Southern Miss and Nebraska have been going back and forth over where to play their 2013 contest, which was originally slated for Hattiesburg on Sept. 7.
First the game was rumored to be played at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, and then later Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City was mentioned.
A third possibility was having the Cornhuskers host the game in Lincoln, according to Nebraska AD Tom Osborne.
“It’s pretty much at Southern Miss’ discretion as to where we play this game,” Osborne said earlier this month. “It’s still not finalized, but we have had some discussions (about playing in Lincoln).”
Lincoln it is, as Deadspin has reported today that Southern Miss will in fact play at Nebraska and will receive $2,125,000 for the game. The contract reads as follows:
The location for the game shall be changed from M.M. Roberts Stadium in Hattiesburg, MS to Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, NE.
The visiting team (the University of Southern Mississippi) shall be paid a flat dollar guarantee of $2,125,000,00.
Nebraska and Southern Miss signed a three-game deal back in 2008, so the above acts as an amendment to that contract. The first game of the series was played earlier this year on Sept. 1. Nebraska won 49-20. The third and final game is scheduled for Sept. 26, 2015.
There is, however, something interesting about the movement of this game and the $2,125,000 payment. The dollar amount is very close to the buyout for Southern Miss head coach Ellis Johnson, who was fired on Tuesday after going 0-12 in his first and only season.
And Deadspin also reported that an audit earlier this year revealed that the USM athletic department had a deficit of $1.27 million. That coupled with Johnson’s buyout is what eventually led the Golden Eagles to sell the 2013 game back to Nebraska.
Southern Miss will now play consecutive road games in 2013 at Nebraska on Sept. 7 and at Arkansas on Sept. 14. USM will reportedly receive around $900,000 for playing the Razorbacks.
The Golden Eagles also visit Boise State on Sept. 28 and have one non-conference slot available.
Nebraska will now start the 2013 season with four consecutive home non-conference games: Wyoming (Aug. 31), Southern Miss (Sept. 7), UCLA (Sept. 14), and South Dakota State (Sept. 21). After an open date on Sept. 28, the Cornhuskers kick off their Big Ten slate at home vs. Illinois. They won’t play a road game until Oct. 12 at Purdue.
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