Which USM Football Season was The Greatest of All Time? Today's Matchup: 1981 vs. 1996

The team at Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI has been working this summer to determine the greatest season in Golden Eagle football history. Our previous matchup saw the 1988 Independence Bowl Champion team take down the 1937 Yellow Jackets with 92 percent of the vote.

Today, we have officially reached the conclusion of the Sweet Sixteen Round, with Jeff Bower's 1996 Golden Eagles taking on a team he himself was an assistant coach on, the 1981 Southern Miss Golden Eagles. Remember, you can vote for your favorite of these two on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI Facebook and X pages.

Today's Matchup: 6-seed 1981 Southern Miss Golden Eagles vs. 11-seed 1996 Southern Miss Golden Eagles

#6 - 1981 Southern Miss Golden Eagles

Former head coach Bobby Collins while being honored for his accomplishments in 2018. | Southern Miss Athletics

Bobby Collins arrived in Hattiesburg in 1975, after serving as the offensive coordinator for Bill Dooley at North Carolina. In his first six seasons, Coach Collins had achieved a 39-28-1 record, and in 1980, got the Golden Eagles to their first bowl game appearance since the 1958 Tangerine Bowl, taking on McNeese State in the Independence Bowl. This was also the first NCAA-Recognized Postseason win in program history*.

The 1981 season started with a four-game win streak against Louisiana, Tulane, Richmond, and UT-Arlington, before the Golden Eagles' lone tie of the season against #7 Alabama in Birmingham. The next two wins against Memphis and North Texas boosted the Golden Eagles into the AP Top 25, where they are ranked No. 20. Following two wins against Top 25-ranked Mississippi State and Florida State, the Golden Eagles then sat at No. 9 in the AP Poll, the highest ranking in program history. However, the light wouldn't shine long as the Golden Eagles dropped that week's matchup to Louisville 13-10. Another win against Lamar in Hattiesburg left the Golden Eagles at 9-1-1 on the season and ranked at No. 18, as they headed to face Missouri of the Big 8 Conference in the Independence Bowl.

On the field, this was a record-setting season for the Golden Eagles. Senior running back and junior quarterback Sammy Winder and Reggie Collier, respectively, set tying records for the most single-season rushing touchdowns at 12 each. The season also helped sophomore kicker Steve Clark set a then career-record for most field goals made, at 41. However, national records were also set in this season. Reggie Collier, often called "The Perfect 10" among Golden Eagle faithful, became the first NCAA Division I quarterback to rush and throw for 1,000 yards each in a single season. As of the completion of the 2025 College Football Season, 32 other quarterbacks have achieved this feat.

Record: 9-2-1 (Independent)
Lost Tangerine Bowl to Missouri
5 Weeks Ranked in the AP Top 25 Poll (Finished Unranked)
Reached Highest AP Ranking in Program History (#9)
Notable Players: Reggie Collier (QB), Sammy Winder (RB), Louis Lipps (WR)
Notable Wins: vs. #15 Mississippi State (7-6) & @ #20 Florida State (58-14)

#11 - 1996 Southern Miss Golden Eagles

Jeff Bower at the 2016 USM-Rice Game, being honored along with the 1996 Golden Eagles. — Oct 1, 2016; Hattiesburg, MS, USA; Former Southern Miss Golden Eagles head football coach Jeff Bower and wife Debbie Bower greets fans before the game between the Southern Miss Golden Eagles and the Rice Owls at M.M. Roberts Stadium. Bower's 1996 team was being honored at halftime. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

For 13 years, the Southern Miss Golden Eagles competed in the Metro Conference alongside teams such as Memphis, Tulane, East Carolina, Virginia Tech, Florida State, and Cincinnati. However, the conference did not sponsor football. In 1990, the conference proposed sponsoring football and adding Penn State and teams from the Big East and Atlantic-10 Conference. This idea fell through after Florida State was invited to the ACC, Penn State to the Big Ten, and South Carolina to the SEC. Following five years of an odd period of realignment, the conference merged with the Great Midwest Conference to form Conference USA. Teams sponsoring football in the new conference were Cincinnati, Houston, Louisville, Memphis, Southern Miss, and Tulane.

The Golden Eagles opened the inaugural Conference USA Football season in 1996 with a monumental win against a Jim Donnan-led Georgia at Sanford Stadium, 11-7, before dropping a game to #14 Alabama the following week. The Golden Eagles then went on a 7-game win streak, even breaking the AP Top 25, before dropping two back-to-back games against Houston and #3 Florida State to keep the Golden Eagles out of bowl talks. However, the Golden Eagles were named co-champions of Conference USA along with Houston, giving Southern Miss their first conference claim since being named the 1951 Gulf States Conference Champions.

Record: 8-3 (4-1 CUSA)
Conference USA Co-Champions with Houston
4 Weeks Ranked in the AP Top 25 Poll (Finished Unranked)
Notable Players: Lee Roberts (QB), Harold Shaw (RB), Marchant Kenney (LB)
Notable Wins: @ Georgia (11-7) & vs. Memphis (16-0)

It's been implied many times in this series that Jeff Bower was a major key to football success at Southern Miss. And it even proves it here as a team Bower assisted takes on a Bower-led team. But which edition was better? That's up to you. Remember, you can vote for your favorite of these two on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles on SI Facebook and X pages. For the latest content from our team, remember to check out the Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI website homepage. And as always: Southern Miss, To The Top!

*: The Golden Eagles had previously won the 1937 Doll & Toy Charity Game and the 1946 Bacardi Bowl, but these are not NCAA-Recognized.

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