A Look Back-The 2011 Southern Miss Golden Eagles
By: Tony Thomas
August 17, 2019
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The 2011 Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles were a dominant team, on both sides of the ball, defeating the #7 ranked Houston Cougars 49-28 to win the C-USA Championship. The Golden Eagles finished that championship season with a 12-2 record and a #20 national ranking in the AP Poll.
Led by Head Coach Larry Fedora, the Southern Miss offense was a high scoring unit, scoring 516 points for a 37 point per game average, and they scored 40 or more points six times. They averaged 461 yards of total offense per game and finished the season with 6,459 total yards gained.
The offense was led on the field by Senior QB Austin Davis, who threw for 3,496 yards, 30 TD’s and 11 INT’s. RB Tracy Lampley accounted for 1,037 total yards from scrimmage.
On the defensive side, Senior LB Ronnie Thornton recorded 111 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 2 INT’s. Junior DL Jamie Collins rang up 98 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, and 6.5 sacks. Senior DL Cordarro Law made 64 tackles, 22 tackles for loss, and 9.5 sacks. Sophomore DB Jacorius Cotton recorded 98 tackles and 2 INT’s.
As a unit, the Golden Eagle defense was stingy and aggressive:
- 19 INT’s
- 9 fumbles recovered
- 26 sacks recorded
- Nationally ranked in the Top 30, allowing 224 yards passing and 118 yards rushing per game.
After winning the C-USA Championship, Southern Miss accepted a bid to the Hawaii Bowl, where they defeated Nevada 24-17.
After the season was over, Coach Fedora became a hot commodity for those teams looking to hire a new head coach. He left the Golden Eagles to accept the head coaching job at North Carolina.
The 2011 season was one of the best in school history. A high scoring, big yardage offense and a stingy, ball-hawking defense. That is how you win championships.
Thanks for reading.
Material for this article sourced from: http://sports-reference.com
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