Southern Miss returned to the New Orleans Bowl for the second straight season and faced one of the nation's hottest teams, Middle Tennessee.
It was also the fourth time Southern Miss played in the New Orleans Bowl in the game's nine-year history.
Southern Miss quarterback Martevious Young completed 18 of 34 passes for 271 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Southern Miss running back Damion Fletcher ran for 78 yards.
With 5,302 yards rushing overall, Fletcher passed Herschel Walker (5,259) and LaDainian Tomlinson (5,263) for eighth on the NCAA's career list.