The Travis Creel Era: Looking Back at a Historic Run at Southern Miss

As Travis Creel moves on to be Jacksonville State's next head coach, Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI takes a look back at his decorated USM tenure.

Travis Creel talks things over with Joey Urban on third base during Southern Miss' 2026 Parrothead Game. | Josh House

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – By now, you’ve probably heard the news. Golden Eagles hitting coach Travis Creel is heading to Jacksonville State to be the next head coach of the Gamecocks, bringing an end to a remarkable seven-year run at Southern Miss.

While Golden Eagle fans will soon begin looking ahead to the future, it’s worth taking a moment to look back at the impact Creel made during his time in Hattiesburg.

Creel's Body of Work Speaks for Itself

Josh House

When Creel returned to Southern Miss in 2019, he came home as a former Golden Eagle player-turned-coach with a vision of helping his alma mater compete for championships. Seven seasons later, he leaves as one of the architects of the most successful stretches in program history.

During Creel’s tenure as hitting coach and recruiting coordinator, Southern Miss compiled a 282-118 record, reached six NCAA Tournaments, won the 2022 Conference USA Regular Season Championship, captured Sun Belt Tournament Championships in 2023, 2024, and 2026. 

The offensive numbers tell the story:

• 2020 - .289 AVG, 134 hits, 26 doubles, 3 triples, 11 HR (Covid Year)

• 2021 - .274 AVG, 563 hits, 111 doubles, 9 triples, 83 HR

• 2022 - .282 AVG, 617 hits, 124 doubles, 6 triples, 82 HR

• 2023 - .283 AVG, 639 hits, 133 doubles, 11 triples, 88 HR

• 2024 - .294 AVG, 631 hits, 135 doubles, 8 triples, 91 HR

• 2025 - .301 AVG, 652 hits, 128 doubles, 13 triples, 106 HR (School Record)

• 2026 - .287 AVG, 612 hits, 138 doubles, 7 triples, 86 HR

Josh House

Over seven seasons, Southern Miss hitters amassed 3,850 hits, 795 doubles, 57 triples, and 547 home runs, becoming one of the most productive offenses in Division I baseball. 

The Golden Eagles hit .274 or better in every full season under Creel, highlighted by the record-setting 2025 campaign that produced 652 hits, a .301 batting average, and a school-record 106 home runs.

Even in his final season, Southern Miss finished 44-17, recorded 612 hits, 138 doubles, and 86 home runs while winning both its first-ever Sun Belt regular-season and Tournament championships before advancing to the NCAA Regional play.

Matthew Russo takes a big swing as Tavis Creel watches from down the third base line. | Josh House

While the statistics are impressive, Creel’s impact extended beyond the batter’s box. Numerous Southern Miss players credit Creel for helping with their development, not only on the diamond, but as young men off of it as well.

A former Southern Miss infielder and team captain from 2010-2013, Creel returned home after coaching stops at Meridian Community College, Jones College, and Louisiana Tech and helped elevate the Golden Eagles into a perennial national contender.

For Jax State, the Gamecocks are gaining one of college baseball’s brightest offensive minds.

The question now becomes: Where does Southern Miss go from here?

Josh House

Replacing a coach with the track record, recruiting ability, and offensive success of Travis Creel won’t be an easy task for the Golden Eagles, but if anybody can do it, Coach Ostrander certainly can. Southern Miss brought in new blood in the pitching department last summer by hiring Gunner Leger from Louisiana as the new pitching coach, and that hire turned out well in 2026. This week, all eyes will be on who the program brings in to take over Creel's former role.

As Creel begins this new chapter at Jax State, Golden Eagle fans can look back with appreciation for everything he helped build over the last seven seasons.

From all of us here at Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI, we wish Creel nothing but success moving forward ... just not too much success when Southern Miss and Jax State meet on the diamond in the future.