The Golden Eagles are going bowling. Southern Miss (6-2, 4-0 Sun Belt) triumphed over ULM (3-5, 1-3 Sun Belt) 49-21 on Saturday, keeping its perfect record in Sun Belt Conference play.
The Eagles aren’t heading to Hub City Lanes, but to an actual bowl game after reaching six wins and clinching bowl eligibility. Led by a strong performance from running back Matt Jones, the Golden Eagles couldn’t be slowed.
Before Jones executed his second short touchdown run of the day and quarterback Braxton delivered two more touchdown passes to extend the lead to 42-14 with about 13 minutes remaining, Southern Miss led 21-14 at halftime.
Braxton shined in his homecoming performance, throwing for 248 yards and completing 18 of 23 passes. He connected with four receivers for touchdowns: Tychaun Chapman, Kyirin Heath, Bralon Brown and Carl Chester.
ULM’s Zach Palmer-Smith rushed for 111 yards and scored on a 21-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, cutting the score to 21-14 before Southern Miss pulled away in the second half. The Golden Eagles enter their bye week riding a four-game winning streak.
“The season’s been really blessed,” USM head coach Charles Huff said during his postgame press conference. “Obviously, it’s not over, but we want to make sure we enjoy the mile markers and milestones along the way. Really proud of the players’ ability to continue to trust the process. Um, you know, it’s been a good three-week grind; two on the road, one at home. The games haven't been close, so it's been, you know, an emotional up and down and come back the next week and prepare. Uh, really good job by the players. Really good job by the coaches, you know, finding a way to continue to push the players. Sometimes success is its own worst enemy but really good job by them making a decision to prepare each week.”
Southern Miss will travel to Arkansas State on Saturday, Nov. 8. The Golden Eagles’ sixth victory makes them bowl eligible for the first time since 2022 and the 18th time since 2000. They became bowl eligible after eight games, the second-fastest pace in the 21st century. In both 2000 and 2011, the team achieved the feat in seven games.
The milestone marks a continued resurgence for the program under head coach Charles Huff, who has guided the team to dominance this season. The win capped an impressive October for Huff’s squad, which has found rhythm on both sides of the ball after starting the season 2-2.
The defense has now held opponents to 22 points or fewer four times this season and forced multiple interceptions in six games.
Although the homecoming turnout was lower than usual, the atmosphere inside M.M. Roberts Stadium was electric from start to finish. Southern Miss scored on seven of its first nine drives and controlled time of possession, giving fans one of the most complete performances of the season.
Southern Miss currently leads the Sun Belt West Division standings with four conference games remaining, giving the team control of its path toward a potential spot in the conference championship game.
The bye week comes at a key time, offering recovery before matchups against Arkansas State, South Alabama, Texas State and Troy to close out the regular season.
If the Golden Eagles maintain their current pace, they could not only secure a postseason berth but also make their first Sun Belt Championship appearance since joining the conference.
