2023 Southern Miss
3–9 (2–6 Sun Belt Conference), coached by Will Hall. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Alcorn State 40–14Sep 2
By 26 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingBeat Louisiana 34–31Nov 9
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | vs Alcorn State | W 40–14 | 81% |
| Sep 9 | at 4Florida State | L 13–66 | 24% |
| Sep 16 | vs Tulane | L 3–21 | 42% |
| Sep 23 | at Arkansas State | L 37–44 | 54% |
| Sep 30 | vs Texas State | L 36–50 | 49% |
| Oct 7 | vs Old Dominion | L 13–17 | 56% |
| Oct 17 | at South Alabama | L 3–55 | 20% |
| Oct 28 | at App State | L 38–48 | 25% |
| Nov 4 | vs UL Monroe | W 24–7 | 61% |
| Nov 9 | at Louisiana | W 34–31 | 23% |
| Nov 18 | at Mississippi State | L 20–41 | 32% |
| Nov 25 | vs Troy | L 17–35 | 17% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to Troy 35–17; unranked in the final AP poll; 13th in the Sun Belt Conference.
In program history: The 64th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 90 on file).
- Record
- 3–9
- Conference
- 2–6 13th in Sun Belt Conference
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 278–429
- Coach
- Will Hall
- Elo
- 1368 −105 this season
- SP+ rating
- -14.4 No. 116 of 133; offense No. 81, defense No. 125, special teams No. 106
- SRS
- −13.0 No. 115 of 133 in FBS
- Returning
- 63% of last season’s EPA, No. 44 of 131
- Recruiting class
- No. 81 roster talent No. 106 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Sam Gregg
- Defensive coordinator
- Dan O’Brien
- Offense
- Multiple
- Defense
- 4–2–5
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.02 | 37% | 1.26 | 100th of 133 |
| Defense | 0.21 | 44% | 1.44 | 115th of 133 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.05 off 0.18 def | 37% off 45% def | — | 97th off 119th 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 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.1 | own 28 | 20% allowed |
| Defense | 4.2 | own 31 | 16% caused |
CORE rating -13.7, 113th of 133 (offense -7.8, defense 5.9).
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 yards | Billy Wiles QB | 1,916 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Billy Wiles QB | 11 TD |
| Rushing yards | Frank Gore Jr. RB | 1,131 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Frank Gore Jr. RB | 10 TD |
| Receiving yards | Jakarius Caston WR | 621 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Jakarius Caston WR | 6 TD |
| Tackles | Dylan Lawrence S | 72 tkl |
| Sacks | Jalil Clemons DE | 5.5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Jay Stanley S | 3 INT |
Top recruits in the 2023 class
| Javieon Butler WR | ★★★ | No. 846 |
| Elijah Douglas DL | ★★★ | No. 1304 |
| Tanner Welch OT | ★★★ | No. 1330 |
| Ethan Crawford QB | ★★★ | No. 1393 |
| Tre’Mon Henry LB | ★★★ | No. 1564 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2023 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 2 | 2.5 | 0.822 |
| Receivers | 4 | 3.0 | 0.841 |
| Offensive line | 3 | 3.0 | 0.832 |
| Defensive line | 2 | 3.0 | 0.827 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 2.5 | 0.821 |
| Defensive backs | 3 | 3.0 | 0.829 |
| Athletes and specialists | 3 | 2.7 | 0.808 |
| Whole class | 19 | 2.8 | 0.827 |
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.
Roster 107
The 2023 roster107 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 61 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 8
The 2023 portal M.J. Daniels S | ★★★★ | from  Ole Miss |
 Billy Wiles QB | ★★★ | from  Clemson |
| Dylan Lawrence S | ★★★ | from  Mississippi State |
 Eric Thomas Jr. DE | ★★★ | from  Arkansas |
| Gabe Cavazos Jr. OT | ★★★ | from Mississippi State |
 Kolbe Cage LB | ★★★ | from  Arizona |
 Rodrigues Clark RB | ★★★ | from  Memphis |
 Holman Edwards QB | from  Houston |
Transfers out 6
 D.J. Burgess DL | ★★★ | no new school on file |
| Kameron King OL | ★★★ | to  Houston Christian |
| Mario Wilbourn LB | ★★★ | no new school on file |
| Mitchell Sellers TE | ★★★ | no new school on file |
| Trey Lowe III QB | ★★★ | to  Liberty |
| Ty Keyes QB | ★★★ | no new school on file |
2023 Sun Belt Conference standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
 James Madison | 7–1 | 11–2 | |
| Troy | 7–1 | 11–3 | |
| App State | 6–2 | 9–5 | |
 Coastal Carolina | 5–3 | 8–5 | |
| Old Dominion | 5–3 | 6–7 | |
| Texas State | 4–4 | 8–5 | |
| South Alabama | 4–4 | 7–6 | |
| Arkansas State | 4–4 | 6–7 | |
 Georgia State | 3–5 | 7–6 | |
 Georgia Southern | 3–5 | 6–7 | |
 Marshall | 3–5 | 6–7 | |
| Louisiana | 3–5 | 6–7 | |
| Southern Miss | 2–6 | 3–9 | |
| UL Monroe | 0–8 | 2–10 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.