Obviously it's still a long shot with two winning-record teams left and one on the road since Tulane has beaten only one team away from home that finished with a winning record in ages (Houston in 2014), although come to think of it, SMU might not finish with a winning record if the Wave beats the Mustangs.

But since a bowl remains a possibility with the OT win at ECU, here are a few notes:

1) Tulane has to get to 6-6. Tulane ranks 79th out of 129 FBS schools in the APR, so 5-7 will not be good enough.

2) If Tulane gets to 6-6, there probably will be eight AAC bowl-eligible teams, which his how many spots are available for AAC teams assuming it gets a New Year's Six bowl slot, which is a virtual lock. The only way the AAC would miss out on that bid is if Memphis loses to SMU and ECU at home, allowing SMU or Houston to win the West, and then SMU or Houston beats UCF or USF in the championship game. There is no way Memphis is losing to ECU at home, so the winner of the championship game (Memphis, UCF or USF) will be the best team from a Group of Five conference by a long way.

3) The AAC's bowl tie-ins

Auto Nation Cure Bowl (Dec. 16, Orlando) v. Sun Belt
Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 19, Boca Raton) v. CUSA
Frisco Bowl (Dec. 20, Frisco, Texas) v. at-large
Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl (Dec. 21, St. Petersburg) v. CUSA
Birmingham Bowl (Dec. 23, Birmingham) v. SEC
Hawaii Bowl (Dec. 24, Honolulu) v. Mountain West
Military Bowl (Dec. 28, Annapolis) v. ACC

It's a pitiful lineup, but that's life in a Group of Five conference. If Tulane beats Houston and SMU back-to-back, the accomplishment will be much greater than the reward.

Saturday against Houston is “Senior Day.” We have ten scholarship seniors who will be honored at the game: Sherman Badie, Parry Nickerson, Luke Jackson, Eldrick Washington, Ade Aruna, Quinlan Carroll, Jarod Franklin, Dontrell Hilliard, Sean Wilson, and Rae Juan Marbley. I'm not sure but a couple of "walk-ons" may join them.

As Guerry pointed out last week, as a group, they were not well regarded out of high school. Rivals listed only Badie and Marbley as 3-stars. 247, who issues 3-stars to the majority of BCS signees, granted that rank to Badie, Aruna, Washington, Marbley, and Hilliard.

On the field, the group has not seen much success. Seven of them (Badie, Nickerson, Jackson, Washington, Aruna, Carroll, and Franklin) received redshirts and were on the roster for the 2013 bowl team. But, since then they have gone 14-32. Regardless, to the best of my knowledge, they all have represented my university very well and deserve to be honored.

It will also be interesting to see how many, if any, of our redshirt juniors choose to be honored. By my count we have 12 of them, some major contributors and some whose contribution has been less noticeable. I’d guess that 3 or 4 who have not played much this past year could choose to signal the end of their college careers. Others, even major contributors, could choose to “get on with their lives.” It’s hard to guess from afar. Regardless, as we have seen, some players participate in senior day and then come back. And some appear to be returning but change their minds later in the spring. Of interest, nonetheless.

Of course, Hunter Knighton is a special case. He already graduated from U of Miami (possibly missing a national championship run) and still has one more year of eligibility. I’m not even sure of the protocol. Did he participate in senior day at Miami? Did he play enough or is he close enough to a graduate degree to convince him to return? Do the coaches want him to return? I don’t know the answers but, for whatever reason, I think he’ll be back.

The visiting list of recruits for our final home game should also be interesting. We probably have 4-8 remaining openings in our recruiting class. This may be the last chance to impress.

Finally, the game itself has some interest . Though it appears to be a long shot, we still have the potential to gain bowl eligibility. A win would shorten those odds considerably.

Roll Wave!!!

Other than offensive tackle John Leglue, who was on the exercise bike when I got to practice, Tulane could have all of its starters available for Saturday's game against Houston as it tries to make a late push and become bowl eligible. Leglue might be back, too, but every other starter from the East Carolina game was in uniform for Tuesday's practice, with nickelback Jarrod Franklin declaring himself a game-time decision while wearing wrapping around an injured elbow.

Glen Cuiellette, who has stood on the sideline for most of the practices this fall, got work as the scout-team quarterback today, simulating Houston's D'Eric King. I like that move because Cuiellette obviously is much better than walk-on P.J. Hurst, the normal scout-team QB, and King has played well since taking over for a struggling Kyle Postma early against South Florida, leading the Cougars to a comeback victory while rushing for 83 yards and two scores and throwing for 137 yards and a touchdown, then starting against ECU and throwing for 330 yards and three TDs.

Cuiellette hooked up with freshman receiver Kevin LeDee a few times. I hesitate to praise scout-team players because I got burned by Devon Breaux, who was sensational on the scout team all the way back in 2012 but never learned how to run routes correctly to take advantage of his athletic gifts, but LeDee looks really good. A year of bulking up the weight room should make him a significant factor next season. He's definitely the most noticeable receiver on the scout team every day.

They brought in Jarrod Franklin, Rae Juan Marbley and Dontrell Hilliard for interviews. Here's what they had to say:

FRANKLIN

How's your elbow, and will you be able to play Saturday?

"Oh yeah, it's good. It was a little elbow incident in the first half (against ECU). It will be a game-time decision seeing how I do throughout the week."

What does the last home game mean to you?

"It's another opportunity for us to come out here and execute. We could possibly be bowl eligible with two more wins, so it gives us more of an incentive to go to work and play hard and motivate these guys throughout practice. That's going to be the big key. Some of the seniors out here, we've got to push them out here harder and harder these last two weeks."

How big is that bowl motivation? In the past you were having to self-motivate by this point because there was no possibility of a bowl.

"We're blessed. There are a lot of teams out there that don't have this opportunity. We have to play to the best of our ability and continue to keep working hard."

What about Houston concerns you the most?

"It's different players but the same high-powered offense that we saw the last couple of years. We know how to play against them. They have some guys that are inexperienced we have to take advantage of. It's going to be a great game."

MARBLEY

Can you reflect on your eventful week?

"Yeah, it's pretty much been an amazing week. My little girl was born Wednesday at 1:14 p.m. I had to rally around my guys and we came out and had a great game, so this whole week's experience is unforgettable. Actually after the game I was in the locker room and cried. It was an unbelievable week for me. it was a dream week. I'm glad I'm able to share this moment with my wife and also my teammates and stuff. It was a very touching moment for me."

Was it hard to focus when you had this great distraction?

"I feel like I used it as motivation. My thing all season is the reason why I hustle is so my little girl can live in paradise. That's been my mindset, to come out and hustle for her and also for the guys around me. The guys in the locker room have been helping me out, running back and forth for doctor's appointments and stuff and making sure they take care of me in the weight room and the locker room. Everybody around me has been really helpful. This has been amazing to use as motivation. I'm definitely going to use it this week. It's fantastic to come out with the W."

Are you going to petition not to practice on Tuesday and Wednesday the rest of the year? It worked well for you last week.

"Actually i was keeping in touch with the other linebackers while I was at the hospital. Zach Harris was shooting me texts about some of the stuff that was going on and he was sending me pictures of all the stuff they saw on film, and I was calling him on the phone. He helped keep me up with what was going on in the football facility while I was taking care of business with my family."

The way the game ended, how much can that help you guys going forward?

"I think it will help us a lot, just like the Army game, it showed that we are capable of handling these things. I definitely believe we are capable of going to a bowl game and winning these last two games. Having that confidence inside of us is really big."

The play at the goal line when you laid the guy out, did you think you were going to get there in time?

"I was just hustling. Relentless effort, I try to give my best at all times. If it happens, it happens, if it doesn't, it doesn't. My main thing is just relentless hustle."

This will be your last home game. What are your thoughts on that?

"It's a crazy feeling. I remember coming in here and running out of the tunnel for the Georgia Tech game, the opening game of Yulman Stadium, and the stadium being packed. I definitely have good memories in here of my teammates and all the wins and the tough losses that we have. The things I've learned in this stadium are going to make me a better person and a better man. This place is a real special place. I love Yulman Stadium."

What do you have to do to beat Houston?

"I think it's mainly focusing on us coming out fast and strong and doing what we need to do on our side of the ball and coming out and playing a good, complete game on offense, defense and kicking game for four quarters."

When you look back at your career, how special is it to still have a bowl within reach?

"Definitely. The year before I came in, we have some fifth-year seniors that actually went to a bowl game, so I remember talking to them before I came in about the experience of having a bowl game. I definitely want the experience of being able to have that myself."

HILLIARD

You are three yards away from 1,000 yards. Only four guys have done it here. What would that mean to you?

"The whole season I've been focusing on the team as far as getting better and winning every game. I've been slowly chipping away at it, and I finally have the opportunity to get 1,000 yards."

Houston is stout in the middle. What do you have to do to have success against them?

"Just come out and play our best game. We have to execute our offense and be full of effort for four quarters."

What are your thoughts about your final home game?

"This came by fast. My freshman year, I never would have thought it would come this fast. My emotions are kind of everywhere, kind of excited and kind of like, this is my last game. It's definitely like all over the place."

You announced yourself with a terrific all-around game in the upset at Houston as a freshman in 2014. What do you remember about that game, and can the memory help you beat them again?

"That game was like yesterday to me, and I do think we have a very good chance of beating them. At the same time saying that, if we come out and play, it's going to be a good game for us."

There is still the potential of a bowl game. How special would that be?

"It's definitely special. We are just going to keep chipping away game by game and play by play and are going to play every play to the best of our ability, and the end of the day we are going to see how that goes for us."

Has anybody been out to see the baseball team in the Fall World Series?

Like everyone, I’m obviously interested in how Massey and the other pitchers look, especially Trent Johnson who had a really solid summer following up on a terrific junior college year. I think he needs to be a weekend starter. Solesky also has to be one and then it’s up to returning guys or “newbies.” Who will they be?

Gozzo had a terrible summer in the field, eventually moved to 2nd base from shortstop, but he hit .294. I’ve got to believe he’ll be in the infield somewhere but we need someone to play a really good shortstop. He was about adequate last year in my view. Interestingly, Alex Galy, who is now a redshirt sophomore with almost no playing time, played great defensively all summer at shortstop and, though he hit only .257, he came on strong the last half of the summer. He hit .185 in his first 65 at bats and .320 in his last 75. Was that rust? How’s he doing? Hoese, of course , is another possibility , though he missed most of the summer with injury. Has he recovered? How does he look?

Jonathan Artigues, who was a hero to take on catching chores last season, played the more familiar infield during the summer and hit .310. Gotta like his chances of contributing. Where can he fit in?

And I’m really interested in how Trevor Jensen is looking. He hit .359 and .374 in two years of JC and .341 this summer. He normally plays 3rd base (a need) but also plays the outfield. We need him to make a major contribution.

At first base, it would seem that Matt Rowland, Grant Matthews, and the freshmen, Will Mangurin and Michael Slatten are the most likely starters. Rowland didn’t play this summer and only hit .194 last season at Tulane, though he hit .324 the previous year in similarly limited appearances. (.257 for his Tulane career). I know he was our best hitter last fall and spring, but I’m unconvinced in his hitting. He only hit .182 during the summer of 2016, so his inconsistency is a concern. I don’t know much about the others but we need a first baseman who can hit.

After striking out half of the time last season, Tyler Heinrich had a good summer, batting .343 and cutting his strikeouts down to 39 in 143 at bats (27%). Although he only hit three home runs, he did win the Alaskan League “Home Run Derby,” suggesting some power. We’ll need it. Before getting hurt, I though Kobi Owen showed a lot of potential last year. How’s he doing? And, though Grant Witherspoon didn’t hit much this past summer in the Cape League (.233), he’s undoubtedly our best returning hitter. Do any of the other incoming outfielders look like contributors?

To me, catcher still seems to be in doubt, though we now have several competing for the job. Acy Owen hit .337 last year in JC, while playing about 40% of the time. This past summer, however, he hit only .210. More concerning, opponents stole 29 bases in 33 attempts when he was the catcher and he had ten passed balls in the equivalent of about 20 games; that’s a lot. Ty Johnson is our other JC catcher, who, like Owens, played about 40% of the time last year. He hit .352 last season and threw out half of attempted base stealers, much better. Best I can tell, he didn't play this past summer. Beyond them, we have two other freshmen catchers. Anyone looking good?

Anyhow, I haven’t seen much about fall baseball. Used to be, Tulane would post the box scores of the “World Series” games to give some idea who was playing where and at least who did what during those few games. Now? Nothing that I’ve seen, so any “eyes on” reporting would be appreciated.

Roll Wave!!!

I have two tickets-Westfelt 50 yard line plus parking pass. Message me at 5042366360

Jamal Anderson, a three-star CB from South Dade Homestead who never returned my texts, has de-committed, joining earlier de-commitments Josh Quiett and Charlie Ryan.

This is not an exodus. Just as last year, evaluations have changed as the senior year has gone along. It will be interesting to see where Anderson ends up. By my count, Tulane has 15 commitments with the potential to add five more.

Guerry: I know it’s not easy, but can you get us an injury report. Teamer’s turf toe? Banks’ finger. Diaz. I don’t imagine Aruna is that banged up. I could be wrong, but I find his game injuries to be full of drama. Any others? Thanks in advance.

I had to send all my stories to The Advocate before I went down for interviews because of the interminable replay reviews (why did they take so long when most were obvious decisions?) and the overtime, which means I got to take my time conducting the interviews instead of rushing them.

Talked to Fritz, Hilliard, Lewis and Banks. Did not ask about injuries because questions would not have been answered with substantive info. Wish I had asked Fritz about Briggs' penalty and the personal foul after the sack, but hey, Tulane won, so it wasn't much about negativity.

FRITZ

What was the though process on the fake punt, which would have been the key play of the game if not for all the miscues at the end of regulation?

"Obviously we thought it would work. You have to have the right time. I was screaming out there at Darnell (Mooney), you've got to make sure you hit the sticks, and he did by about a foot. It was supposed to be a 12- (yard route) and he hit it at about 10 1/2. But good execution by everybody on the punt team. We snuck Glen (Cuiellette) out on the field and he threw a nice strike."

You only had six turnovers all year and then you had three in the second half tonight and still were able to come up with the win. What does that say?

"It was tough. Thank goodness we're going to be able to learn from them (with a win). It's stuff we don't need to do. All of them were really unforced. We'll learn from it, plain and simple. We were real close in the passing game, particularly in the first half. We just missed a couple of big, big plays but ran the ball pretty effectively."

The secondary had struggled for a while but did a solid job tonight. What are your thoughts?

"I thought they did a great job of battling. We put them out on an island a bunch, and they really did a good job on 50-50 balls. We won more than our share."

In the third quarter, Donnie Lewis already had defensed six passes. Is that something you've always known he was capable of?

"Yeah, he really did a good job of playing the ball tonight. He's had a couple of tough deals this season, but he's a very fine corner, and he's getting better every week."

What about Parry Nickerson's leaping interception?

"What an interception! What a big play. We needed it then. The momentum had kind of gone to their side. What an athletic play."

Dontrell Hilliard is almost to a thousand yards for the year and had a career-best 189 yards tonight. How huge was he?

"He doesn't surprise me. He's just a workhorse. He's got a tremendous work ethic. He's just a ball player. He's what you're looking for."

It was a kick in the gut to have to go to overtime after their receiver made a shoestring catch on fourth down and then they threw a perfect fade to the back of the end zone. How nice was it to see the resilience in overtime?

"It was good. We've been on the short end of these kind of games. It's been tough. I'm just glad we came out on the good side of the ledger and got at W. We needed that. It will get the kids believing a little more."

What about Jonathan Banks' 16-yard score on fourth down in OT?

"It was fourth and about a foot. We needed to go for it there. Jonathan did a real nice job of pulling the ball and making that play."

On the fourth-and-1 stuff that ended the game, were you hoping they would try to run it up the middle?

"They got under center. They got in a power football formation and the guy (the running back) was sitting about seven yards deep and they ran it. We did a good job of gang tackling, keeping them out of the end zone. They ran it right up the gut. (Sean) Wilson was in on it. Rae Juan (Marbley) was in on it. I didn't see anybody else, but it looked like four or five guys were in on the tackle."

DONTRELL HILLIARD

What does this win mean for you guys after losing four in a row?

"Yeah, it means a lot. I just came to the team and Rae Juan came and we told them do us a favor and go out with a bang and give us all that you've got each and every play. Just focus on one play at a time and one game at a time and we'll be fine. We came out and did that. It's tremendous motivation and tremendous momentum that we can take over to next week going against Houston. We are going to enjoy this win and stay focused and finish the season off right."

You had a career-high 189 yards tonight. How much does that mean since it obviously helped you guys get the win?

"I told (running backs) coach Fo (Jamaal Fobbes) I'm going to give it my best, I'm going to give all I've got, regardless of what's going on. It means a lot to me."

Banks faked to you on the fourth down in OT and everybody on defense went to you. How nice was it to see it open up for him the way it did?

"It's good to know that you are a key that everybody's locking on to you, so when the quarterback does pull the ball, nobody's over there to guard him, he's taking no big hits. That's a good thing."

Where were you on the sideline before the final play, and what was your reaction?

"I was almost on the field. I was standing right there by them, so we could have gotten a flag (joking). I was like right there."

When your coach calls a fake punt on fourth-and-11 and it works, how much does that excite everybody on the sideline?

"It excites everybody. Everybody's riled up. Coach Fritz is an amazing coach. You've got to give his due to him. He comes in every day and works and dials up the plays, and you've got to give him his due."

How frustrating were the turnovers, including the one where Banks tried to pull it from you and coughed it up?

"It was frustrating. It kind of came at a crucial moment, but we just had to stay focused. That was just a mental mistake by us."

LEWIS

At one point, you had six passes defensed liked midway through the third quarter. How did you feel you guys did against their talented receivers?

"Oh yeah, we knew they were going to come in and throw the ball more than they ran like they did last week, when they threw the ball about 70 times (a school-record 72). All week the DBs had in our mind, this game is on us. That's what we said. This game is on us. If we can stop the pass and make them one-dimensional, we win."

Did you agree the secondary was not playing as well as it should have been during the losing streak?

"Oh, yeah. A lot of that was miscommunication on our part. Now I say we've been over-killing on communication. Once we get the play, once you know what you're doing, we can have fun with it."

What was your view on the monstrous stop that ended the game?

"Oh man. Rae Juan got the defense together and he said, hey, leave it all out here right now, so that's what we did. We played for one another and we got it done."

Now you still have a chance to go to a bowl game. How much does it mean?

"This win means a lot. Hopefully we can take this momentum and carry it on next week. We're just taking it one game at a time right now, so yeah."

How much did the fake punt excite everyone on the sideline?

"Yeah, we just believe in it. The coaches coached it up, and we went through it during the week and we finally pulled it out at a crucial time."

What about Parry Nickerson's spectacular interception?

"Yeah, I was right there. I watched him. Once I saw him look back at the ball, I said, yeah, it's over with."

He wagged his finger at the Duke sideline, telling them not to throw his way again.

"Yeah, me and Parry have that bond. We're trying to compete at who has the better stats after the game."

How cold did it feel when you were on the sideline?

"It was cold. It wasn't as cold as I expected. I feel like the Memphis game was colder (and hopefully he won't read my game note in The Advocate where I wrote it was much colder tonight than there.)"

BANKS

It's fourth down, you fake the handoff to Hilliard and took off for the touchdown. Did you see how open it was right away?

"Us running the read zone option, Hilliard did a good job running the ball, so the defense was able to follow him most of the game. I knew one moment I'd be able to pull it and make a big play off of it, and it just happened to be overtime."

After all these losses, how huge was it to get this win?

"You know, it was a little shaky. We came out strong but we had a few mental errors. Just to be able to come back with a win to get some momentum because we had been on a drought with a lot of losses."

How much did it show about this team that after the adversity at the end of regulation, you got th job done in overtime?

"Like I said, we've been facing adversity all year, so it really didn't surprise me. We were all ready for the moment. We were able to score offensively. The offensive line did a good job. The receivers did a good job catching the ball. Our defense did a good job of stopping them. It was a team effort and it's always good when you get a team win like that."

What do you to improve on to give yourselves a chance at 6-6?

"We just have to take it one game at a time. We can't look further than Houston. We have Houston to play for, and we'll take it one game at a time and one play at a time."

How frustrating were the three turnovers after you'd only had six as a team all year?

"It's always frustrating to have turnovers, but we got the win, so that's all that matters."

Woo Hoo! Glad to see we won a winnable conference game on the road. Congrats to Frtiz and the team! The personal foul penalty by Briggs and the fumble and the 2 INTs by Banks in the second half were just small impediments on our way to victory. Kudos to the defense for a goal line stand in OT. By the way Guerry, thanks for everything you do.

In lieu of a five questions with an ECU reporter, which I did not arrange this week, I'm returning to a feature I ran two or three years ago, comparing the Rivals.com recruiting ranking of every starter for the two teams. We all know those ranking are not the be-all, end-all, but they are interesting.

First the offense:

QUARTERBACK

Tulane: Jonathan Banks, JR was a 4-star, 5.8 coming out of junior college when he signed with Kansas State and a 2-star, 5.3 when he signed with Tulane.

ECU: JR Gardner Minshew was a 3-star, 5.5 coming out of high school when he signed with Troy and had zero stars coming out of JC when he signed with ECU. Grad transfer Thomas Sirk was a 3-star, 5.7 when he signed with Duke out of high school.

RUNNING BACK

Tulane: SR Dontrell Hilliard was a 2-star, 5.4 coming out of high school. SR Sherman Badie was 3-star, 5.5, and Darius Bradwell was a 2-star, 5.3 ATH.

ECU: FR Darius Pennix was a 2-star, 5.4. SO Hussein Howe was a 3-star, 5.5.

WIDE RECEIVER

Tulane: JR Terren Encalade was a 2-star, 5.3. SO Darnell Mooney was a 2-star, 5.3. JR Jabril Clewis was a 2-star, 5.4 coming out of high school when he signed with San Diego State and a 2-star. 5.3 when he signed with Tulane.

ECU: Grad student Davon Grayson was a 2-star, 5.4 when he signed with ECU, SR Quay Johnson was a 2-star, 5.4. SR Jimmy Williams was unrated and not in the database, JR Trevon Brown was a 2-star, 5.2.

LEFT TACKLE

Tulane: SO Tyler Johnson was a 2-star, 5.4.

ECU: SR Justin Sandifer was a 3-star, 5.5, SO D'Ante Smith was a 2-star, 5.4.

LEFT GUARD

Tulane: SO Corey Dublin was a 2-star, 5.2

ECU: JR Des Barmore was a 2-star, 5.4

CENTER

Tulane: JR Junior Diaz was a 3-star, 5.5.

ECU: FR John Spellacy was a 2-star, 5.3.

RIGHT GUARD

Tulane: JR Dominique Briggs was a 2-star, 5.3 coming out of junior college.

ECU: JR Garrett McGhin was a 2-star, 5.2

RIGHT TACKLE

Tulane: JR John Leglue was a 2-star, 5.2.

ECU: Grad student Brandon Smith was a 2-star, 5.3.

TIGHT END

Tulane: JR Charles Jones was a 2-star, 5.2

ECU: SR Stephen Baggett was a 2-star, 5.4.

ANALYSIS

There's really no different in recruiting rankings for the starters and key contributors on offense. The quarterback ratings are all over the board, but each team has only one 3-star in the starting lineup anywhere else--Diaz for Tulane, and Sandifer, who is not a certain starter, for ECU. Both teams have 3-star backup RBs who will play.

Anyone go to the game tonight?

It had just started when I boarded a plane in New Orleans and had just ended when I landed in Nashville to make my connecting flight to Raleigh-Durham. I see Caleb Daniels did not play and they are calling Monday Caleb Daniels Night.

Tulane is just bad right now, following the pattern of years past and wearing down physically and mentally in the second half of the season. Why that's the case for Tulane more than other teams, I'm not sure.

Obviously Tulane should have won at the end. It should have picked up the first down on third-and-2, allowing it to either score a TD or run out the clock for a chip shot field goal on the final play. I agreed with Fritz' decision to go for it on fourth down if the defensive setup called for it--the moment figured to be too big for Merek Glover, and Cincy still would have had time to kick its own field goal--but the false start on Dublin was a killer. I believe those five yards turned what would have been a 50-50 kick into a 30-70 kick.

Tulane did not deserve to win. Cincinnati outplayed Tulane for most of the game and won the battle at the line of scrimmage. But that wouldn't have mattered if the Wave had found a way to win anyway. Next up is a match-up with defensively horrendous but passing prolific East Carolina for a team that gives up far too many big passing plays and has completely forgotten how to sack a quarterback. That's a bad combo.

Here are the quotes from after the game:

FRITZ

"Obviously a disappointing loss. They converted a bunch of third downs, particularly early in the ball game, and we had some opportunities to get some touchdowns instead of field goals and we didn't do that throughout the game. I'm disappointed with the end of the game. We were trying to cold call it and see what they were in up front. Unfortunate we jumped, and that put us into a fourth-and-6 and made us have to kick the field goal. If we wouldn't have gotten the look we wanted (we would have called a) quick timeout. But it was all for naught. We jumped immediately on the play, so that was difficult. It put us in fourth-and-6, and I thought that was our only chance. He was 3 for 3 prior to that. We had to go ahead and kick the field, but we didn't make it.

"It's disappointing. If I had to do it over again, when we ran out there on the field, if it didn't look like we were lined up properly, we would have called a timeout, but we thought we had a nice opportunity to see what they were in and either go with the play or make a decision then as to whether or not we wanted to kick the field goal or go for it on fourth-and-1. Working situations with young guys, we've just got to continue to keep doing a good job with everybody on that so we're on the same page."

What did you see on the field goal?

"I don't know. Somebody said they thought the snap and the hold (were bad). I thought it looked OK. I thought he might have mishit it."

So there definitely was an option to go for it on fourth-and-1? You weren't just trying to draw them offside?

"If they gave us the shade we wanted, we would have just run the inside zone play and convert on it, and if it didn't look real good, call a timeout, but we didn't execute it. Hindsight's 20-20. I could have called timeout and not had the confusion."

Cincinnati broke the big run on the next play, and if you had let them score a touchdown, it still would have been a one-score deficit, but the defense ran the guy down and effectively ended any chance of winning.

"We had three timeouts. We could have called them boom, boom, boom. At the very end we thought our only chance was to let them score and get an extra point. We tackled once when we shouldn't have, and then they figured it out. The guy made a smart decision and fell on the ground."

You struggled to get much space again in the running game. How did that affect what you were trying to do?

"When we can't run it effectively, we've got to throw the football. We started running it well enough in the second half where they had to defend it and open up some passing lanes. (Darnell) Mooney had a really good game, made some big-time catches."

Were you surprised at some of the pass plays they were able to make?

"Early in the game in particular we gave up some easy plays. One time we had a third-and close to 20 and we just didn't execute very well."

It's the fourth straight loss. Where do you go from here?

"It's tough. We just have to regroup and go. It's disappointing. I told our guys we've had our share of adversity, and there are two choices. Quit or start pushing and preparing as well as you can and playing as well as you can. That's our choice and it's what we're going to do."

How did you feel Banks played today?

"He did some good things. It's a tough position, quarterback. You've got to be right on every play, and the guy's getting better. We have to find the things that he can do. He does some really good things out there."

On third-and-goal from the 7 right before you kicked a field goal to pull within 17-16, he handed off to Hilliard. Was that the play call, or was it just his read on his play?

"It was just a zone read."

As always, the Tulane game counts double, home teams are listed first and the point spread come from VegasInsider.com consensus:

East Carolina (+5) Tulane
Miami (+3) Notre Dame
Auburn (+2.5) Georgia
Mississippi State (+14) Alabama
Oklahoma (-6.5) TCU
Ohio State (-15) Michigan State
Wisconsin (-12.5) Iowa
Navy (-4.5) SMU

I decided to take a look at the conference on a whole and see where I think we have the talent to play in the AAC, "bonafide D-1 football players" to use CWF's term and where we are lacking. Tell me what you all think.

QB - I think J. Banks is a mid-tier AAC player. He is competitive, a good enough runner and he seems to be improving as a passer as the year goes on. He's not Ferguson as a passer or Flowers as a runner, but he's decent.

RB - Hilliard is one of the top backs in the AAC, he does everything well. I think our other backs know their roles and on a whole I would say we have AAC talent at RB.

WR - Here's where we start to see an issue, while Mooney is improving and becoming one of our better players our WR corps is not up to par. I don't know if any of them would start at most of the AAC schools.

TE - Who really uses tight ends anyway? They are serviceable, I guess.

OL - Well now we are at the crux of the issue. Leglue is the best of the bunch and he's far from dominant, Dublin has played well for a freshman, but he's a freshman. Our biggest issues though are Briggs and whomever is playing LT. We are getting decidedly below average play from those two positions and it's killing us. I think we have a bottom 3 OLine...

DL - There is a lack of bodies and talent here, Cam Sample might be our best lineman (Sean Wilson's not terrible either). Our supposed bell cow Aruna has been non-existent, although some of that is due to his move inside I am sure. Patrick Johnson has shown flashes, and perhaps with Kennedy they are a bit better, but once again a bottom tier group.

LB - Rae Juan is solid if not spectacular and Jackson has had his moments but the LB's as a whole just haven't the talent to make plays. I would once again say a bottom tier position group.

DB's - I think we all expected this group to be a lot better than they are playing. Obviously Parry is a talent, but that's been it. We have seen flashes from Chase K., Teamer, Franklin, etc. but the inconsistency and blown coverages have been glaring. Jackson & Keyes who have the talent have been living in the training room so we have no option other than the often victimized Donnie Lewis. But how much can you put on the db's when there is NO PASS RUSH whatsoever. If I had to say by sheer talent, we are probably in the 3rd tier of the conference, but we play like the worst.

SP - We have a walk on kicker, nuff said. Block has been better, average but not outstanding, and our return units have made mental errors that have contributed to losses more often than not. We are bottom tier there as well.

So in my personal opinion we have bottom tier AAC talent everywhere but QB & RB...no wonder we have only 1 conference victory...although there should be a battle of the bottom this weekend at ECU. They have the worst run defense, we have the worst secondary...this should be interesting and frustrating at the same time.

Mostly good news from practice today:

Jabril Clewis is fine. His strange injury at the end of practice yesterday apparently amounted to nothing because he was running around well today.

Rae Juan Marbley was back at practice after missing Tuesday and Wednesday for the birth of his baby daughter. He and his wife welcomed Isla into the world yesterday.

"We're just happy for him and his wife," Willie Fritz said. "I've been through it three times, and the good thing about it is he's always tuned in. Him missing a couple of practices isn't like some other guys missing a couple of practices."

Cameron Sample was not at practice again, and I believe he is under concussion protocol. Willie Fritz told the CBSSports crew the same thing he told us earlier in the week, that Sample may be ready, but I don't think he will play after not practicing at all this week.

Tulane's starting D will be Robert Kennedy at left end, Sean Wilson at nose, Ade Aruna at right end, Luke Jackson flanking Kennedy at OLB, Marbley (I assume) and Zach Harris at inside linebacker, Jarrod Franklin at nickelback, Parry Nickerson and Donnie Lewis at cornerback, Chase Kuerschen at free safety and Rod Teamer at strong safety, although Kuerschen practiced in a no-contact red jersey today. I did not see Marbley getting reps at the end of practice, but he was on the field in uniform. Lawrence Graham is his backup.

The latest forecast for Greenville on Saturday calls for lows in the upper 20s and a high in the mid-40s under clear skies. The temperature for the 7 p.m. Eastern time kickoff could be in the 30s, which would make it the coldest game Tulane has played in a while.

"There's not a lot you can do," Fritz said. "Maybe it was good that when we came out here it was a little chilly this morning."

I did some closer research on the top 20 teams in fewest turnovers last night, and the actual record of the 19 teams other than Tulane in that category is 126-46 for a winning percentage of .733. Tulane is 3-6 for a winning percentage of .333.

I asked Fritz about Tulane being 3-6 despite having committed only six turnovers. His thoughts:

"It is unusual. We're doing a good job with ball security. We need to get a few more takeaways. That's something we emphasize. We should be good at it. Obviously we'd like for that to be something that's indicative of winning. We need to keep plugging away."

Tulane is plus-7 in turnover differential. Of the 20 best teams in that category, the Wave and Texas Tech, which is also plus-7, are the only ones below .500. The Red Raiders are 4-5.

Tulane is 0-4 in games in which it committed at least one turnover, losing to Oklahoma (2), Florida International (2), South Florida (1) and Memphis (1). Tulane is 3-2 when going without a turnover, still managing to lose to Navy with a plus-2 in turnover margin and neither giving up or forcing a turnover against Cincinnati.

It is Thakarius Keyes' birthday today. With Donnie Lewis continuing to struggle at times giving up big plays, I know a lot of people wish Fritz' gift to Keyes was a starting assignment.

East Carolina, by the way, has four wide receivers who have gone over 100 yards in a game this year. Those guys will be challenging for Tulane's secondary to cover.

I've been light on the quotes this week because talk doesn't mean much right now. All that matters is beating East Carolina. I've heard players and coaches talk about staying positive and still believing ad nauseum over my years covering this team, and it never amounted to anything tangible in the past. They said basically the same stuff this week. We'll see if it translates into something positive this time.

Practice was energetic today with a little more contact than I'm used to seeing out of this team. Willie Fritz said he liked what he seen Tuesday and Wednesday.

Quinlan Carroll missed the Cincy game because of an unspecified injury. He practiced today, though not getting full reps, and should be available to play against ECU. He was watching from the sideline in the last 10 minutes while they had Luke Jackson as the stand-up end/linebacker with the first unit next to Robert Kennedy, Sean Wilson and Ade Aruna. The second-team defensive line was Patrick Johnson, Braynon Edwards and De'Andre Williams.

Cameron Sample did not practice and I did not see him. Although Fritz refused to rule him out for Saturday, it seems highly unlikely. His issue may be concussion-related--Fritz rarely gives out specific injury info-but that would explain him not even being at practice.

Jabril Clewis injured his right knee on the very last play of practice today, right in front of me. I have no idea how significant it will turn out to be. He was on the ground for a couple of minutes while trainers looked at him before he limped to a training table with their assistance. I did not see anything unusual about the knee. He was involved in a collision, went down and everybody appeared to think he was fine at first, but he did not get up until the team had met at the center of field and sang 'Happy birthday." to someone before breaking for the end of practice.

Rae Juan Marbley was not there again today. He will play against ECU Saturday barring any complications from a positive family situation.

I talked to Kennedy and defensive coordinator Jack Curtis today. Here are the transcripts:

KENNEDY

How good does it feel to be back out there after your knee injury?

"It is very relieving. As long as I've been injured and going through that little struggle, I feel like I finally got to take my collar off."

How have you gotten back into game shape so quickly.?You played a lot more snaps than anticipated against Cincinnati with Sample's injury.

"I kind of expected it. I've always prepared to come back and play my starting position, so getting in game shape has always been a focus since week 1 of the season and before that, too. I've always had that mindset."

When you got hurt in the spring, did you know how significant the injury was right away?

"I got hurt in the weight room in a freak accident power cleaning. To be honest, when it happened, I didn't understand the significance of the injury, but I knew right then I was going to be positive about the whole situation. I didn't go into it with a negative mindset. I'm a very curious guy, so I was curious about what the whole process would be like."

How did it happen?

"I was power cleaning with the weight and on the way up my knee buckled in and kind of just snapped down. It was a (torn) ACL and meniscus."

Were you confident you would be back this year?

"Oh yes. The hardest part in the whole process was the first three games when we played Oklahoma and watching that game and feeling like I could play and not being cleared to yet. The whole mental struggle was probably the hardest part, that and the few days after surgery were very painful."

You were cleared to play against Tulsa and then had a hamstring setback. What happened, and how frustrating was that?

"It was the Thursday before the Tulsa game. I pulled my hamstring on a punt trying to cover it. One of the coaches ran on the field and I didn't see it until the last second. I looked and tried to sidestep him. I guess my agility really isn't that good because I pulled my hamstring right after it. If I wasn't frustrated before, I was definitely frustrated then."

You have a five-game season. How much are you pouring into it?

"I've got to give it my all because I have a lot of time to make up. I'm going to give it my all for my brothers, making sure I see them off. This class graduating this year, we all came in together. It's a personal deal. I have to send them off right."

What do you add to the defense?

"I feel like I add a lot of energy. Guys are more confident to have me in there a little bit."

When Sample went down, you played the rest of the way pretty much. Did you feel tired?

"I felt pretty good. I felt tired maybe once or twice in the game, but that was more like getting into a game feel, not like fatigue or physical tiredness. I was understanding I'm back in the game 100 percent this time."

What has to happen for this team to turn it around?

"We have to stay physical, stay tough and make sure we're going out here and having fun doing what we do. As long as everyone is along with the fight, we can't really fall back on defense."

Was there one play where you felt like you were back?

"To be honest it was in the Memphis game where I made the TFL (tackle for loss). That was the play where I knew I was back and going. The guard went down and I blitzed the B gap and made the play."

You've always had a combination of strength and speed. Do you feel like you're well rounded?

"Oh yes. That speed and power and being able to combine the two has always been my strong suit."

CURTIS

Robert Kennedy had five tackles against Cincinnati. Is it impressive that he has been able to get back in the flow so quickly after coming off a his knee injury?

"Yeah, it's impressive that he could play as many snaps as he did, really his first ball game truly back. Rob is a real powerful guy. He's physically stronger than most people. He whips a lot of folks up front. We missed him an incredible amount this year, but we're glad to have him back. Hopefully Cam (Sample) will be back and we'll be hitting on all cylinders on the defensive line besides (not having) Eldrick (Washington)."

Kennedy was a linebacker in high school who became a weight room demon and got a lot bigger here. What makes him so effective?

"I can see why he played linebacker in high school because he is fast. He's probably in the high 4.6 range in the 40. Last year he played around 260 to 265. He's put on a lot of weight. I imagine he's 280, 285 now. That was a little bit of concern for us, but he seems to be able to handle it. I don't know if his speed has suffered or not. He's just getting back, so it's hard to tell until he plays in more games, but with that additional weight he's even gotten stronger than he was before. That's probably his biggest attribute. When he comes off the ball, he's just a brute in there. He's really hard to handle. His strengths is so impressive."

Where does he help you the most?

"He's capable of creating some havoc because he is strong and getting to the backfield. He's had a couple of tackles for some losses now. There is a play or two where he makes a mistake, and some of that is knocking the rust off. He really has gotten thrown right back into team and hadn't had all the individual work that you need, so some of that showed, but he creates negative plays, and that's we've missed a little bit since Tanzel (Smart) left. He was in that backfield so much."

The defense has not had a sack for four straight games, sometimes struggling to generate pressure and sometimes failing to get the QB down when the opportunity is there. What can you do there?

"That is a concern. You've got to able at times to put the pressure on. A couple of those games it's tough when you're behind and they're running the ball, but at the same time we've had opportunities and missed on them, letting the guy break contain. We're constantly preaching where's the pressure coming from and where we need to be, and when we are in that situation, we've got to make the play."

Rod Teamer said the coaches are making calls, and he blames himself for not getting them communicated properly to everyone in the secondary. What's going on there?

"One of them was costly. The touchdown was the only one that cost us a touchdown. There were a couple of other calls that might have been five or 10 yards here and there that if we would have run the call correctly, it would have been probably a better result. We talk about constantly getting lined up correctly and reacting, but you've got to get the calls and know what you're doing, get that communicated through the defense and have 11 guys on the same page. Unfortunately last week there were a couple of times that hurt us. When you lose a close game, those are magnified. When you win the game, you say, we've got to get a little bit better and can't let this happen. When you lose it, it just brings so much light to it. I don't know that we had any more miscommunications than in a normal game, but I wish we had that one (the touchdown given up) back. We put the spotlight on it because it was such a close game."

East Carolina seems to have found something with Gardner Minshew at QB against Houston, getting 33 first downs. What concerns you about that offense?

"They can throw the ball extremely well. They did not really attempt to run, and I don't know if that surprised Houston they were throwing it so much, but give them credit. They did a nice job. At times I thought Houston was soft in the coverage and allowed the completions. They were doing a lot of that RPO (run-pass option) stuff and making plays. They are very talented at wide receiver. That's the strength of the team. They have a lot of speed and three or four guys that are going to be in NFL camps."

How different are the two QBs?

"Not a whole lot. (Sirk) will run the ball just a little bit more. I don't think (Minshew) will be a runner when he's in there. They are doing a nice job. They are really talented at receiver."

This might have been the worst week we have ever had collectively, with no one getting more than 5 points and three people getting 1 point.

WEEK 9 RESULTS

5

LSU Law Greenie
winwave
Golfer81

4

Guerry Smith
DrBox
WaveOn
highwave
GretnaGreen

3

Charlamange8
mono41
diverdo

2

St Amant Wave
Harahan Wave
Wavetime
MNAlum

1

Kettrade1
buck2481
bbos1025


OVERALL STANDINGS

48

winwave

47

mono41

44

Guerry Smith

41

bbos1025
diverdo

40

LSU Law Greenie

39

buck2481
St Amant Wave
DrBox
Golfer81

38

highwave
GretnaGreen

37

p8kpev (missed 1 week)

36

Kettrade1
WaveON

34

wavetime
Charlamange8 (missed 1 week)
paliii (missed 2 weeks)

32

MNAlum

29

Harahan Wave (missed 1 week)


WEEK 9 GAME-BY-GAME RESULTS

Cincinnati 2 of 18
SMU 6
Oklahoma 13
LSU 3
USC 8
Miami 6
West Virginia 6
South Carolina 9

Tulane, which is in dire need of a pass rush entering its game against East Carolina, may be without the services of starting defensive end Cameron Sample on Saturday. He missed Tuesday's practice after getting hurt against Cincinnati, and although coach Willie Fritz shies away from discussing the status of injured players, he said Robert Kennedy would play a lot against the Pirates. Kennedy, coming off knee surgery that sidelined him for the first seven games this season, replaced Sample in the first half against Cincinnati and finished with five tackles, the same number as the rest of the linemen combined.

That's not bad for a guy wiping off the rust of inactivity, although Kennedy's forte is run stopping rather than pressure--he had zero sacks last year and has one in his career.

"Robert Kennedy did a good job," Fritz said. "He's getting in better shape. He played quite a lot more than we thought he was going to play. He brings a physicality to the team as well and a lot of toughness. He'll play a lot this weekend. He's starting to get in game shape a little bit better every single week."

Zero is a common number when it comes to Tulane and sacks. The Wave last recorded one on the first play of the fourth quarter against Tulsa on Oct. 7, taking over on downs with a 55-21 lead. Since then, opponents have thrown 114 times without allowing a sack, and, as would follow, Tulane has lost four in a row.

"Sometimes it's the calls, both offense and defense," Fritz said. "You're bringing pressure and they're getting rid of the ball quick or it's a play-action pass and we had a three-man front and they were max protecting it. We had three or four opportunities in the game where we either had a guy free and he got there just a tad late or we had six guys on six guys. We have to win one of those match-ups when that happens. It makes your secondary a lot better when we do get pressure up front. That's an area we're very aware of we need to do a better job."

ECU, which threw 74 times and was sacked only once by Houston's talented front four in Saturday's 52-27 loss to Houston, will not make it easy on Tulane's pass rushers. Many of the passes were quick outs that coach Scottie Montgomery calls "extended runs." The Pirates likely will start junior Gardner Minshew, who replaced the ineffective Thomas Sirk in the first quarter and completed 52 of 68 passes for 463 yards and three TDs in the lost cause against Houston. Montgomery refused to divulge his plans at his weekly news conference, but Sirk, a better runner than thrower, probably will be used in short-yardage situations. If the name is familiar, when he was at Duke he started against Tulane in the 2015 opener and completed 27 of 40 passes for 289 yards and two scores with zero interceptions and also ran for 68 yards on 15 attempts. A year earlier, he ran five times for 94 yards as a short-yardage specialist against Tulane, including a key 50-yard run on fourth down early in the game.

In other news, Rae Juan Marbley missed Tuesday's practice, but it was for a good reason that I will release when cleared. He's healthy and most likely very happy right about now. In his absence, freshman Lawrence Graham got first-team reps and made a nice play with an interception.

The offensive line change I thought Tulane might make based on practice last week did not materialize, with Dominique Briggs starting and playing most of the way at right guard ahead of Leeward Brown. Today, the same starting five as usual got the first-team reps, so the coaches still believe Briggs is the best option at his spot.

The defense, which has had a series of breakdowns at the back end that safety Rod Teamer attributed to poor communication, had another one in practice today during team drills. Jabril Clewis slipped out uncovered on a seam route, and I mean uncovered.

While still wearing his white (offense) jersey, John Washington left the main field to go to the practice field outside the stadium with the other defensive linemen during practice. I will check about that tomorrow, but Tulane definitely is thin on depth along the line with Eldrick Washington gone for the year and Sample possibly out this week. There's Sean Wilson and Braynon Edwards at the nose, Ade Aruna and Patrick Johnson at the hybrid end/tackle spot, Kennedy and Peter Woullard at the other spend spot and DeAndre Williams as a spot player, with Quinlan Carroll and Larry Bryant at the hybrid end/OLB spot. Of that group, Williams, Edwards, Carroll, Woullard and Johnson did not make a tackle against Cincinnati.

John Washington has been an offensive lineman since Fritz converted him from defensive tackle early last year. Initially optimistic about his potential, the staff clearly has soured on his potential there, and he has spent this season playing on the scout team. Could he give the Wave some serviceable downs inside on defense? I don't know, but it will be interesting to see if the staff is considering it.

Luke Jackson, who was credited with five tackles, including one for a loss against Cincinnati, has been named one of 20 semifinalist for the inaugural Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award, which goes to the player who best exhibits leadership on and off the field. Jackson has 41 tackles, the sixth most on the team, six stops for loss, second to Marbley's 6 1/2, and a team-high 3 1/2 sacks. For more info, check the link below:

http://tulanegreenwave.com/news/201...iate-man-of-the-year-award.aspx?path=football

One last nugget: Tulane has committed only six turnovers this year, tied for the second fewest in the country and trailing only Alabama's five. Of the teams in the top 20 in that category, 17 already are bowl eligible, Kansas State is 5-4, Vanderbilt is 4-5 and Tulane is 3-6. The combined record of the other 19 is 121-46. So even though the Wave has taken care of the ball incredibly well, the payoff has been negligible to this point.

Brown is a 6-foot-3, 190-pound 3-star recruit with an offer from Purdue who visited campus for the Army game and fits the profile of the taller receiver Willie Fritz wants for his system.

Martin's offensive numbers as a team are sick, scoring 57, 50, 29, 43, 76, 16, 59, 49 and 62 points so far this year while going 8-1. According to MaxPreps, Brown had 29 catches fro 486 yards and four touchdowns through eight games. The loss came when his starting QB, who has offers from Rice and Army missed the second half of a 27-16 loss and the team did not score or pick up a first down after leading 16-7. The QB has not played since then and the offense has averaged 56 points in that span.

Brown had a 33-yard touchdown reception in the most recent victory. Martin had a tight end, Brayden Willis, who averaged more yards per catch than Brown, but Willis, a two-star recruit with offers from Tulane, Houston and Illinois among others, was moved to QB after the injury, freeing up Brown to put up bigger numbers.

Here's the list. Tulane has one official visitor, which is something the Wave does not do much on game weekends, and a whole bunch of unofficial visitors.

OFFICIAL VISITOR

Christian Daniels, a-two star dual-threat QB who committed to Miami (Ohio) during the summer and plans to graduate in December. His only P5 offer is from Purdue. Here is is his profile:

https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2018/christian-daniels-188282

The unofficial visitors include DE Charlie Ryan, an unrated prospect from Montgomery Catholic in Alabama who committed to Tulane in July but announced on twitter Nov. 1 he was re-opening his recruitment.

Here are the rest:

COMMITTED TO TULANE

Macon Clark
Nik Hogan
Jamiran James
Amare Jones
Michael Remondet
Davon Wright

ALREADY COMMITTED ELESWHERE

1) Larry Brooks, a 3-star, 6-0, 185-pound CB from Kennedale High In Texas who picked Louisiana-Monroe a month ago. If the Rivals database is accurate, Tulane is the biggest school to offer him.

2) Quindell Johnson, a 2-star, 6-0, 185-pound safety from Karr who committed to Memphis in June after being recruited by former Tulane assistant David Johnson. Karr just crushed Warren Easton last night. He also has offers from Houston and Purdue.

3) Sheldon Jones, a 3-star, 5-9, 156-pound WR from Warren Easton who committed to UTSA in February and also has offers from Memphis and Troy.

4) Percy Butler, a 2-star, 6-1, 180-pound wide receiver from Plaquemine High who is committed to ULL and also has an offer from Southern Miss.

5) Grant Betts, a 2-star, 6-3, 260-pound OG from Spanish Fort, Ala. who committed to Troy in May and also reportedly has offers from UCF and ULL.

UNCOMMITTED

1) Anthony Lewis, Jr., a 3-star tight end from Mobile (Alab.) Murphy High whom Rivals rates the 30th best prospect in his state. He has offers from Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Memphis and a host of schools from lesser conferences.

2) Adrian Bowie, a 6-2, 225-pound OLB from East Ascension High who is not rated by Rivals.com, or to my knowledge, any other site.

3) Bishop Breaux, a 6-2, 198-pound OLB from Acadiana who has no offers to this point, as far as I now. He has no stars from Rivals but is in the database.

4) De'Antoine Carter, a 6-2, 200-pound LB from Pearland High in Texas who is not in the Rivals database.

5) Jam'l Dilliard, a 6-2 220-pound DEfrom Warner Robins High in Georgia who also has offers from UNLV, Eastern Kentucky and Western Illinois. He is the database but has no stars.

6) Taquavian Drake, an unrated 6-2, 185-pound WR from Wadley High in Alabama. I don't know of any offers.

7) Tylan Driver, a 2-star, 6-2, 300-pound DT from Mandeville High who has an offer from Arkansas State.

8) Josh Gillard, a 5-11, 200-pound OLB from Holy Cross who is in the database but is not rated and does not have any reported offers to this point.

9) Zuri Henry, a 6-6, 275-pound DE from Wylie, Texas who is unrated and does not have any known offers.

10) Tavian Johnson, a 6-3, 230-pound DE from Germantown High in Madison, Miss. who is not in the Rivals data base but is in the 247 Sports database with zero stars.

11) Austin McDonald, a 5-9, 207-pound LB from Houston Christian who is in the Rivals database but has no stars.

12) Slade Ziegler, a 6-0, 210-pound LB from Lakeshore High in Mandeville who is not in the Rivals database.

13) Marco Domio, a 6-2, 190-pound CB from Houston Heights High in Houston who is unrated by Rivals but is in the database with an offer from UMass.

2019 Prospects

Greg Brooks, DB, West Jeff
Tyruss Gaden, CB, John Ehret
Thomas Gordon, TE, Strake Jesuit College Prep in Texas
Jaden Henderson, DB, McDonogh 35
Michael Hollins, RB, University High in Baton Rouge
Dylan Rathcke, OL, University High
De'Onte Russ, LB, Plaquemine
Louis Paul Smith, OL, D'Iberville High in Miss.
Brockholm Wicks, OL, Plaquemine

It's Macon Clark, a 6-1, 185-pound two-star prospect from Destrehan who will play either safety or outside linebacker at Tulane. Fritz tweeted a Roll Wave from Destrehan 10 minutes ago, and Clark tweeted his commitment, too.

Tulane did not have a linebacker or a safety among its first 15 commitments. My guess is Tulane will have a class of 20, with most of them signing in December.

Destrehan is 7-2 and ranked 9th in Class 5A after going 37-1 over the past four years. Clark scored a touchdown against Jesuit last week when he picked up a bad punt snap and ran to the end zone.

Here are Clark's junior Hudl highlights:

https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2018/macon-clark-186143

I got it up late, but it's on the front page.

winwave and Golfer81 rode picks of Memphis to high scores, easily beating everyone else for the week.

WEEK 8 RESULTS

8

winwave

7

Golfer81

5

p8kpev
Guerry Smith
diverdo
bbos1025
GretnaGreen

4

mono41
St Amant Wave
LSU Law Greenie
buck2481
DrBox

3

Kettrade1
highwave
Harahan Wave
Wavetime

2

Charlmange8
WaveON

1

MNAlum


OVERALL STANDINGS

44

mono41

43

winwave

40

Guerry Smith
bbos1025

38

buck2481
diverdo

37

St Amant Wave
p8kpev

35

Kettrade1
DrBox
LSU Law Greenie

34

highwave
paliii (missed 1 week)
Gretna Green
Golfer81

32

WaveON
Wavetime

31

Charlamange8 (missed 1 week)

30

MNAlum

27

Harahan Wave (missed 1 week)


GAME-BY-GAME RESULTS

Memphis 3 of 19
Penn State 15
Notre Dame 16
Georgia 15
Georgia Tech 11
Iowa State 6
Mississippi State 4
Houston 4

As always, the Tulane game counts double, home teams are listed first and the point spreads come from VegasInsider.com consensus.

Tulane (-5.5) Cincinnati
SMU (+14.5) Central Florida
Oklahoma State (-2.5) Oklahoma
Alabama (-21) LSU
Southern Cal (-7) Arizona
Miami (+2.5) Virginia Tech
West Virginia (-2.5) Iowa State
Georgia (-24.5) South Carolina

There is really good news on the injury front. Center Junior Diaz practiced today and is slated to start for Tulane against Cincinnati, as is safety Rod Teamer, who also returned to practice today.

I believe Diaz' availability is the difference between winning and losing. Cincinnati is not stout up front, and Tulane should be able to have success with its inside zone stuff.

Teamer's return should help the defense because he is more physical than P.J. Hall, who struggled against Memphis' outstanding passing attack. The poor tackling that has plagued Tulane lately is not an issue for Teamer.

One other likely position change involves Leeward Brown replacing Dominique Briggs at right guard. I'm not certain it will happen, but Brown worked with the first-team offensive line instead of Briggs for the last 20 minutes of practice today. Corey Dublin, who has had a solid year at left guard, never came off the field when I was there, practicing with the first and second units.

I did not see Rae Juan Marbley practicing in the last 15 minutes, but that doesn't mean he is out, and Willie Fritz does not like to talk about injuries. Luke Jackson and Zach Harris were the first-team linebackers in the tiny portion of practice I watched, with the usual suspects everywhere else. The second-team D-line consisted of Peter Woullard, Robert Kennedy, Braynon Edwards and Patrick Johnson. Tulane is healthier there than it has been in a while.

You know those pooch punts Jonathan Banks has executed very well, just as Glen Cuiellette did a year ago? They practice those. Today, Banks tried one that was downed at the 1-yard line.

Thakarius Keyes intercepted a deflected pass against the scout-team offense, but in what might be a minor concern, the scout-team offense actually completed a couple of deep balls against the defense. Someone wearing jersey No. 5--not Terren Encalade--did a fair impression of Tulane's best receiver, hauling in a long pass down the far sideline and then another one down the near sideline. He almost made a third big catch but dropped it.

Here is what Fritz and offensive coordinator had to say after practice. Ruse addressed the run/pass deal, and he came on strong.

FRITZ

Are Diaz and Teamer going to be able to play?

"I think so. They will be able to."

How has practice gone this week?

"We had a good workout today. We are looking forward to the homecoming contest. Every game's a big game for us. We've got to be locked in and ready to go. That gives us the greatest opportunity to win."

You talked earlier in the week about re-evaluating everything. Are there any changes?

"The big thing for us is you have to know who your available bodies are, the guys who can play. You have to run plays that accent your strengths and try to hide your weaknesses. You can't just make calls that you like to call in the offense, defense and kicking game. If the pieces don't fit, stay away from it and do something different. That's the biggest thing. Why are we doing that with this guy here? When we do this, we're featuring this guy, but would it be better to feature this guy? If we're going to be playing this guy in coverage, maybe we need help over here because this guy's a good receiver and this guy might have difficulties. Especially when you get late in the year and guys get banged up, it's about spot matchups."

The seven sacks Memphis had, how many of them were on the offensive line?

"Two. Two times were on the offensive line. The other ones someone else was involved in the protection or we held the ball too long or the receiver didn't get loose. There was one of those for sure when we just got pinned on the line of scrimmage, and he had to eat it. It's always a combination. Very rarely is it just one set of guys. Too often the offensive line and the quarterback are the ones that get the blame."

How do you get the big plays you had early against Army and Tulsa back?

"We just have to execute. Everybody's got to do their job, their 1/11th. And somebody's got to make somebody miss when we get a big play. Not very often does it part like the Red Sea. Now it did against Army, but most of the time, the running back, the receiver or whoever has the ball in their hand has to cross somebody's face and make guys miss. That's when the gains that are 10 turn into gains in the 50. Part of that is the Jimmies and the Joes."

Darius Bradwell made a heck of a run for a first down on third-and-long when he got hit in the backfield and broke away. How is he coming along?

"He's going to be a great player for us, I really believe that, but there are just a few things with this move that he's still picking up. When he learns how to do that better, he's going to be a very good player in this conference."

RUSE

Your tight ends caught three passes against Memphis--the two Charles Jones TDs and the Kendall Ardoin catch and run that set up Jones' second TD--and the plays were designed to go to them all three times. How are they coming along?

"They both are doing a nice job. We've got calls designed to go to those two guys all the time because they've shown they've got really consistent hands and especially have a knack for going up and high-pointing the ball in traffic. We've got a scheme every week designed for those guys. Sometimes we get to it and sometimes we don't, but they both played well there. The situation the other night is we threw the ball more than we anticipated, so they got involved more, and they did a nice job."

You threw the fade to Charles Jones on the last play of the first half. How good are his hands?

"He's got maybe the most consistent hands on the team, he really does. We can split him out wide and do some things with them, and there's a learning process there. We ask a lot out of that position. They are lined up wide looking like a wide receiver at times and the next play they may be lined up i the backfield as a fullback leading on a linebacker. We ask a lot of those guys, and we're fortunate we have two versatile athletes."

You have run most of the time in the first quarter before going to the passing game. What's the philosophy there? You scored touchdowns on your opening possession in four of the first five games but not in the last three. How important is getting a fast start on offense?

"It is (important), but I don't think necessarily it means throwing the ball. We make no bones about it. We run the football. That's what we do. Like we saw last week, when we're not successful doing that, it could be a rough night. We run the ball. People know we run the ball. We're going to try to establish the run."

Junior Diaz practiced today. How big is his return?

"Huge. Huge. Junior's played very consistent all year long. We missed him last week, but that's not a knock on Hunter Knighton. Hunter stepped in and did a very nice job. He plays all positions for us. He took every snap at center in the last game, got some valuable experience and played pretty well overall, but it's huge getting Junior back. He's our guy. He's the one who communicates the calls and gets everybody on the same page. We missed him and are glad to have him back.

The snap that bounced off Kendall's leg while he was in motion and gave Memphis a cheap TD, who was at fault there?

"That was my fault. I didn't have us prepared for that situation. There was a lot going on on that call. There was a momentary stoppage of play while the referees discussed whether or not to review a call. In the meantime the clock was running. The ball was at the 2, and I have to do a better job of having the quarterback prepared for those situations. The best thing to do would have been for us to call a timeout or take the delay of game (which would have been a 1-yard penalty). We somewhat panicked, and that's what happens when you panic. That can't happen anymore,. That's on me, though."

Has Leeward Brown come on a little bit?

"Leeward's one of those guards who rolls in and gets pretty much equal reps every day in practice. We know he can step in. He's played a lot for us. He's experienced. If need be, he can go in there and play well."