University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Golden Eagles Picked 5th in C-USA East Division
7/17/2013 12:00:00 AM | Football
July 17, 2013
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The 2013 Conference USA preseason football poll was announced Wednesday and the 14-league coaches have picked Southern Miss to finish fifth in the East Division.
With 11 first-place votes, East Carolina earned the No. 1 nod in the East Division ahead of Marshall, who got two first-place votes and Middle Tennessee, which received one first-place tally. UAB notched fourth place, followed by the Golden Eagles, Florida Atlantic and FIU.
Tulsa garnered a unanimous first-place finish in the West, followed by Rice, Louisiana Tech, UTEP, North Texas, Tulane and UTSA.
Southern Miss junior defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches (Phenix City, Ala.) earned the only preseason season all-league selection for the Golden Eagles. Last season, Nunez-Roches tallied a total of 37 tackles (22 solos) which included six tackles for loss, a sack, a blocked kick, a pass break up and a forced fumble.
The Golden Eagles open the season Saturday, Aug. 31, at home against Texas State. Game time is set for 6 p.m.
Season tickets are available by going online at SouthernMissTickets.com, by calling 1-800-844-TICK (8425) or by visiting the Pat Ferlise Ticket Office weekdays from 8 a.m., until 5 p.m.
| Predicted Order of Finish | ||
| East Division | Points | |
| 1. | East Carolina (11) | 95 |
| 2. | Marshall (2) | 82 |
| 3. | Middle Tennessee (1) | 70 |
| 4. | UAB | 54 |
| 5. | Southern Miss | 40 |
| 6. | Florida Atlantic | 28 |
| 7. | FIU | 23 |
| West Division | Points | |
| 1. | Tulsa (14) | 98 |
| 2. | Rice | 76 |
| 3. | Louisiana Tech | 72 |
| 4. | UTEP | 46 |
| 5. | North Texas | 39 |
| 6. | Tulane | 31 |
| 7. | UTSA | 30 |
| (first place votes in parentheses) | ||
| Offensive Player of the Year | ||
| Rakeem Cato, Jr., QB, Marshall | ||
| Defensive Player of the Year | ||
| Phillip Gaines, Sr., DB, Rice | ||
| Special Teams Player of the Year | ||
| Cairo Santos, Sr., K, Tulane | ||
| First Team Offense | |||
| QB | Rakeem Cato | Jr. | Marshall |
| RB | Vintavious Cooper | Sr. | East Carolina |
| RB | Darrin Reaves | Jr. | UAB |
| OL | Jake Alexander | Jr. | Tulsa |
| OL | Stetson Burnett | Sr. | Tulsa |
| OL | Scott Inskeep | Jr. | UTSA |
| OL | Nate Richards | Sr. | Rice |
| OL | Matt Shepperd | Jr. | Louisiana Tech |
| OL | Will Simmons | Sr. | East Carolina |
| WR | Justin Hardy | Jr. | East Carolina |
| WR | Ryan Grant | Sr. | Tulane |
| WR | Tommy Shuler | Jr. | Marshall |
| TE | Gator Hoskins | Sr. | Marshall |
| First Team Defense | |||
| DL | Christian Covington | So. | Rice |
| DL | Justin Ellis | Sr. | Louisiana Tech |
| DL | Greg Hickman | Sr. | FIU |
| DL | Rakeem Nunez-Roches | DL | Southern Miss |
| LB | Shawn Jackson | Sr. | Tulsa |
| LB | Derrell Johnson | Sr. | East Carolina |
| LB | Andre Kirk | Jr. | Florida Atlantic |
| DB | Kevin Byard | So. | Middle Tennessee |
| DB | Lorenzo Doss | So. | Tulane |
| DB | Phillip Gaines | Sr. | Rice |
| DB | Marco Nelson | Sr. | Tulsa |
| First Team Special Teams | |||
| K | Cairo Santos | K | Tulane |
| P | Tyler Williams | P | Marshall |
| KR | Reggie Whatley | Jr. | Middle Tennessee |
| PR | Trey Watts | Sr. | Tulsa |
