University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Top Golden Eagle Athletic Stories of 2025
12/31/2025 10:00:00 AM | General
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss enjoyed a successful 2025 athletic season. This is a look back at some of the top moments of 2025:
Joye Lee-McNelis
One of Southern Miss' greatest athletic chapters came to a close with the retirement of legendary women's basketball coach Joye Lee-McNelis. McNelis, a two-time alumna of Southern Miss, earned four letters as a player, coached under Kay James for five seasons and, for 21 seasons, led her alma mater to 300-plus victories. In total, she amassed over 550 wins across her 34-season career. A member of the Southern Miss Legends Club, M-Club Hall of Fame, 2024 Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award recipient, 2025 USA TODAY Mississippi Woman of the Year and two-time Conference USA Coach of the Year, McNelis' career was one of the greatest in the history of the sport. She announced her retirement on Feb. 25, ahead of her final games at Reed Green Coliseum. Unfortunately, McNelis passed away on June 24, after an eight-year battle with lung cancer.
Women's Golf Goes to NCAA Tournament
The Southern Miss women's golf team made history last season by winning the program's first Sun Belt Conference Championship and NCAA Regional. Momoka Ando finished her Southern Miss career with an individual title at the conference tournament. Prior to the historic run, the team notched a third-place finish in the second tournament of the season at the Hoover Invitational. The momentum reached its peak in the fall semester when Southern Miss won The Judson at Hattiesburg Country Club. The success continued following winter break as Southern Miss returned to action at the Puerto Rico Shootout, where it finished third. The Golden Eagles then claimed another title when it cruised through the ULM Invitational. They also shot a season-low 859 54-hole total. The Golden Eagles finished stroke play at the Sun Belt Tournament in third place and qualified for the four-team match play round. Meanwhile, Momoka Ando won the Sun Belt Individual title on day three of the event and became the first Golden Eagle in program history to claim a conference championship. Matched up with No. 2 Coastal Carolina, the Golden Eagles won 3-2 to advance to the title bout against top-seeded Georgia Southern. Southern Miss beat the Eagles, 3.5-1.5, and crowned Sun Belt champions. The win automatically qualified the Golden Eagles for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. Southern Miss was sent to the NCAA Norman Regional and placed 12th.
Another Banner Year at Baseburg
The Golden Eagles completed their 97th baseball season by reaching the NCAA Tournament for the 21st time overall and for the ninth-straight time, tying a school record for most consecutive visits to the postseason. Under second-year coach Christian Ostrander, the Golden Eagles recorded a 47-16 overall record, finishing second in the Sun Belt Conference regular season before losing to eventual national runner-up Coastal Carolina in the league's tournament championship game. Southern Miss hosted its fourth overall regional and second in the last four years when they welcomed Alabama, Miami and Columbia to The Pete. Behind a school record 106 home runs, Southern Miss continued their Division I bests of consecutive 30-plus (23rd time) and 40-plus (ninth time) win seasons. All-American JB Middleton won the Ferriss Award for top collegiate player in the state of Mississippi as he was one of three Golden Eagles to collect national honors. Second baseman Nick Monistere and pitcher Colby Allen also collected All-America honors.
Football Resurgence
In coach Charles Huff's lone season at the helm of the Southern Miss football program, the Golden Eagles produced a six-game turnaround during the regular season from the previous year. At one-point, Southern Miss enjoyed its longest winning streak – five games – since the 2015 season. Braylon Braxton threw for 3,054 yards and a Sun Belt-best 24 touchdowns in his lone season at quarterback for the program, marking the first 3,000-yard passer for the team since 2019 and the most throwing scores since 2016. The defense, behind 29 turnovers that included 23 interceptions, forced multiple turnovers in eight contests during the year. Josh Moten led the way with five interceptions, while Chris Jones led the Sun Belt in tackles with 135, which was the most since Gerald McRath had 137 in 2008. After Huff's departure following the regular season finale, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Blake Anderson was elevated to head coach and led the Golden Eagles to their 28th overall bowl appearance with a trip to the New Orleans Bowl to face WKU.
Stellar Academics
In October, both the men's and women's athletic programs were recently honored by earning the David M. Halbrook Award for Academic Achievement Among Athletes at the Mississippi Association of Colleges (MAC) conference for the 2024-25 season. After an outstanding Spring 2025 semester, the Fall 2025 all-sports GPA was 3.297, marking a new record high for our department. This achievement also represents the 10th consecutive semester with an all-sports GPA above 3.000. Of the 15 sports, 14 teams earned a semester GPA of 3.000 or higher, an increase of one team from Fall 2024. Forty-nine student-athletes earned a place on the President's List with a perfect 4.000 GPA, an increase of two from Fall 2024, while 104 student-athletes were named to the Dean's List with GPAs ranging from 3.500–3.999, an increase of 18 from Fall 2024 and a department record. In total, 280 student-athletes were named to the AD Honor Roll with a GPA of 3.000 or higher, up 30 from Fall 2024 and another record high. Overall, 74.27% of our student-athletes earned a GPA of 3.000 or higher, up from 67.93% in Fall 2024, also a record.
Joye Lee-McNelis
One of Southern Miss' greatest athletic chapters came to a close with the retirement of legendary women's basketball coach Joye Lee-McNelis. McNelis, a two-time alumna of Southern Miss, earned four letters as a player, coached under Kay James for five seasons and, for 21 seasons, led her alma mater to 300-plus victories. In total, she amassed over 550 wins across her 34-season career. A member of the Southern Miss Legends Club, M-Club Hall of Fame, 2024 Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award recipient, 2025 USA TODAY Mississippi Woman of the Year and two-time Conference USA Coach of the Year, McNelis' career was one of the greatest in the history of the sport. She announced her retirement on Feb. 25, ahead of her final games at Reed Green Coliseum. Unfortunately, McNelis passed away on June 24, after an eight-year battle with lung cancer.
Women's Golf Goes to NCAA Tournament
The Southern Miss women's golf team made history last season by winning the program's first Sun Belt Conference Championship and NCAA Regional. Momoka Ando finished her Southern Miss career with an individual title at the conference tournament. Prior to the historic run, the team notched a third-place finish in the second tournament of the season at the Hoover Invitational. The momentum reached its peak in the fall semester when Southern Miss won The Judson at Hattiesburg Country Club. The success continued following winter break as Southern Miss returned to action at the Puerto Rico Shootout, where it finished third. The Golden Eagles then claimed another title when it cruised through the ULM Invitational. They also shot a season-low 859 54-hole total. The Golden Eagles finished stroke play at the Sun Belt Tournament in third place and qualified for the four-team match play round. Meanwhile, Momoka Ando won the Sun Belt Individual title on day three of the event and became the first Golden Eagle in program history to claim a conference championship. Matched up with No. 2 Coastal Carolina, the Golden Eagles won 3-2 to advance to the title bout against top-seeded Georgia Southern. Southern Miss beat the Eagles, 3.5-1.5, and crowned Sun Belt champions. The win automatically qualified the Golden Eagles for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. Southern Miss was sent to the NCAA Norman Regional and placed 12th.
Another Banner Year at Baseburg
The Golden Eagles completed their 97th baseball season by reaching the NCAA Tournament for the 21st time overall and for the ninth-straight time, tying a school record for most consecutive visits to the postseason. Under second-year coach Christian Ostrander, the Golden Eagles recorded a 47-16 overall record, finishing second in the Sun Belt Conference regular season before losing to eventual national runner-up Coastal Carolina in the league's tournament championship game. Southern Miss hosted its fourth overall regional and second in the last four years when they welcomed Alabama, Miami and Columbia to The Pete. Behind a school record 106 home runs, Southern Miss continued their Division I bests of consecutive 30-plus (23rd time) and 40-plus (ninth time) win seasons. All-American JB Middleton won the Ferriss Award for top collegiate player in the state of Mississippi as he was one of three Golden Eagles to collect national honors. Second baseman Nick Monistere and pitcher Colby Allen also collected All-America honors.
Football Resurgence
In coach Charles Huff's lone season at the helm of the Southern Miss football program, the Golden Eagles produced a six-game turnaround during the regular season from the previous year. At one-point, Southern Miss enjoyed its longest winning streak – five games – since the 2015 season. Braylon Braxton threw for 3,054 yards and a Sun Belt-best 24 touchdowns in his lone season at quarterback for the program, marking the first 3,000-yard passer for the team since 2019 and the most throwing scores since 2016. The defense, behind 29 turnovers that included 23 interceptions, forced multiple turnovers in eight contests during the year. Josh Moten led the way with five interceptions, while Chris Jones led the Sun Belt in tackles with 135, which was the most since Gerald McRath had 137 in 2008. After Huff's departure following the regular season finale, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Blake Anderson was elevated to head coach and led the Golden Eagles to their 28th overall bowl appearance with a trip to the New Orleans Bowl to face WKU.
Stellar Academics
In October, both the men's and women's athletic programs were recently honored by earning the David M. Halbrook Award for Academic Achievement Among Athletes at the Mississippi Association of Colleges (MAC) conference for the 2024-25 season. After an outstanding Spring 2025 semester, the Fall 2025 all-sports GPA was 3.297, marking a new record high for our department. This achievement also represents the 10th consecutive semester with an all-sports GPA above 3.000. Of the 15 sports, 14 teams earned a semester GPA of 3.000 or higher, an increase of one team from Fall 2024. Forty-nine student-athletes earned a place on the President's List with a perfect 4.000 GPA, an increase of two from Fall 2024, while 104 student-athletes were named to the Dean's List with GPAs ranging from 3.500–3.999, an increase of 18 from Fall 2024 and a department record. In total, 280 student-athletes were named to the AD Honor Roll with a GPA of 3.000 or higher, up 30 from Fall 2024 and another record high. Overall, 74.27% of our student-athletes earned a GPA of 3.000 or higher, up from 67.93% in Fall 2024, also a record.
Southern Miss vs. Louisiana - Full Game Hightlights
Friday, December 19
Blake Anderson Introductory Press Conference
Monday, December 15
2025 Bowl Practice Press Conference
Wednesday, December 10
Full Highlights - Southern Miss vs. Grambling State
Tuesday, December 09