University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Southern Mississippi-Ohio Preview
12/13/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 13, 2006
It's taken Frank Solich only two seasons to turn around a moribund football program.
Solich will lead Ohio University into its first bowl game since 1968 when it meets Southern Mississippi at the GMAC Bowl on Jan. 7 in Mobile, Ala.
The former Nebraska coach is back in the national spotlight after a difficult stint replacing Tom Osborne with the Cornhuskers. Solich went 58-19 and lost to Miami in the 2002 Rose Bowl, but was let go by his alma mater.
He's engineered quite a turnaround with the Bobcats (9-4), who posted their first winning season since 2000. Ohio has lost its only two previous bowl appearances, falling to Richmond in the 1968 Tangerine Bowl and to West Texas State in the 1962 Sun Bowl.
After the Bobcats went 4-7 in his first season, he guided them to a 9-3 mark in 2006 before a 31-10 loss to Central Michigan on Nov. 30 in the Mid-American Conference championship game.
He's hoping this is the first of many occasions in which he's on the sideline coaching Ohio in a bowl.
"It's something that we want to continue to do," Solich said. "I think the fact that our players now have experienced it, been in a MAC championship game, are going to a bowl game now, I think they'll be able to feed off of that.
"They'll be hungry to get back to another MAC championship game and another bowl game. Hopefully this will produce a lot of good wins coming next season and another good year."
The trip to Mobile represents a dream come true for many of Ohio's players.
"I think guys came here hoping to get one chance," senior quarterback Austen Everson said. "We just wanted to play in a bowl game. We've worked hard. It presents a unique challenge. It's something we've never been through before. Guys are going to enjoy it and definitely cherish the opportunity we have."
Ohio had a seven-game winning streak snapped with the loss in the MAC title game. The Bobcats were forced to use three quarterbacks since Everson was lost to an ankle injury and backup Brad Bower missed a couple of series due to leg cramps.
Everson hopes to be back under center and will have junior tailback Kalvin McRae at his disposal. McRae, who has a school-record 15 rushing touchdowns, gained only 76 yards against Central Michigan after topping 100 in every game of the winning streak.
The ground game is something that Southern Miss (8-5) also relies on heavily, with freshman Damion Fletcher having rushed for 1,330 yards and nine touchdowns. The Golden Eagles' biggest weapon in their passing attack is All-Conference USA first team selection Shawn Nelson, a tight end who had a team-high 506 yards receiving.
"It's obvious that their offense and defense are structured somewhat similar to ours," Solich said.
Southern Miss is making its fifth straight bowl appearance and has won the last two, beating North Texas and Arkansas State in the New Orleans Bowl.
The Golden Eagles also finished as runners-up in their conference this year, losing to Houston 34-20 in the C-USA championship game on Dec. 1. They're hoping to bounce back after a 10-day break for exams.
"I'm proud of our effort and proud of our guys," coach Jeff Bower said. "Bottom line, we just didn't play well enough. We're excited about going to the GMAC Bowl."
Fletcher is suffering from a mild high ankle sprain, but should be OK to play.
The Golden Eagles are unfamiliar with the Bobcats, since the teams have never met. However, coach Bower is wary of Ohio.
"I know they're really good on defense," Bower said. "From looking at the stats and everything, they play solid defense. They're not giving up a lot of points; that looks to be their strength on paper. They're giving up at least 300 yards a game, which is really good."
Solich is 2-0 against Southern Miss from his days at Nebraska.
The GMAC Bowl will be the penultimate contest of the college football season, excluding all-star games, with the BCS national championship game between Florida and Ohio State set for the next night.
"We'll be the only game on that evening and I think it'll be a good audience and it'll be certainly across the country," Solich said. "It'll give Ohio University a great deal of exposure and I think that's excellent."
