I had to write a men's hoops preview yesterday that will run Saturday in the paper in addition to the football notebook that ran today, so I had no time to transcribe the Tuesday presser or do a report. The practice was a walkthrough, so there''s nothing to report there.
Jon Sumrall is a more traditional coach than Willie Fritz, hyping up every opponent as dangerous when Fritz was so intent on being even keeled that he did not do it much. You'd think Charlotte was Alabama the way Sumrall talked about the 49ers yesterday. He definitely wants to ensure Charlotte has his players' full attention on a short week with back-to-back road games, something no other team in the country has experienced this year except for Texas State, which played at Sam Houston (in a game Sam Houston moved to the Houston Texans home stadium an hour away from its campus) and then traveled to Troy. Texas State had no trouble with the second leg, dispatching Troy 38-17, but it had lost by 1 to Sam Houston in an upset.
Sumrall, Dontae Fleming and Jack Tchienchou, who led the team in tackles against North Texas, spoke yesterday. I really liked Tchienchou in spring drills and still do. The fact that he does not start is an indication of the real depth Tulane has this year on defense--the best depth by far in the years I've covered the team. Tyler Grubbs, the leading tackler for the year, has 35 stops, which is an incredibly low number for the top guy. He's on pace for about 60 tackles for the year, when he had 75 a year ago. Jesus Machado had 98 last season. Darian Williams had 131 in 2022. Macon Clark's 73 in 2021, when Tulane played only 12 games, was the low for the Fritz era. Darian Williams had 98 in 2020, Chase Kuerschen 76 in 2019, Zachery Harris 95 in 2018, Rae Juan Marbley 96 in 2017 and Nico Marley 86 in 2016.
Tulane's leading tacklers this year have been Bailey Despanie (Southeastern), Rayshawn Pleasant (Kansas State), Sam Howard (Oklahoma), Grubbs (ULL and South Florida), Micah Robinson (UAB), Robinson and Despanie (Rice) and Tchienchou.
SUMRALL
"Back-to-back road trips against really good opponents. Charlotte's a really good team. On film they are as talented as anybody in our conference. I watch them and athlete for athlete they are really, really good, so we've got our work cut out for us and it's going to be a hostile environment. We have to get ready to play."
On what concerns him the most about QB Deshawn Purdie:
"He has a really big arm. He can throw it. He has a 67-yard push I believe on the one post. He threw it probably 70-plus yards because it was a little big diagonal. He's got a huge arm, is a good runner (actually, he has carried 25 times for minus-120 yards, with sacks counting toward rushing total in college), very talented, gifted athlete. He's an elite athlete and he has a huge arm. The shot plays really scare with you. He's an explosive play waiting to happen in the throw game or the run game (he had a 15-yard run against North Carolina and none longer than 5 since then). We've got to be really good if he is the guy. If he's not the guy, get ready for whoever."
On if they are preparing for both quarterbacks (Florida transfer Max started against Memphis before being pulled for ineffectiveness):
"Their skill set's maybe different to some degree. They have a really good offensive identity. It's just like anything. One guy may be better in a certain area of his game, so you have to know what a guy's strengths are, but the offense is good either way. They really lean on the run game a lot. They've got a great running back group, a really good O-line. This team is really good. I can't tell you enough. Their record, you can throw that out. Watch them on tape last week against Memphis. They are really good, so we've go to be prepared."
On his respect for the AAC:
"There are a lot of athletic teams. Look, I go back to UAB and their receiver room I thought was elite going into the game, and when I left the game, if you ask our guy who play slot corner for us, our spears, they would tell you those guys at slot were dangerous. Everybody in this league has players at certain spots, and everybody has different strengths. These guys are littered with Power 4 transfers (40 by my count) on the roster. It's like we're playing a Power 4 team in our conference this week is what it feels like off the ability they have. That's who they are. The league's very challenging, week in and week out. There's no lay-up."
On difficulty of short week:
"You have to be fast and fresh. The worse thing we can do is make our guys worn down all week. Quick turnaround, so you have to be fast and fresh. Greg McMahon and I say to each other a lot, play songs that they know the words to. Don't turn on a new song they've never heard before and ask them to sing the lyrics because they don't know it. Give them a song they know the lyrics to. We have some game plan adjustment things that are unique and different for every game. Even in a short week you have to have some, but do what we do well and be who we are, that gives us the best chance to be fast and fresh and know what to do."
On difference this week from the prep for Rice game:
"Two weeks ago today I was pissed after practice. I was about ready to pull somebody's face off. This week has been really good. The condensed part of the deal can help you in some ways. Now the back-to-back road trips may be not how you would design it they had handed the schedule to me, but I felt a much better focus in our practices. That (the Rice practice issues) were coming off the bye. This group, we're going to be ready to play. They better be. I told them on Sunday's team meeting this is on ESPN, the mother ship, not after dodge ball, not before pingpong. It's really ESPN, so you've got to be ready for a game like this, and if you're not, you have a problem."
On seeing Charlotte for first time:
"You're trying to figure out who are their players. You're also trying to figure out the scheme is so different. That's what makes college football unique. Last year we played an air raid, up-tempo, throw the ball for 400 or 500 yards if they could team. This week we're playing more of a pro style offense (this has always killed me in college football that teams which run most of the time are labeled pro style when NFL teams pass most of the time) with multiple tight ends, run the ball down your throat, take shots off the running game and the play action. You're dealing with identifying the personnel and the schematics that they use and how does it affect what we do. You just have to press fast forward on some of that, and then the travel component, we got back Saturday night and we'll leave tomorrow. It feels like we just got home, so there are a lot of moving parts."
On Tchienchou:
"Jack's a really smart kid. He's a very talented athlete. He played a lot of different positions at his high school. He went to St. Pius in Atlanta. He's really gifted. He's fast, explosive, twitchy, makes plays, is a high-energy guy who positively affects other people around him. It's been fun to watch him grow at free safety. He's been involved as a depth returner for us. He's got a bright future."
On Patrick Jenkins:
"Pat Jenkins is the foundational piece of this team. He's been here for several years (three) now. He went to John Ehret High, left early in college (to TCU) and then came back home. When the coaching transition happened back in December, he could very easily have decided to leave. There were a lot of people who would have loved for him to go somewhere else, and he chose to stay. I think mom was a big component of that. He lived with mom. I cannot understate that relationship. He's a special guy. We talk about family, and we live it. He's family to us. He's back with his team and better for that and I know we're better for it, too, but you could not ask for a more quality young man that Patrick Jenkins. Heartbreaking situation, but we love him and it's been a joy having him back and we're walking through this together with him because that's what families do, that's who we are."
On Sumrall family game plan for Halloween:
"I just found out last night my street's like shut down or something. Whatever they're doing I can guarantee you my wife will have the game on. She's addicted more than I am, so they'll have the TV out and they'll be watching. I'm sure they'll dress up. I asked my son what he was dressed up as he said a football player. I said, come on, you've got to be more original than that. That's not very creative. They'll be watching it. They'll try to get a little trick or treating done, but they'll be watching it. The kids love it."
