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HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — Southern Miss has hired Tulane offensive coordinator Will Hall as its new head football coach.

Athletic director Jeremy McClain announced the hiring on Wednesday, replacing Jay Hopson, who resigned after the Golden Eagles lost the opener to South Alabama.

Hall spent the past two seasons at Tulane after stints as an assistant at Louisiana-Lafayette and Memphis, among others.

He’s a former head coach at West Alabama (2011-13) and West Georgia (2014-16). Hall led the two Gulf South Conference programs to combined records of 56-21, winning three league titles and two coach of the year honors.

He took four teams to the Division II playoffs and led West Georgia to the semifinals in both 2014 and 2015.

The former North Alabama quarterback won the 2003 Harlon Hill Trophy as Division II’s top player.

Hall will be formally introduced at a news conference on Monday at Reed Green Coliseum.

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The Mississippi Free Press produced this story through the MFP Solutions Lab, supported by the Solutions Journalism Network. This series digs into Mississippi’s systemic issues and sheds light on responses to them in other communities. Beyond just reporting on problems, these stories interrogate their causes and inspect potential solutions.

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