Saturday, October 31
Hattiesburg, Miss.
1:30 PM
Southern Miss
34
vs
13
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UTEP
Football Beats UTEP, 34-13, to Become Bowl Eligible
10/31/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 31, 2015 
While the win was a treat for the majority of the 25,581 who weathered the Halloween Day weather, Southern Miss managed to pull off a trick as well, with junior punter Tyler Sarrazin popping up from his hold on a 25-yard field goal attempt and zipping 8 yards untouched for the Golden Eagles' final score of the day.
"We had the fake ready for last week, but it never came up," Monken said. "We have been working on it and we had the opportunity and executed it. We practiced the play plenty and our guys were ready for it."
The Golden Eagles' 523 yards total offense were about as balanced as one could hope, with Mullens throwing for 277 yards and the Golden Eagles rushing for 246 yards.
For the second consecutive home game and second time in three weeks, senior Jalen Richard and sophomore Ito Smith both cleared the 100-yard rushing mark.
Richard, who gained 53 yards on eight consecutive carries as Southern Miss ran off the game's final four minutes, 19 seconds, logged his third 100-yard game in a row with 127 yards on 20 carries. Smith averaged 11.6 yards a carry to finish with 104 yards on nine carries.
"There is an overwhelming feeling to know that when you go through what I have been through, personally and as a team, that it has all come to pass, and now, we can start fresh on a different and better path," Richard said. "It feels great."
Thompson posted career bests with 10 catches and two touchdowns, notching his second 100-yard game of the season with 112 yards.
"I was telling the guys earlier that we set some standards for ourselves early in the year, winning season, bowl eligible and winning a championship," said Thompson. "We are marking things off the list, one by one.
"The biggest thing for me is to finish out the season, not just get complacent with six wins. We are capable of more than just being bowl eligible."
Senior Mike Thomas saw his five-game streak of 100-yard receiving games snapped, but averaged 21.0 yards a reception with 84 yards and a touchdown on four catches.
Mullens, who has thrown for at least 275 yards in each of Southern Miss' nine games this season, completed 23 of 33 passes for 277 yards, moving past Jeff Kelly for fourth place on the school's career passing list with 7,136 yards.
Mullens also moved past Lee Roberts and into second place on the Golden Eagles' single-season list with 25 touchdown passes.
He connected with Thompson on scoring passes of 27 yards and 10 yards, had an 11-yarder to Thomas and a 9-yard score to Richard.
UTEP finished with 298 yards, the fourth consecutive game the Golden Eagles have held an opponent to less than 300 yards total offense. USM has allowed 14 points or less in four of its past five games. It also marked the fifth consecutive game an opponent rushed for less than 200 yards against Southern Miss and the fourth in a row an opponent had passed for less than 165 yards.
The Miners netted 101 yards on the ground, while sophomore quarterback Mack Leftwich completed 16 of 32 passes for 197 yards.
The game was delayed after the first snap of the fourth quarter, when a violent storm line pushed through Hattiesburg. Both teams exited the stadium, followed shortly by spectators seeking shelter from sheets of rain amid the blare of tornado sirens.
By then, the Golden Eagles long had seized control of the game.
Southern Miss opened the game with a bang, with Mullens capping a 63-yard, eight-play drive with an 11-yard scoring pass to Thomas on the Golden Eagles' opening possession.
It marked the fifth consecutive game with a touchdown catch for Thomas, who has logged all eight of his scores this season in that span.
UTEP's Jay Mattox cut the lead on a 38-yard field goal early in the second quarter, and it appeared that USM would carry a 7-3 lead into halftime after he missed a 50-yard attempt with just 48 seconds left in the half.
But Richard broke a 38-yard run and Mullens found Thomas for 26 yards more to put Southern Miss at the 4-yard line with 21 seconds left in the half. The Golden Eagles were penalized five yards for delay of game after the timeout, but Mullens found Richard in the right flat to give Southern Miss a 13-3 lead after a bad snap ruined the extra point.
The Golden Eagles pushed the lead to 20-3 on the 27-yard TD pass to Thompson, and after Mattox' 26-yard field goal, Southern Miss went 75 yards in nine plays, with Mullens finding Thompson from 10 yards on the final play before the game was called for weather.
The teams swapped scores after the break, with LaQuintis Dowell (52 yards on 17 carries) leaping in from the 1-yard line, while Sarrazin's first career touchdown completed the scoring.
Monken said while Southern Miss did more than enough to gain the win, the Golden Eagles have room for improvement.
"I thought our team did what they needed to do to win," he said. "We haven't played perfect yet, which is a good sign. You win by three touchdowns, but you still are not perfect."
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- After three years of wandering in college football's wastelands, Southern Miss was not about to let something like a 97-minute severe weather delay distract its mission.
Junior quarterback Nick Mullens threw for four touchdowns, two to junior receiver D.J. Thompson, as the Golden Eagles became bowl eligible for the first time since 2011 with a 34-13 victory over UTEP.
Southern Miss (6-3, 4-1 Conference USA) won its third consecutive game, its longest streak in four seasons, and defeated the Miners (3-5, 1-3) for the first time in three meetings at Roberts Stadium.
"I am happy for the seniors to be able to get the sixth win and put us in position to go back to a bowl game, which is the standard here at Southern Miss," USM coach Todd Monken said. "It should be the standard here."
While the win was a treat for the majority of the 25,581 who weathered the Halloween Day weather, Southern Miss managed to pull off a trick as well, with junior punter Tyler Sarrazin popping up from his hold on a 25-yard field goal attempt and zipping 8 yards untouched for the Golden Eagles' final score of the day.
"We had the fake ready for last week, but it never came up," Monken said. "We have been working on it and we had the opportunity and executed it. We practiced the play plenty and our guys were ready for it."
The Golden Eagles' 523 yards total offense were about as balanced as one could hope, with Mullens throwing for 277 yards and the Golden Eagles rushing for 246 yards.
For the second consecutive home game and second time in three weeks, senior Jalen Richard and sophomore Ito Smith both cleared the 100-yard rushing mark.
Richard, who gained 53 yards on eight consecutive carries as Southern Miss ran off the game's final four minutes, 19 seconds, logged his third 100-yard game in a row with 127 yards on 20 carries. Smith averaged 11.6 yards a carry to finish with 104 yards on nine carries.
"There is an overwhelming feeling to know that when you go through what I have been through, personally and as a team, that it has all come to pass, and now, we can start fresh on a different and better path," Richard said. "It feels great."
Thompson posted career bests with 10 catches and two touchdowns, notching his second 100-yard game of the season with 112 yards.
"I was telling the guys earlier that we set some standards for ourselves early in the year, winning season, bowl eligible and winning a championship," said Thompson. "We are marking things off the list, one by one.
"The biggest thing for me is to finish out the season, not just get complacent with six wins. We are capable of more than just being bowl eligible."
Senior Mike Thomas saw his five-game streak of 100-yard receiving games snapped, but averaged 21.0 yards a reception with 84 yards and a touchdown on four catches.
Mullens, who has thrown for at least 275 yards in each of Southern Miss' nine games this season, completed 23 of 33 passes for 277 yards, moving past Jeff Kelly for fourth place on the school's career passing list with 7,136 yards.
Mullens also moved past Lee Roberts and into second place on the Golden Eagles' single-season list with 25 touchdown passes.
He connected with Thompson on scoring passes of 27 yards and 10 yards, had an 11-yarder to Thomas and a 9-yard score to Richard.
UTEP finished with 298 yards, the fourth consecutive game the Golden Eagles have held an opponent to less than 300 yards total offense. USM has allowed 14 points or less in four of its past five games. It also marked the fifth consecutive game an opponent rushed for less than 200 yards against Southern Miss and the fourth in a row an opponent had passed for less than 165 yards.
The Miners netted 101 yards on the ground, while sophomore quarterback Mack Leftwich completed 16 of 32 passes for 197 yards.
The game was delayed after the first snap of the fourth quarter, when a violent storm line pushed through Hattiesburg. Both teams exited the stadium, followed shortly by spectators seeking shelter from sheets of rain amid the blare of tornado sirens.
By then, the Golden Eagles long had seized control of the game.
Southern Miss opened the game with a bang, with Mullens capping a 63-yard, eight-play drive with an 11-yard scoring pass to Thomas on the Golden Eagles' opening possession.
It marked the fifth consecutive game with a touchdown catch for Thomas, who has logged all eight of his scores this season in that span.
UTEP's Jay Mattox cut the lead on a 38-yard field goal early in the second quarter, and it appeared that USM would carry a 7-3 lead into halftime after he missed a 50-yard attempt with just 48 seconds left in the half.
But Richard broke a 38-yard run and Mullens found Thomas for 26 yards more to put Southern Miss at the 4-yard line with 21 seconds left in the half. The Golden Eagles were penalized five yards for delay of game after the timeout, but Mullens found Richard in the right flat to give Southern Miss a 13-3 lead after a bad snap ruined the extra point.
The Golden Eagles pushed the lead to 20-3 on the 27-yard TD pass to Thompson, and after Mattox' 26-yard field goal, Southern Miss went 75 yards in nine plays, with Mullens finding Thompson from 10 yards on the final play before the game was called for weather.
The teams swapped scores after the break, with LaQuintis Dowell (52 yards on 17 carries) leaping in from the 1-yard line, while Sarrazin's first career touchdown completed the scoring.
Monken said while Southern Miss did more than enough to gain the win, the Golden Eagles have room for improvement.
"I thought our team did what they needed to do to win," he said. "We haven't played perfect yet, which is a good sign. You win by three touchdowns, but you still are not perfect."
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