MONROE, La. — Kwadra Griggs took another big step toward cementing himself as Southern Miss’ quarterback, and the Golden Eagles put another foot in the win column Saturday night.

Griggs, the redshirt junior who had been in a battle for the starting job during the preseason, threw for 250 yards and three touchdowns to lead Southern Miss to a 28-17 victory over Louisiana-Monroe.
Griggs’ yardage and touchdown totals were both season highs.

Griggs threw two touchdown passes to Korey Robertson in the first half to stake the Golden Eagles to a 21-10 lead. He added a 42-yarder to Allenzae Staggers in the fourth quarter after Louisiana-Monroe had cut it to 21-17 on a 67-yard touchdown run by quarterback Caleb Evans.

Griggs also ran for 57 yards, and his offensive output overshadowed a huge night by running back Ito Smith.
Smith carried the ball 27 times for 219 yards and a touchdown. It was the first 200-yard game of the senior’s career.

Southern Miss (2-1) finished with 534 yards of total offense, while the defense held an opponent to less than 20 points for the third week in a row. Kentucky scored 24 points against USM in the opener, but one of its touchdowns came on a fumble return by the defense.

Evans finished with 90 rushing yards and two touchdowns for ULM (0-2).