1980 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team

The 1980 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team was an American football team that represented the University of Southern Mississippi as an independent during the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their sixth year under head coach Bobby Collins, the team compiled a 9–3 record.^[1]

1980 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football
Independence Bowl champion
Independence Bowl, W 16–14 vs. McNeese State
Conference	Independent
Record	9–3
Head coach	Bobby Collins (6th season)
Home stadium	M. M. Roberts Stadium
Seasons ← 1979 1981 →

1980 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 Pittsburgh		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
Tennessee State		–		–				9	–	1	–	0
No. 5 Florida State		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
No. 8 Penn State		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
No. 9 Notre Dame		–		–				9	–	2	–	1
No. 18 Miami (FL)		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Navy		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Boston College		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
UNLV		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Tulane		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Colgate		–		–				5	–	4	–	1
North Texas State		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Villanova		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
West Virginia		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Louisville		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Richmond		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Illinois State		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Temple		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Army		–		–				3	–	7	–	1
Holy Cross		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Cincinnati		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
William & Mary		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Georgia Tech		–		–				1	–	9	–	1
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	at Tulane		Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA (rivalry)		W 17–14	44,698	[2]
September 20	Louisiana Tech		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS (rivalry)		W 38–11	24,640	[3]
September 27	at East Carolina		Ficklen Memorial Stadium Greenville, NC	WITN	W 35–7	20,037	[4]
October 4	vs. Ole Miss		Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS		W 28–22	47,211	[5]
October 11	at Mississippi State		Scott Field Starkville, MS		W 42–14	36,211	[6]
October 18	Arkansas State		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		W 35–0	21,915	[7]
October 25	No. 1 Alabama	No. 20	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL (rivalry)		L 7–42	60,210	[8]
November 1	Lamar		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		W 36–10	30,485	[9]
November 8	Auburn		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, AL		L 0–31	56,800	[10]
November 15	Richmond		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		W 33–12	17,320	[11]
November 22	Louisville		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		L 3–6	21,210	[12]
December 13	McNeese State		Independence Stadium Shreveport, LA (Independence Bowl)		W 16–14	42,600	[13]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1980 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 10 Reggie Collier So TE 80 Marvin Harvey Sr RB 45 Sammy Winder Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 19 Hanford Dixon Sr LB 47 Cliff Lewis Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Bobby Collins Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1980 Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
2. "Southern rallies to best Tulane 17–14". The Greenwood Commonwealth. September 7, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Mississippi upends LaTech". The Times. September 21, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "'Sammy Winder night' gives USM easy win". Hattiesburg American. September 28, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Southern whips Rebels again". Enterprise-Journal. October 5, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "42–14: USM hands out a 'Dog-whippin'". The Clarion-Ledger. October 12, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Nasty Bunch stifles ASU, makes USM triumph easy". Hattiesburg American. October 19, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Bama clobbers Southern Miss". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 26, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Golden Eagles route Lamar". The Greenwood Commonwealth. November 2, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Tigers dominate USM in homecoming victory". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 9, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "S. Mississippi rips Richmond 33–12". Daily Press. November 16, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Betz sits in slop, watches as his kick wins for U of L". The Courier-Journal. November 23, 1980. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Southern Miss wins Independence Bowl". Daily Press. December 14, 1980. p. D3. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.