USM picked to repeat as West champs
Southern Miss has been picked to repeat as West Division football champions in 2016, while Middle Tennessee was selected to win the East Division in a preseason vote conducted by a panel of media members that cover Conference USA schools.
Southern Miss tied for the most-improved team in the FBS last season, which included a West Division title and a third appearance in the C-USA Championship game.
New head coach and former Golden Eagles assistant Jay Hopson brings back seven starters on offense and six on defense as it seeks a return trip to the title game. Senior quarterback Nick Mullens is back after becoming the first Golden Eagle to be named C-USA Offensive Player of the Year in 2015. He ranked second in the league in yards (4,476) and touchdown passes (38), both school records, while tying for fourth nationally in TD tosses.
Junior running back Ito Smith and senior center Cameron Tom are among the other Southern Miss standouts that have been named to preseason watch lists.
Middle Tennessee was 6-2 in league play last season and earned a trip to the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl. Last season's C-USA Freshman of the Year quarterback Brent Stockstill finished with a new league record for passing yards by a freshman with 4,005, leading the nation’s rookies in yards and TD passes (30).
Defending C-USA Champion Western Kentucky, led by senior receiver Taywan Taylor (1,467 receiving yards with school records 86 receptions and 17 TD catches) was picked second in the East, followed by Marshall. Rounding out the media picks in the East are Florida Atlantic, FIU, Old Dominion and Charlotte.
Louisiana Tech, coming off back-to-back bowl victories with a 13-3 league record over the past two years and featuring two-time All-Conference USA senior safety Xavier Woods (56 tackles and five forced turnovers in 2015), was selected second, followed by Rice and its talented group of running backs at third. Closing out the media picks in the West Division are UTEP, UTSA and North Texas, respectively.
The 12th annual Conference USA Football Championship Game, pitting the champions of the East and West Divisions, will be Dec. 3. The 2016 C-USA Football season kicks off Sept. 1.
Former Memphis signee commits to USM
Grand Canyon guard Dominic Magee verbally committed to Southern Miss Wednesday.
Magee took to Twitter to announce the news and confirmed it with the Hattiesburg American.
"I've decided to continue my college career at the University of Southern Mississippi," he wrote.
"Southern Miss is a good fit and I like the coach," he told the Hattiesburg American. "I like the whole situation. It's not too far from home and things like that."
The 6-foot-4, 190-pounder said he was drawing interest from Texas A&M, Baylor, San Diego State and Arizona State, among others, but added those programs wanted him to transfer to a junior college and play the upcoming season before joining their team.
Magee, who is set to report Aug. 22, also said he was recruited as a point guard.
"My natural position is the one," he said. "But I'm bigger, so I can play the one and the two. I'm more of a combo guard, so (USM wants) me to play the one and two. But my natural position is point guard."
Magee, who originally signed with Memphis out of Helen Cox (Louisiana), spent last season at Grand Canyon, where he was coached by former NBA All-Star Dan Majerle. He averaged 7.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. Magee was a redshirt freshman at Grand Canyon last season and must sit out the 2016-17 season at Southern Miss.
Prep linebacker commits to USM
Deltona (Florida) senior linebacker D'Von McCullough verbally committed to Southern Miss late Wednesday.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pounder, who played middle linebacker last season and is expected to play outside linebacker in 2016, confirmed his pledge to the Hattiesburg American after posting his intentions on Twitter. He will likely see playing time at the wolf position at Southern Miss.
"I would like to announce that I will be verbally committing to the University of Southern Mississippi," he wrote on the social media network.
McCullough, who put up 97 tackles and two sacks in 2015, is the second prep prospect to give his verbal commitment to the Golden Eagles in the span of a week. First Coast (Jacksonville, Florida) defensive tackle Shawn Wiley pledged to Southern Miss on July 16. The 6-foot-4, 277-pound Wiley is the second defensive tackle committed to the 2017 signing class, joining Fayette Ware (Tennessee) recruit Andrew Cole.
McCullough is the third linebacker to commit to the Golden Eagles, joining Meridian's Santrell Latham and Morton's Freddie Hartz. Also committed to the 2017 class are Gulf Coast running back T'Rod Daniels, St. Amant (Louisiana) kicker/receiver Briggs Bourgeois and Columbus (Florida) quarterback Marcelo Rodriguez.