Tulane’s Team Identity Strengthened by Position Battles
The Tulane Green Wave have less than a month to find cohesion as a team, but the newcomers have only made the team better through position battles. Rather than infighting, they've raised the team standard.
With over 40 new players on the roster, coach Jon Sumrall and the Green Wave have a lot of questions on the depth chart to answer before the season opener. Training camp is an equal opportunity for all the players on the team to make their case.
Quarterback is atop the list for most fans; in practice, it’s more in the background than under a spotlight. Through two days of training camp, the most intriguing battles have been elsewhere on the field.
Incoming transfers have made waves, both from the spring and the second portal window. The team is better for it.
Here's what I observed on Day 2 of Tulane football training camp, and who stood out as playmakers.
Offense
To quickly address the quarterback competition, both players are rising to the challenge and truly battling for the starting spot.
I noticed Ty Thompson taking more risks today; this is the time to make mistakes. Most of the risky throws connected, including an impressive grab by Garrett Mmahat in traffic.
He threw a beautiful touchdown pass in stride to Alex Bauman, who caught my eye today as a playmaker to watch for the Wave this season. If my notes are correct, he threw another touchdown to Shaun Nicholas – at least it was placed to land.
After Sumrall's comments on Monday, it was encouraging to see Thompson strive to be less perfect. He is also impossible to look away from when he takes off with the ball, both at lateral and straight-line speeds.
Kai Horton is not afraid to air it out. He took several chances on explosive plays downfield, and he also connected with Bauman on an impressive route and well-placed throw. His touchdown throw highlighted his chemistry with Phat Watts.
During individual periods, I didn’t see who made each throw but noted good catches made by Mario Williams, Shaun Nicholas, Khai Prean, Sidney Mbanasor, Dontae Fleming, and Phat Watts. Prean, in particular, demonstrates real potential. He shares a similar build with currently injured Shazz Preston.
Both quarterbacks made mistakes. So did Michael Pratt in training camp. Transfer linebacker Sam Howard intercepted Horton, and Micah Robinson ran a pick-six back off a throw by Thompson.
Defense
More important was the play on defense today—those two turnovers highlighted the sense of competition.
In the secondary, there’s been an intriguing rotation at safety of Bailey Despanie, Jalen Geiger from Kentucky, and Jack Tchienchou from Troy. Geiger saw most first-team reps in spring, but Tchienchou was scrappy and showed good instincts. He’s played his way into a shot at real playing time in the room and slotted into first-team reps several times today.
Jon Sumrall made frequent mention of the inexperience at cornerback in spring camp. Immediately, the addition of Johnathan Edwards from Indiana State and Micah Robinson from Furman has been the most beneficial for the entire team. Rayshawn Pleasant has also played his way into some first-team reps.
With the experience, skill, and speed Robinson showed on his interception, these corners change the competition level for everyone. The wide receivers have had to fight much harder to separate and grab some contested catches. The quarterbacks can't get away with some of the throws they made with ease in April.
The linebacker room has an intriguing mix of Tyler Grubbs, Dickson Agu, Sam Howard, and Chris Rodgers. Grubbs and Agu held down the unit during spring, but Howard has the size, leadership, and knack for the ball to play his way onto the field alongside Grubbs.
The defense matches three linebackers on plays with 12 personnel, with Alex Bauman and Reggie Brown as tight ends. Today, all four linebackers were rotated against those sets.
Defense wins championships, and for me, that starts and ends with the trenches. The loss of Devean Deal stung; his production on the edge should be hard to replicate. Enter Adin Huntington from ULM, who has looked like an absolute terror.
That there’s been a credible pass rush in 11-on-11s in a non-scrimmage setting says a lot about that unit. But especially Huntington. He is nothing short of a ferocious disruptor. Honestly, I found it difficult to look elsewhere during that drill. Every snap, Huntington was violent, with a very good upfield burst, a low center of gravity, and the speed to corner and get to the quarterback off the edge.
There’s a lot of potential in every group. The takeaways are overwhelmingly positive for the number of unanswered depth chart questions. It demonstrates how badly players want to take the field for the Tulane Green Wave.
MADDY HUDAK