MOBILE – The Southern Miss football team opened its LendingTree Bowl preparations with a Wednesday morning practice at Saraland High School.

The Golden Eagles continued to fine tune their three phases of the game in a workout that lasted just over an hour ahead of its Saturday contest against Rice at Whitney Hancock Stadium on the South Alabama campus. Game time is set for 4:45 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN as well as heard on an affiliate of the Southern Miss Sports Network by Learfield.

The practice started a long day for the Golden Eagles, who were also expected to take a team trip to Dauphin Island during the afternoon.

Coach Will Hall‘s team arrived in Mobile Tuesday afternoon and enjoyed a press conference and team welcome dinner during the evening.

Southern Miss returns to practice Thursday morning and will enjoy a couple of community service events, before completing its work with a Friday walkthrough on the game field.

The game marks the first bowl contest for the Golden Eagles since the 2019 season and the 27th overall appearance.

Tickets for the game can be purchased by going online at SouthernMissTickets.com, by calling 1-800-844-TICK (8425) or visiting the Pat Ferlise Ticket Office by 5 p.m., Friday.