2018 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team
American college football season
The 2018 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team represented the University of Southern Mississippi in the 2018 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 (C–USA). They were led by third-year head coach Jay Hopson . They finished the season 6–5, 5–3 in C-USA play to finish in a three-way tie for second in the West Division. Despite being bowl eligible, they were not invited to a bowl game.
Preseason
Award watch lists
C-USA preseason awards
On July 16, 2018, Conference USA released their preseason awards, including the preseason all-CUSA team.[ 3] Kicker Paker Shaunfield was selected as the preseason special teams player of the year. He was the only player named to the all-CUSA team.
Conference USA released their preseason media poll on July 17, 2018, with the Golden Eagles predicted to finish in fourth place in the West Division.[ 4]
West Division
Predicted finish
Team
1
North Texas
2
Louisiana Tech
3
UAB
4
Southern Miss
5
UTSA
T–6
Rice
T–6
UTEP
Schedule
Date Time Opponent Site TV Result Attendance September 1 6:00 p.m. Jackson State * ESPN+ W 55–729,176
September 8 6:00 p.m. Louisiana–Monroe * M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS ESPN3 L 20–2119,579
September 15 2:30 p.m. at Appalachian State * ESPN+ Cancelled [ a]
September 22 6:00 p.m. Rice M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS ESPN+ W 40–2220,159
September 29 3:00 p.m. at No. 10 Auburn * SECN L 13–2483,792
October 13 1:00 p.m. at North Texas ESPN3 L 7–3018,252
October 20 6:00 p.m. UTSA M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS ESPN+ W 27–1721,259
October 27 1:00 p.m. at Charlotte ESPN3 L 17–208,687
November 3 2:00 p.m. Marshall M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS Stadium W 26–2420,375
November 10 6:30 p.m. at UAB beIN L 23–26 OT 25,618
November 17 2:30 p.m. Louisiana Tech Stadium W 21–2019,142
November 24 2:00 p.m. at UTEP ESPN+ W 39–714,962
*Non-conference game HomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time
Schedule Source: [ 5]
Game summaries
Jackson State
Week One: Jackson State Tigers at Southern Miss Golden Eagles – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Tigers
0
0
7 0 7
Golden Eagles
14
27
7 7 55
at M. M. Roberts Stadium , Hattiesburg, MS
Date : September 1Game time : 6:00 p.m. CDT Game attendance : 29,176TV : ESPN+
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
Louisiana–Monroe
Week Two: Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks at Southern Miss Golden Eagles – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Warhawks
14
0
7 0 21
Golden Eagles
10
7
3 0 20
at M. M. Roberts Stadium , Hattiesburg, MS
Date : September 8Game time : 6:00 p.m. CDT Game weather : 87° · Partly Cloudy · SSW – 7 mph.Game attendance : 19,579Referee : Marshall LewisTV : ESPN3 [1]
Game information
First quarter
USM - Jaylond Adams 75-yard TD pass from Jack Abraham, Parker Shaunfield kick good, 14:47 (USM 7-0)
ULM - Sam Miller 0-yard fumble return for TD, Craig Ford kick good, 12:05 (TIE 7-7)
ULM - Marcus Green 49-yard TD pass from Caleb Evans, Ford kick good, 4:37 (ULM 14-7)
USM - Shaunfield 42-yard field goal, 2:01 (ULM 14-10)
Second quarter
USM - Quez Watkins 5-yard TD pass from Abraham, Shaunfield kick good, 6:36 (USM 14-17)
Third quarter
ULM - Green 4-yard TD pass from Evans, Ford kick good, 14:03 (ULM 21-17)
USM - Shaunfield 47-yard field goal, 6:51 (ULM 21-20)
Leading Passers
ULM - Caleb Evans - 15/28, 195 yards, 2 TD, INT
USM - Jack Abraham - 31/46, 378 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Leading Rushers
ULM - Austin Vaughn - 9 carries, 85 yards
USM - Tez Parks - 17 carries, 42 yards
Leading Receivers
ULM - Marcus Green - 4 receptions, 96 yards, 2 TD
USM - Jaylond Adams - 9 receptions, 158 yards, TD
Leading Tacklers
ULM - Collin Turner – 10 tackles
USM - Picasso Nelson Jr. – 7 tackles
Rice
Week Four: Rice Owls at Southern Miss Golden Eagles – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Owls
8
7
0 7 22
Golden Eagles
10
14
10 6 40
at M. M. Roberts Stadium , Hattiesburg, MS
Date : September 22Game time : 6:00 p.m. CDT Game attendance : 20,159TV : ESPN+
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
At Auburn
Week Five: Southern Miss Golden Eagles at Auburn Tigers – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Golden Eagles
0
3
3 7 13
No. 10 Tigers
7
7
7 3 24
at Jordan-Hare Stadium , Auburn, AL
Date : September 29Game time : 3:00 p.m. CDT Game weather : Sunny • Temperature : 85 °F (29 °C) • Wind : NW 3 miles per hour (4.8 km/h)Game attendance : 83,792Referee : David SmithTV announcers (SECN ) : Dave Neal (play-by-play), D.J. Shockley (analyst), Dawn Davenport (sideline reporter)
Game information
First quarter
AUB – Seth Williams 46 yd pass from Jarrett Stidham (Anders Carlson kick), 3:39 (AUB 7–0)
Second quarter
USM – Parker Shaunfield 44 yd field goal, 12:51 (AUB 7–3)
AUB – Anthony Schwartz 6 yd run (Anders Carlson kick), 6:43 (AUB 14–3)
Third quarter
USM – Parker Shaunfield 51 yd field goal, 7:20 (AUB 14–6)
AUB – Chandler Cox 2 yd pass from Jarrett Stidham (Anders Carlson kick), 5:39 (AUB 21–6)
Fourth quarter
USM – Quez Watkins 12 yd pass from Jack Abraham (Parker Shaunfield kick), 13:47 (AUB 21–13)
AUB – Anders Carlson 23 yd field goal, 2:00 (AUB 24–13)
Leading Passers
USM – Jack Abraham – 30/44, 215 yards, TD, 2 INT
AUB – Jarrett Stidham – 19/33, 245 yards, 2 TD
Leading Rushers
USM – Trivensky Mosley – 4 carries, 25 yards
AUB – Kam Martin – 24 carries, 90 yards
Leading Receivers
USM – Jaylond Adams – 8 receptions, 47 yards
AUB – Darius Slayton – 5 receptions, 91 yards
Leading Tacklers
USM – Shannon Showers – 8 tackles
AUB – Deshaun Davis – 10 tackles
At North Texas
Week Seven: Southern Miss Golden Eagles at North Texas Mean Green – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Golden Eagles
0
7
0 0 7
Mean Green
0
10
6 14 30
at Apogee Stadium , Denton, TX
Date : October 13Game time : 1:00 p.m. CDT Game weather : Overcast and rain • Temperature : 60 °F (16 °C) • Wind : NE 12 miles per hour (19 km/h)Game attendance : 18,252Referee : Justin ElliotTV : ESPN3
Game information
First quarter
No scoring plays
Second quarter
UNT – Jalen Guyton 53-yard pass from Mason Fine (Cole Hedlund kick), 13:11. Mean Green 7–0. Drive: 8 plays, 99 yards, 2:45.
USM – Quez Watkins 44-yard pass from Jack Abraham (Parker Shaunfield kick), 11:06. Tied 7–7. Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 2:05.
UNT – Cole Hedlund 41-yard field goal, 7:11. Mean Green 10–7. Drive: 8 plays, 43 yards, 3:55.
Third quarter
UNT – DeAndre Torrey 6-yard run (Cole Hedlund PAT blocked), 0:34. Mean Green 16–7. Drive: 9 plays, 68 yards, 3:29.
Fourth quarter
UNT – DeAndre Torrey 8-yard run (Cole Hedlund kick), 10:45. Mean Green 23–7. Drive: 7 plays, 48 yards, 3:22.
UNT – DeAndre Torrey 34-yard run (Cole Hedlund kick), 0:33. Mean Green 30–7. Drive: 6 plays, 58 yards, 2:33.
Leading Passers
USM – Jack Abraham – 29/42, 318 yards, TD, INT
UNT – Mason Fine – 24/38, 292 yards, TD
Leading Rushers
USM – Trivenskey Mosley – 11 carries, 73 yards
UNT – DeAndre Torrey – 17 carries, 95 yards, 3 TD
Leading Receivers
USM – Jordan Mitchell – 12 receptions, 135 yards
UNT – Jalen Guyton – 7 receptions, 124 yards, TD
Leading Tacklers
USM – Picasso Nelson – 8 tackles
UNT – E. J. Ejiya – 12 tackles
UTSA
Week Eight: UTSA Roadrunners at Southern Miss Golden Eagles – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Roadrunners
0
3
7 7 17
Golden Eagles
6
14
7 0 27
at M. M. Roberts Stadium , Hattiesburg, MS
Date : October 20Game time : 6:00 p.m. CDT Game attendance : 21,259TV : ESPN+
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
At Charlotte
Week Nine: Southern Miss Golden Eagles at Charlotte 49ers – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Golden Eagles
0
0
3 14 17
49ers
14
0
3 3 20
at Jerry Richardson Stadium , Charlotte, NC
Date : October 27Game time : 1:00 p.m. CDT Game attendance : 8,687TV announcers (ESPN3 ) : Bobby Rosinski, Reggie Walker , Libby Clark
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
Marshall
Week Ten: Marshall Thundering Herd at Southern Miss Golden Eagles – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Thundering Herd
3
7
7 7 24
Golden Eagles
3
14
3 6 26
at M. M. Roberts Stadium , Hattiesburg, MS
Date : November 3Game time : 2:00 p.m. CDT Game attendance : 20,375TV : Stadium
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
At UAB
Week Eleven: Southern Miss Golden Eagles at Charlotte 49ers – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 OT Total
Golden Eagles
7
6
0 7 3 23
Blazers
0
7
13 0 6 26
at Legion Field , Birmingham, AL
Date : November 10Game time : 6:30 p.m. CST Game attendance : 25,618TV : beIN
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
Louisiana Tech
Week Twelve: Louisiana Tech Bulldogs at Southern Miss Golden Eagles – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Bulldogs
7
10
0 3 20
Golden Eagles
7
7
0 7 21
at M. M. Roberts Stadium , Hattiesburg, MS
Date : November 17Game time : 2:30 p.m. CST Game weather : 67 °F (19 °C); mostly sunnyGame attendance : 19,142Referee : Dan GautreauxTV : Stadium [2]
Game information
First quarter
USM - Steven Anderson 1-yard TD run, Briggs Bourgeois kick good, 6:54 (USM 7-0)
LT - Adrian Hardy 5-yard TD pass from J'Mar Smith, Bailey Hale kick good, 1:28 (TIE 7-7)
Second quarter
USM - Neil McLaurin 49-yard TD pass from Jack Abraham, Bourgeois kick good, 10:32 (USM 14-7)
LT - Kam McKnight 6-yard TD run, Hale kick good, 4:39 (TIE 14-14)
LT - Hale 24-yard field goal, 0:00 (LT 17-14)
Fourth quarter
LT - Hale 23-yard field goal, 13:40 (LT 20-14)
USM - Anderson 6-yard TD run, Bourgeois kick good, 6:02 (USM 21-20)
Leading Passers
LT – J'Mar Smith – 27/43, 243 yards, TD
USM – Jack Abraham – 24/29, 195 yards, TD
Leading Rushers
LT – Israel Tucker – 9 carries, 24 yards
USM – Steven Anderson – 12 carries, 29 yards, 2 TD
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
LT – Collin Scott – 9 tackles
USM – Xavier Marion – 8 tackles
At UTEP
Week Thirteen: Southern Miss Golden Eagles at UTEP Miners – Game summary
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Golden Eagles
16
3
7 13 39
Miners
0
0
0 7 7
at Sun Bowl , El Paso, TX
Date : November 24Game time : 2:00 p.m. CST Game attendance : 14,962TV : ESPN+
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Leading Passers
Leading Rushers
Leading Receivers
Leading Tacklers
References
Venues Bowls & rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold