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Know the Foe: Southern Miss

Know the Foe: Southern Miss

Football Nov 23
By ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist Paul Letlow

Bowl eligibility is on the line for Southern Miss this week.

The Golden Eagles (5-6, 3-4 Sun Belt) need one win to reach the six required to go bowling for the first time since 2019. Standing in the way is ULM (4-7, 3-4 Sun Belt), a hungry squad that wants to finish its regular season at home on a positive note and reach the five-win plateau.

"We have got a big one this week versus an opponent that is a really good opponent that is a lot like us," second-year Southern Miss coach Will Hall said. "If you could change one possession in about three or four games, they would have a great record like we do. They are growing in year two of their program like we are, so it is a great opportunity for us and we are grateful for that opportunity. We are excited about going over there."

The Golden Eagles and Warhawks play for the seventh time on Saturday (4 p.m. kickoff) and the first time as fellow members of the Sun Belt Conference. Southern Miss leads the series 4-2; however, ULM won 21-20 in 2018 when the teams last met.

"Southern Miss, you can look at their schedule and they have won some close games and they have lost some close games too," ULM coach Terry Bowden said. "They played Troy about the same as us. You see some of the other teams they played; their losses have been tough losses too. I've known Will Hall for a long time and he'll get that program turned around. They're at that same phase of winning close and losing close as we are."

Six games this season have been determined by seven points or less and Southern Miss is 3-3 in those contests. Southern Miss is trying to end a three-game losing streak after falling 27-20 to South Alabama last week.

"When we came here, everyone said 'Coach, how quick do you want to win a championship?'" Hall said. "The first step for us as a program is to play 12 games that matter again. We haven't done that in a long time here and now we have done it. We are on game 12, and the 11th game mattered, the 10th game mattered, the ninth game mattered, and this 12th game sure matters. That is a great step forward in our program to get to game 12 and for that game to matter. That is huge for us and we are obviously excited to get to that point, but we need to get over this hump and win. We need to do that for our fan base, the administration and for these seniors. Is it the be-all, end-all? No. We have a long way still to go regardless. We have to recruit, develop and keep going, but we need to get this done."

Through 11 games, Southern Miss is averaging 24.7 points and 322 yards. The Golden Eagles pass for 211.5 yards and rush for 110.5 per game. Hall expects resistance and deception from ULM's defense.

"They line up everywhere," Hall said of ULM's defense. "Coach (Vic) Koenning is one of the all-time great defensive coordinators in the history of football. He has been around forever. I know him and go way back with him. I have great respect for him. They are everywhere trying to create havoc and disruption, so they will give us a lot of different looks. We are going to have to protect the football and go over there and do what we are supposed to do."

Wide receiver Jason Brownlee gives Southern Miss a top-flight target in the passing attack. The 6-foot-3, 202-pound senior leads the Golden Eagles with 51 catches for 796 yards and seven touchdowns. Brownlee's 20 TD receptions rank fourth in school history. This year, he is the school's nominee for the Conerly Trophy, awarded annually to the top collegiate player in the state of Mississippi.

Trey Lowe III is the third quarterback to start for Southern Miss this season. Red-shirt freshman Ty Keyes opened the year as the starter, but was hurt in the opening game and true freshman Zach Wilcke started the next eight games for the Golden Eagles. With two starts, Lowe has completed 45-of-87 passes for 625 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Running back Frank Gore Jr. leads USM in rushing with 854 yards and six touchdowns on 183 attempts. The sophomore is the son of longtime NFL running back Frank Gore.

Gore's six 100-yard rushing games tie him for 13th in school history For his career, Gore Jr. has gained 2,363 rushing yards on 483 carries for 4.9 yards per attempt and 13 rushing touchdowns.

Nine different offensive linemen have made at least one start this season, including Tykeem Doss and Gerquan Scott, who each have started in all 11 games. The Golden Eagles have used four different line combinations this year on the offensive front. A fixture in the lineup, Scott ran his consecutive starts streak to 27 for the Golden Eagles last week.

The Southern Miss defense allows 24.7 points (ranked 51st nationally) and 380.1 yards per contest. The Golden Eagles have recorded 35 sacks, 16 interceptions and recovered four fumbles.

Senior linebacker Dominic Quewon leads the team and is second in the Sun Belt in sacks with 8.5. He also ranks No. 15 in the country in that category, while tying for the team lead in tackles for loss with 9.5.

Defensive back Malik Short has a team-best 86 tackles and ranks ninth in the Sun Belt in tackles per game. Shorts is second on the team with three interceptions, behind free safety Jay Stanley with four.

Defensive linemen Jalen Williams (45 tackles), Josh Ratcliff (35),  Quentin Bivens (28) and Kristin Booth (26) have combined for the 19 of the Golden Eagles 88 tackles for loss this season.

USM kicker Briggs Bourgeois has scored 74 points while making 15-of-16 field-goal attempts and 29 of 30 PAT kicks. His longest field goal was 53 yards.

"Our fans will come to the stadium with the same type of opportunity to see a team try to get one more win than last year, which is what you'd like to do" Bowden said. "So, there's plenty to play for in that regard, to take one more step forward."

Warhawk Connections: Southern Miss coach Will Hall attended the Florida State Quarterback Camp as a youth. ULM's Terry Bowden served as one of the coaches.

"I grew up going to the Bowden quarterback camp from the time I was 12 years old," Hall told ULMWarhawks.com during Sun Belt media days. "Then when I graduated college, I worked it and I was the quarterback instructor under him to train the kids. We have a long history together."

Hall and Bowden met twice as head coaches during the 2011 season.  Hall won during the regular season, leading West Alabama over North Alabama, 31-26, but dropped a 43-27 decision to Bowden's team in the NCAA Division II playoffs.

Two ULM assistant coaches worked at Southern Miss, including OC/QB coach Matt Kubik, who held the same post for Southern Miss in 2020, and WR coach John Carr, who was the school's Director of Football Operations from 2013-14. ULM's Director of Football Relations Patrick McGee worked as a recruiting coordinator under former USM coach Larry Fedora.

Southern Miss Morsels: Playing its first year in the Sun Belt, the Golden Eagles are in their fourth different conference in their football history after membership in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association from 1931-41, the Gulf States Conference from 1948-1951 and Conference USA from 1996-2021. The program has collected 23 winning seasons over the last 29 and appeared in 18 bowl games during that time. … At age 29, USM's Austin Armstrong is the youngest defensive coordinator in the Football Bowl Subdivision for the second-straight season. … USM has scored 65 points off turnovers. … The Golden Eagles have been outscored, 272-271.
 
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