Tulane Back In Top 25 of Power Rankings After Clinching Spot in AAC Championship
After starting the season with a 1-2 record, the Tulane Green Wave has rallied back strong with eight consecutive wins to sit 9-2 overall, and 7-0 in American Athletic Conference play.
Their latest victory over the Navy Midshipmen clinched their spot in the conference championship game, where they will face the Army Black Knights.
For first-year head coach Jon Sumrall, conference championship games are his home away from home.
Now in only his third campaign as a head coach, the first two coming with the Troy Trojans, he has led his programs to the conference championship game in all three while winning the first two.
The latest win also saw the Green Wave's stock rise in the eyes of the nation, as they broke into the top 20 of both the AP and the Coaches Poll.
For Chris Vannini of The Athletic and his weekly college football power rankings, the program also climbed by going from 26th last week to 22nd in the latest iteration.
Tulane has dominated the competition week in and week out, with their win over the Midshipmen Saturday marking their second shutout of the year. The Green Wave have now outscored opponents 445-187, more than doubling the combined scoring output of all 11 teams they have faced.
The picture continues to become more clear approaching the College Football Playoff, and Tulane may have the best resume of the Group of 5 contenders, even with their two losses.
The Green Wave is off this week, but the two other G5 teams ahead of them in the rankings are not, with the Boise State Broncos facing the Wyoming Cowboys and the Black Knights facing the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Army is all but guaranteed to lose their contest on Saturday, while the Broncos should have no trouble at all with the Cowboys.
In fact, Tulane may have to wait until conference championship week before seeing Boise State drop their second game of the year, as their final contest of 2024, against the Oregon State Beavers, should also serve no challenge.
Having their fate in the hands of someone else is a hard position to be in, but all the Green Wave can do is continue beating the teams put in front of them in dominant fashion and hope that it is enough for the committee to put them into the 12-team bracket.
When all is said and done, with or without a berth in the College Football Playoff, it has been a spectacular season for Tulane, and the future is bright for the program under coach Sumrall.
