2005 Southern Miss
7–5 (5–3 Conference USA), coached by Jeff Bower. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat McNeese 48–20Sep 17
By 28 points, its widest win.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 10 | at Alabama | L 21–30 | 40% |
| Sep 17 | vs McNeese | W 48–20 | 83% |
| Oct 1 | at East Carolina | W 33–7 | 66% |
| Oct 8 | vs Tulsa | L 17–34 | 70% |
| Oct 15 | vs UCF | W 52–31 | 70% |
| Oct 21 | at UAB | W 37–28 | 43% |
| Oct 29 | at NC State | L 17–21 | 54% |
| Nov 8 | at Marshall | W 27–24 | 49% |
| Nov 13 | at Houston | L 24–27 | 52% |
| Nov 19 | vs Memphis | L 22–24 | 65% |
| Nov 26 | vs Tulane | W 26–7 | 79% |
| Dec 20Bowls & playoff | vs Arkansas StateNew Orleans Bowl | W 31–19 | 70% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Beat Arkansas State 31–19 in the New Orleans Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Conference USA.
In program history: The tied 25th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 90 on file).
- Record
- 7–5
- Conference
- 5–3 tied for 3rd in Conference USA
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 355–272
- Coach
- Jeff Bower
- Elo
- 1535 +7 this season
- SP+ rating
- 1.1 No. 64 of 118; offense No. 55, defense No. 62
- SRS
- 1.2 No. 56 of 119 in Division I-A
- Recruiting class
- No. 66
- Offensive coordinator
- Jay Johnson
- Defensive coordinator
- Jay Hopson
- Offense
- Multiple
- Defense
- 4–3
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.02 | 37% | 1.05 | 82nd of 119 |
| Defense | 0.14 | 42% | 1.11 | 104th of 119 |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.0 | own 34 | 3% allowed |
| Defense | 0.0 | own 27 | 2% caused |
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.
Top recruits in the 2005 class
| Juamorris Stewart WR | ★★★ | No. 829 |
| Austin Divinity WR | ★★★ | No. 829 |
| Levance Richmond S | ★★★ | No. 954 |
| Eddie Hicks CB | ★★ | No. 966 |
| Tumbo Abanikanda ATH | ★★ | No. 1127 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2005 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 2 | 2.0 | 0.756 |
| Running backs | 1 | 2.0 | 0.744 |
| Receivers | 2 | 3.0 | 0.811 |
| Offensive line | 5 | 2.0 | 0.740 |
| Defensive backs | 3 | 2.3 | 0.770 |
| Athletes and specialists | 3 | 2.0 | 0.759 |
| Whole class | 16 | 2.2 | 0.760 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
2005 Conference USA standings
| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| UCF | 7–1 | 8–5 | |
| Tulsa | 6–2 | 9–4 | |
 UTEP | 5–3 | 8–4 | |
| Memphis | 5–3 | 7–5 | |
 Southern Miss | 5–3 | 7–5 | |
| Houston | 4–4 | 6–6 | |
| East Carolina | 4–4 | 5–6 | |
 SMU | 4–4 | 5–6 | |
| UAB | 3–5 | 5–6 | |
| Marshall | 3–5 | 4–7 | |
| Tulane | 1–7 | 2–9 | |
 Rice | 1–7 | 1–10 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.