1968 would mark Coach Vann’s
twentieth and final year as head coach of Southern Miss. He had ushered the
program into the major college division and national prominence with his
defensive units and noteworthy upsets of Southeastern Conference foes.
Perhaps as a farewell gift to his team, he presented the players and their
loyal fans with a new uniform design that included a Green Bay gold helmet
featuring a one-inch white center stripe and three-quarters-inch black
flanking stripes. Each side featured a player’s three-inch, block style
black identification numeral. The season began with a 3-1 start and the
17-14 loss to Alabama was a typically hard fought contest. The October 12
shellacking of Mississippi State by a count of 47-14 gave every indication
that this would be a “business as usual” season but the roof caved in as
five consecutive losses scuttled the year. Yielding sixty-eight points to a
high flying Don Coryell San Diego State team just highlighted the poor
defense that had been nationally rated to this point. Noseguard Rex Barnes
was still solid as were linebacker Larry Ussery and DB Doug Rouse but there
were constant breakdowns. Quarterback Tommy Boutwell ran the offense well
and spent ’69 with the Dolphins as a receiver while sophomore tailback Larry
Moulton, the Andalusia, Alabama star, established himself as an excellent
receiver, return man, and the team’s leading rusher behind the blocking of
fullback Frank Johnston and center Melvin “Hank” Autry who spent two seasons
with the Oilers. Coach Vann announced his retirement prior to the last game
against Tampa which the team won to close out the year at 4-6, his first
losing season. His 139-59-2 record was marked by historic wins and national
recognition and he would remain with the school in an administrative
position. He received the honor he deserved with entry to the College
Football Hall Of Fame. On November 30 former Ole Miss standout tackle and
former team captain Roland Dale was named the new USM head coach. He had
been successful on the high school and junior college levels and was highly
respected as a long time Ole Miss assistant. He had ties to USM as one of
Vann’s former line coaches in 1955 and ’56. Unexpectedly, Dale announced
that he would not move from Ole Miss and on December 20, the search for a
new head coach was restarted. Much to the relief of Southern fans, they were
able to hire one of their own, P.W. Underwood.
