Eagles get a big win at homecoming

The Southern Miss Golden Eagles pushed their win streak in the "Battle for the Bell" rivalry game against Tulane to five straight with a 43-6 victory Saturday night at M.M. Roberts Stadium.

"I'm pleased with the guys' efforts tonight," head coach Larry Fedora said. "The team was comfortable in the game from the start."

The defense showed up for one of its best performances in years, holding Tulane running back Andre Anderson to less than one hundred yards and holding Tulane wide receiver Jeremy Williams to a total of 33 offensive yards. In all, the Green Wave tallied just 212 yards of total offense.

"I was pretty excited coming into the game," cornerback C.J. Bailey said. "I got to show myself to a lot of people. I knew I had a great receiver on the other side of me."

Bailey was not the only defensive player who had a big game, as linebacker Korey Williams finished the game with 11 tackles, one for a loss, one sack, and a fumble recovery in the game, and defensive end Terrance Conner had four tackles, three for a loss, three sacks, and a forced fumble.

"In practice, my coach asked me in one on one drills why I didn't do my extra moves in the game," said Conner. "So I tried (the spin move) tonight about three times and it came out pretty good."

As a unit, the defense finished with 12 tackles for a loss, six forced fumbles, three recovered fumbles, one interception, and six sacks. One of those fumbles was returned for a touchdown by defensive back Jamie Collins.

"Coach always coaches about getting to the ball," the true freshman said. "I see it, and I have to go to it."

The special teams was solid for a second straight game, with a blocked kick by Bailey that was returned for a touchdown by cornerback Andre Watson.

"It felt great," Bailey said. "Before the game, I told (defensive back Michael McGee) that I was going to play the rest of the season for him. So I said I have to go like Mike would. When my eyes opened up, the ball was in my hands. I looked up again and ‘Dre was gone."

One aspect of the game Fedora was disappointed in was the offense, which finished the game with 380 offensive yards, four touchdowns and wasn't ever forced to punt.

"Offensively, it was a frustrating night," Fedora said. "I don't know if I've ever been in one where you never punted, but you still didn't feel good about what you did offensively. We left a lot of points out there on the field. We have to finish drives off."

Even with the offensive frustration, USM came away with a decisive victory and one of the most productive games of the year. At 5-3 overall and 3-1 in Conference USA, the Golden Eagles can now look forward to one of its toughest challenges yet with a road game against No. 17 Houston on Halloween next Saturday.

"I hear Houston can be pretty crazy," Bailey said. "Its on Halloween, so its going to be a great game. Its going to be fun."