Southern Mississippi Golden Eagels vs South Carolina Gamecocks Preview

Let’s go ahead and call this “2010 statement game numero uno” for Southern Mississippi and Conference USA.  The plain fact of the matter is that with nine starters returning to a defense that was one of Conference USA’s best in 2009, the Golden Eagles have the defensive chops to stifle the game of pitch-and-catch that the “Head Ball Coach,” Steve Spurrier, would like his Gamecocks to play.  What remains to be seen is whether Southern Miss’s inexperienced offensive line is up to the task. 

Only the lack of experience on the offensive line keeps this from being a strength-vs.-strength matchup.  The no-huddle spread that Southern Miss head coach Larry Fedora has installed suits accurate and quick quarterbacks Austin Davis perfectly.  Junior receiver DeAndre Brown (47 receptions, 785 yards, 9 touchdowns in an injury-plagued 2009 season) excels in the spread offense, using his 6-6 frame to shield and out-jump defensive backs.  Unlike most C-USA secondary’s, South Carolina’s secondary has several players who measure up at six feet or taller, including ferocious 6-3 sophomore safety DeVonte Holloman. Therefore, Brown’s physical advantages won’t be as much of a factor as they usually are. 

On the other side of the ball, Southern Miss just might have the deepest and most talented front seven in C-USA.  Junior linebacker Korey Williams (121 tackles, 7.5 sacks in 2009) paces a unit that will be very stingy when it comes to opponents’ ground games.  Unfortunately for the Golden Eagles, that means the Gamecocks will look to go the air, attacking an inexperienced secondary which lacks the height and heft of the South Carolina back line.

Southern Miss will be counting on redshirt freshman Deron Wilson and oft-injured senior C. J. Bailey to keep South Carolina’s skilled battery of junior quarterback Stephen Garcia (239-of-432, 2,862 yards, 17 touchdowns last season) and sophomore receiver Alshon Jeffery (46 receptions, 763 yards, 6 touchdowns last year) from turning this game into an all-out air raid.  One thing to look for is this vast height advantage Jeffery will have; he’s 6-4 while both Wilson and Bailey are listed at 5-10.

While nobody at Southern Miss has come out and said it, the assumption is that Larry Fedora’s ballclub – the majority favorite in C-USA’s East Division – has to do better than 7-6 this season.  The Golden Eagles maybe two-touchdown underdogs on Thursday, but this is a game they can definitely win. South Carolina gets off to traditionally slow starts, and Garcia is always one play away from making the train-wreck mistakes that have littered his first two seasons in Columbia.  It’s up to Fedora to make sure his USM players are prepared for the atmosphere at Brice-Williams Stadium… and for whatever wrinkles the Mr. Spurrier has in store for them.