Tulane Green Wave Tasked With Controlling Line of Scrimmage Against Army
The Tulane Green Wave running game had their worst game against the Memphis Tigers and it likely cost them a win. They cannot afford to do the same against the Army West Point Black Knights.
In previewing the American Athletic Conference championship game, Pro Football Focus' Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman highlighted the matchup in the trenches when the Green Wave have the ball as something to watch.
When Tulane rattled off eight straight wins this season, it felt like a coaching masterclass that started in the trenches. If the ground game gets going, they start to feel unstoppable.
During those wins, the Green Wave averaged just over 250 yards and three touchdowns per game. That would be enough for the seventh-best rushing attack in the country if sustained throughout the season.
When combining all of their games, they still sit at No. 12 in the nation with 212.9 yards per game and five yards a rush.
That is mostly thanks to the surprising dominant offensive line and the shifty Makhi Hughes.
Hughes has 1,306 yards with 15 touchdowns this season, with two more scores as a receiver. He has been incredibly productive. It is easy to see why the offense failed to get going when the Tigers held the star running back to just 15 yards on nine carries in the last game of the season.
If Tulane wants to compete with the Black Knights, they will need to make sure Hughes is getting going. While Darian Mensah has been impressive under center this year, the ground game opens up so much for them.
The Army run defense, overall, ranks fairly high in yards per game allowed with just 103. Part of that, though, is just the fact that teams haven't run many plays against them this season. They have faced 47 less rushing plays than any other team in FBS.
Their 3.99 yards per rush is still not terrible, but a little bit more average.
The best run game that the Black Knights have faced so far this season was that of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who had no issues at all.
From big plays to consistent medium yardage pickups, the Fighting Irish picked up 273 yards and five touchdowns on 29 carries in that matchup.
It will be a battle for time of possession between these two run-first opponents, so making sure that the rushing attack can get going will be crucial for Tulane.
