Southern Miss defeats Rice, 44-28; several records broken

HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Southern Miss had themselves a game against Rice Saturday and managed to break some records during their 44-28 win against the Owls.

Southern Miss had a slow start offensively.

But in the second half, the Golden Eagles quickly found their groove.

Head coach, Jay Hopson said, "Certainly I thought we played hard. I thought the first half we played really well defensively. And I thought the second half we played really well offensively."

"Great job offense. I'm glad they did what they did, because we was in a battle on defense," said nose tackle, Dylan Bradley.

The Nick Mullens and Allenzae Staggers show definitely came to life in this game. Staggers broke a school-record, having 292 receiving yards. And according to ESPN Stats and Info, Staggers is also the first college player in ten years to catch three 75-plus yard touchdowns in one game.

"Nick pushed me every day at practice saying, 'let's go Staggs, I believe in you.' And he finally trusted me tonight and I had to help him out. It means a lot, but next week, I'm going to try and beat my own record," said wide receiver, Allenzae Staggers.

Mullens also had a new school-record with his 591 yard passing performance.

The Golden Eagles finished the game with a new school record of 702 total yards of offense.

Quarterback, Nick Mullens said, "I think it boosts my confidence a little bit. The biggest thing for me is just going out having fun. So as long as I can continue to work hard in practice and make good decisions, and I think we'll be alright."

Southern Miss travels to San Antonio this week to take on UTSA and the Golden Eagles are hoping to emulate the performance they had against Rice and to come out with another win.