Southern Miss Picked Second in C-USA; Louisville Tabbed First

Southern Miss Picked Second in C-USA; Louisville Tabbed First
CHICAGO - Southern Miss and East Carolina are tied for second place in Conference USA's 2001 preseason football poll, just behind last season's conference champion Louisville, according to a poll taken by the league's Sports Information Directors at C-USA's annual SID meetings in Chicago.

The Cardinals, who defeated the Golden Eagles, 49-27, last year and finished 9-3 on the year, were chosen as repeat champions. The Cardinals received 74 votes, including five first-place tallies. Louisville represented the league in the AXA Liberty Bowl, but fell to Colorado State in the game.

Southern Miss and East Carolina, which each finished the 2000 season at 8-4, received 66 total votes and one first-place vote each. The Golden Eagles defeated C-USA newcomer TCU in the GMAC Mobile Alabama Bowl, while the Pirates were victorious over Texas Tech in the inaugural gallleryfurniture.com bowl.

TCU was tabbed as the fourth team, garnering 58 overall votes and one first-place vote.

UAB, Cincinnati and Memphis were selected as the fifth, sixth and seventh place teams, respectively, while Tulane, Houston and Army round out the poll.

Southern Miss returns nine starters on offense, including three-year starting quarterback Jeff Kelly, while defensive back Chad Williams and linebacker Rod Davis are the top returning players on defense.

Poll Results	Pts (first place votes)
1.  Louisville      74 (5)
2.  East Carolina   66 (1)
    Southern Miss   66 (1)
4.  TCU             58 (1)
5.  UAB             44
6.  Cincinnati      38
7.  Memphis         34
8.  Tulane          28
9.  Houston         24
10. Army            8

University of Southern Mississippi Athletics

Southern Miss Picked Second in C-USA; Louisville Tabbed First

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