CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2019 Southern Miss

7–⁠6 (5–⁠3 Conference USA), coached by Jay Hopson.

Schedule and results

Southern Miss in 2019, game by game: won vs. Alcorn State 38–10; lost at Mississippi State 15–38; won at Troy 47–42; lost at No. 2 Alabama 7–49; won vs. UTEP 31–13; won vs. North Texas 45–27; lost at Louisiana Tech 30–45; won at Rice 20–6; won vs. UAB 37–2; won at UTSA 36–17; lost vs. Western Kentucky 10–28; lost at Florida Atlantic 17–34; lost vs. Tulane 13–30+35−42Won 38–10 vs. Alcorn State+28Alcorn StateLost 15–38 at Mississippi State-23Mississippi Sta…Won 47–42 at Troy+5TroyLost 7–49 at No. 2 Alabama-42No. 2 AlabamaWon 31–13 vs. UTEP+18UTEPWon 45–27 vs. North Texas+18North TexasLost 30–45 at Louisiana Tech-15Louisiana TechWon 20–6 at Rice+14RiceWon 37–2 vs. UAB+35UABWon 36–17 at UTSA+19UTSALost 10–28 vs. Western Kentucky-18Western KentuckyLost 17–34 at Florida Atlantic-17Florida AtlanticLost 13–30 vs. Tulane-17Tulane
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31vsAlcorn StateW 38–⁠1072%
Sep 7atMississippi StateL 15–⁠3828%
Sep 14atTroyW 47–⁠4229%
Sep 21at2AlabamaL 7–⁠4913%
Sep 28vsUTEPW 31–⁠1385%
Oct 12vsNorth TexasW 45–⁠2765%
Oct 19atLouisiana TechL 30–⁠4539%
Oct 26atRiceW 20–⁠675%
Nov 9vsUABW 37–⁠255%
Nov 16atUTSAW 36–⁠1770%
Nov 23vsWestern KentuckyL 10–⁠2869%
Nov 30atFlorida AtlanticL 17–⁠3433%
Jan 4Bowls & playoffvsTulaneArmed Forces BowlL 13–⁠3050%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Tulane 30–⁠13 in the Armed Forces Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Conference USA.

In program history: The 42nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 90 on file).

Record
7–⁠6
Conference
5–⁠3 tied for 6th in Conference USA
AP final
Unranked
Points
346–⁠341
Coach
Jay Hopson
Elo
1488 −3 this season
SP+ rating
-4.8 No. 89 of 130; offense No. 96, defense No. 64, special teams No. 83
SRS
−4.4 No. 84 of 130 in FBS
Returning
104% of last season’s EPA, No. 1 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 82 roster talent No. 89 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Buster Faulkner and Scotty Walden
Defensive coordinators
Tim Billings and Derek Nicholson
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
Multiple

How good, play by play

  • Offense85th of 130
  • Defense66th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted82nd of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted75th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0740%1.3285th of 130
Defense0.1140%1.3566th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.08 off
0.11 def		40% off
40% def		—82nd off
75th def
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. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.0own 2722% allowed
Defense3.4own 2921% caused

CORE rating -2.1, 72nd of 130 (offense -2.4, defense -0.2).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsJack Abraham QB3,496 yds
Passing touchdownsJack Abraham QB19 TD
Rushing yardsKevin Perkins RB547 yds
Rushing touchdownsJack Abraham QB6 TD
Receiving yardsQuez Watkins WR1,178 yds
Receiving touchdownsQuez Watkins WR6 TD
TacklesKy’el Hemby DB93 tkl
SacksTerry Whittington LB7.5 sacks
InterceptionsD.Q. Thomas LB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2019 class

Jaden Johnson PRO★★★No. 635
Luke Baker TE★★★No. 1140
Coker Wright OC★★★No. 1420
Louis Smith OC★★★No. 1492
Antavious Willis ATH★★★No. 1577

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2019 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks33.00.845
Running backs22.50.794
Receivers42.80.822
Offensive line43.00.832
Linebackers13.00.811
Defensive backs13.00.808
Athletes and specialists42.80.800
Whole class192.80.819

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.

Drafted in 2020

The 2020 draft
Rd 6Quez Watkins WRPhiladelphia Eagles

Roster 115

The 2019 roster

115 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2019 line; 61 have a stat line. See the roster

2019 Conference USA standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Florida Atlantic7–⁠111–⁠3
Louisiana Tech6–⁠210–⁠3
Western Kentucky6–⁠29–⁠4
UAB6–⁠29–⁠5
Marshall6–⁠28–⁠5
Charlotte5–⁠37–⁠6
Southern Miss5–⁠37–⁠6
Florida International3–⁠56–⁠7
North Texas3–⁠54–⁠8
UTSA3–⁠54–⁠8
Middle Tennessee3–⁠54–⁠8
Rice3–⁠53–⁠9
Old Dominion0–⁠81–⁠11
UTEP0–⁠81–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.