LSU Tigers secure former Ole Miss Rebels star Princewill Umanmielen, the portal's top defensive recruit.
LSU Tigers fans awake in the middle of the night smiled ear-to-ear when head coach Lane Kiffin tweeted a tiger emoji with an exclamation point at 2 AM, a signal that they had just landed a massive recruit.
The only question was if the Tigers had just landed Jordan Seaton or Princewill Umanmielen, and it was revealed to be the latter on Wednesday morning.
Pete Nakos of On3 Sports reported on Wednesday that LSU had signed the former Ole Miss Rebels star.
Umanmielen was the highest-rated defensive player in the transfer portal. If the Tigers also secure Seaton, it would give them the following: the highest-rated quarterback and player in the portal, along with the two highest-rated non-quarterbacks.
This has been a masterclass of transfer portal roster building from Kiffin and his staff, quickly proving why he chose to come to Baton Rouge. He was already known as the "Portal King," and now he has the resources to back it up.
Umanmielen is coming off a breakout year with the Rebels. He started his college career with the Nebraska Cornhuskers, but didn't have a major impact over two years.
In his first and only year with Ole Miss, the pass rusher finished with nine sacks and 13 total tackles for a loss. He also had an interception and a pass defended.
Pro Football Focus credited Umanmielen with 51 total pressures forced, which would place him at No. 18 overall in the nation. Those with more pressures than him also had more chances, as he wasn't an every-down player for the Rebels.
Blake Baker is going to have far more talent to work with across the defensive line this season, which is exciting given how good his defense already was a year ago. It could help make up for a potential step back in the secondary after losing Mansoor Delane and AJ Haulcy.
Umanmielen joins Gabriel Reliford and Jordan Ross on the edges, along with the developing players left on the team like Kolaj Cobbins and Dylan Carpenter. They also brought in an elite high school class of defenders, with players like Lamar Brown potentially getting early playing time.
This is shaping up to be a very fun football team to watch. LSU fans will be counting down the days before the season begins.