South Alabama at Southern Miss: Two New Quarterbacks and Little Separation

South Alabama travels to M. M. Roberts Stadium in Hattiesburg for a 4:00 PM ET kickoff on Saturday, November 21, and the central story is quarterback uncertainty on both sides. Each team changed passers between its last two games, and the evidence on how either offense looks with its current starter is thin.

South Alabama's Bishop Davenport had 22 pass attempts against the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns on November 7, a week after Jared Hollins had 31 attempts against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. Davenport has led the team in attempts in only 1 of its last 3 games. Southern Miss shows the same pattern: John White had 35 attempts against the James Madison Dukes on November 5, after Landry Lyddy had 30 attempts against the UL Monroe Warhawks on October 31, and White has also led in 1 of the last 3 games. Those are very small samples for judging either passer.

The backfields are where the two teams look different. Steven Robinson has 58 carries over Southern Miss's last 3 games, ahead of Jamarice Wilder's 37. South Alabama's work is split more evenly, with Keenan Phillips at 36 carries and PJ Martin at 33 over the same stretch. In the passing game, Southern Miss's Mario Sanders has 16 receptions over the last 3 games, while South Alabama's Anthony Eager and Brendan Jenkins each have 12. Southern Miss's production is more concentrated in fewer players, which makes the new quarterback's connection with those players worth watching.

The totals streaks point in different directions. South Alabama has gone under the total in 3 straight games, while Southern Miss has gone over in 3 straight, both overall. Those runs describe recent results and do not settle which tendency carries into this game. Last year's meeting, a 42-35 South Alabama win at South Alabama, was high-scoring, but it is a year-old result.

Form is mixed. South Alabama has lost 3 straight overall. Southern Miss's 11 straight losses are tied to road games, and South Alabama's 3 straight wins as a home favorite to home games, so neither maps neatly onto a game in Hattiesburg.

Conditions look neutral, with a forecast of 60°F, wind 5 mph ESE and partial cloud. Neither team has an injury reported, so the picture rests on the quarterback changes and how the offenses are structured rather than on absences. The most useful questions are whether either new quarterback moves the ball efficiently and whether Southern Miss's ground work stays as concentrated as it has been. Overall, the evidence is thin and fairly balanced, with no piece of it pulling strongly one way.