Tulane Green Wave Focus on Securing Future with Sizable Transfer Portal Haul

The Tulane Green Wave made splashes in the transfer portal at key positions of need, displaying their competitiveness in the NIL era of college football.

Credit: Parker Waters - Tulane Athletics

Before the Tulane Green Wave headed to Tampa, Fl. for their upcoming Gasparilla Bowl matchup against the Florida Gators, coach Jon Sumrall and his staff made key moves to fill needs for the future. 

The Tulane football team may be recouping some losses in the transfer portal, but the additions over the weekend showed their ability to compete in the complex college football landscape that shows no mercy to coaches at this time in the season. 

Since Dec. 12, Tulane has picked up multiple players at positions of need: offensive lineman John Bock II from FIU, receiver Omari Hayes and running back Zuberi Mobley from FAU, linebacker Ty Cooper from Mississippi State, and defensive lineman Derrick Shepard Jr. from UAB. 

The first haul shows Sumrall's ability to scout in-conference for talent and address necessary roster roles he made clear to reporters last Saturday.

"Clearly, we need quarterbacks, receivers, and a couple of o-linemen in the portal. This is an advertisement. I don't know if they have wanted ads anymore in the newspaper, but if they do, Wanted: Two quarterbacks, two fast receivers, two o-linemen, two edge rushers, two DBs that can cover. I sound like On the 12th Day of Christmas, but I need all that for next year's team to have a chance to win."

It's an incredibly unstable time of the season. National signing day for high school recruits takes place the week of conference championship games, should your team be so lucky. As Tulane fans have come to endure, that includes rumors and speculation surrounding succeeding Group of 5 head coaches.

Power 4 teams aren't immune from the coaching carousel or rippling aftereffects, nor are they insulated from the pitfalls of the transfer portal.

Frankly, NIL is the driving force behind many decisions. The lack of guardrails or market restrictions has empowered players, but it hasn't provided them with many tools within the toolbox.

Stories of poor advice from NIL agents, verbal monetary agreements that players never saw, and promises that fell through reveal the quieter, ugly side of the transfer portal.

They emphasize the value of stability for Tulane under Sumrall, who acknowledged many of these unavoidable truths to reporters. When discussing the future of quarterback Ty Thompson, Sumrall made it clear that he wasn't a coach who made promises over production on the field.

When speaking with several incoming transfers to the team last season in both portal windows, nearly each one emphasized the clear vision, candor, and honesty of their conversations with coaches. 

Sumrall has a lot of work ahead of him, in addition to coaching his team for their SEC bowl opponent this Friday. But college football and the transfer portal wait for no one. 

While the first few days feel like a flurry of announcements and destinations, the chaos calms down. The portal closes on Dec. 28 for teams not in the college football playoffs, but anyone who entered in advance does not have to choose a team by then. 

Certain needs, such as a starting quarterback, take precedence. That search is its own beast. Tulane remains committed to this era, and their aggressive approach in the portal aligns well with this idea.