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In their 4th Sun Belt matchup of the season, the Southern Miss Golden Eagles were looking to rekindle an old rivalry with the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Saturday. While there is no official name for this rivalry, the history of the game can be traced back to November 17, 1923, when the two teams met for the first time in Lafayette where the Cajuns stepped on the Eagles 66-0. Over the next 99 years, the Eagles and the Cajuns would meet 50 more times in regular season and bowl games. By the time the 2022 matchup rolled around, Southern Miss had carried a 9-game win streak between 1994 and 2016, with the last matchup being at the 2016 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl, where the Eagles won 28-21. But this year, more than just a win was on the line. Whoever won this would become one of the top teams in the Sun Belt, on their way to representing the West Division in the Sun Belt Championship.
Southern Miss made it tough for Louisiana in the 1st Quarter, going into the 2nd leading the Cajuns 20-5. Southern Miss continued racking up points throughout the 2nd Quarter, as did Louisiana, with the Eagles leading 29-11. In the second half of the game, both teams tired out and slowed each other down, but the Golden Eagles kept going fast enough to pull out a win over the Cajuns, walking away and winning 39-24. With amazing plays from quarterback Zach Wilcke, running back Frank Gore, Jr., and receivers Jason Brownlee, Ty Mims, and Chandler Pittman, Southern Miss played one of their best games all season.
Having ESPN College Gameday attend a game is considered an amazing achievement. Up until 2022, only 2 teams had hosted Gameday. Mississippi State once in 2014, and Ole Miss twice (2014 & 2021.) However, in 2022, ESPN announced Gameday would make its first-ever appearance at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, as the Jackson State Tigers hosted the Southern Jaguars in the historic BoomBox Classic. These two HBCU powerhouses first met on the field in 1929, where the Tigers were handed a 98-0 loss to the Jaguars. However, over the last 93 years, the game has changed, and Jackson State would not put up such an easy fight for the Jaguars. In front of an overpacked Memorial Stadium (standard capacity is 44,215 and 53,885 attended the game), Jackson State snuffed out Southern 35-0.
Other Week 9 Scores from Mississippi Teams:
- #15 Ole Miss (7-1) @ Texas A&M (3-4): 31-28
- Mississippi State (5-3): Off Week
- Alcorn State (3-4) @ Grambling (1-6): 6-35
- Mississippi Valley State (0-8): Off Week
- Mississippi College (4-4) vs. Delta State (8-0): 52-38
- Belhaven (6-1) vs. LaGrange (1-5): 70-16
- Millsaps (3-4) @ Berry (4-3): 56-0
Week 10 Mississippi CFB Schedule
- Southern Miss (5-3) vs. Georgia State (3-5)
- #11 Ole Miss (8-1): Off Week
- Mississippi State (5-3) vs. Auburn (3-5)
- Jackson State (8-0) @ Texas Southern (4-4)
- Alcorn State (3-5) @ Prairie View A&M (5-3)
- MS Valley State (0-8) Alabama A&M (3-5)
- Mississippi College (4-5) @ West Alabama (4-5)
- Delta State (9-0) vs. West Georgia (6-2)
- Belhaven (7-1) @ Brevard (4-4)
- Millsaps (3-5) vs. Trinity (8-0)
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