Southern Miss head coach Will Hall is optimistic about the Golden Eagles’ upcoming campaign despite question marks surrounding the program.
Coming off a 3-9 season, the graduation of standout running back Frank Gore, Jr., the death of safety MJ Daniels, and not getting any respect in preseason conference polls, Hall took the podium at Sun Belt Media Days in New Orleans with a positive outlook.
Chief of the Southern Miss football team’s upside going into the 2024 season is the retention of key players. According to Hall, the Golden Eagles have more experience than they have had in his tenure. Although no players were named to the All-Sun Belt team, USM returns multiple crucial pieces, including wide receiver Ty Mims and defensive end Jalil Clemons — both of whom were in the Big Easy alongside their head coach.
“The exciting thing for us is that we are pumped about this season,” Hall said. “There are two ways you build a football roster today, it used to be only on recruiting. Now, not only is it recruiting but retention. Retention shows they believe in Southern Miss and all of the opportunities that our university can provide.”
Additionally, Hall reiterated that USM has had a top three recruiting class in the Sun Belt Conference for three consecutive years, including several additions from the infamous transfer portal.
Clemons, a Macon native, moved from linebacker to defensive end under the new scheme spearheaded by first-year Golden Eagle defensive coordinator Clay Bignell. After amassing 31 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles last season, Clemons is looking to continue putting in the work and improving the defensive unit as a whole, while simultaneously drowning all outside noise.
“We really don’t look much at what the media says about us, it’s not our job to be concerned with what people say,” Clemons said. “The end of the season will be the main factor in how we’ve done.”
The work will be cut out for USM right out of the gate as the Golden Eagles will take on a Power-Four opponent in enemy territory. Southern Miss will begin the upcoming campaign against a familiar foe in Kentucky in Commonwealth Stadium.
Mims, who led the team last year in receiving with 39 receptions for 445 yards and two touchdowns, while returning one punt for an 82-yard score, acknowledged that the team will march into game one with victory on their mind.
“We are going down there to win every game, but take it game by game,” Mims said. “We feel like our team is full of leaders and we’ve been bonding a lot as a team.”
As for a starting lineup, Hall did not make any announcements on Wednesday, but told the media that he plans to make an announcement once the team transitions from fall training to practices for the upcoming matchup against the Wildcats.
“As we flip from fall camp to game preparation, we’ll announce [starters],” Hall conveyed. “We have a lot of competition. One of the things we’re really excited about is how many players have college football experience at a Division I level.”
Southern Miss’ opener against Kentucky will kickoff on August 31 at 6:45 p.m. central.
Will Hall sees golden opportunity for Southern Miss in college athletics evolution
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