Landry Kiffin found a way to make it even more interesting by launching her clothing brand, Fifth Year, with a live sale during the game. The line centers on activewear and gameday apparel, built around college colors and traditions, which makes the timing feel tailor-made for a rivalry weekend that has long carried meaning on both sides.
For LSU fans, the wrinkle is the family connection behind it all. Landrys brand launch lands in the middle of a week tied to both LSU and Ole Miss, a reminder of how closely those schools are woven into her family story. Fifth Year is still in its opening chapter, but the rollout has already given this matchup an extra layer of off-field intrigue. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Ole Miss Rivalry Just Picked Up An Ugly Off Field Twist
Just before LSU lined up to face Ole Miss, one of the Tigers newest defensive additions was dealing with something far less familiar than a game plan. Princewill Umanmielen was served court papers tied to a breach-of-contract lawsuit filed by Ole Miss, a reminder that this rivalry has spilled well beyond the field and into the legal side of roster movement.
The case also involves Devin Harper, another former Rebel who transferred to LSU, and it asks for nearly $1 million in penalties while trying to sort out revenue-sharing obligations between the schools. For LSU, it adds an uncomfortable layer to a matchup that already carries plenty of edge, with the off-field fallout now hanging over players who made the jump from Oxford to Baton Rouge. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs SEC Standing Suddenly Became A Real Issue Behind The Scenes
A behind-the-scenes hiccup in LSUs SEC relationship surfaced this week when LSU System President Dr. Wade Rousse told Commissioner Greg Sankey the university would not attend a high-stakes league meeting on the advice of legal counsel. The reason was tied to a federal lawsuit involving LSU employees, a complication that forced the school to sit out a gathering it otherwise had every reason to be part of as conference business continued to pile up around college sports.
LSU still stressed that its commitment to the SEC has not changed, and the league moved forward without the Tigers, taking no action to punish the university for the absence. Even so, the timing only added to the tension around a legal dispute over athlete eligibility that remains active and is still working its way through the courts, leaving LSU in the middle of a situation that is far from settled. [Read more 🡒]