June 29, 2006.

David Hosemann looks back on that day in 1977 when the Southern Miss Golden Eagles shocked the Mississippi college football world with a victory over rival Ole Miss.

He remembers fondly, more than the touchdowns he scored in his career, one play in that game that will live on in his memory forever.

Trailing 19-0 with about a minute to play before halftime in a torrential rain storm, coaches called a draw play. The idea of the draw is to have the quarterback and running backs simulate a pass play to force the opposing linebacker to drop into pass coverage. Then the quarterback hands off to one of the running backs.

The running back that day was Ben &#8220Go-Go” Garry. The quarterback was Jeff Hammond, now a brigadier general serving in Iraq. The fullback was Hosemann, owner of Hometown Medical in Vicksburg.

Seeing the linebacker drop into coverage, Hosemann broke forward with Garry in his hip pocket. Hosemann found the linebacker, knocked him back three or four steps, then watched as Garry burst down the field for a long touchdown.

&#8220No one could catch him,” Hosemann said Wednesday morning in recalling his days as Garry’s lead blocker from 1975-77. Garry died in a car accident in Mobile, Ala., on Saturday night at age 50.

&#8220All I saw was a screaming Ben Garry running for a long touchdown,” Hosemann said. &#8220The momentum changed with that play.”

The Golden Eagles went on to defeat Ole Miss 27-19. The game was played one week after the Rebels defeated then-No. 1 Notre Dame in Jackson.

It was one of the highlights in a career that resulted in Garry becoming the school’s all-time leading rusher. He ran for 3,595 yards in his career, then had a cup of coffee in the NFL before moving back to his native Gulf Coast, where he lived until his death on Saturday.

Garry arrived at Southern Miss with unmatched physical ability. Hosemann said he reminded him of Jerious Norwood with size and strength.

&#8220He was solid as a rock,” Hosemann said. &#8220He would run right over you.”

The two backfield mates never talked or saw one another after college. Garry was elected into the Southern Miss Hall of Fame in 1998, but Hosemann had a prior commitment. He said it’s one of his regrets.

&#8220He was some kind of athlete,” Hosemann said. &#8220It was a privilege to be in the backfield with him.”