The Golden Eagles look to avenge their 44-7 loss to the Gamecocks last season
After falling to rival Louisiana Tech, Southern Miss will look to bounce back against Jacksonville State in Hattiesburg. The Golden Eagles also look to avenge their 44-7 loss to the Gamecocks last season.
Jacksonville State will look to climb above .500 after an impressive win versus FCS opponent Murray State. The Gamecocks search for back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
Southern Miss
The Golden Eagles return home after a tough road trip to Louisiana, where they fell to Louisiana Tech 30-20.
Head Coach Charles Huff really stressed the importance of preparation during his weekly press conference.
“I think it gave us an understanding of truly what preparation really looks like, and how you must consistently prepare the same every week,” Huff emphasized. “Little things are what you talk about in preparation. Everything matters.”
Southern Miss once again relied heavily on the pass game. Quarterback Braylon Braxton finished the with with 392 yards on 47 attempts. This pushed Braxton to over 1,000 passing yards on the season, along with 9 touchdowns. Braxton is also the leading rusher with 128 yards total.
Huff seems like he’s still trying to find the guy to pair with Braxton in the backfield. Redshirt Junior Jeffery Pittman is only two yards behind Braxton’s total, with 126 yards on 25 carries. Transfer running backs Robert Briggs and Matt Jones have also carried the ball 27 times each.
Wide receiver Carl Chester was the top target once again, finishing last week with 118 yards. Chester is now up to 211 yards receiving on the season. Fellow Marshall transfer Elijah Metcalf has also been a primary target for Braxton. Metcalf is up to 12 receptions for 153 yards.
Defensively, linebacker Chris Jones wrapped up with 14 total tackles in Week 4. This keeps Jones as the Sun Belt’s leading tackler, with 45 total on the season. Second in the conference with tackles is his teammate Michael Montgomery. His 13 tackles against La Tech gets him to 39 on the year.
The secondary is led by Joshua Moten, who is with Huff for the third consecutive season. Moten has 27 tackles and has swatted away six passes through four weeks. Although he hasn’t come down with an interception, the rest of the defense has, as they’re up to six interceptions on the season.
Huff was pleased with his defense against Louisiana Tech, specifically in the second half.
“It might have been like, 20 yards we gave up in the second half…When I left the locker room, I felt like we were going to win the game,” said Huff.
The defense will look to take this strong second half into Hattiesburg on Saturday.
Jacksonville State
The Gamecocks are coming in after a dominant 45-10 victory against Murray State.
Opposite of Southern Miss, Jacksonville State relies heavily on the run. Gavin Wimsatt has thrown the ball only 96 times this season, 31 of those coming last week. The former Kentucky and Rutgers quarterback has run 38 times for 216 yards.
Huff gave a lot of credit to offensive coordinator Clint Trickett for finding the strengths of Wimsatt and building off of that.
“As a coordinator, you know Clint’s smart, right? You do what the quarterback feels comfortable doing… He’s not just going to roll out the same game plan each week,” Huff noted.
Next to Wimsatt in the backfield is TCU transfer Cam Cook. The Junior has scampered for 537 yards on 89 carries. Last week Cook ran for 147 yards and two touchdowns. Khristian Lando, Andrew Paul, and backup QB Caden Creel have also run the ball double-digit times.
The defensive line is headlined by 6-foot-7 edge rusher Emmanuel Oyebadejo. The England native has sacked the opposing QB a team-high 1.5 times. Former Sun Belt linebacker Issac Walker has gotten also into the backfield for a sack this season.
Defensive backs are where the Gamecocks get most of their defensive production. Five of the top six tacklers this season come in the secondary. Senior safety Trevor Woods leads the team in tackles. Former Clemson Tiger safety, Caleb Nix, is third in tackles and also tied for a team leading two pass deflections.
With both teams bringing different strengths, fans can expect a clash of styles on both sides of the ball in Hattiesburg.
Jacksonville State at Southern Miss
Kickoff: Saturday, Sept. 27 at 6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. EST)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: WUSM-FM 88.5 locally (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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