LSU football defensive end Princewill Umanmielen leads the SEC with eight sacks after five games. The Ole Miss transfer has strengthened LSU's pass rush and added a new dimension to Blake Baker's defense. Umanmielen's presence was felt again in LSU's Week 5 win over McNeese as he got home for another sack.
After the game, LSU head coach Lane Kiffin had high praise for the LSU edge defender.
"Princewill, to his credit, has had a really good offseason. He probably wouldn't be mad if I told you he'd been up and down a little bit for us a year ago, consistency wise and how to practice at a high level. He's really got his life together, hos focus, his number one thing of football and has practiced great. I mean, we got clips during the week that we showed
during this week where he's running things down, playing 100 miles per hour," Kiffin said.
Kiffin said Baker does a great job moving Umanmielen around to give the defense different looks, too.
Umanmielen was with Kiffin and staff at Ole Miss in 2025. Umanmielen was an effective player for an Ole Miss team that made the College Football Playoff semifinal, but he's taken it up a notch in 2026.
This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: Kiffin explains why top LSU football DE has taken it up a notch
