Damion Fletcher News

WHEN FORMER University of Southern Miss football coach Jeff Bower was shoved unceremoniously out the door two years ago and Larry Fedora brought in as head coach, support for the two was divided strongly among fans and alumni.

Southern Miss coach Larry Fedora, working on the sidelines during Sunday night's New Orleans Bowl, will be in his third season as the Golden Eagles' head coach in 2010.

If there's any good that came out of Southern Miss' 42-32 loss to Middle Tennessee Sunday night in the New Orleans Bowl, it was the way Damion Fletcher closed out his college career.

Southern Miss running back Damion Fletcher made the most of his final game Sunday night in the New Orleans Bowl, rushing for a team-high 78 yards on 17 carries in the Golden Eagles' 42-32 loss to middle Tennessee State.

Southern Miss concludes its 2009 football season when they will take on Sun Belt Conference foe Middle Tennessee State, Sunday night, in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl at the Louisiana Superdome.

Southern Miss QB Martevious Young looks for a receiver during the Golden Eagles' game against Houston on Oct.

Damion Fletcher has prepared for Middle Tennessee the same way he prepared before Southern Miss battled the likes of Florida, Auburn, Virgina Tech and Boise State during his four-year career.

GAME NOTES: The 2009 New Orleans Bowl features the first-ever meeting between the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles and the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders on the gridiron.

Does experience really matter? MTSU plays Southern Mississippi in the New Orleans Bowl Sunday, having only played in one such postseason game since joining the FBS ranks in 1999.

The Blue Raiders conclude their historic season Dec. 20 as the team travels to New Orleans, La.

Our weekly Q&A with the opponent's beat writer returns for a bowl edition, as MTSU gets cranked up for a New Orleans Bowl showdown with Southern Mississippi.

While the finalist for the Heisman Trophy are preparing for a trip to New York City for Saturday's award ceremony, the Southern Miss football team lifted weights on Thursday afternoon in the north end zone at M.M. Roberts Stadium.

The MTSU football team returns to practice today to prepare to play Southern Mississippi in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl on Dec.

Southern Miss began the 2009 football season on a high note with a 3-0 start. However, they didn't finish as strong when the Golden Eagles posted a 4-5 record down the stretch and missed out on playing in the Conference USA Championship Game.

The Southern Miss football team is left to wonder "what if?" and wait to find out where it will play next.

The Conference USA East Division title will be at stake Today when East Carolina closes out regular season play by hosting Southern Miss in a 1:30 p.m. matchup at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

Southern Miss running back Tracy Lampley evades a tackler as senior Tori Harrison leads the way against East Carolina on Saturday in Greenville, N.C. C.J. Wilson blocked the kick, scooped the ball and took off for the goal line.

Southern Miss tailback Damion Fletcher has grown a little tired of the hoopla surrounding his pursuit of a fourth straight 1,000-yard rushing season.

East Carolina's Dwayne Harris, right, gets past Southern Mississippi's C.J. Bailey during the first half of an NCAA college football game at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium in Greenville, N.C., on Saturday, Nov.

Southern Miss running back Damion Fletcher enters Saturday's game at East Carolina 123 yards short of becoming the ninth player in major college football history to reach the 1,000-yard mark in each of four seasons.