Tulane Green Wave Stomps Southeastern Louisiana in Season Opener
The Jon Sumrall era at Tulane started with a bang on Thursday, as the Green Wave handled Southeastern Louisiana easily, 52-0, at Yulman Stadium.
Sumrall, the former defensive coordinator under Curtis Johnson a decade ago, returned to the program and won his debut as Green Wave (1-0) head coach, thanks to a performance that helped Tulane build a 21-0 lead at halftime.
The Green Wave answered the starting quarterback questions by unveiling redshirt freshman Darian Mensah as the starter on Tulane’s first drive. Before the game, Sumrall wouldn’t name a starter, saying all three quarterbacks could play.
Tulane’s offense reacted well to the second-year collegiate taking his first live snaps. He led the Green Wave to a touchdown on his opening drive, as he tossed an 11-yard score to Yulkeith Brown for a 7-0 lead with 3:30 left in the first quarter.
Mensah finished 10-of-12 for 205 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. It proved to be a pretty clean debut.
Last year’s backup, Kai Horton, threw one pass and completed it for nine yards. Oregon transfer Ty Thompson was 2-for-4 for 17 yards.
USC transfer Mike Williams was the beneficiary of Mensah’s start, as he caught four passes for 124 yards. Tight end Alex Bauman caught Tulane’s other passing touchdown.
If Mensah provided stability under center, defensive back Rayshawn Pleasant broke the game open with Tulane’s first pick-six in three years.
With the Green Wave up 14-0, SE Louisiana quarterback Eli Sawyer underthrew a pass into the end zone which was caught by Pleasant. From there, he sprinted the length of the field, avoiding several tacklers, for a 100-yard touchdown return to send Tulane off to a three-touchdown lead entering halftime.
The American Athletic Conference confirmed it was the second 100-yard pick six in conference history.
In the second half the Green Wave leaded on the running game, bringing in Thompson in a special short-yardage package that led to him scoring two touchdowns.
Makhi Hughes led the Tulane run game with 59 yards and a touchdown. Arnold Barnes III scored his first career touchdown run and they rushed for 23 yards. The Green Wave combined for 241 yards rushing.
SE Louisiana (0-1) had a solid drive early in the game, but it didn’t lead to points and the Lions fought the rest of the game for every yard it could get. They ended up with 201 total yards.
Tulane now gets the next 10 days off before it hosts Big 12 contender Kansas State on Sept. 7. The Wildcats know the Green Wave well, as Tulane went into Manhattan two years ago and defeated them on their way to winning the AAC crown and reaching the Cotton Bowl, where they beat Oklahoma.
The Green Wave have two non-conference road games after that, as they face Oklahoma on Sept. 14 and Louisiana on Sept. 21.
