2020 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team

2020 Conference USA football standings

	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
Marshall xy		4	–	1					7	–	3
Florida Atlantic		4	–	2					5	–	4
Western Kentucky		4	–	3					5	–	7
Charlotte		2	–	2					2	–	4
Middle Tennessee		2	–	4					3	–	6
FIU		0	–	3					0	–	5
West Division
UAB xy$		3	–	1					6	–	3
UTSA		5	–	2					7	–	5
Louisiana Tech		4	–	2					5	–	5
North Texas		3	–	4					4	–	6
Rice		2	–	3					2	–	3
Southern Miss		2	–	4					3	–	7
UTEP		0	–	4					3	–	5
Championship: UAB 22, Marshall 13
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Note: Due to COVID-19, Old Dominion opted out of the season.

The 2020 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team represented the University of Southern Mississippi in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Eagles played their home games at the M. M. Roberts Stadium in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and competed in the West Division of Conference USA (CUSA). Head coach Jay Hopson, who was in his fifth year, resigned after one game and was replaced by interim head coach Scotty Walden. Walden himself resigned after four games to become the head coach at Austin Peay and was replaced by Tim Billings.

Listed in the order that they were released

Award	Player	Position	Year
TBD

The CUSA Media Days will be held virtually for the first time in conference history.^[1]

To be released

Southern Miss announced its 2020 football schedule on January 8, 2020.^[2] The 2020 schedule consists of 6 home and 6 away games in the regular season.

The Golden Eagles had games scheduled against Auburn, Jackson State, Tennessee Tech and UTEP that were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[3][4] It was announced on August 6, 2020 that Auburn would be replaced by Tulane and Jackson State would be replaced by Tennessee Tech.

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 3	8:00 p.m.	South Alabama*	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	CBSSN	L 21–32	0
September 19	6:30 p.m.	Louisiana Tech	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS (Rivalry in Dixie)	ESPN2	L 30–31	7,140
September 26	1:30 p.m.	Tulane*	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS (Battle for the Bell)	Stadium	L 24–66	0
October 3	6:30 p.m.	at North Texas	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	Stadium	W 41–31	6,490
October 24	5:00 p.m.	at Liberty*	Williams Stadium Lynchburg, VA	ESPN3	L 35–56	1,000
October 31	2:00 p.m.	Rice	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	ESPN3	L 6–30	0
November 7	2:00 p.m.	North Alabama*	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	ESPN3	W 24–13	0
November 14	5:00 p.m.	at Western Kentucky	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	CBSSN	L 7–10	3,815
November 21	2:00 p.m.	UTSA	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	ESPN+	L 20–23	0
December 10	5:30 p.m.	Florida Atlantic	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	CBSSN	W 45–31	0
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 24 released prior to game All times are in Central time

^[5]

South Alabama at Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total • Jaguars 13 0 10 6 29 Golden Eagles 0 10 3 8 21 Date: September 3, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 8:00 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 39 minutes Game attendance: 7,500 Game weather: 83 °F (28 °C) • Weather: Clear • Wind: SW 5 MPH Referee: Wayne Winkler TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play) and Aaron Taylor (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
USM −12	55[6]

Statistics	South Alabama	Southern Miss
First downs	23	20
Total yards	529	409
Rushing yards	166	95
Passing yards	363	314
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	29:08	30:52

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
South Alabama	Passing	Desmond Trotter	16/27, 299 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Carlos Davis	15 carries, 85 yards
	Receiving	Jalen Tolbert	6 yards, 169 yards, 2 TD
Southern Miss	Passing	Jack Abraham	22/32, 314 yards
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	12 carries, 32 yards
	Receiving	Tim Jones	6 receptions, 139 yards

Louisiana Tech at Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total • Bulldogs 7 3 14 7 31 Golden Eagles 0 13 14 3 30 Date: September 19, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 6:35 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 24 minutes Game attendance: 7,140 Game weather: 74 °F (23 °C) • Weather: Partly Cloudy • Wind: 7 NE MPH Referee: Billy Wiliams TV announcers (ESPN2): Dave Pasch (play–by–play), Mike Golic Sr. (analyst), and Lauren Sisler (sideline reporter)

Pregame line	Over/under
USM −7	59[7]

Statistics	Louisiana Tech	Southern Miss
First downs	26	20
Total yards	381	377
Rushing yards	163	137
Passing yards	218	240
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	27:52	27:02

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Louisiana Tech	Passing	Luke Anthony	13/21, 149 yards, 3 TDs
	Rushing	Justin Henderson	18 carries, 69 yards
	Receiving	Adrian Hardy	5 receptions, 79 yards, 1 TD
Southern Miss	Passing	Jack Abraham	23/31, 240 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Don Ragsdale	11 carries, 56 yards
	Receiving	Tim Jones	8 receptions, 160 yards, 2 TDs

Tulane at Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total • Green Wave 7 24 21 14 66 Golden Eagles 14 7 3 0 24 Date: September 26, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 1:36 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 44 minutes Game attendance: 0 Game weather: 74 °F (23 °C) • Weather: Partly Sunny Referee: Joe Lehring TV announcers (Stadium): Chris Hassel (play–by–play) and A. J. Hawk (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
TULN −3.5	54.5[8]

Statistics	Tulane	Southern Miss
First downs	27	19
Total yards	572	369
Rushing yards	430	70
Passing yards	142	299
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	29:08	30:52

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Tulane	Passing	Michael Pratt	8/18, 142 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	Cameron Carroll	15 carries, 163 yards, 3 TDs
	Receiving	Jha'Quan Jackson	1 reception, 42 yards, 1 TD
Southern Miss	Passing	Jack Abraham	23/38, 299 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Dee Baker	6 carries, 44 yards
	Receiving	Jason Brownlee	3 receptions, 110 yards, 1 TD

Southern Mississippi at North Texas

1 2 3 4 Total • Golden Eagles 17 3 7 14 41 Mean Green 3 7 7 14 31 Date: October 3, 2020 Location: Apogee Stadium Denton, TX Game start: 6:36 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 20 minutes Game attendance: 6,490 Game weather: 81 °F (27 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NW 7 MPH Referee: Chris Bynum TV announcers (Stadium): Chris Hassel (play–by–play) and A. J. Hawk (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
UNT –1.5	74[9]

Statistics	Southern Miss	North Texas
First downs	22	27
Total yards	437	483
Rushing yards	202	144
Passing yards	235	339
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	35:16	24:44

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Miss	Passing	Jack Abraham	16/30, 235 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	23 carries, 103 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jason Brownlee	4 receptions, 110 yards, 1 TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	28/47, 339 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	15 carries, 82 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Deonte Simpson	5 receptions, 113 yards, 1 TD

Southern Mississippi at Liberty

1 2 3 4 Total Golden Eagles 7 0 21 7 35 • Flames 14 21 7 14 56 Date: October 24, 2020 Location: Williams Stadium Lynchburg, VA Game start: 12:00 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 27 minutes Game attendance: 1,000 Game weather: 80 °F (27 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: W 5 MPH Referee: Billy Williams TV announcers (ESPN3): Matt Warner (play–by–play), Joe Jauch (analyst), Emily Austen (sideline reporter)

Pregame line	Over/under
LIB −14	59.5[10]

Statistics	Southern Miss	Liberty
First downs	19	25
Total yards	416	537
Rushing yards	215	192
Passing yards	201	345
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	27:37	32:23

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Miss	Passing	Tate Whatley	15/26, 188 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Tate Whatley	12 carries, 52 yards, 4 TDs
	Receiving	Jason Brownlee	5 receptions, 114, 1 TD
Liberty	Passing	Malik Willis	24/31, 345, 6 TDs
	Rushing	Malik Willis	12 carries, 97 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Demario Douglas	6 receptions, 115 yards, 1 TD

Rice at Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total • Owls 3 20 0 7 30 Eagles 0 6 0 0 6 Date: October 31, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 2:05 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 2 hours and 59 minutes Game attendance: 0 Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: ESE 2 MPH Referee: Ken Antee TV announcers (ESPN3): Jason Baker (play–by–play) and Dustin Almond (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
RICE −1	59[11]

Statistics	Rice	Southern Miss
First downs	22	11
Total yards	412	269
Rushing yards	179	100
Passing yards	233	169
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	36:52	23:08

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Rice	Passing	Mike Collins	12/17, 233 yards, 4 TDs
	Rushing	Juma Otoviano	25 carries, 111 yards
	Receiving	Austin Trammell	7 receptions, 143 yards, 3 TDs
Southern Miss	Passing	Jack Abraham	12/17, 112 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	11 carries, 71 yards
	Receiving	Antoine Robinson	3 receptions, 41 yards

North Alabama vs. Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total Lions 7 3 3 0 13 • Golden Eagles 0 7 0 17 24 Date: November 7, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 2:00 p.m. CDT Elapsed time:   Game attendance:   Game weather: • Weather: TBD • Wind: TBD MPH Referee:   Television network: ESPN+

Pregame line	Over/under

Statistics	North Alabama	Southern Miss
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Alabama	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Southern Miss	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Southern Mississippi at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total Golden Eagles 0 0 0 7 7 • Hilltoppers 7 3 0 0 10 Date: November 14, 2020 Location: Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY Game start: 2:37 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3 hours and 3 minutes Game attendance: 3,815 Game weather: 61 °F (16 °C) • Weather: Mostly Cloudy • Wind: SE 3 MPH Referee: Ken Antee TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Dave Ryan (play–by–play) and Corey Chavous (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
WKU –7.5	45[12]

Statistics	Southern Miss	Western Kentucky
First downs	13	19
Total yards	221	304
Rushing yards	154	121
Passing yards	67	183
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	25:18	34:42

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Miss	Passing	Trey Lowe	6/14, 67 yards
	Rushing	Kevin Perkins	8 carries, 71 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Antoine Robinson	2 receptions, 25 yards
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	19/30, 183 yards
	Rushing	Jakairi Moses	12 carries, 40 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Lane	5 receptions, 90 yards

Texas–San Antonio at Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total • Roadrunners 0 9 14 0 23 Golden Eagles 3 7 3 7 20 Date: November 21, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 2:05 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3 hours and 12 minutes Game attendance: 0 Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: Calm Referee: Chris Bynum TV announcers (ESPN+): Jason Baker (play–by–play) and Dustin Almond (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
UTSA –9	53[13]

Statistics	UTSA	Southern Miss
First downs	16	18
Total yards	304	347
Rushing yards	233	75
Passing yards	71	272
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	31:30	28:30

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTSA	Passing	Frank Harris	12/19, 71 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Sincere McCormick	32 carries, 173 yards, 2 TDs
	Receiving	Joshua Cephus	5 receptions, 44 yards
Southern Miss	Passing	Tate Whatley	22/39, 272 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	13 carries, 70 yards
	Receiving	Tim Jones	5 receptions, 65 yards, 1 TD

Florida Atlantic at Southern Mississippi

1 2 3 4 Total Owls 7 10 14 0 31 • Golden Eagles 10 14 14 7 45 Date: December 10, 2020 Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Game start: 5:30 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 2 hours & 40 minutes Game attendance: 0 Game weather: 63 °F (17 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: SSW 2 MPH Referee: Ken Antee TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Jason Knapp (play-by-play) and Corey Chavous (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
FAU −8.5	41[14]

Statistics	Florida Atlantic	Southern Miss
First downs	19	22
Total yards	326	514
Rushing yards	164	305
Passing yards	162	209
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	28:41	31:19

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Florida Atlantic	Passing	Nick Tronti	17/33, 162 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	James Charles	16 carries, 79 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Brandon Robinson	5 receptions, 72 yards, 1 TD
Southern Miss	Passing	Trey Lowe	13/19, 209 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	9 carries, 111 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jason Brownlee	3 receptions, 81 yards, 1 TD