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SMU has rebounded from a season-opening loss at eighth-ranked Texas A&M with five straight wins to take over first place in the West Division of C-USA. The Mustangs are coming off a 38-17 win over UCF. Their road trip continues next weekend at Tulsa before they return to Ford Stadium for Homecoming the following week.

Despite their 5-1 overall record, the Golden Eagles are tied for third place in the East Division behind Marshall and East Carolina, who have a combined 5-8 record but are both 2-1 in league play. Southern Miss has gotten hot with four straight wins, including a 63-35 rout of Navy on October 8. The team was idle last weekend, and head coach Larry Fedora said during his weekly press conference that the bye week gave his players a much-needed opportunity to recharge their batteries.

Southern Miss owns a 2-0 edge in the all-time series with SMU, with the most recent meeting resulting in a 28-12 victory for the Golden Eagles in November 2008.

SMU has been lighting up the scoreboard on a weekly basis. Ever since their season-opening loss at Texas A&M, the Mustangs have averaged a healthy 38 points per game. They have done so behind talented quarterback J.J. McDermott and the nation's 10th-ranked passing offense. McDermott is averaging 306.7 passing yards per tilt and has thrown 10 touchdowns with only five interceptions. Darius Johnson (623 rec. yds, four TDs) and Cole Beasley (510 rec yds, one TD) have each caught more than 40 passes already. Meanwhile, running back Zach Line has helped keep defenses off balance with a league-best 110.8 rushing yards per game (5.8 ypc) and 13 TDs. Against UCF last weekend, McDermott completed 20-of-31 passes for 358 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He looked early and often to Beasley, who finished with 134 yards and a touchdown on 10 catches. Line did the rest of the dirty work in the trenches, rushing for 82 yards and two scores on 16 totes. All in all, it was another well-rounded offensive performance by the Mustangs, who averaged 9.4 yards per play and turned the ball over only once.

As impressive as SMU has been on offense, the defense also deserves plenty of credit for the team's 5-1 record. This unit ranks second in the conference in both points allowed (20 ppg) and total defense (323.7 ypg), and leads C-USA and ranks 15th nationally with 3.0 sacks per game. Additionally, opponents have found very few running lanes as the Mustangs boast the nation's 12th- ranked rushing defense (89.5 ypg). Junior linebacker Taylor Reed paces the squad with 47 tackles to go along with three sacks. Taylor Thompson is the team's sack leader with five, while Marquis Frazier is right on his heels with 3.5 sacks. Despite all of that pressure, the Mustangs have somehow managed only one interception on the year. Last week, the Mustangs were in bend-but- don't-break mode against UCF, as the Knights piled up 25 first downs, 459 total yards and held a 14-minute edge in time of possession. However, they made only two trips into the red zone, and their lone red-zone touchdown came in the final minutes with the game well out of reach.

SMU may have some trouble keeping this week's opponent out of the end zone, as this matchup has the potential to turn into a shootout. The Golden Eagles have averaged an impressive 48.3 ppg during their current four-game win streak, and they are coming off a 63-point effort on the road at Navy two weeks ago. With two weeks to prepare for SMU, offensive coordinator Blake Anderson could have a new wrinkle or two up his sleeve. While SMU ranks second in the conference in points allowed and total defense, Southern Miss ranks second in both scoring (38.7 ppg) and total offense (475.5 ypg). The Golden Eagles are tops in C-USA and rank 19th nationally in rushing offense, with an average of 212.9 yards per game. Kendrick Hardy (85.2 ypg) heads up a deep backfield rotation, although four different players have scored multiple rushing touchdowns. The Golden Eagles will need that depth, as Hardy missed the last game with a right arm injury and is considered doubtful for Saturday. Austin Davis can make defenses pay with his legs, and he is also a 63.6 percent passer averaging 259.7 yards per tilt through the air. Davis has thrown 13 touchdowns against only six interceptions. He threw three touchdowns against Navy two weeks ago, while Jeremy Hester rushed for 118 yards and scored one of the team's four rushing touchdowns on the day.

After jumping out to a 35-7 halftime lead against the Midshipmen, USM let off the gas pedal a bit in the second half as Navy put four touchdowns on the board. The Golden Eagles had some lapses against Navy's triple-option attack, which churned out 421 yards (6.9 ypc) and three touchdowns for the game. But with a couple of weeks to rest and re-focus, look for a better effort here against the run. Where the Golden Eagles really excel is playing downhill and making plays in the backfield, as they rank sixth in the country in tackles for loss (8.33 per game). Ronnie Thornton (6.0 TFL), Jamie Collins (9.0 TFL) and Cordarro Law (9.5 TFL) have combined to wreak havoc in the opposition's backfield. While the defense struggled in general stopping Navy's ground game, Thornton (2.5 TFL) and Collins each collected 11 tackles to share team-high honors. Still, after giving up nearly seven yards a pop against the run, there obviously is still work to be done for this unit as a whole.

Southern Miss is off to its best start since 2004, and the Golden Eagles are unbeaten in two previous matchups against SMU. However, they'll need to play a near flawless game and avoid turnovers against a Mustangs squad that is very sharp on both sides of the ball. A raucous home crowd may very well provide the needed boost for Southern Miss to come out on top in this one.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Southern Miss 38, SMU 35

Read more: http://www.macon.com/2011/10/19/1750889 ... z1bF41cBl4

On how bye weeks affect momentum:
"I haven't been in a situation where I felt the bye week affected you negatively. I really haven't. I wouldn't want it at the beginning of the year though. For us, right at the midpoint of our season, I thought it was a good situation for us with good timing."

On the rotation of running backs:
"It's by committee. I don't know if we would say we have a certain starter - we are worried about in that situation. They all know they are going to play. We'll just take it from there. We have not sat down and said, 'This guy is our starting tailback.' We haven't talked about anything like that. We've just talked about what each guy can do and how to take advantage of it."

On his thoughts of SMU:
"I think they're really good. I think the same things that we saw on film going into (last week's SMU-UCF game) held true. We knew Central Florida would be a good football team. I thought this was going to be a good test for them to see where they were. I think you can tell they are a lot better now than they were when they played Texas A&M at the beginning of the season. I think they have a lot of confidence and are playing well as a team right now."

On the importance of the crowd for Saturday's game:
"(The crowd) is going to be the difference in the game, in my opinion. Our crowd in The Rock is going to be the difference in the game. That's something we have to have. And it's not, 'We have to,' we're going to have a great crowd. It's going to be a great atmosphere. I think our crowd is going to be wild and crazy and get after it. It's going to be a big factor in the game."

On the importance of the game for the rest of the season:
"I don't know how to say it any differently. The next game is always big. If not, lose it and find out. For us, with where we are in the conference with a loss, it's huge. Will we practice or prepare any different? No. We prepare every week for a big game. You only get so many opportunities. You work year-round for it and you only get so many chances to play. When you get a game, come Saturday night, it's big."

On getting off to a good start offensively:
"It's very important for us. We have to do a great job of establishing the tempo and making sure everybody understands that we want to control this game. It's going to be a 60-minute game. We believe that. What we do at the beginning of the game, end of the half and beginning of the (second) half is going to be critical to our success."

On SMU's defense:
"I think they are No. 2 in every statistical category in the league, defensively. Again, like I said at the beginning of the season, the team that plays the best defense is going to win the league. If you look, a lot of the teams that are up there at the top are good defensively. SMU is right there. Their defensive front, I don't think there is anybody that we have played yet that is better than them up front. They have some linebackers that are making plays all over the field. Their front seven is extremely difficult to face."

On SMU running back Zach Line:
"Line is a good running back. He's big and he's physical and he can run. He's faster than what anybody thinks. He's in there on every snap and is involved in just about every protection. He's taking on, a lot of times, the defensive end and blocking him. He's the one carrying it, not the quarterback. He must be a pretty special kid I think. I know this, when they get down in the red zone, they have more rushing touchdowns than passing touchdowns. They believe in running the football, whether they talk about it or not. The perception is that all they do is throw it. They run the ball very well."

On the recent C-USA/MWC Alliance announcement:
"I really think it's a good thing. I really do. It's the only chance for Conference USA to secure one of the automatic qualifying bids. I think that is the biggest key. If you don't have that, it's going to be very difficult in the future financially. Hopefully that will take place. I think it's important because all of the players in this league that is merged together now have a chance, if they can secure that bid, to play at the highest level of postseason football."

The next game is always big. If not, lose it and find out.