Southern Miss
Austin Peay
Mullens Leads Southern Miss Over Austin Peay 52-6
9/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
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HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Southern Miss quarterback Nick Mullens threw three touchdowns and ran for another as the Golden Eagles captured their first victory of the season in a 52-6 decision over Austin Peay here Saturday afternoon at Carlisle-Faulkner Field at M.M. Roberts Stadium.
Mullens finished with 275 passing yards on a 22-of-40 throws, but got the Golden Eagles on the board at the 5:36 mark of the opening quarter with his legs on a 2-yard scoring run.
The Governors (0-2) answered with their only points of the contest just over two minutes later as Trey Taylor hit Rashaan Coleman on a 44-yard strike. The extra point was missed and that was the closest Austin Peay got the rest of the contest as Southern Miss limited the visitors to just 189 total yards and 2-for-16 on third down conversions. The Governors did not convert their first third-down conversion until the final quarter.
Ito Smith, who rushed for a game-best 135 yards on 10 carries, extended the Golden Eagle lead in the second period on a 75-yard score down the right sideline for his longest rush of his career. It was his third 100-yard rushing performance for the sophomore running back.
D.J. Thompson and Korey Robertson each then caught touchdown passes from Mullens from 3- and 9-yards, respectively to give the Golden Eagles a 28-6 advantage at halftime.
The Golden Eagles added three more touchdowns in the third quarter as Smith added his second score to start the third quarter, this time on a 49-yard pass from Mullens with 9:23 left. Senior Justice Hayes added a one-yard scoring run and Kalan Reed intercepted a pass and returned it 76 yards for his second career pick for a touchdown.
Parker Shaunfield added a 28-yard field goal to complete the scoring in the fourth quarter.
Southern Miss tallied 514 total yards including 239 yards on the ground.
The Golden Eagles go on the road for the first time this season next week when they travel to Texas State in a 6 p.m., contest Saturday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN 3.
