Tulane Green Wave Moving Up G5 Power Rankings in College Football Bubble Watch
The Tulane Green Wave handled business against the UAB Blazers in convincing fashion in Week 6 with a 71-20 victory.
That is now three wins in a row for Jon Sumrall’s group, who enters a bye week with a 4-2 record. The team is beginning to click on all cylinders, overcoming some early-season woes as they are beginning to find their stride in every facet of the game.
With their recent success, they are beginning to garner some national attention.
Over at ESPN, Heather Dinich provided a bubble watch for the College Football Playoff heading into Week 7. Tulane is on the move up, as they were ranked No. 3 among the Group of 5 programs.
“In part, because James Madison dropped out after losing, but also because the Green Wave still have the best chance to win their conference (57.5%), according to ESPN Analytics. And as long as Tulane finishes as the committee's fifth-highest-ranked conference champion, the two losses will be moot. Both of those defeats were to ranked opponents (K-State and Oklahoma), giving the Green Wave a much better schedule strength than Army and Navy,” Dinich wrote.
In addition to Army, Navy and the Green Wave, the North Texas Mean Green and Charlotte 49ers remain undefeated in AAC play. The only team of that bunch that Tulane doesn’t have on their schedule is the Black Knights.
If both teams continue playing at this level, they could be on a collision course for the conference championship game.
Coming in at No. 1 on those power rankings are the Boise State Broncos, who also landed the last spot in the CFP projected field. As the No. 12 team, they would go on the road to face the Alabama Crimson Tide, with the winner going toe-to-toe with the BYU Cougars.
The other G5 team ranked ahead of the Green Wave is the UNLV Rebels.
Coming off an overtime loss to the Syracuse Orange, they have been in the news a lot because of quarterback Matthew Sluka deciding to sit out the remainder of the season following an NIL issue with the school.
Can Tulane catch Boise State and UNLV in the G5 power rankings? If they keep playing at the level they have shown in recent weeks, it is certainly possible.
Right now, the best win on their resume is on the road against the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns in Week 4. There will be opportunities to surpass that victory during conference play.
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.