Who are the Future Stars on Tulane's Roster?
After observing every Tulane Green Wave practice this spring, two freshmen stood out: one on offense and one on defense. Even as freshmen, these two playmakers will be difficult to keep off the field towards the end of the season.
On offense, I was impressed by true freshman wide receiver Shaun Nicholas. Nicholas enrolled early at Tulane, so he should have still been in high school at the time of spring practices. The Louisiana native stands at 6’4” and was rated as the country's two hundred and forty-eighth best receiver, a ranking that will eventually be laughed at for its inaccuracy.
Tulane saw multiple receivers transfer out after spring practices because they were outperformed by this freshman. Although Nicholas was more reserved during his first semester on campus, his talent speaks for itself. His tall frame allows him to win contested catches but does not prevent him from running smooth routes.
While Tulane’s receiver room is possibly the team's deepest room, keeping Nicholas off the field as the season progresses will be challenging. Perhaps the staff would rather redshirt him to give themselves an extra year, but he is talented enough to play immediately.
It's a great problem for the Wave to have a year after losing three incredibly productive wide receivers: Lawrence Keys and Jha'Quan Jackson to the NFL, and Chris Brazzell to Tennessee.
On defense, safety Jack Tchienchou was a consistent playmaker through the spring. Tchienchou spent his first season at Troy with now-Tulane Coach Jon Sumrall but redshirted, meaning he joins Tulane with four years of eligibility remaining.
Tchienchou must have had at least one interception a week during scrimmage periods in the spring. The best way to describe his play is controlled chaos. One of the best parts about Tchienchou is that even as a redshirt freshman, he is one of the most vocal players on the team, an essential trait in safety. Not only does he communicate well with his teammates pre-snap, but he is also the most vocal after each play.
Much like the receiver room, Tulane’s safety room is deep, and the starters will more than likely be Bailey “Slim” Despanie and Jalen Geiger. However, I fully expect Tchienchou to see significant time in multiple roles.
JOHN BURROWS