Tulane Green Wave Coaches Doing Great Job of Rotating Defensive Players
The Tulane Green Wave are heading into their Week 7 bye week with a lot of positive momentum.
This past weekend, they destroyed the UAB Blazers 71-20, winning their third consecutive game and moving to 2-0 in the AAC. While people will pay a lot of attention to their scoring 41+ points in all of their victories, it is their defense that has been drawing a lot of headlines.
Early in the season, there were some concerns on that side of the ball. Head coach Jon Sumrall was adamant that things would get cleaned up eventually and his players have certainly proven that prediction correct.
And things are only going to get better in the opinion of defensive coordinator Greg Gasparato, who is relying heavily on the impressive amount of depth the team has across the board.
“It’s not ideal (early in the year) with a few mistakes here and there (from the reserves), but as the season continues to go, guys continue to get reps and get things fixed and get better,” he said, via Guerry Smith of NOLA.com. “I’ve been guilty in my career of saying starters are going to play the whole game, and it has come back to bite me every single time. We’ve continued to force-feed these guys reps and they’ve continued to get better.”
Against UAB, three backup players recorded interceptions; linebacker Chris Rodgers, defensive tackle Elijah Champaigne and nickel cornerback Javion White. Champaigne is the first interior defensive lineman to record an interception since November 13th, 2004 against Army.
A lot of these players are backups only in name on the depth chart. Tulane receives production from everyone who cycles into the lineup, as three of their top eight tacklers are listed as reserve players.
Don’t expect that to change any time soon as they are just finding their stride.
“We try to roll guys through,” Sumrall said. “Javion White is going to be a special player. He’s a great athlete who loves football. Chris Rodgers (a sophomore Troy transfer) is getting back into the groove of where we expected him to be. Champaigne has been a steady player in the D-line group, so it’s fun to watch those guys get action and do something with it.”
That is a major advantage that the Green Wave has committed. As the season goes along, it will benefit them greatly that they have players the coaching staff trusts on the field no matter the situation.
It is a luxury for Gasparato and Sumrall and the results are there. Through their first two AAC games, they have allowed only three touchdowns; two of them came this past weekend by the Blazers after already being behind by 51 points.
“We started off slow, but the whole team bought into the program and started clicking,” Rodgers said. “We have a high standard. We’re still looking to improve, and that’s what we can do in the bye week.”
The week off will present the coaching staff a chance to further refine their rotations and lineups, finding the perfect combinations. Their performance has been great, but they could very well improve down the stretch.
Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.