Southern Miss Football: Golden Eagles Pound the SMU Mustangs

Southern Miss slammed Southern Methodist University (5-2, 3-1 C-USA) 27-3 in front of a solid crowd in Hattiesburg Saturday night to improve their record to 6-1 (2-1 C-USA).

The Golden Eagles defense, led by coordinator Dan Disch, dominated against the Mustangs, holding them to 14 first downs, 330 yards of offense, and zero points in the second half. SMU's only points came on a 19-yard Chase Hover field goal with 7:57 remaining in the first half.

Defensive back Marquese Wheaton snagged two J.J. McDermott passes for interceptions for the Southern Miss defense, including one to end a Mustang red zone possession and another that he took back for a 41-yard touchdown.

SMU was held to three points in the contest, something that had not been done by an opposing team since 2006, in a 35-3 drubbing by Texas Tech. The Mustangs were also held to a season low 173 passing yards in the game.

Southern Miss' offense scored first after kicker Danny Hrapmann notched a 27-yard field goal on the Golden Eagles' first offensive possession. On the next possession for USM, quarterback Austin Davis found receiver Kelvin Bolden in the back of the end zone to put the Golden Eagles up 10-0 in the first quarter before SMU got on the board before halftime. 

Another Hrapmann field goal came before an electric 55-yard scoring run by running back Jamal Woodyard, after the first Golden Eagle interception. Then came Wheaton's interception for a score that put the game on ice for the Golden Eagles who travel to El Paso next week to play the UTEP Miners, 4-3 (1-2 C-USA).

The Golden Eagles currently sit in first place in the East Division, with the East Carolina University Pirates. The two teams will play Nov. 5 in Greenville, N.C.