Tulane Handles Their Quarterback Competition With Care
Tulane Green Wave coach Jon Sumrall has three weeks to name a starting quarterback, yet his process remains calm and patient.
It would be easier to form an identity around said starter. It would make the team picture clearer when assessing their season. But it would do both quarterbacks and the Green Wave a disservice.
Sumrall has centered the race between Ty Thompson and Kai Horton but won’t ignore the promise of Darian Mensah. His mention of Mensah could sound the alarm for those unfamiliar with how Sumrall has shown to motivate his players.
Just as he said he wouldn’t be afraid to play Mensah this week, he made a similar comment about starting Garrett Mmahat at wide receiver over the high-profile transfers, as he was taking the playbook and learning it most seriously.
It’s not a knock towards these players. But it’s a statement when you bring in 4-star caliber guys in the portal presumed to start.
If the coaching staff was prepared to name a starter this week, candidly, there really wouldn’t be a need to continue the competition from spring. There’s an unignorable competitive advantage to keeping that name in the dark.
Not enough of one for the number of new pieces on this team; battling is in everyone’s best interest. With less than a month till Tulane’s season opener, there’s really not much time for smoke screens for smoke screens’ sake.
It’s something to keep in mind as camp wraps up its first week today. With over 40 new players on the roster, prior depth charts can be thrown out. The team has had the summer to form cohesion, but it’s a completely different set of puzzle pieces across the board since spring.
There are new starting cornerbacks, and their experience is hard to ignore in the context of early quarterback struggles. Micah Robinson having two interceptions in three days, to me, says more about Robinson’s potential in the secondary than an indictment of play under center.
They’ve split first-team reps for five days of training camp, in New Orleans in August, for a total of 10 hours. Trying to form conclusions would require filling in a lot of blanks with opinions and not what’s on the field.
After Sumrall’s comments including Mensah after the indoor practice this week, I admittedly turned higher focus on quarterback play today. I immediately learned why you need to allow time for them to build a body of work.
The team, not just the quarterbacks, were working situational football today in different down and distance scenarios. Everyone on the field needs to learn these processes. I don’t pretend to be a quarterback scout, and at this stage without tape to look back on, it’s impossible to assess exactly why things aren’t connecting.
They have yet to practice third down. Every day is focused on specific team-based goals. The quarterback competition is one of those goals, but it must be slotted in with the daily work across the board. Tulane’s patient and prudent approach to naming Michael Pratt’s successor is the right way to see the process through.
MADDY HUDAK