COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF

Texas State battles Southern Miss for homecoming in a conference showdown. Texas State defeated Southern Miss in the last meeting 50-36.
Photo submitted by Texas State Athletics

Southern Miss defeated Texas State in their last meeting at UFCU Stadium 20-14.
Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo

Bobcats take on Southern Miss for homecoming showdown

The Countdown to Kickoff series previews the upcoming 2024 season for the Texas State Bobcats.

This week will take a look at the Bobcats home game against the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.

Southern Miss finished the season with a 3-9 record. The Golden Eagles record wins over Alcorn State, Louisana Monroe and Lousiana.

In the matchup against Texas State, the Bobcats jumped out to a 42-10 lead at halftime before wrapping up a 50-36 win over the Golden Eagles. The win was the Bobcats first over Southern Miss since 2013.

Southern Miss returns just two offensive starters from last year’s team that averaged 23.2 points per game.

Returning for the Golden Eagles is wide receiver Tiaquelin Mims. Mims caught 39 passes for 445 yards and two touchdowns.

Also coming back to the Southern Miss offense is running back Rodrigues Clark. Backing up running back Frank Gore Jr. during the 2023 season, Clark rushed for 429 yards on 76 carries and two touchdowns.

Looking to lead the offense from the quarterback position is former Florida State player Tate Rodemaker.

Rodemaker passed for 510 yards and five touchdowns during his time with the Seminoles last season.

Southern Miss returns five defensive starters from last year’s team that allowed 35.7 points per game last season. The Golden Eagles’ defense will be under new leadership following the hire of Eastern Illinois Defensive Coordinator Clay Bignell.

The defense will be headed up by defensive end Kristin Booth and defesnive tackle Jalen Williams. Williams is the Golden Eagles’ leading returning tackler with 30 total tackles and 0.5 sacks. Booth made 25 total tackes and 2 sacks last season.

The Golden Eagles historically have been a mid-major FBS independent team, starting in 1952 before becoming a founding member of Conference USA in 1996. Southern Miss remained in C-USA for the next 25 years before moving to the Sun Belt Conference in 2022 along with fellow C-USA members Marshall and Old Dominion.

Because of this and the Bobcats making their jump to FBS in 2012, history of the Texas State-Southern Miss series is short with the first ever meeting happening in 2013.

The Bobcats won the first ever game between the two teams after Texas State quarterback Tyler Arndt scored the game winning touchdown with less than three minutes remaining in the game to secure a 22-15 win.

Texas State and Southern Miss met again during the 2015 season in the complete opposite of their last meeting.

Instead of a defensive battle, the 2015 game turned into an offensive shootout with both teams combining for 106 points. The Golden Eagles notched their first ever win over the Bobcats, winning 56-50.

The two teams would not meet again until the 2022 season with Southern Miss being placed in the West Division.

In their first meeting since 2015, Texas State appeared to score the game winning touchdown with less than two minutes remaining in the game on a 74 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Layne Hatcher to wide receiver Ashtyn Hawkins. But Southern Miss got the last laugh, scoring on a 53 yard touchdown to seal a 20-14 win.

The Bobcats got their revenge the next season in a blowout 50-36 win over the Golden Eagles.

Overall, the series is now tied up at 2-2 with the road team winning all games.

Kickoff for Texas State-Southern is scheduled for Saturday Nov. 16 at UFCU Stadium. Kickoff time will be determined at a later date.

cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc