Southern Miss vs. UConn: The Numbers, Important Matchups and Players to Watch

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss has seen how quickly a game can get away from either side. After opening with a 49-3 win over Alcorn State and taking a 43-8 loss at Auburn, the Golden Eagles (1-1) return to Renasant Stadium on Saturday for their first-ever meeting with UConn. For Blake Anderson's team, the next step is turning the lessons from those two very different Saturdays into a more consistent, well-rounded performance this weekend.

That starts with quarterback Ethan Hampton being able to make the routine plays, building on his connections with his receivers and getting Steven Robinson and the running game going again. Defensively, Southern Miss faces another quarterback who can hurt it outside the pocket, while cornerback Kobi Albert gets a chance to line up against his former team.

Two games of statistics offer only an early snapshot, but paired with the coaches' assessments, they help frame the most important matchups and improvements to watch for this week as the Golden Eagles take on the Huskies.

Offense: Building Chemistry and Cutting Out Costly Mistakes

Southern Miss Football — Southern Miss QB Ethan Hampton (5) gets hit in the endzone by an Auburn defensive lineman. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Over two weeks of action, Southern Miss is averaging 28.5 points and 382 total yards of offense per game. UConn is averaging 35.0 points and 447 yards of offense per game. The Huskies seem to have the edge when it comes to most offensive categories, but the Golden Eagles do have better third-down and fourth-down efficiency percentages.

Overall, it's hard to make any grand conclusions based on these numbers, especially considering that both teams have traveled the same path so far, playing a lower-level team they were expected to beat handily in Week 1, followed by a tougher Power 4 opponent in Week 2.

Although Ethan Hampton has been the starting quarterback through these first two weeks, he hasn't yet had a feel-good, breakout-type performance. Following a tough blowout loss on the road that began with a pick-six, Hampton will look to get off to a better start and turn things up a notch against the Huskies.

One thing to watch for in the Golden Eagles' passing game is the big-play ability of wide receiver Mario Sanders. Throughout fall camp and the first few weeks of the season, Sanders has established himself as Hampton's go-to guy. He had a 38-yard touchdown reception in Week 1 and a 41-yard reception on Southern Miss' only scoring drive at Auburn in Week 2.

“I think I mentioned this early on, [he was] very consistent throughout fall camp. He's kind of emerged himself into one of those guys that whether we're trying to get the ball to him or not… he just constantly, consistently shows up with the football and shows up doing the right thing," Southern Miss offensive coordinator Kyle Cefalo said of Sanders this week.

"So he's building his confidence. He's doing a really good job. He's got to keep working. He's got to become a complete wideout. We got to protect on the edges at wideout. A big part of our game plan was to kick the ball on the edge, even on a third down, throw a screen, throw a bubble pass, and if we block and we do what we're supposed to do, we actually probably have some pretty successful plays. But yeah, Mario's been consistent. He's doing a really good job, and he still has room to grow. But you can tell when a quarterback starts to get comfortable with a receiver, those things show up.”

As for the running game, the Golden Eagles will look to bounce back this week after getting stifled by Auburn. Southern Miss running back Steven Robinson is currently third in the Sun Belt in rushing yards (174) and is only two yards behind the current No. 1 leader in that category (Lanear McCrary Jr., Georgia State). He's tied for second with three rushing touchdowns.

Although the running game wasn't a big part of Southern Miss' game at Auburn, the Golden Eagles did put together an encouraging 14-play, 75-yard drive at the end of the second quarter that heavily featured Robinson and resulted in their only points of the game. Cefalo hopes his team can take the lessons from that successful drive and apply them to this coming week and beyond.

“That was the plan … hopefully get a couple first downs, keep them on the field, and then try to establish kind of that ground game that we saw in week one. ... You could tell later in that drive we were able to get a little bit of push, and we were able to get downhill a couple of times there, which was great," Cefalo said.

"But that's a well-built defense. … We watched every one of their games from last year. We watched the one game they played this year, and they're very stout inside. And not only just the bodies, but just the scheme that they do and the ability to change it up. So, we tried to get the ball on the edge, get some touches going. We missed a couple early. Try to get the ball out of the quarterback's hand. He threw the ball hot a couple of times, which was kind of the game plan. But it was good to see us at moments settle in, run the ball, and hopefully that gives us some confidence heading into next week."

Penalties and turnovers were the undoing of Southern Miss' offensive plans in Week 2. Head coach Blake Anderson is looking for his team to clean up those mistakes while being back home in Week 3 against a defense that likes to bring pressure. And if the Golden Eagles can learn from those previous mistakes and avoid making them going forward, Anderson doesn't see a remaining game on the schedule that Southern Miss can't win.

“We knew what we had in the first two. We knew there was one we should win. We knew there was another one we had to play perfect. We didn't do that. Every game from this point forward, you can win them all, you can lose them all. It's going to come down to doing what we're supposed to do consistently, week in and week out, and even that is going to put you in some really tough games. [UConn]'s going to be no different," Anderson said.

“Get rid of the unforced errors, man. Don't make mistakes and give people opportunities to beat you. Make them beat you with great football. And if we make the mistakes we made in the first half alone the other day, it's going to be hard to win any game. So we got to clean that up.”

Here's a look at how the Golden Eagles' and Huskies' offensive stats compare:

Offensive Stats	Southern Miss	UConn
Points Per Game	28.5	35.0
Total TDs	8	10
Total 1st Downs	44	41
3rd Down Efficiency	40%	39.1%
4th Down Efficiency	50%	40%
Passing Yards	397	526
Yards Per Pass	6.6	9.7
Passing TDs	2	5
Completion %	61.7%	64.8%
Interceptions	3	2
Rushing Yards	367	368
Yards Per Rush	4.5	5.2
Rushing TDs	6	5
Leading Passer	Ethan Hampton	Kalieb Osborne
Leading Rusher	Steven Robinson	Kalieb Osborne
Leading Receiver	Mario Sanders	Javon Brown

Defense: Containing UConn's QB and Limiting Big Plays

Southern Miss Footbal — Southern Miss defense in action against Auburn. | Russ Cloy Photography

Defensively, the Golden Eagles have created more turnovers than the Huskies have so far this season. In fact, UConn has yet to produce a turnover at all through the first two weeks of play. Given that this weekend will be the Huskies' first road test of the season with temperatures much higher than what they're used to up in Connecticut, Southern Miss should have a stamina advantage at The Rock on Saturday evening. Yes, the game will begin at 6 p.m. CT with the sun being behind the east side of the stadium, but Saturday is supposed to be the hottest day this week with a high of 98 degrees,

Still, though, the Golden Eagles' defense must be much better than it was against Auburn if it wants to help put Southern Miss back in the win column. UConn might not be Auburn in terms of overall talent, but its roster still has good size.

“I think you'll see some similarities with this guy we play this week from UConn, just in regards to the same skill set and being able to beat you with his legs and stuff like that," Southern Miss defensive coordinator Joe Bolden said this week.

Southern Miss Opponent — UConn Huskies quarterback Kalieb Osborne (7) runs the ball against Maryland Terrapins defensive back Amari Jackson (24) in the first quarter at Pratt Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"Just like [Alcorn State's Jaylon] Tolbert was week one, you let him out of the pocket, and he's going to make you pay. Really, [UConn is] a big-chunk play offense. Auburn was big-chunk play offense. We gave up way too many explosives. And those explosives primarily came from when we allowed [Auburn quarterback Byrum Brown] to get out of the pocket. ... I think we took way too many poor angles, and we didn't run our feet through contact. So that ultimately bit us in the rear end. In regards to him getting out of the pocket and running a little bit."

UConn starting quarterback Kalieb Osborne shares similar traits to Auburn's Byrum Brown. Brown is 6-3, 235 pounds, and Osborne is 6-4, 220 pounds. Osborne has thrown for 421 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception so far. He's also the Huskies' leading rusher, having racked up 120 rushing yards over the last two weeks.

Here's a look at how the Golden Eagles' and Huskies' defensive stats compare:

Defensive Stats	Southern Miss	UConn
Tackles (Solo)	149 (77)	144 (80)
Sacks	2	3
Interceptions	4	0
Forced Fumbles	2	1
Tacking Leader	Laquon Robinson	Zion Paret
Interceptions Leader	Kobi Albert	N/A

Kobi Albert Gets a Shot at His Former Team

One big storyline to watch this weekend regarding the Southern Miss defense is cornerback Kobi Albert playing against his former team. Albert played at UConn during his redshirt sophomore season last year, but appeared in only two games and didn't record any stats. After putting up a three-interception performance against Alcorn State in Southern Miss' season-opening win two weeks ago, Albert's postgame comments hinted he might be playing with a chip on his shoulder.

"[It's] just surreal," Albert said after his incredible Golden Eagles debut. "Just the work that I put in this offseason is just starting to pay off. And really, just the work that I put in the past couple years is starting to pay off. Been a couple places, haven't really been able to get the opportunity to be on the field. Now that I'm actually being able to be on the field, I'm actually able to show people what I can do."

Saturday gives Albert another opportunity to show what he can do, this time against his former team and in front of an excited Southern Miss home crowd.

Southern Miss has promising pieces, but Saturday is about getting more of them working together more consistently. A steadier offense that gets off to a fast start and a defense that finishes tackles and avoids letting the opposing quarterback scramble for first downs would go a long way toward turning the lessons from Auburn into a second win at The Rock.

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