By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
Lane Kiffin’s already No. 1 2026 Transfer Portal class just got even stronger with the addition of No. 1 edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen, a junior from Ole Miss, on Wednesday morning, according to Zach Nagy, Managing Editor of LSUTigersOnSI.com.
Umanmielen (6-foot-5, 245 pounds) is rated as the No. 5 overall prospect in the portal by 247sports.com. He is expected to make an immediate impact for the Tigers after starting edge rushers Jack Pyburn and Patrick Payton departed for the NFL draft.
BREAKING: Ole Miss star EDGE Princewill Umanmielen has committed to #LSU
— Andre Champagne (@andrechampagnee) January 21, 2026
Umanmielen is the No. 1 Edge and No. 5 overall player in the transfer portal.
This year with the Rebels, Umanmielen had:
– 44 total tackles
– 13 TFL
– 9 sacks
– INT@TigerRagMedia pic.twitter.com/juTl25Uy0d
Umanmielen led the Rebels with nine sacks in 2025 and had 44 tackles in all with 13 for loss, 15 quarterback hurries, three pass breakups and an interception. He signed in 2023 with Nebraska out of Manor High in the Austin suburb of Manor, Texas, as the No. 24 edge and No. 38 player in Texas. He had 22 tackles with 4.5 for loss as a true freshman in 2023 in 11 games and was a freshman All-American. in 2024, He had 13 tackles with 2.5 for loss in 12 games.
Umanmielen entered the transfer portal on Jan. 15.
Princewill Umanmielen is staying HOME in 2026.@hoodiiewill x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/MPOU510YXN
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) January 6, 2026
But that was after he had previously re-signed to stay at Ole Miss for the 2026 season. LSU may be required to pay Ole Miss a buyout to complete Umanmielen’s transfer.
Ole Miss EDGE Princewill Umanmielen is officially in the transfer portal, as @ChaseParham first reported.
— Matt Moscona (@MattMoscona) January 21, 2026
LSU is the team to watch, willing to pay a six-figure buyout along with a hefty rev share price, sources confirm.
Tuesday was the last day to enroll for spring semester at…
According to the LSU academic calendar, the last day to enroll for spring courses is Thursday. If Umanmielen wants to participate in spring football, the staff must enroll him in school by the end of Thursday.
Umanmielen becomes the fourth Ole Miss player to follow Kiffin to Baton Rouge, joining freshman offensive lineman Devin Harper, redshirt junior linebacker TJ Dottery and freshman wide receiver Winston Watkins Jr.
Kiffin now holds commitments from the No. 1 quarterback and the No. 1 edge rusher in the transfer portal.
Umanmielen is the 40th addition to LSU’s 2026 transfer portal class.
LSU PORTAL COMMITS/SIGNEES (40) – No. 1 By 247Sports.com, No. 6 By On3*:
No. 1 Quarterback Sam Leavitt of Arizona State
No. 1 Edge Princewill Umanmielen of Ole Miss
No. 2 Safety Ty Benefield of Boise State
No. 3 Guard/Center Devin Harper of Ole Miss
No. 6 Quarterback Husan Longstreet of USC
No. 7 Edge Jordan Ross of Tennessee
No. 9 Linebacker TJ Dottery of Ole Miss
No. 10 Safety Faheem Delane of Ohio State
No. 11 Defensive Lineman Stephiylan Green of Clemson
No. 12 Wide Receiver Eugene “Tre” Wilson III of Florida
No. 13 Defensive Lineman Malik Blocton of Auburn
No. 16 Guard/Center William Satterwhite of Tennessee
No. 23 Offensive Tackle Sean Thompkins, Baylor
No. 26 Wide Receiver Jayce Brown of Kansas State
No. 27 Receiver Winston Watkins of Ole Miss
No. 30 Wide Receiver Tre Brown III of Old Dominion
No. 30 Offensive Tackle Darrin Strey of Kentucky
No. 39 Tight End Malachi Thomas of Pittsburgh
No. 40 Wide Receiver Jackson Harris of Hawaii
No. 49 Guard/Center Ja’Quan Sprinkle of North Carolina Central
No. 56 Quarterback Landen Clark of Elon
No. 67 Guard/Center Aliou Bah of Maryland
No. 82 Edge Jaylen Brown of South Carolina
No. 84 Running Back Raycine Guillory of Utah
No. 104 Running Back Rod Gainey Jr. of Charlotte
No. 124 Defensive Lineman Achilles Woods of South Alabama
No. 136 Wide Receiver Malik Elzy of Illinois
No. 154 Wide Receiver Tyree Holloway of West Florida
No. 205 Wide Receiver Josh Jackson of McNeese
No. 206 Wide Receiver Roman Mothershed of Troy
Unranked Linebacker Theo Grace of North Dakota
Unranked Running Back Stacy Gage of UCF
Unranked Wide Receiver/Defensive Back Mason Dossett of Baylor
Unranked Guard/Center Ja’Mard Jones of Nicholls State
Unranked Tight End Zach Grace of Oregon
Unranked Running Back Dilin Jones of Wisconsin
Unranked Safety Treylan James of Southern
Unranked Punter Hayden Craig of Florida
Unranked Long Snapper Mack Mulhern of Florida
Unranked Kicker Scott Starzyk of Arkansas
*On3’s Team Transfer Portal Ranking Index utilizes the On3 (P)erformance score to measure a team’s production during the transfer process, compared relative against its overall roster, not just portal additions. This proprietary algorithm determines if a school has improved its overall team talent, stayed the same, or declined in talent during the transfer window.
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