Mobile, Ala. ? With big plays, a marathon drive and a smothering defense, Southern Miss gave Ohio a tough lesson on postseason play.

The Golden Eagles also gave a pretty good tutorial on how to make a halftime lead hold up in a 28-7 victory over the Bobcats on Sunday night in the GMAC Bowl.

After a scoreless first quarter, Southern Miss (9-5) scored 21 second-quarter points, then surged out of halftime with a season-long, 17-play touchdown drive that effectively ended any comeback threat.

“Even though we were up 21-0 at halftime, we talked about going out there and really making a statement in the second half,” said Golden Eagles coach Jeff Bower, whose team did just that.

Frank Solich’s Bobcats (9-5) were making their first bowl appearance since 1968, but that euphoria wore off quickly as the game turned into a mismatch.

They are 0-3 in bowl games and failed to match their school record of 10 wins. It was a rough ending to a feel-good story that saw Solich, a former Nebraska coach, revive a struggling program that won only four games in his debut season.

“We’ve got many more steps to take,” he said. “It’s obvious we’ve got work to do.”

By contrast, Southern Miss is accustomed to postseason play, making its fifth consecutive bowl appearance and ninth in 10 years.

The Golden Eagles used a series of big plays in the final 8:33 of the first half for the three-touchdown lead.

GMAC Bowl MVP Damion Fletcher, of Southern Mississippi, celebrates.

First, backup tailback Tory Harrison scampered for a 43-yard touchdown run, only his second of the season. Jeremy Young then set up Damion Fletcher’s first of two touchdowns – a two-yard TD plunge – with a 30-yard pass to Josh Barnes on third-and-10.

The defense added points, too. James Denley returned an interception of Ohio backup quarterback Brad Bower 18 yards for a score with 1:13 left before the half.

It was the Golden Eagles’ seventh non-offensive TD of the season, the most under Bower.

“We played one of the best defensive games we’ve played all year,” said Denley, the game’s defensive MVP. “Guys were swarming everywhere.

“They tried to run right at us, and we were prepared for that.”

After the teams combined for just 82 offensive yards in the first quarter, Southern Miss racked up 150 in the second.

The Golden Eagles opened the second half with that ball-hogging, 80-yard drive that worked 9:55 off the clock and severely damaged any hopes for a comeback by Ohio’s plodding offense.

It was the first loss by a MAC team in six GMAC Bowl appearances.