Clarion-Ledger from Jackson, Mississippi • D9

THE CLARION-LEDGER CLARIONLEDGER.COM SUNDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2013 9D BLAZE OF GLORY Southern Miss tops rival UAB to end program-worst skid JASON MUNZ Few victories Southern Miss' football history will turn out to be as important as Saturday's at UAB. The Golden Eagles' 62-27 win versus the Blazers ended a 23-game run of futility, one few FBS programs have endured. A loss Saturday would have given Southern Miss the seventh-longest skid in FBS history. Think about that. The FBS has seen a lot bad teams in its history, and but few of those lost 24 games in a row.

But, the streak is over. Southern Miss no longer owns the nation's longest active losing streak be it FBS or FCS. The argument can be made that the Golden Eagles' victory Saturday is as big, if not bigger, than the program's Conference USA Championship win over Houston two years ago. For one thing, Southern Miss won conference titles before 2011's championship. Never before, though, have the Golden Eagles lost 23 consecutive games.

Nor have the Golden Eagles endured back-to-back winless seasons. Not many programs have, at least not many with a history like Southern Miss'. Saturday's win came against UAB, which had become an enormous thorn in Southern Miss' side. It was the Blazers that beat the Golden Eagles late in 2011, which ultimately cost Southern Miss a BCS berth in the Sugar Bowl. UAB had beaten the Golden Eagles four years in a row since 2008.

Southern Miss senior linebacker Dylan Reda added more insight. He said anyone who thinks the Golden Eagles' rivalry with the Blazers isn't legit is wrong. "Last year, they started winning (late) and they were saying things like, 'Four years, four he said. "That 4 Southern Miss linebacker C.J. Perry Jr.

hits UAB quarterback Jonathan Perry during Saturday's game, which the Golden Eagles won 62-27. USA TODAY SPORTS (The rivalry) is To contact Jason Munz, call (601) 584-3107 or follow Munzly on Twitter. kind of crawled under my skin a little bit, especially since we hadn't won a game yet. And then (Saturday), the quarterback had kind of been staring us down a little bit. We walked out to the captain's meeting and I tried to shake his hand, and he wouldn't even shake my hand.

"Right then, from the get-go, I said, 'All right. We'll see how this game goes. USM NOTEBOOK SCOREBOARD Southern Miss 7 6 28 21 62 14 7 0 6 27 UAB RB Hardy ends career in style FIRST QUARTER USM Holmes 3 pass from Mullens (Acosta kick), 11:22. UAB D. Reaves 3 run (Long kick), 7:54.

UAB Nelson 48 pass from Perry (Long kick), :23. SECOND QUARTER USM FG Acosta 30, 12:03. USM FG Acosta 25, 8:10. UAB Powell 23 run (Long kick), 4:25. THIRD QUARTER USM Sullivan 43 pass from Mullens (Acosta kick), 11:38.

USM Cox 21 pass from Mullens (Acosta kick), 10:00. USM Mullens 1 run (Acosta kick), 8:13. USM Ricard 37 pass from Mullens (Acosta kick), 3:04. FOURTH QUARTER USM Hardy 3 run (Acosta kick), 12:00. UAB Nelson 21 pass from Perry (pass failed), 9:41.

USM Triplett 19 pass from Mullens (Acosta kick), 7:09. USM Hardy 3 run (Acosta kick), :10. TEAM STATS 4 IN Monticello native scores first TDs on ground in 2 years By Jason Munz jmunzhattiesburgamerican.com BIRMINGHAM A career that started with promise ended the way it began for Ken-drick Hardy. The senior and Monticello native scored a rushing touchdown for the first time in more than two years during Southern Miss' 62-57 win over UAB Saturday, helping the Eagles snap a 23-game losing streak and avoid their second straight winless season. Hardy, who rushed for more than 900 yards as a freshman in 2010, gained 106 yards on the ground and ran in two fourth-quarter touchdowns against the Blazers, his first since a victory over Rice on Oct.

1, 2011. "It feels real good," he said. "Everybody's happy. Everybody's going crazy. We're just so happy to get that win." Southern Miss coach Todd Monken said Saturday's win was special for everyone involved, but especially for Hardy.

"I'm so happy for him," he said. "For him to end his career this way is something really special for him. Something he'll always remember." Memorable return Southern Miss quarterback Nick Mullens is familiar with UAB. He was raised in nearby Hoover, and played at Spain Park High just outside of Birmingham. The freshman originally committed to play for the Blazers, and he had a number of friends and family present Saturday at Legion Field, including some that played for UAB.

"Bryant Novick, my best friend since kindergarten, I ran straight to him (after the game), and gave him a big hug," Mullens said. "It was great to play against some old teammates. Great to play USM UAB First downs 28 22 Rushes-yards 31-102 36-145 Passing 370 286 Comp-Att-Int 24-39-1 18-31-1 Return Yards 55 17 Punts-Avg. Fumbles-Lost 1-0 5-4 Penalties-Yards 6-50 11-98 TimeofPos- 30:11 27:48 Southern Miss running back Kendrick Hardy scored his first rushing touchdown since Oct. 1, 2011 during Saturday's win over UAB.

usa today sports INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING Southern Miss, Hardy 20-106, Bracken 5-6, Mullens 6-(minus 10). UAB, D.Reaves 15-69, Perry 13-39, Powell 1-23, PASSING Southern Miss, Mullens 24-39-1-370. UAB, Perry 18-31-1-286. RECEIVING Southern Miss, Bracken 7-63, Holmes 6-56, Triplett 4-68, Cox 2-68, Hardy 2-31, Sullivan 1-43, Ricard 1-37, Sloter 1-4. UAB, Nelson 5-117, D.Reaves 4-28, Powell 2-47, Howard 1-40, Backman 1-18, Staples 1-15, Hrabowskie 1-9, Height 1-8, Sa.Jones 1-8, Autrey 1-(minus4).

call it. But we've been waiting to call that. We've worked on it forever. "Nick was about to check out of it. Thank God there was no one here, so we could yell at him and tell him not to check it." Saturday's announced attendance was 6,383.

To contact Jason Munz, call (601) 584-3107 or follow Munzly on Twitter. against UAB. I have a lot of respect for UAB and the program." Nail in the coffin The Golden Eagles were leading 34-21 in the third quarter when Nick Mullens and Marquise Ricard officially stepped on UAB's throat. Offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo called for a flea-flicker that worked to perfec tion. Mullens handed the ball to Hardy, who took a few steps, then turned around and pitched the ball back to the quarterback, who heaved it to Ricard in the end zone to give Southern Miss a 41-21 lead with 3:04 left in the third quarter.

"We've been waiting to call that for a while, for God's sake," Monken said. "The problem is you get behind a bunch, and you're not sure whether to.