CollegeSportsUnfiltered.com

Lots of information on the facebook group.

this team is 12-8 and the #144 team in the 17th best conference in the land pending the big shootout with #141 Roadrunner State Saturday.

we have a bunch of mid pack SUNWACers that have jettisoned us to fifth place in midmajorsburg

it's exciting as some see this as viable D1 expectations.

Today's marketing strategy is equivalent to my ability to comprehend....

Who is supposed to be impressed by that?

It’s hard to believe we take steps back as a program.

Dear Golden Eagle fans,

I love this time of the year!  Our campus is vibrant as students have returned for the second semester, and most of our Spring sports have begun or are about to start!
Basketball season is in conference play. The men’s program has won two-straight games and five of their last seven contests and sit just two games out of first place in the C-USA standings.  Our next home game is Saturday, February 9, at 4:00 pm vs. Louisiana Tech.  Redshirt Junior Leonard Harper-Baker is the current C-USA player of the week.  As for the Lady Eagles, they have won three consecutive contests, including a win at Western Kentucky, which snapped a 22-game home winning streak for the Hilltoppers. Kelsey Jones is the reigning C-USA Freshman of the Week.  The Lady Eagles host Florida Atlantic this Saturday at 4:00 pm.

Women’s tennis is off to a 3-0 start to its season as Sophomore Katia de la Garza captured C-USA player of the week honors, while men’s tennis opened its campaign with a pair of 7-0 victories last week. Beach volleyball opens its inaugural season on February 22 against Coastal Carolina and Spring Hill in Mobile, Alabama.  Men’s golf begins this Saturday with a day event in the LaTour Collegiate Challenge in Matthews, Louisiana.  Women’s golf opens at the Icon Invitational on February 25-26 at The Woodlands, Texas.

In track news, Senior John Warren is currently No. 1 in C-USA, No. 1 in the NCAA, and No. 3 in the world for the indoor triple jump with a distance of 55’2”. This is also the Southern Miss record, which John had previously set at a distance of 53’7.5”.  John is also No. 25 in the NCAA for his long jump, with a new personal record of 25’0.75”, which ranks number 4 in C-USA.
Senior McKinely West is No. 20 in the NCAA for the 60m, with a time of 6.68 seconds, which is No. 1 in C-USA. Caleb Parker is No. 14 in NCAA in the 60m Hurdles and is No. 1 in C-USA with a time of 7.77 seconds, which ties his own school record.  Sophomore Rikianne Patterson ranks 2nd in C-USA in the long jump with a mark of 20'3".

The Golden Eagle baseball program, which has won a school-best 94 games over a two-year period, has been picked to win C-USA by the 12 league coaches, by D1Baseball.com, and by PerfectGame.org this preseason. Southern Miss has been ranked preseason number 21 in the latest Baseball America poll, and Junior Matt Wallner has been named the consensus preseason Player of the Year.  The baseball season begins February 15 with a three game series against Purdue.
Softball opens its season with the Black and Gold Invitational at the USM Softball Complex, February 8-10, with Houston Baptist, Central Arkansas, Tennessee Tech and Jackson State heading to the Hub City to open up the ledger. Senior Samantha Papp earned preseason all C-USA honors.

Tickets for the 2019 football season will go on sale beginning February 8, and we need your support for a noticeable home field advantage this Fall.  Season ticket packages will be pro-rated across all seating levels for the five home game slate.  Our attendance goal for next season is for 30,000 fans to pack The Rock for each of our five home games. Our external relations team already is working on fun and creative events and promotions to make game days memorable.  You’ll see #30K5TIMES as we rally everyone to watch the Golden Eagles play.  We look forward to sharing more details! 

You may have noticed the recent news that Southern Miss has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading research institutions by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The University’s inclusion on the “R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity” list places the University in the distinguished company of institutions like Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Johns Hopkins, and others. Only 130 institutions in the nation are classified as R1, which represents the highest level of research activity for universities. This news is tremendous for our campus, and we should all be proud!

As I continue to have great interaction with fans at games and with colleagues across campus, the most prevalent question I get is, “How can I help?” The quick way is to buy season tickets and attend games.  The next step is to encourage others to do the same.  I invite you to join us at an upcoming game and bring your family and friends.

Finally, help us make #GoGoldFriday special! I encourage you to wear Southern Miss gear every Friday.  It’s an easy demonstration of support for Southern Miss.  I smile every time I see someone wearing Golden Eagle gear while on campus, in a restaurant, or running errands.  Be proud to wear the Black and Gold.  We have much to celebrate.  Plus, Spring is coming!  Get excited!

Jeff Mitchell
Interim Director of Athletics

Some random SUNWACER will win the Frisco Open.

I foresee a similar result to most years: Winning a bunch of home games and getting ousted by the SEC flavor of the month.