AU FOOTBALL 2008: New faces abound at Southern Miss

By Collin Mickle

Published: May 17, 2008

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second in a series previewing Auburn’s 2008 football opponents. This week: Southern Miss (Sept. 6). The series will run weekly.

Change is in the air in Hattiesburg, Miss., where for the first time in almost two decades, the Southern Miss football program has a new face at its head.

New head coach Larry Fedora, who replaced 17-year fixture Jeff Bower, is bringing a new look to the USM program. The Golden Eagles have 14 consecutive winning seasons, but university officials were reportedly unhappy with the program’s direction under Bower.

Enter Fedora, the former offensive coordinator at Florida and Oklahoma State. The 22-year coaching veteran plans to put a charge in USM’s offense, which was more conservative under Bower.

The new-look offense looked good in the Golden Eagles’ spring game, in which the first- and second-team offenses piled up 45 combined points.

The star of that game was running back Damion Fletcher, who will be the star of many more games for USM this season. Fletcher had 1,586 yards rushing last season and scored 15 touchdowns on the ground.

This season, he’ll have a chance to make more of an impact in the passing game as well. The junior had six catches in the spring game and will be a frequent target for redshirt freshman quarterback Austin Davis.

Davis, who edged out sophomore Martevious Young for the top job in the spring, has a solid supporting cast. Wideouts Torris McGee, Gerald Baptiste and Ed Morgan combined for 89 catches last season, and talented tackles Calvin Wilson and Ryan McKee are back on an improving offensive line.

If the line — which has new starters at center and both guard spots — can come together, Davis’ chances of a strong freshman season will considerably improve. Experience helps: Sophomore center Cameron Zipp is the youngest starter on a line that also features four fourth-year juniors.

Defensively, the Golden Eagles are led by middle linebacker Gerald McRath, the 2007 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound McRath had 139 tackles last season as a redshirt freshman.

This year, McRath is on the watch list for the Nagurski Award, given annually to the nation’s best defensive player.

Though he has just one year of playing experience, McRath is grizzled compared to most of his defensive teammates. Only two other starters return from last year’s defense: linebacker Tokumbo Abanikanda and safety Eddie Hicks.

The biggest question marks are on the defensive line, where the Golden Eagles must replace four senior starters, including star end Matthew Chatelaine and tackle Martavious Prince, who had a combined 14 sacks last season.

Their likely replacements are end Roshaad Byrd and tackle Anthony Gray, who combined for 15 tackles and 1 ½ sacks last season.

The secondary is more tested. Cornerbacks Eddie Willingham and Michael McGee are new to the starting lineup, but both are redshirt seniors with plenty of experience.

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