Tulane Green Wave Rushing Attack Faces Tough Task Against Kansas State
The Tulane Green Wave are going to need to rely on a different part of their offense against the Kansas State Wildcats on Saturday.
Freshly named starting quarterback Darian Mensah opened the season up with a bang against the Southeastern Louisiana Lions in week one.
Mensah went 10-for-12 for 205 yards and two touchdowns through the air, making things look easy.
The rushing attack was successful as well, but they didn't really lean on one player in particular to get things done. They may not be afforded that same luxury against the Wildcats this time.
New Orleans has dealt with heavy showers over the past few days and that is expected to continue into game time on Saturday. With downpour, the ground game will become even more important.
That becomes even more crucial when factoring in that the team is dealing with a young quarterback. The pressure will be Mensah facing the toughest defense of his career while also dealing with the weather. Having the run game going early will make his life much easier.
Kansas State also faced a small school in their season opener, so it's hard to gauge how good their run defense will be. They did give up just 36 yards, though.
Their run defense a year ago was ranked No. 56 in the country as they allowed 147.5 yards per game. They can be expected to be stout, but not impenetrable.
Makhi Hughes will need to have more success than he did against Southeastern Louisiana's defensive front. Hughes walked out of that game with touchdown, but had just 59 yards on 14 attempts. That's over a full yard less per carry than he averaged last season.
The redshirt sophomore was one of the best backs in the country a year ago and will be counted on to have the same success this year in a revamped offense.
Shaadie Clayton-Johnson returns as the lead backup, but is more of a ground-and-pound rusher rather than the elusive Hughes. Clayton-Johnson made the most of his four rushes against the Lions as he had 48 yards with a long of 28. After averaging just 3.7 yards per carry last season, he'll hope to have more success this year.
This game will likely fall on the shoulders of Hughes, though, the lead back. There are a couple of other rushers fighting for playing time down the depth chart, but Tulane should rely on more established players in this one.
