With bowl eligibility on the line for South Alabama and senior day for Southern Miss, early momentum evaporated quickly for the Golden Eagles in their 9th consecutive loss.
Southern Miss (1-10, 0-7) came out swinging early, but their inability to find any decent second half offense led to defeat 35-14 at M.M. Roberts Stadium Saturday afternoon. The Jaguars (6-5, 4-2) took advantage of a quality ground performance (187 yards) and three passing touchdowns from freshman quarterback Gio Lopez to earn bowl eligibility in the first year of head coach Major Applewhite’s tenure.
Twenty-five Southern Miss players participated in their final home game Saturday. The Golden Eagles also honored the late MJ Daniels (Lucedale, Miss.), who lost his life during the summer.
Scoring summary
At the end of a 14-play opening drive, Southern Miss quarterback Tate Rodemaker found Madison native Davis Dalton for a 7-yard touchdown pass with 7:54 left in the first quarter. This was the longest scoring drive of the year for the Golden Eagles and the 2-point conversion made the score 8-0 in favor of USM at the end of the quarter.
But the Jaguars answered in the second period, using 16 total plays to help score two straight touchdowns. The first on a 21-yard pass from Lopez to Columbia High School alum Kentrel Bullock and the next on a 32-yard pass from Lopez to Jeremiah Webb for a 14-8 lead with 8:33 left in the half.
Despite four straight punts on offense, Southern Miss got the ball from South Alabama with 4 seconds left in the half just inside midfield. The Golden Eagles placekicker Connor Gibbs knocked in a 59-yard field goal at the buzzer to end the the first half of play.
That kick was the longest in the M.M. Roberts Stadium record book and the second-longest in Southern Miss history. Legendary NFL and College Football Hall of Famer Ray Guy has the lengthiest, a 61-yarder at Utah State in 1972. After Gibbs’ boot, the halftime score was 14-11 in favor of South Alabama.
The Jaguars outpaced Southern Miss 21-3 in the final two quarters with a 40-yard touchdown reception between Lopez and Jamaal Pritchett, a 57-yard interception return from Columbia native Wesley Miller, and a 2-yard run from freshman running back Fluff Bothwell.
A short 28-yard chip shot from Connor Gibbs with 11:34 left in the game was the only points Southern Miss could muster in the second half. The Golden Eagles allowed 4 sacks, 2 turnovers on downs, missed a field goal, and threw an interception in another defeat.
What the coach said
Following four consecutive losses since taking over after the termination of Will Hall, interim head coach Reed Stringer was disappointed after what was a close contest in the first half.
“I thought we did some good things offensively early, but did not finish schematically,” said Stringer, who will coach in his final game as the interim head coach next week. “They stopped us in the second half and we couldn’t take advantage of the opportunities we had. Our guys fought and certainly didn’t lay down.”
Numbers never lie
Though the scoring margin was wide, South Alabama only outgained Southern Miss 380 to 306.
Rodrigues Clark led the Golden Eagles with a season-high 115 yards rushing on 12 carries, while teammate Kenyon Clay finished with 87 combined yards on 16 touches.
Mississippi native Kentrel Bullock was the bell cow for the Jaguars, collecting 82 total yards on 16 touches and a score. South Alabama’s three defensive players from Mississippi (Wesley Miller, Amarion Fortenberry, and RJ Moss Jr.) combined for eight tackles, one interception, a pass breakup, and two quarterback hits.
In total, South Alabama carries 25 players on their roster with a connection to Mississippi, while over 3/4 of the Southern Miss roster hails from the Magnolia State.
Next up
Southern Miss will play the final game of the 2024 season against Troy on the road at Veterans Memorial Stadium Saturday, November 30, 2024. The game is scheduled to start at 1pm and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
