By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
New LSU edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen, or P-Will as his teammates at Ole Miss called him, did not like where the question was going on Thursday morning after a spring football practice.
“What have you told the guys about what to expect in this first year under him (coach Lane Kiffin) and the mindset and how he wants to …” – and Umanmielen cut the questioner off.
“Uh, this ain’t no like first-year thing,” he said. “We’re trying to go all the way. So, that’s the mindset. If you got like a ‘building’ mindset, then this ain’t the place.”
Kiffin spoke of next year a little differently at his press conference last week.
“Things don’t happen overnight,” he cautioned. “We’re making some first steps. There’s a ton of work to do to get the program back up to where everybody around here wants it to be.”
But players tend not to be concerned as much as coaches with how things play, and Umanmielen only has one more year to win it all. He is a senior.
“We’re trying to go all the way,” Umanmielen repeated. “So, that’s our mindset.”
Umanmielen had nine sacks and 13 tackles for loss last season at Ole Miss, which finished 13-2 overall and 7-1 in the Southeastern Conference. Of his 19 career quarterback hurries, Umanmielen had four in a 41-10 playoff win over Tulane. After Ole Miss beat Georgia, 39-24 in the next round, he had four tackles and a sack in the Rebels’ national semifinal, 31-27 loss to Miami.
Umanmielen left Ole Miss and signed with the Tigers as the No. 1 edge rusher in the transfer portal and No. 5 portal prospect overall.
“I want to take it to the next level, and I came here to play for a championship,” he said.
Umanmielen signed with Nebraska in 2023 as the No. 24 edge rusher in the country from Manor High near Austin, Texas, and the No. 38 player in his state. He made 22 tackles with 4.5 for losses in 11 games and one start as a freshman. In 2024, he made 13 tackles with 2.5 for loss in 12 games for the Cornhuskers before transferring to Ole Miss.
“He’s the same guy,” Umanmielen said of Kiffin. “I wouldn’t want him to change. I’m pretty sure nobody wants him to change. It’s a new environment, a new team. So he’s got to get everybody on the same page. But he’s not different. He’s the same person.”
Umanmielen saw how Kiffin got his team to 11-1 and 7-1 in the regular season for the playoffs before taking the LSU job, and he hopes he can do it again … with a couple more wins.
“It’s going to take a lot of work,” he said. “It’s going to take a lot of time together, dedication and getting to know one another. And doing a lot of extra stuff, team stuff to get to where we want to go – winning the championship. So, it’s going to take a lot.”
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