Louisiana (5-2, 2-1 Sun Belt) at Southern Miss (1-5, 0-2 Sun Belt). Saturday, Oct. 24, 5 p.m. ET (4 p.m. Central), Renasant Stadium, Hattiesburg, ESPN+.
Your hosts are Mimi Fontenot, a Lafayette accountant who watches Ragin' Cajun football the way she dances zydeco, and Dee Broussard, a Southern Miss fan who calls everybody "sugar" and means it.
Mimi: Bless your heart, Dee, and I mean it sweetly. Save me a dance.
Dee: You're a doll, Mimi. I'll save you a seat and a sweet tea. Then we'll see.
Players to watch
Louisiana quarterback D'Wayne "Lunch" Winfield has completed 108 of 155 passes for 1,153 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions. He's also the leading rusher, with 463 yards and eight touchdowns on 97 carries. Receiver KeDarius Wade has 11 catches for 226 yards. Linebacker Jake St. Andre leads with 48 tackles, and cornerback Brent Gordon Jr. has two interceptions.
Southern Miss quarterback Landry Lyddy has more than 1,000 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions. Receiver Mario Sanders II has 34 catches for more than 490 yards. Running back Steven Robinson has 432 yards and five touchdowns. Linebacker Mathis Haygood leads with 55 tackles, and Kobi Albert has three interceptions.
Dee: Sanders is the sweetest thing in Hattiesburg since sweet tea, sugar.
What happened last week
Louisiana beat Troy 33-6 behind 243 rushing yards and more than a 13-minute advantage in possession time. J.J. Garner ran 10 times for 62 yards and a touchdown, and Harrison Kidder recovered a muffed punt at the Troy 8 to set up a score.
Southern Miss lost 23-13 to Arkansas State. The Golden Eagles turned it over on downs three times. Arkansas State drained the final 7:21 on one drive. Robinson ran for 84 yards and a touchdown, and Sanders caught six passes for 106 yards.
Mimi: Two hundred forty-three rushing yards. That's a full dance card, cher.
Injuries and availability
The Sun Belt doesn't publish an official availability report, and no injury news had surfaced for either team as of Oct. 18.
What the coaches are up to
Michael Desormeaux has led Louisiana since being hired on Dec. 5, 2021. His team controls the clock, holding the ball 33:27 a game, 11th in FBS.
Blake Anderson is in his first season at Southern Miss, hired Dec. 11, 2025. His passing game averages 259.8 yards, 39th in FBS.
Player storylines
Louisiana runs for 200.1 yards a game, and Southern Miss allows 249, which ranks 137th. Winfield's legs could decide it. Louisiana's defense allows only 298.3 yards a game (25th), but its pass defense ranks 45th, so Lyddy and Sanders have a shot. Southern Miss needs to finish drives. It converts 32.9% of third downs and scores on 68.2% of red-zone trips.
What's happening on campus
It's Southern Miss Homecoming at "The Rock," which wears a new name this fall: Renasant Stadium. The nickname isn't going anywhere.
Dee: New sign out front, same Rock, sugar. Homecoming at home is the sweetest tea there is.
Mimi: Sweet tea is lovely, Dee. A Cajun two-step is lovelier, and we brought the band.
Anything else fun and true
Southern Miss's three-point loss at Tulane shows this team can hang with good opponents. Louisiana's only league loss was a 32-31 heartbreaker at Louisiana Tech. Next up, Southern Miss visits UL Monroe on Oct. 31, and Louisiana hosts South Alabama on Nov. 7.
Dee: Homecoming crowds are loud, Mimi. Bring earplugs with that sweet tea.
Mimi: I'll bring my dancing shoes, Dee. Rhythm travels.
The Cover Window
My call: Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns 31, Southern Miss Golden Eagles 22.