Two Sun Belt teams tearing their rosters down to the studs meet in Monroe, and neither one is close to finished building.
Bush’s Picks
USMULM
USMULM
OverUnder
Best BetUL Monroe
UL Monroe brings back its quarterback, its best receiver and its best linebacker, while Southern Miss returns exactly one starter total. That continuity gap is the whole ballgame here, and it's enough to lean Warhawks on the moneyline even with Vincent still hunting his first winning season. Southern Miss has real individual talent in Hampton and Himes, but new-system chemistry against a team that mostly knows what it's doing is a tough spot on the road.
Southern Miss
+QB Ethan Hampton has multi-program starting experience
+WR Jaylen Himes a proven big-play threat
+Coach Blake Anderson has two Sun Belt titles
−Returns just one starter on entire roster
−Defense almost entirely rebuilt via portal
−Projected under 5 wins this season
UL Monroe
+QB Aidan Armenta and top WR Vinson both return
+LB Noah Flemmings anchors a strong front seven
+Third year of continuity under Bryant Vincent
−Vincent only 8-16 through two seasons at ULM
−Offensive line and run game unreliable
−Kicker made just 2-of-7 field goals in 2025
Southern Miss shows up with a brand-new coaching staff and basically a brand-new roster. Blake Anderson takes over after Charles Huff bolted for Memphis, and he's rebuilding around sixth-year quarterback Ethan Hampton, a Northern Illinois transfer who's started games at three different programs. Only one starter, center Broderick Roman, returns from last year's team - that's about as close to a full teardown as it gets.
UL Monroe isn't nearly as gutted, which is the closest thing to an edge either side has here. Bryant Vincent is in year 3 trying to get the Warhawks their first winning season since 2012, and he's got quarterback Aidan Armenta back for a second year along with preseason All-Sun Belt receiver AJ Vinson and a linebacker corps fronted by Noah Flemmings, who racked up 80 tackles a year ago. That continuity matters in a conference where half the league is churning through transfer portals every offseason.
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USM Southern Miss
ULM UL Monroe
Neither program is being taken seriously by oddsmakers or bettors right now, and for good reason - both are projected to finish under .500. But home continuity against a roster with almost zero returning starters is the kind of gap that tends to show up on the scoreboard before it shows up in the betting market.
Southern Miss Golden Eagles
Oct 16?vs Arkansas State—
Oct 6?@ Troy—
Sep 25?@ Tulane—
Sep 19?vs UConn—
Sep 12?@ Auburn—
Sep 5?vs Alcorn State—
UL Monroe Warhawks
Oct 16?vs Louisiana Tech—
Oct 2?@ South Alabama—
Sep 25?vs Florida Atlantic—
Sep 19?vs SE Louisiana—
Sep 12?@ UAB—
Sep 5?@ Mississippi State—
Recent form.
Southern Miss does bring a legitimate weapon in receiver Jaylen Himes, who caught 66 passes for 1,174 yards as a true freshman playing up from Division II ball, and Hampton has the pedigree - he helped Northern Illinois shock Notre Dame back in 2024. The problem is almost everything around him is new: a rebuilt offensive line, a defense that lost nearly its entire two-deep, and a coach installing his system in real time. UL Monroe's issues are more specific - an offensive line that's been inconsistent, a running game that hasn't been trustworthy, and a kicker who made just 2-of-7 field goals last season, which is the kind of thing that turns a win into a headache.
Southern Miss Golden Eagles
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
UL Monroe Warhawks
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
This is a program-building game more than a marquee one - the kind of Friday-night Sun Belt matchup that means a lot more to the two fan bases than anyone else. Whoever looks more like a functioning team by late October, rather than a work in progress, should walk out of Malone Stadium with the win.
