What Southern Miss AD Jeremy McClain said about paying players, Will Hall, basketball renovations

2024 is halfway over and shifts have already been made in the college athletics landscape that will affect Southern Miss.

Revenue sharing to pay college athletes has been agreed to but not finalized. Schools can also become more involved in NIL than before. The Golden Eagles are close to a pivotal football season while completing facility projects and beginning new ones.

In an interview with the Hattiesburg American, Southern Miss athletics director Jeremy McClain spoke on the department’s approach to revenue sharing, expectations for the football season and the latest renovation updates for Reed Green Coliseum and the Giddis Golf Center.

Southern Miss' stance on revenue sharing

Southern Miss athletics operated at a $34,426 surplus in the 2023 fiscal year with record highs in revenue ($30.4 million) and expenses ($30.3 million). In 2022, Southern Miss’ $28.4 million in revenue was 13th out of 14 in the Sun Belt, according to USA TODAY’s database. The full 2023 database has yet to be published, but the 2023 revenue would’ve still been second to last in the Sun Belt in 2022 only behind Louisiana-Monroe.

Details on schools paying athletes through revenue sharing are unclear. Legal proceedings still need to be sorted out, including who will get paid, how much they will get paid and where the money will come from. The target is 2025, though no final decisions have been made.

McClain didn’t provide specifics on Southern Miss' approach but said it’s important to be “conscious of what’s coming our way.”

“I think it's too early,” he said, “and so in my mind it's more of just kind of the mindset of let's make sure we're doing everything we can to maximize fundraising, to put ourselves in the right position financially to prepare to make some adjustments in scholarships if that's what comes through.”

NIL has also changed the way schools allocate and budget resources. Schools have been able to assist athletes in signing NIL deals since April.

“We're meeting with the collective on a regular basis,” McClain said. “Peter Boehm is doing a great job there. We're talking to him about partnerships and how we can help. Whereas six or eight months ago, you couldn't really have some of those conversations.”

Setting expectations for Southern Miss football, Will Hall

Southern Miss football regressed from 7-6 in 2022 to 3-9 last season in coach Will Hall’s third year. He was retained for the 2024 season, with two years left on his contract.

“I think success in football, no secret there, that's always going to drive the ship,” McClain said. “When you're not successful at Southern Miss, it makes everything else a little bit harder, just being honest. So when you are successful, the opposite is true that you find new opportunities, you're going to be able to generate more revenue, you're going to be able to create some momentum. And so I think for us, success on the field is a big piece of the puzzle.”

Since the end of the season, Hall signed the Sun Belt’s top-rated recruiting class while also hiring new offensive and defensive coordinators, a defensive line coach and a running backs coach.

“Coach Hall did a great job of addressing some staff things that he wanted to clean up,” McClain said. “They did a great job on the recruiting trail, so you feel like they've done a lot of the things that they needed to do to get back on track. It's going to be a really important year for us to take advantage of that and show that on the field.”

Updates on Southern Miss basketball and golf facility renovations

Southern Miss announced in May a $35 million renovation plan for Reed Green Coliseum, the home to men’s and women’s basketball. McClain said the project remains on schedule to be completed in 2027.

A separate roof replacement is under way, though it won’t change the look of the arena.

Meanwhile, Southern Miss’ new golf facility at Hattiesburg Country Club is expected to open by Sept. 1, McClain said.

Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.