LSU football signs elite transfer portal defender from Ole Miss

Lane Kiffin and LSU football have landed arguably their most important defensive addition of the offseason, signing former Ole Miss edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen, per On3’s Shea Dixon.

Umanmielen was officially allowed to enter the NCAA transfer portal early Wednesday morning, and after a few short hours, he will now join his former head coach in Baton Rouge.

Though he entered late, Umanmielen is one of the players to hit the portal this entire offseason. He’s 247Sports’ fifth-ranked overall prospect and No. 1 edge rusher, making him a massive get for the Tigers in the final hours of the portal window.

Umanmielen has the potential to elevate LSU’s defense into a championship-caliber unit in 2026. After a quiet start to his collegiate career, tallying seven tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks over his first two seasons, Umanmielen transferred to Ole Miss and had a breakout year. In 2025, his 51 pressures ranked 12th among Power Four defenders, and his 11 sacks tied for fifth, per Pro Football Focus. 

This wasn’t purely volume, either. Umanmielen’s pass-rush productivity rating, a formula that awards a score based on a player’s productivity on a down-to-down basis, ranked fourth among Power Four edge rushers (min. 100 pass-rush snaps).

The former Ole Miss standout will be an immediate-impact starter at LSU, adding top-end talent to the edge room and giving Blake Baker the opportunity to rotate more often and keep his stars fresh -- something he couldn't do often last season. Umanmielen joins transfers Jordan Ross and Jaylen Brown at LSU, not to mention a potential in-house breakout candidate in Gabe Reliford.

If one had to point out a flaw in the Tigers’ defense in 2025, it was their lack of consistency in getting after opposing quarterbacks. With Umanmielen added to the mix, that weakness should become a strength in 2026.

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: LSU football signs elite transfer portal defender from Ole Miss