The qb injuries cost the Rice game for sure. Fedora refused to play any midweek games this year. Smart move on his part. All of USM's games are on Saturdays this year. That is great news for USM fans.
My understanding is that Jeff is taking this year off and well more than likely get back into coaching next year. A re-energized and focused Jeff Bower will make some university a great coach. He had become stale with a case of burnout and seemed comfortable with 7-6 seasons. He also thought he was bigger than USM football. He had to go. It was painful, but sometimes change is hard to do and painful when you do it.
USM was very fortunate to hire a coach like Larry Fedora. He has pumped energy back into the program. Your fans will see that this Saturday night. Can he win football games? That is the part of the equation that has yet to be played out. I think he can and in a big way. We shall see.