The Golden Eagles are traveling to Jonesboro to take on Arkansas State, who is 4-1 in the conference and second in the West division
Southern Miss comes into Week 11 with a 6-2 record and atop of the Sun Belt West division. The Golden Eagles are traveling to Jonesboro to take on Arkansas State, who is 4-1 in the conference and second in the West division.
Southern Miss
The Golden Eagles are coming off of a bye week, but their last game saw them defeat ULM 49-21, which earned them bowl eligibility.
Quarterback Braylon Braxton leads the Golden Eagles into enemy territory. Braxton has thrown for 1,959 yards and 18 touchdowns, while only throwing four interceptions. If he can keep up this play, Braxton will be on contention for Player of the Year and Southern Miss will be tough to beat.
Braxton has a bunch of weapons to his disposal, but none more important than running back Jeffery Pittman. After missing the ULM game, Pittman is expected to play this week and will be a major piece to the offense. Pittman has rushed for 419 yards and six touchdowns this season.
For much of the early part of the season, Carl Chester was Braxton’s favorite target when throwing the ball, However that has slowly started to change, as Tychaun Chapman has become a massive threat. Chapman is now the leading receiver with 306 yards on only 15 receptions.
On the defensive end, linebacker Chris Jones leads the way with 78 total tackles, That puts Jones top 20 in the nation, and third in the conference. Fellow linebacker Michael Montgomery is also top five in the Sun Belt in total tackles with 73.
Arkansas State
The Red Wolves are coming off of a massive victory on the road against Troy, defeating the Trojans 23-10. They will be searching for their sixth win against the Golden Eagles, which will give them bowl eligibility.
Arkansas State is led by quarterback Jaylen Raynor, who enters the game with 2,123 passing yards and 11 passing touchdowns. Raynor has also added a career-high seven touchdowns on the ground, and 331 yards rushing.
Raynor’s favorite target this season has been sophomore Chancey Cobb, who already has 608 receiving yards this season which is good for sixth in the conference. Senior Corey Rucker has also been a fun piece on the outside, like he always has been, catching 44 passes for 533 yards so far this season.
On the ground, junior Kenyon Clay has carried the ball 101 times for 386 yards. He has split carries with Devin Spencer, who has ran for 381 yards in his sophomore season.
Defensively, senior Demarcus Hendricks has got to the quarterback five times this season, which is good for second in the conference. He isn’t the only one on the defensive line getting in the backfield, as Ethan Hassler also has four sacks on the season. Linebacker Aaron Alexander leads the team in tackles with 56 total.
Southern Miss at Arkansas State
Kickoff: Saturday, Nov. 8 at 11 a.m. CT (12 p.m. EST)
TV: ESPNU
Radio: WUSM-FM 88.5 (Southern Miss), 107.9 KFIN (Arkansas State), (also on Varsity Network app)
For information on tickets, fans can visit southernmiss.com. Fans can also contact the ticket office via phone at (800) 844-TICK(8425) or (601) 266-5418, or via email at ticket.office@usm.edu.
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