Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles Prediction, Odds and New Orleans Bowl Picks for Today, 12/23/25

M.M. Roberts StadiumESPN
Western Kentucky
8-4
Western Kentucky
Today
Southern Mississippi
7-5
Southern Mississippi
Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles
Google News

Western Kentucky vs Southern Mississippi Pickswise Expert Predictions

Point Spread Pick
Southern Miss -1.5(-110)

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers hit the road for the Big Easy to battle in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl against the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in a Conference USA vs Sun Belt battle. Western Kentucky is affected greatly by the transfer portal, as running back La’Vell Wright has opted out of this game. He had 460 rushing yards with 5.8 yards per carry, but — more importantly — he led the team with 10 rushing touchdowns. The other 12 ball-carriers for the Hilltoppers combined for just 10 touchdowns, so it’s a huge loss for the offense. Western Kentucky finished with a pair of 3-point losses — but those came at LSU and at Jacksonville State — and it was 4-1 ATS in the final 5 outings.

The Golden Eagles were also affected by losses. Head coach Charles Huff bolted for the same job at Memphis after leading a great turnaround in Hattiesburg. Offensive coordinator Blake Anderson was named as the full-time replacement. Only safety Corey Myrick has elected to go into the portal, while defensive lineman JJ Hawkins — injured in the season finale — might not play. Other than that, we’ll get mostly the same Southern Miss team that was able to cobble together 7 wins. However, USM was 0-4 ATS down the stretch — all as a single-digit favorite. That’s a bit concerning. But, again, Western Mich is also missing a huge chunk of its offense and the fans will likely be mostly black and gold, as it’s a quick drive from Southern Miss to NOLA. That will help the Golden Eagles, too.

Western Kentucky vs Southern Miss prediction: Southern Miss -1.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -1.

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Game Totals Pick
Over 58.5(-110)

Both of these teams are coming into this game following disappointing ends to their respective regular seasons, but I actually think we’ll see a pretty entertaining bowl game this time around. Each side should be motivated to put forth a good showing, especially since both teams have expressed interest in finishing the season strong and playing one more game with their teammates. In fact, there are hardly any opt-outs from either team in this game, and both sides are pretty healthy coming off a couple of weeks away from the rigors of conference play. Instead of questioning the motivation of each team, we have a script that sets up nicely for an over on Tuesday.

The biggest question mark in this game centers around Southern Miss, as former head coach Charles Huff has moved on to be the new head coach at Memphis. However, offensive coordinator Blake Anderson is assuming head coaching duties and he’ll have the backing of his staff and starting quarterback Braylon Braxton in this one. Southern Miss should have no trouble moving the ball on the Western Kentucky rush defense. Conversely, you can generate plenty of success on Southern Miss’ defense, a unit that is 111th in points per quality drive allowed. All signs point to this one being a shootout, so let’s bank on a higher-scoring contest in a matchup that should feature a lot of tempo and plenty of scoring opportunities.

WKU vs Southern Miss prediction: Over 58.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to 59.5.

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Caleb Wilfinger

Deputy Editor for Pickswise with years of experience handicapping and giving out winning picks. Lover of all US sports and Southampton FC. For Caleb Wilfinger media enquiries, please email contact@pickswise.com.
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