Six Tulane Football Standouts on Shrine Bowl Watch List
The East-West Shrine Bowl released its preseason watch list on Wednesday and six Tulane football players made the cut.
Those players included defensive lineman Patrick Jenkins, linebacker Tyler Grubbs, defensive back Caleb Ransaw, wide receiver Mario Williams, defensive lineman Terrell Allen and defensive lineman Adin Huntington.
Jenkins is the only holdover on the list, as the other five players are transfers and speak to the work that the new coaching staff did in the offseason.
Jenkins’ inclusion is of little surprise, as he has been on every preseason American Athletic Conference team, including the one selected by the coaches and released during AAC Media Days in Arlington, Texas.
Recently, Phil Steele’s preview magazine listed Jenkins as the ACC’s No. 3 overall draft prospect, citing his quickness at the position.
Jenkins, a senior and New Orleans native who transferred to Tulane from TCU after two seasons, was an All-AAC First-Team pick last season. He had 35 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks.
Grubbs, who is also a senior and New Orleans native, transferred to Tulane after a successful career at Louisiana Tech. Last season with the Bulldogs he had 77 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and a fumble recovery.
Before he joined the Green Wave, he was a three-time All-Conference USA, two-time All-Louisiana and Freshman All-America selection for LA Tech.
Williams is in his first season with the Green Wave after two seasons with USC. Last season he caught 29 passes for 305 yards and two touchdowns. That was a step down from 2022, when he caught 40 passes for 651 yards and five touchdowns.
Ransaw played at Troy with new Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall. He played three seasons with the Trojans, where he finished with 81 tackles and one interception. Last year he set career high in total tackles, solo tackles and assisted tackles.
Allen transferred to Tulane in May from Tennessee State, which plays in FCS. He won the Buck Buchanan award, given to the top defensive player in FCS after he led the division in tackles for loss (28.5) and sacks (14.5). He had 101 tackles in two seasons with TSU, and before that he played for Austin Peay.
Huntington announced his transfer to Tulane last month after playing UL Monroe. He had 63 tackles and 8.5 sacks last season for ULM and chose the Green Wave over Duke, Cal and Oklahoma.
The Shrine Bowl watch list include college football players from every level of college football (NCAA Division I, II and III, along with NAIA). The list includes 1,000 players, in part because the Shrine Bowl estimates that approximately 1000 all-star game eligible players are drafted, signed after the draft, or attend a rookie mini-camp.
The East-West Shrine Bowl will be played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Jan. 30, 2025. The game will be coached by NFL coaches and those staffs will be announced at a later day.
MATTHEW POSTINS