Breaking Down Southern Miss Football's Week 1 Depth Chart

The Golden Eagles have some starting spots accounted for ahead of Saturday's season opener, but several competitions will continue throughout the week.

Southern Miss defensive lineman Darrell Gross (88) before a fall camp scrimmage on Aug. 22, 2026. | Josh House

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – After a month's worth of practices, evaluating a roster full of new faces and trying to establish some clarity before the 2026 season officially begins, Southern Miss released its Week 1 depth chart on Monday ahead of this weekend's opener against Alcorn State.

That depth chart answers some of the questions that lingered throughout fall camp, but not all of them. Several starting jobs appear to be claimed, while others remain listed with "OR" designations as head coach Blake Anderson and his staff continue making final decisions ahead of kickoff. Here are five of the biggest takeaways from Southern Miss' Week 1 depth chart.

Three-Way Quarterback Race Down to Two

It's down to Ethan Hampton (5) and Landry Lyddy (18) for the Southern Miss starting quarterback job. | Josh House

One big observation from the Week 1 depth chart is that the three-man quarterback race appears to be down to just two now: redshirt-seniors Ethan Hampton and Landry Lyddy. Hampton has been the favorite to win the starting job since fall camp began a little more than three weeks ago, but a bone bruise injury on his throwing hand kept Anderson from making any firm decisions before Week 1 arrived.

"We're trying to be fair to Ethan and the process because he was performing at a really high level when the injury happened," Anderson said Monday. "It wasn't his fault, but it was much more significant than we thought. ... We're going to play who we think gives us the best chance to win."

Anderson went on to say that there will not be an official starting quarterback named until closer to game time on Saturday, but if Hampton proves to be 100 percent healthy by the end of this week, it's hard not to envision him securing the job.

Offensive Line Still Has Three Spots Up For Grabs

Southern Miss offensive lineman Dante Devine (54) goes through drills during fall camp. | Josh House

The only two for-sure Week 1 starters listed on the offensive line were redshirt-senior Joe Rounds at center and graduate Aloali'i Maui at right guard. Offensive line coach Sean Coughlin alluded to Rounds having the starting center spot all but wrapped up last week, and Maui being granted a temporary restraining order by the Forrest County Chancery Court has made him eligible to play Saturday.

For the left tackle spot, it will be between juniors Braden Cain and Larry Edwards. For the left guard spot, it will be between redshirt-senior Zerian Hudson and graduate Greg Nunnery Jr., who was also recently granted a TRO to preserve his fifth year of eligibility. For the right tackle spot, it will be between junior Dante "Duke" Devine and redshirt-senior Christian Young.

Anderson mentioned on Monday that, aside from Jahmir Davis, who is out for the season with an ACL injury, nobody else is injured or even limited right now in the Golden Eagles' deep offensive line room.

No Shortage of Options at the Skill Positions

Southern Miss WR Mario Sanders (1) makes a leaping catch during a fall camp practice. | Josh House

As for the skill positions, electric sophomore Jaylen Himes and redshirt-senior Mario Sanders have been named starters, while the other starting receiver spot is being worked out between redshirt-junior AJ Little and redshirt-senior Grant Page. Regardless of who ends up in the starting receiver roles, though, offensive coordinator Kyle Cefalo mentioned during fall camp that this rotation could potentially go 8-9 players deep this season.

During our Fan Fest scrimmage observations, we noted that redshirt-senior running back Robert Briggs was long expected to be the starter due to his overall experience, but that redshirt-junior Steven Robinson was making a strong case with his standout performance that day. The Golden Eagles' Week 1 depth chart reinforced those feelings, as the running back starter is listed as Briggs -OR- Robinson going into the rest of this week.

As for tight end, it's a three-way toss-up between redshirt-juniors Preston Kilgore, Jeremiah Beck and freshman Broderick Peters. Kilgore was initially expected to be the starter early in fall camp, but Beck and Peters have proven themselves as worthy candidates worth real consideration.

"I think I feel good about it," Anderson said of the versatility of his tight end room. "We've got to stay healthy. None of them have played a lot at this level, so there's going to be some nerves and anxiety, but physically, we've got multiple guys that can put their face on people, which we need to do in the run game. And it starts there. As much as I want to sling it, I love it and (Cefalo) does too, it starts with being able to run the ball effectively, and we need to improve on that from last year."

Depth and Competition Define the Front Seven

The Southern Miss defensive line going through warm-up drills before a fall camp scrimmage on Aug. 22, 2026. | Josh House

In the middle of the defensive line, senior Nasim Cairo, who emerged as a vocal leader throughout fall camp, and junior Darrell Gross were listed as the starting defensive tackle and nose tackle, respectively. The defensive end starter will be between redshirt-junior Zachariah Keith and redshirt-sophomore Ramon Pernas. The JACK (linebacker/defensive lineman hybrid) starter will be between junior Kameron Cyprien and graduate Jameer Lewis, who, like Nunnery and Maui, received a TRO and has retained his eligibility for now.

At linebacker, it's a four-man race for two starting spots. Redshirt-junior leader Mathis Haygood and emerging redshirt-sophomore talent Tyler Lassiter are battling it out for one of the two positions, while sophomore Wesley Edison and redshirt-senior Avery Sledge are doing the same for the other spot.

Secondary Has Some Clarity Ahead of Saturday

Junior defensive back Landon Sylvie (25) is one of the secondary players who has earned a starting spot for opening weekend. | Josh House

Going into fall camp, the Golden Eagles' secondary was considered one of the biggest wildcards despite appearing to have a good bit of talent and depth. Ironically, that secondary has more Week 1 starting spots locked down than any other position group on the team currently.

To no surprise, redshirt-junior leaders Champ Lewis and Kobi Albert are listed as the two starting cornerbacks. Redshirt-senior Jyaire Brown is listed as the starter at nickel and Landon Sylvie at field safety. For the boundary safety spot, though, a battle is still ongoing between redshirt-senior Laquan Robinson, who had an impressive pick-six in the first scrimmage of fall camp, and redshirt junior Michael Robinson III.

Special Teams Ready to Roll

Southern Miss kicker Creighton Wilbanks (40) preparing to kick a field goal during the 2026 season. | Southern Mill Athletics

For the Golden Eagles' special teams, sophomore Dusty Zimmer (punter), sophomore Creighton Wilbanks (kicker), redshirt-junior Reed Harradine (kickoff), redshirt-junior Luke Beard (longsnapper), redshirt-junior AJ Little (punt returner), redshirt-junior MJ Johnson (kick returner) and redshirt-senior Robert Briggs (kick returner) were all listed as starters on the Week 1 depth chart.

We'll see how the rest of these position battles unfold as this game week progresses, but for the first time this year, there's some structure in place, and we have a real idea of what Saturday's opening-night lineups could look like. Stay tuned to Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI for more updates as game day at The Rock draws closer.