Tulane Green Wave Pass Rushers Surprise with Ruthless Performance
The Tulane Green Wave may have found their winning pass rush formula in their staggering 45-10 victory over the USF Bulls. It was a much-needed statement performance for a unit that failed to produce through four games.
A defensive front that had eight sacks on the year delivered six against the Bulls and forced two fumbles.
The 26 rush yards allowed were the lowest since Week 3 of the 2023 season against Southern Miss. USF's leading rusher, quarterback Byrum Brown, lost 12 yards on Saturday. Running back Kelley Joiner has 248 rush yards this season. He went into the game against Tulane with 251 yards, losing three on two attempts.
USF possessed the ball for just over a quarter. Tulane's 42:01 possession time was their highest since 2017 against Tulsa. It was an overwhelming control over all three phases of the game.
The easiest way to dictate a matchup's speed and style is to keep the opposing offense off the field. This usually coincides with a strong pass rush, something the team has been lacking. The Bulls offense relies on tempo, but the Green Wave were conditioned and prepared for the speed of USF's game.
It’s difficult not to think their gauntlet of non-conference play against Kansas State and Oklahoma gave Tulane a key edge. Losses aside, the team learned something about themselves and applied it convincingly to start conference play. They undoubtedly stumbled upon success with the defensive line rotations.
Kam Hamilton’s production has demanded more ways to get him on the field. Rather than be down the depth chart on the interior, Hamilton started at defensive end. Rotational pieces like Parker Peterson, previously lost in the shuffle on the edge, have become key contributors in a new role. Peterson’s move to nose guard is an obvious success.
Gerrod Henderson, a player who made some waves on the scout team in camp, recorded two sacks, two tackles for loss, and forced a fumble, awarding him the AAC Defensive Player of the Week. Adin Huntington debuted at Bandit and forced the protection to slide with his presence. They’ve rotated a lot at Bandit, but the defensive line as a whole was a turnstile of players stepping up.
Ultimately, Brown looked pedestrian—reminiscent of veteran Frank Harris shutting down and seeing ghosts last year for UTSA on Black Friday. A more dominant pass rush sacked Brown twice as much.
Patience is difficult to come by in football, but Tulane has worked through the pains of non-production and what seemed like lackadaisical effort at times on the defensive front. After Saturday's victory, conference opponents will view the Green Wave much more formidably.
Maddy Hudak is the deputy editor for Tulane on Sports Illustrated and the radio sideline reporter for their football team. Maddy is an alumnus of Tulane University, and graduated in 2016 with a degree in psychology. She went on to obtain a Master of Legal Studies while working as a research coordinator at the VA Hospital, and in jury consulting. During this time, Maddy began covering the New Orleans Saints with SB Nation, and USA Today. She moved to New Orleans in 2021 to pursue a career in sports and became Tulane's sideline reporter that season. She enters her fourth year with the team now covering the program on Sports Illustrated, and will use insights from features and interviews in the live radio broadcast. You can follow her on X at @MaddyHudak_94, or if you have any questions or comments, she can be reached via email at maddy.hudak1@gmail.com