MOBILE, Ala. – Frustrating, uncharacteristic, mentally draining, and yet at the same time exciting, thrilling, and memorable are how to describe the emotional rollercoaster that was Southern Miss' season.
Therefore it should have been no surprise that the Golden Eagles' bowl game was any different. Southern Miss overcame a third-quarter surge from Rice and held on for a 38-24 win in the LendingTree Bowl. Saturday night's victory at Hancock Whitney Stadium is the program's first bowl win since 2016.
"Our kids are just used to it," said Southern Miss coach Will Hall on playing close games. "That's what we do. We play close games. We played 13 games this year, and 12 of them were close. We didn't bat an eye. We kept battling."
Southern Miss (7-6) held a 14-point lead at the half, but the Owls pulled ahead 24-17 by the end of the third quarter. However, the Golden Eagles rallied behind a record-breaking 329-yard performance from running back Frank Gore Jr., who set both the NCAA bowl game and school record for most yards in a game.
EARLY SUCCESS
The Golden Eagles struck first as Trey Lowe hit Jason Brownlee twice to get inside the red zone on the opening drive. Lowe capped the drive off with a 19-yard touchdown to Jakarius Caston to go up 7-0.
Late in the quarter, Rice looked to have a successful drive as the Owls completed a pass near USM's 25-yard line, but a big hit by Lakevias Daniel forced a fumble. Malik Shorts, who just two plays early was nearly disqualified for targeting, recovered the ball.
Southern Miss failed to score on the drive, but a 47-yard punt from Mason Hunt flipped the field and spotted the ball at Rice's 1-yard line. After forcing the Owls to punt, Frank Gore Jr. then ran for a 64-yard touchdown to go up 14-0.
Rice (5-8) managed to get on the board the next drive after hitting a 34-yard field goal. The Golden Eagles had an opportunity to answer big after Lowe hit Caston for a 55-yard catch, but USM's red zone issues continued to play a role as they failed to score a touchdown from the 2-yard line. Southern Miss settled for an 18-yard field goal by Briggs Bourgeois, which extended his streak to 17 straight made.
THIRD QUARTER SWING
In the third quarter, Rice rallied by scoring three touchdowns. At the start of the second half, Rice quarterback AJ Padgett hit Isaiah Esdale for a 26-yard touchdown. On the ensuing drive, Lowe fumbled the ball as he was trying to throw it, which gave the Owls the ball at USM's 32-yard line. On the following play, Padgett hit a wide-open Esdale for a 32-yard touchdown to tie the game. Padgett finished the game 19 of 37 and tossed for 295 yards and three scores.
"I thought we came out and played a dominant first half, offensively, defensively, and in the kicking game," Hall said. "They drove it and scored to start the second half, which is what good teams that are well coached do. We had a bad turnover and score in one drive."
Then with four minutes to go in the third quarter, Padgett threw his third touchdown pass to Bradley Rozner on an 18-yard touchdown and took the lead at 24-17. The Golden Eagle offense again found life behind Gore as he hit Ty Mims for an 18-yard touchdown to tie the game again by the end of the third quarter.
Momentum stayed with Southern Miss in the fourth quarter, with Lowe finding Brownlee for a 26-yard touchdown despite being double-teamed most of the game. With Rice's defense honing in on Brownlee, the decision allowed Gore to have his big night. Lowe was 7-for-16 and threw for 170 yards and two scores, with Brownlee hauling in three catches for 72 yards and a touchdown.
"They used two people on Brownlee most of the night, which numerically gave us the numbers," Hall said. "Our o-line and tight ends did a great job, and Frank hit it. Once he gets into the secondary, the first person never tackles him."
Gore then broke off a 55-yard touchdown with less than two minutes to seal the win for USM.
DOMINANT DEFENSE
While Gore's production was critical, the Southern Miss defense adjusting and putting pressure on Padgett was also a key difference. That pressure led to Jay Stanley to come down with an interception with 1 minute and 44 seconds left, which allowed the Golden Eagles to ice the game.
In total, Southern Miss came up with five sacks, including an interception and fumble recovery. Linebacker Daylen Gill accounted for a team-leading 11 tackles and three sacks against Rice.
BIG PICTURE
In the last two years, Southern Miss has won a combined six games, but in Hall's second year, he not only achieved seven wins but helped the Golden Eagles achieve a bowl win for the first time in six years.
"We have a lot to go from here," Hall said. "This huge to win a bowl game. You have to crawl before you walk. We are a lot better. Anybody that watched us both years knows we are a lot better. We are right there in every game. We found a way to win seven of them."
Southern Miss will now turn its attention to the early signing day, which is set for this Wednesday, Dec. 21
"We know how to win," Hall said." We know what works. We know what works over the course of time. We knew it was going to happen here. We just started from a really low spot. A lot of people don't know and will never know, and we don't make excuses. We have built it back the right way. It's solid, and it's firm, and we are going to continue to build off it now.
"We have to recruit our tail off…and continue to build this program. We are really close to taking that next step and getting back and competing for conference championships."
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