University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Football Going Bowling Again This Month
12/9/2022 2:08:00 PM | Football
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Bowl games have taken Southern Miss from the Hub City to Birmingham, Boise, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Honolulu, Houston, Lafayette, Memphis, New Orleans, Orlando, Shreveport, and St. Petersburg.
And now, the Golden Eagles head back to Mobile for the third time in their bowl history.
From the 1953 Sun Bowl to the 2020 Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl, the Golden Eagles enjoy 26 postseason appearances and return to the bowl season, Saturday, Dec. 17, at 4:45 p.m., when they take on Rice in the LendingTree Bowl at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala. The game can be seen on ESPN and heard on an affiliate of the Southern Miss Sports Network by Learfield.
The first trip to Mobile saw Jeff Kelly throw a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes, one to LeRoy Handy for 56 yards and the other to Kenneth Johnson with eight seconds remaining, as the Golden Eagles rallied for a 28-21 victory over No. 13 TCU in the 2000 GMAC Bowl.
Southern Miss then returned during the end of the 2006 season and posted three second-quarter touchdowns, getting rushing scores from Tory Harrison and Damion Fletcher, and an interception return for a touchdown from James Denley, to help lead the Golden Eagles to a 28-7 GMAC Bowl win.
The exciting bowl moments have not been limited to the program's trips to Mobile.
Two of the biggest bowl wins have come in the city of Memphis as the Golden Eagles defeated Pittsburgh 41-7 in the 1997 Liberty Bowl and Colorado State 23-17 in the 1999 edition of the game. Southern Miss finished No. 19 and No. 14, respectively, in the Associated Press Top 25 in those years.
A bowl game in Hawai'i capped off a school-record 12-win season with a victory over Nevada 24-17 in 2011 at Aloha Stadium.
Golden Eagle individual moments from their history include James Henry returning a 65- and 45-yard punt return for touchdowns to beat UTEP, 38-18, in the 1988 Independence Bowl. Allenzae Staggers caught a school bowl-record 230 receiving yards in a win over Louisiana in the 2016 New Orleans Bowl for a 28-21 triumph to Michael McGee's overtime field goal block to help seal the win over Troy 30-27 in the 2008 New Orleans Bowl.
The LendingTree Bowl should provide for more Southern Miss players to put their stamp into Golden Eagle bowl lore.
Tickets are still available for the LendingTree Bowl and Golden Eagle fans can purchase tickets 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.-5 p.m.
And now, the Golden Eagles head back to Mobile for the third time in their bowl history.
From the 1953 Sun Bowl to the 2020 Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl, the Golden Eagles enjoy 26 postseason appearances and return to the bowl season, Saturday, Dec. 17, at 4:45 p.m., when they take on Rice in the LendingTree Bowl at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala. The game can be seen on ESPN and heard on an affiliate of the Southern Miss Sports Network by Learfield.
The first trip to Mobile saw Jeff Kelly throw a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes, one to LeRoy Handy for 56 yards and the other to Kenneth Johnson with eight seconds remaining, as the Golden Eagles rallied for a 28-21 victory over No. 13 TCU in the 2000 GMAC Bowl.
Southern Miss then returned during the end of the 2006 season and posted three second-quarter touchdowns, getting rushing scores from Tory Harrison and Damion Fletcher, and an interception return for a touchdown from James Denley, to help lead the Golden Eagles to a 28-7 GMAC Bowl win.
The exciting bowl moments have not been limited to the program's trips to Mobile.
Two of the biggest bowl wins have come in the city of Memphis as the Golden Eagles defeated Pittsburgh 41-7 in the 1997 Liberty Bowl and Colorado State 23-17 in the 1999 edition of the game. Southern Miss finished No. 19 and No. 14, respectively, in the Associated Press Top 25 in those years.
A bowl game in Hawai'i capped off a school-record 12-win season with a victory over Nevada 24-17 in 2011 at Aloha Stadium.
Golden Eagle individual moments from their history include James Henry returning a 65- and 45-yard punt return for touchdowns to beat UTEP, 38-18, in the 1988 Independence Bowl. Allenzae Staggers caught a school bowl-record 230 receiving yards in a win over Louisiana in the 2016 New Orleans Bowl for a 28-21 triumph to Michael McGee's overtime field goal block to help seal the win over Troy 30-27 in the 2008 New Orleans Bowl.
The LendingTree Bowl should provide for more Southern Miss players to put their stamp into Golden Eagle bowl lore.
Tickets are still available for the LendingTree Bowl and Golden Eagle fans can purchase tickets 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.-5 p.m.
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