The announcements of Tigers finding their way on to watch lists continued on Friday. Princewill Umanmielen, Whit Weeks, and DJ Pickett were each named to the Bednarik Award preseason watch list.
The Chuck Bednarik Award is given annually to college football’s best defensive player. The honor is presented by the Maxwell Football Club, the same club that bestows the Maxwell Award to the top overall college football player. Both
are two of the most distinguished honors in the sport.
Named after Chuck Bednarik, a former All-American at the University of Pennsylvania and Pro Football Hall of Famer, the award is chosen by a wide variety of voters including NCAA head coaches, sports writers, sports casters, and the members of the Maxwell Football Club. It was established in 1995 and was won most recently by linebacker Jacob Rodriguez from Texas Tech.
Only two players in LSU’s program history have earned the honor and they came in back-to-back years. Patrick Peterson won it in 2010, followed by Tyrann Mathieu in 2011.
Princewill Umanmielen came over with Lane Kiffin from Ole Miss and is poised to give Blake Baker a legitimate pass rusher, which they were missing a year ago. The senior defensive end was #3 in the SEC in 2025 with 9.0 sacks. The last time LSU had a player record at least 9.0 sacks was 10 years ago when Arden Key set the program’s single-season record with 12.0. Umanmielen is also a force against rushing attacks, finishing #8 in the conference with 13.0 tackles for loss. He was a Third-Team All-SEC selection last year and has already been named to the Preseason Coaches All-SEC Team.
Tiger fans are very familiar with Whit Weeks, as he’s entering his 4th season at LSU. He’s the quarterback of the defense and calls the plays with the green dot helmet and looks to get even better now that he’s complimented by TJ Dottery. Named to the First-Team All-SEC team for both the AP and Coaches in 2024, Weeks battled an ankle injury a year ago and played in only 8 games. He’s expected to ascend back to his sophomore season production levels, having already been named to the Preseason Coaches All-SEC Team and the Butkus Award watch list.
DJ Pickett came to LSU as the top-rated player in the 2025 Tiger signing class and immediately produced. He appeared in all 13 games and was on the field for 524 snaps. He allowed just 21 receptions for 248 yards and 2 touchdowns in 300+ coverage snaps. Both of the touchdowns didn’t come until LSU’s final two games of the season. Pickett finished with 3 interceptions and 3 pass breakups, while contributing 37 tackles from the slot corner position. He now moves to the outside as one of the top-2 corners with PJ Woodland. The 5-star is expected to transition with no issues and looks to build upon a fantastic freshman season in which he was a Freshman All-American and Freshman All-SEC.
Joining Umanmielen, Weeks, and Pickett on the watch list from the SEC include:
- Yhonzae Pierre (Alabama)
- Bray Hubbard (Alabama)
- Zabien Brown (Alabama)
- Quincy Rhodes Jr (Arkansas)
- Myles Graham (Florida)
- Ellis Robinson IV (Georgia)
- Raylen Wilson (Georgia)
- KJ Bolden (Georgia)
- Kelley Jones (Mississippi St)
- Will Echoles (Ole Miss)
- Keaton Thomas (Ole Miss)
- Amare Campbell (Tennessee)
- Ty Redmond (Tennessee)
