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The Southern Miss football team plays its first Friday contest in six seasons when they travel to Ruston, La., to face Louisiana Tech, Nov. 19, in a 7 p.m. contest at Joe Aillet Stadium.

The game can be seen on the CBS Sports Network and also be heard on one of the affiliates of the Southern Miss Sports Network by Learfield.

The Friday contest marks the fourth time the program has played on this day of the week since the 2010 campaign and the first time since a 31-10 defeat at Marshall on Oct. 9, 2015.

The game renews a rivalry which started back in 1935 and features the 53rd meeting between the schools, which is the second longest in Southern Miss history. This series trails only Memphis at 63 games and moves just ahead of 52 games versus Louisiana for second.

This week, the Golden Eagles (1-9, 0-6) look to snap a two-game losing streak to the Bulldogs (3-7, 2-4) but do hold a 35-17 overall advantage in the series and have won 11 of the last 16 meetings.

Southern Miss wants to build on its near upset of nationally ranked UTSA last weekend in San Antonio in its final road tilt of the campaign.

Coach Will Hall’s squad either led or tied for much of the game at the Alamodome, as they held the football for over 37 minutes in the contest. That feat was accomplished by exclusively using a wildcat formation on offense, as well as making several outstanding defensive plays. One of those efforts on defense came in the form of a 34-yard interception return for a touchdown for Natrone Brooks in the opening minute of the second half, giving the Golden Eagles a lead.

With five tackles against the Roadrunners, Conerly Trophy finalist Malik Shorts kept his team lead in tackles with 81. Shorts, along with Eric Scott Jr., have two interceptions to lead the Golden Eagles in that category.

Josh Carr paces the Golden Eagles in both tackles for loss with 6.5 and sacks with 4.5 this season, while Hayes Maples ranks second on the team in tackles with 47 and Josh Ratcliff has the most among defensive linemen with 29.

On offense, Southern Miss has seen nine different players used in five different starting lineups along the line in 2021, but are expected to use Paul Gainer, Jr. (left tackle), Gerquan Scott (left guard), Briason Mays (center), John Bolding (right guard) and Khalique Washington (right tackle) for the third consecutive game.

They will do the blocking for the backs behind them which have been led by Frank Gore, Jr., and his 731 rushing yards this season. Jason Brownlee continues to lead the receiving corps in catches (36), yards (478) and touchdown catches (4).

Following the Louisiana Tech contest, the Golden Eagles return home for their final game of the campaign, Saturday, Nov. 27, when they take on FIU. Game time is set for 2 p.m.

Tickets still remain for the game and can be purchased by going online at SouthernMissTickets.com, by calling 1-800-844-TICK (8425) or 601-266-5418, as well as emailing ticket.office@usm.edu.

– @USMGoldenEagles/@SouthernMissFB –