T.Q. Newsome’s future may be as a running back at Southern Miss, but his passing proved the difference Friday night in the Port City Bowl.


Gulfport topped George County 14-0 in the season opener for both squads as the USM commit accounted for both touchdowns on passes of 16 yards to Keeiland Thomas late in the first quarter and a 31-yard toss to Tommie Johnson in the fourth quarter.

Against a George County defense that features one of the nation’s best linemen in junior McKinnley Jackson, Newsome did his best Dak Prescott impression by competing 9-of-10 passes for 93 yards and two touchdowns while running 13 times for 74 yards.

At 6-foot-2, 208 pounds with good speed, Newsome can be a nightmare to track down in the open field.

“He made the right decisions at critical times when we needed it,” Gulfport coach John Archie said. “We had a few penalties that slowed us down, but he took control and led the team. He took control of the offense.”

Considering he completed just 39 percent of his passes a year ago, Newsome looked much sharper when he went to the air Friday night.

He credited his progress in the passing game to the extra work he put in over the offseason.

“It’s a lot of time in film room,” Newsome said. “I took the spring off from baseball and decided this is what I want to do. I dedicated the whole offseason to football and I’m seeing the fruits of my labor.

“I feel like I’m a lot more efficient, a lot smarter especially at reading defenses. I can recognize and key on a lot of things. My game has improved as far as being an overall smart football player. That definitely translates to the passing game.”

Newsome also looked sharp while using a hard count to force George County into numerous offsides calls.

“They kept jumping,” he said. “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.”

Count Archie among those who believe Newsome has the potential to be a quarterback on the college level.

“I think he can do either one,”Archie said. “If he’s given the opportunity, he’ll show what he can do.”

Gulfport has built a strong tradition on defense in recent years, but there was some concern over the fact that the team lost most of its starters from that side of the ball.

On Friday night, they showed that they have a chance to live up to that reputation.

“I’m very, very proud of our defense,” Archie said. “We were playing eight new guys as starters and we pitched a shutout against a very good George County team. They fought all night and never quit.”

The leader of that defense is senior Derick Hall, who again had a nice night at linebacker. He also filled in on offense as a receiver and made an impact on defense with a blocked field goal in the first half.

“He’s going to the rise to the occasion and he knows that we count on him,” Archie said.

George County’s defense played well Friday night, but the Rebels will have some work to do on offense.

“I thought (freshman QB Marcus Daniels) did a good job,” Caldwell said. “He showed flashes there, did some good things. We’ll go back and watch film and evaluate. We’ll get better on Monday. It was a good test for us.”

Daniels completed 4-of-9 passes for 39 yards.