The messy divorce between Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss appears headed for yet more drama, this time a possible court case over two players who left the school to join Kiffin at LSU.
Ole Miss is considering filing suit to recover buyout money that it said defensive end Princewill Umanmielen and offensive tackle Devin Harper owe the school. Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter signaled the possibility in an interview last week with the Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger, and a source familiar with the school’s thinking, who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter, said the move is likely.
“That would be an option, going and asking a court to get that money for you,” Carter told the Clarion-Ledger. “Contracts are with the players. LSU could pay that on behalf of the players. So we’re kind of exploring all of that right now.”
Umanmielen, a five-star recruit in high school, was a key edge rusher for Ole Miss last year. He had 11.5 sacks and 20 tackles for loss in three years for the Rebels. Harper played one year in Oxford.
Both players originally signed revenue-sharing contracts to return to Ole Miss, the school said, and the buyouts derive from those contracts. Carter declined to say how much the players owed, but On3 reported it was a total of nearly $1 million for the two players.
LSU declined to comment.
It’s not unprecedented for schools to sue players who transfer to other universities. Last year, Georgia sued Damon Wilson II for $390,000, saying he owed buyout money following a transfer to Missouri. Wilson countersued and has since transferred to Miami. Both cases are ongoing.
Cincinnati sued quarterback Brandon Sorsby for $1 million in February, before his gambling suspension, and Oregon sued defensive back Dakoda Fields, who transferred to Oklahoma.
What sets this apart is the enmity between Ole Miss and LSU since Kiffin’s departure, which came before the College Football Playoff. There were worries about tampering, as Kiffin and some of his coaches left before the Playoff began, while others stayed through the Playoff.
Additionally, this spring Kiffin told Vanity Fair that Ole Miss’ racial history held the school back in recruiting. He later apologized for his comments.
And when Clemson accused new Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding of tampering to get one of its players, Golding countered at SEC spring meetings by asking why LSU wasn’t being charged with tampering for getting linebacker TJ Dottery from Ole Miss.
“My thing when they talk about tampering, you don’t think the coaches get tampered with? You don’t think ADs meet with head coaches?” Golding said. “I mean, we’re talking about this new Kiffin rule and this s—, who do you think’s meeting with these guys and offering them the job before? Now these are the guys that are … So I’m not getting into all of that, but holy cow.”
