The Ole Miss‑LSU matchup already had enough storylines, but the relationships between former Ole Miss players now wearing purple and gold and the ones who stayed in Oxford add a layer that everyone acknowledges but no one wants to overplay.
The familiarity is real. The friendships are real. The business‑as‑usual talk is also real, even if you can debate how much anyone actually believes it.
Princewill Umanmielen is one of the players returning to Oxford, and he tried to keep it simple.
“It’s another game, something to look forward to,” Umanmielen said. “It’s a blessing to be able to play the game I love. It’s just another week, but I’m looking forward to it for sure.”
He didn’t pretend there’s no emotion involved. That’d be hard to believe after Umanmielen was served with court papers on Wednesday, but he didn’t pretend it changes the job either.
“Of course there’s some excitement seeing those guys, but it’s another week,” Umanmielen said. “They’re on the opposing side, so there aren’t any friends on the field.”
Still, the familiarity matters. LSU isn’t hiding that.
“We have a little bit of knowledge knowing that we’ve been over there and know some of the guys who are still there,” Umanmielen said. “We’ve been giving our tips and giving out anything that could be helpful for the offense and defense for sure.”
Ole Miss players know that, and they’re treating it the same way: part of the scouting report, not the storyline.
“Of course we talk about them because we have to scout them,” Deuce Alexander said. “We have to know how they play, their techniques, how they act on and off the field and how they respond to certain situations. But other than that, it’s not really a major topic of conversation. That’s not really what we do. We just play football, honestly.”
Alexander still cares about the guys who left, but he’s clear about the line that gets drawn during game week.
“My goal was to retain everybody, but of course you can’t,” Alexander said. “The transfer portal is going to happen. The guys who left, there’s no bad blood with them. I still love them. They’re still my guys. But at the end of the day, they’re on the other side now, so business has to get taken care of. Afterward, we can be friends.”
Some players haven’t stayed in touch at all.
“Normally, I just focus on ball during the season, so I don’t really talk to anybody,” Kewan Lacy said.
Others still talk regularly, even with kickoff coming.
“Yeah, I still talk to P‑Will and T.J., honestly,” Will Echoles said. “Those were my guys last year. We built a brotherhood, so that never left. Those are still my guys.”
That’s the dynamic this week: a mix of old friendships, new colors and a lot of people insisting it’s just football. Maybe it is. Maybe it isn’t. But both sides know each other well, and both sides are using that familiarity in their own way.
The relationships didn’t disappear. The business didn’t either.
