1981 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team

The 1981 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team was an American football team that represented the University of Southern Mississippi as an independent during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their seventh year under head coach Bobby Collins, the team compiled a 9–2–1 record.^[1]

1981 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football
Tangerine Bowl, L 17–19 vs. Missouri
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 19
Record	9–2–1
Head coach	Bobby Collins (7th season)
Home stadium	M. M. Roberts Stadium
Seasons ← 1980 1982 →

1981 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Pittsburgh		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Penn State		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
No. 8 Miami (FL)		–		–				9	–	2	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				9	–	2	–	1
No. 17 West Virginia		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Colgate		–		–				7	–	3	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Navy		–		–				7	–	4	–	1
Cincinnati		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Florida State		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Holy Cross		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Tulane		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
UNLV		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Temple		–		–				5	–	5	–	0
Boston College		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Louisville		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Notre Dame		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
William & Mary		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				4	–	6	–	1
Richmond		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Army		–		–				3	–	7	–	1
North Texas State		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Georgia Tech		–		–				1	–	10	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				1	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	Southwestern Louisiana		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		W 33–7	23,576	^[2]
September 19	Tulane		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS (rivalry)		W 21–3	32,756	^[3]
September 26	at Richmond		City Stadium Richmond, VA		W 17–10	12,500	^[4]
October 3	Texas–Arlington		M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		W 52–9	29,348	^[5]
October 10	at No. 7 Alabama		Legion Field Birmingham, AL (rivalry)		T 13–13	76,400	^[6]
October 17	at Memphis State		Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN (rivalry)		W 10–0	14,252	^[7]
October 31	at North Texas State		Fouts Field Denton, TX		W 22–0	3,156	^[8]
November 7	vs. No. 14 Mississippi State	No. 20	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS		W 7–6	64,112	^[9]
November 14	at No. 20 Florida State	No. 14	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ABC	W 58–14	51,819	^[10]
November 21	at Louisville	No. 9	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY		L 10–13	12,940	^[11]
November 28	Lamar	No. 17	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS		W 45–14	31,842	^[12]
December 19	vs. Missouri	No. 18	Orlando Stadium Orlando, FL (Tangerine Bowl)		L 17–19	50,045	^[13]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "1981 Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
2. "Golden Eagles blitz Ragin' Cajuns, 33–7". The Daily Advertiser. September 6, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Southern Miss shocks Tulane". The Times. September 20, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Strange call sends Eagles over Spiders". Daily Press. September 27, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Eagles rip Mavericks 52–9". Clarion-Ledger. October 4, 1981. p. D1. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "USM finds Bama fit to be tied". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 11, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Southern Miss hands Tigers their 6th defeat". The Jackson Sun. October 18, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Southern Mississippi drowns North Texas". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. November 1, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "USM takes State's best shot and lives". The Clarion-Ledger. November 8, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Eagles humiliate Seminoles 58–14". Tampa Bay Times. November 15, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Going on TV put fight back in U of L". The Courier-Journal. November 22, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Collier, Winder set standards in 45–14 victory over Lamar". The Clarion-Ledger. November 29, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Missouri prevails in Tangerine Bowl". The Kansas City Star. December 20, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.