HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — Rakeem Cato threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score, leading No. 23 Marshall to a 63-17 victory over Southern Mississippi on Saturday night.

Cato was 13 for 19 for 186 yards, helping the Herd (9-0, 5-0 Conference USA) shake off a slow start. He also rushed for 92 yards on nine carries.

The Golden Eagles (3-7, 1-5) jumped to a 14-0 lead on a pair of first-quarter touchdown runs for Ito Smith, who finished with career-high 141 yards on 27 carries. But Marshall then scored 28 of the final 31 points in the first half.

Cato passed to Remi Watson for a 2-yard touchdown with 54 seconds left in the first quarter. Steward Butler then had a 30-yard touchdown run and Watson scored again on a 7-yard run, making it 21-14 with 11:59 to go in the half.

Cato’s 2-yard touchdown pass to Tommy Shuler made it 28-17 at the break.