Conference USA Championship Game Preview: Western Kentucky vs. Southern Miss

Written by Charlie Beuttel 
Twitter: @charlie_cds3 

The 2015 college football season was full of excitement in Conference USA with five different teams putting up a great fight to get a chance to battle for the conference title. After an exciting final weekend in the regular season where Southern Miss won on the road at Louisiana Tech, 58-24, and Western Kentucky defeated Marshall, 49-28, the conference championship is set with bragging rights and a better bowl berth on the line.

Southern Miss went 9-3 in the regular season and had 7-1 record in conference play. Their only conference loss came at Marshall, 31-10. Their biggest wins came at Louisiana Tech, against UTEP (34-13), and against Old Dominion (56-31).

Western Kentucky went 10-2 in the regular season and went a perfect 8-0 in conference play. Their only losses of the year came at Indiana (38-35) and at LSU (48-20). Their biggest wins of the year came at Vanderbilt (14-12), against Louisiana Tech (41-38), and then when they routed Miami (56-14).

Southern Miss Overview

Southern Miss uses their high-scoring offense averaging an incredible 42 points per game. The Golden Eagles have two great running backs, senior Jalen Richard and sophomore Ito Smith. Richard has 1,065 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns while Smith is not too far behind with 983 rushing yards and has added seven rushing touchdowns. The Eagles starting quarterback, junior Nick Mullens, has thrown for 3,964 yards and 35 touchdowns. The leading receiver is senior Casey Martin who has grabbed 56 passes for 1,111 yards and has 11 touchdowns.

The Golden Eagles only gave up 22 points a game during the regular season. The leading tackler on the team is junior linebacker D’Nerius Antoine who has 84 total tackles including 6.5 for a loss and two interceptions. Another star player for the defensive unit is senior linebacker Brian Anderson who has 75 total tackles including 13.5 for a loss and four sacks. Senior defensive back Kalan Reed leads the team with three interceptions and has 44 total tackles.

Western Kentucky Overview

Western Kentucky also has a high-powered offense that scores 44 points a game. The leader of the Hilltoppers is senior quarterback Brandon Doughty who has thrown for 4,184 yards, 42 touchdowns, and completed 72.5 percent of his passes. The leading rusher is junior running back Anthony Wales who has ran for 933 yards and seven touchdowns. Redshirt freshman D’Andre Ferby has chipped in with 547 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns. Junior wide receiver Taywan Taylor has snagged 71 passes for 1,198 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns.

The Hilltoppers give up 25 points a game and have several stars on their defensive unit. Redshirt sophomore T.J. McCollum is the leading tackler with 94 total tackles including 10.5 for a loss and three sacks. Redshirt senior Nick Holt is one of the leaders of the defense as he has 80 total tackles including 7.5 for a loss, leads the team with four sacks and is tied for the team lead with three interceptions. Another player to watch is junior defensive back Branden Leston who is second on the team with 84 total tackles including three for a loss.

Both teams have explosive offenses so this game has the potential to become a shootout. The key to the game will be which defenses can limit the damage. It will be exciting to watch Western Kentucky’s Brandon Doughty, who is one of the best quarterbacks in the country that most people don’t know about, try and lead his team to a conference championship after running the table in the regular season.

No matter who wins or loses both teams are guaranteed to play in a bowl game later this month.

Prediction: Western Kentucky 38, Southern Miss 28

Game Details
Kickoff: 11:00 am (CT)
Coverage: ESPN2
Game Site: Bowling Green, KY

Picture credit: hoosierhuddle.com; Western Kentucky QB Brandon Doughty