Scroll down to the fourth player.

The first scrimmage of the Jon Sumrall era did not disappoint, with a lively 13-series affair that lasted a little more than a hour Saturday morning in beautiful weather at Yulman Stadium. The eighth practice of the spring began with a long drill in which the defenders tackled rolling donuts to get them ready for full contact. They also attempted several punts, with Will Karoll booming them high and usually deep. The drop-off to walk-ons Bryce Busch and William Hudlow, who each attempted one while Karroll had five, was substantial. The punt catchers were Dontae Fleming, Mario Williams, Bryce Bohanon and Hunter Summers. They also did a very short 7-on-7 prelim.

Matt Lombardi did not participate along with the guys we knew were out for all of spring--Jesus Machado, Rashad Green and Alex Bauman. When the scrimmage started, the newly healthy Ty Thompson was front and center as he made up for lost time at the beginning of the spring, going in for the first series and getting the most work of the three quarterbacks. The first five series started at the offense's 25. The next three started at the 30 before another one at the 25, three more at the 30 and a final one at the 40.

Yulkeith Brown got hurt on the first play and did not return. Mario Williams had one carry on a reverse and I did not see him again. The three quarterbacks all got to operate with the first-and second-team offense against the first- and second-team defenses.

The first-team offensive line had, from left to right, Trey Tuggle, Shadre Hurst, Vincent Murphy, Josh Remetich and Dominic Steward along with tight end Reggie Brown. Makhi Hughes was the first-team back. The receivers rotated in and out, particularly with Yulkeith Brown and Williams leaving early (Williams was not injured as far as I know).

The first-team defense had Patrick Jenkins at end rather than tackle, and he stayed there the whole time he was playing. Matthew Fobbs-White was the rush end, with Elijah Champaigne and Eric Hicks inside (Adonis Friloux was in there early, too). The first-team linebackers were Tyler Grubbs and Dickson Agu, with Jai Eugene and Lu Tillery at cornerback, Caleb Ransaw at nickelback, Bailey Despanie at free safety and Jalen Geiger at strong safety.

SERIES 1 (Thompson)

1-10-25: Complete to Yulkeith Brown for +25 on pretty throw and diving catch near the sideline. Brown landed on his shoulder and was hurt, and the play was nullified by a penalty.
1-15-20: Makhi Hughes +11
2-4-31: Hughes +9
1-10-40: Reverse to Mario Williams diagnosed by Jenkins that turned into 11-yard loss (Williams bobbled the pitch).
2-21-29: Arnold Barnes +5
3-16-34: SACK by Fobbs-White for minus-8 (the whistle blew when he got close; QBs were not allowed to be touched.

Comment: the holes opened for Hughes on his first two runs were sizable.

SERIES 2 (Thompson)

1-10-25: Hughes minus-1
2-11-24: Complete to Reggie Brown +21 (popped by Jai Eugene)
1-10-45: Hughes +2
2-8-47 INC on screen that Barnes dropped with room to run
3-8-47: INC Bailey Despanie breaks up for Dontae Fleming

SERIES 3 (Darian Mensah)

1-10-25: Mensah scramble +1
2-9-26: PENALTY false start
2-14-21: Iverson Celestine +3
3-11-24: INC deep for Bryce Bohanon not close, but PENALTY +5 on defense
3-6-29: INC for Blake Gunter at the sticks

SERIES 4 (Mensah)

1-10-25: Trey Cornist +7
2-3-32: Cornist +2
3-1-34: Complete to Jaylon Griffin minus-4 on big hit by Kevin Adams

Comment: Adams made an outstanding play, reading the pop pass and making no mistake in bringing down Griffin right after he caught it.

SERIES 5 (Mensah)

1-10-25: George Arata +2
2-8-27: INT Rishi Rattan diving interception of a deep ball

Comment: Rattan has made more interceptions in practice than anyone on the team since walking on a few years ago. I don't have that documented, but it sure feels that way. He used to pick off Justin Ibieta regularly. I'm skeptical about Rattan's ability to get playing time, but he is playing cornerback with the second-team defense right now. This was a heck of an interception.

SERIES 6 (Kai Horton)

1-10-30: Complete to Reggie Brown over the middle +32
1-10-38: Clayton-Johnson +8 on second effort.
2-2-30: Clayton-Johnson no gain
3-2-30: Clayton-Johnson sidesteps tackler at line +3
1-10-27: Barnes +27 TD run
Extra point: GOOD Bobby Noel

Comment: Barnes' run was terrific. He had a nice hole, but also made two sharp cuts in the open field to easily get by tacklers, allowing him to cruise into the end zone. He is a player. Reggie Brown was wide open on his big catch due to a defensive bust on a misdirection play, but he will be a significant factor in the passing game. He looks the part.

SERIES 7 (Thompson)

1-10-30: Complete Bryce Bohanon +19 inside
1-10-49: Complete Shazz Preston +24 slant (he nearly broke it for a score)
1-10-27: Thompson keep +1
2-9-26: Complete Phat Watts outside on DK McGruder tight coverage +7
3-2-19: INC overthrow fade for Terez Traynor in the end zone. Traynor was well covered.
4-2-19: Complete Bohanon +19 TD pass.
Extra point: GOOD Ian Helmcke

Comment: Thompson was really good on the TD, rolling to his right and hitting Bohanon in the corner of the end zone as Bohanon ran parallel to the goal line, beating Rattan easily. Thompson is a natural passer.

SERIES 8 (Mensah)

1-10-30: INC
2-10-30: Clayton-Johnson +3
3-7-33: Complete Dontae Fleming +17
1-10-50: Clayton-Johnson +5
2-5-45: INC overthrow open Shaun Nicholas on slant
3-5-45: PENALTY offsides on Gerrod Henderson +4
3-1-41: Barnes +2
1-10-39: INC for Preston down the sideline, looked like pass interference but no flag
2-10-39: Cornist +7
3-3-32: Cornist +3 left side
1-10-29: Cornist +10 bouncing outside off tackle
1-10-19: Cornist +5
2-5-14: Complete Phat Watts +14 TD on crossing pattern.
Extra point: GOOD Noel

Comment: Mensah has plenty of arm talent, too, but is more inconsistent than Thompson on his throws. He made a good decision on the TD, not forcing the ball and waiting until Watts got open.

SERIES 9 (Horton)

1-10-25: Arata +4
2-6-29: INC on floated pass in traffic for Traynor, who was shaken up after getting hit on the play
3-6-29: Complete to Jaylon Griffin +24 over the middle
1-10-47: INC overshoots Bohanon on slant
2-10-47" INC pressure throwaway
3-10-47: Complete Trevor Evans +5 underneath
4-5-42: INC over Evans' head deep

Comment: Although he led a TD drive on his first series, this was not one of Horton's better days. He was inconsistent with his accuracy and decision-making.

SERIES 10 (Thompson)

1-10-30: INC dropped by Shaun Nicholas on pass Thompson made under pressure
2-10-30: PENALTY holding negates 13-yard run by Iverson Celestine (I did not catch the hold)
2-20-20: INC low throw for Reggie Brown
3-20-20 PENALTY offsides
3-15-25: SACK on blitz by Jai Eugene that caused whistle to blow

SERIES 11 (Thompson)

1-10-30: Complete Reggie Brown +10
1-10-40: Clayton-Johnson +3
2-7-43: INC for Blake Gunter over the middle
3-7-43: Complete to Jaylon Griffin +9 on juggling catch. He was shaken up at the end of the play.
1-10-48: INT on deep ball by Kevin Adams

Comment: The interception was a poor read by Thompson. Still a nice play by Adams.

SERIES 12 (Mensah)

1-10-30: complete Josh Goines +40 over the middle (longest play of the day)
1-10-30: PENALTY false start
1-15-35: PENALTY false start
1-20-40: Complete Josh Goines +13 catch and run
2-7-27: bad snap by Caleb Thomas that resulted in whistle and do-over.
2-7-27: Cornist +11 run through big hole that could have gone for more.
1-10-16 INC deflected at line
2-10-16: Cornist minus-3
3-13-19: SACK minus-6 on pressure from Gerrod Henderson that resulted in whistle
4-19-25: Field goal 43 yards wide right (I missed the number of the kicker but will try to find out Tuesday)

SERIES 13 (Horton)

1-10-40: INC dropped by Blake Gunter on pass thrown slightly behind him
2-10-40: Complete Gunter +10
1-10-50: INT on pass that deflected off the outstretched hands of Trevor Evans (I could not see who caught it and everyone ran on to the field when Sumrall blew the whistle ending the scrimmage)

Comment: the interception meant all three quarterbacks directed one TD drive and threw a pick.

FINAL NOTES

--According to my stats, Thompson finished 7 of 14 for 113 yards, while Horton was 4 of 10 for 71 yards and Mensah went 5 of 11 for 80 yards.

--Standouts on defense were Jenkins, Jai Eugene and Kevin Adams, although I don't really know how well Adams fared aside from his two big plays.

--Standouts on offense were Thompson, although he made some mistakes, Duda Barnes and Bohanon

--I'm not sure whether it's good or bad that the offensive line opened up some big holes. Probably somewhere in the middle.

As WO and I have long agreed on fielding % is a poor indicator of how good your defense is:


Guerry- in the article you state that it was Slaton that came in on the misplayed the fly ball and then had to backtrack. It was Mithchem.

More recruiting info:

Florida RB sets visit to Tulane

I was there for the entire practice and 70-play scrimmage today and will have a full accounting of it tomorrow. Yulkeith Brown suffered a shoulder injury after making a terrific catch on the first play and could be out next week, but it is not expected to be a serious injury. Ty Thompson was the first quarterback, with Darian Mensah next and Kai Horton last, although I would not read too much into the order. The defense dominated early before each QB led consecutive TD drives--Thompson looked really good on his--and the defense took control again for most of the rest of the scrimmage. Each QB threw an interception.

Patrick Jenkins played defensive end the entire time he was in there. The defense had some hard hits. Yulkeith Brown hurt his shoulder after making a terrific catch on the opening play and likely will be out next week, although the injury is not expected to be serious. There were plenty of penalties, which you would expect in the first scrimmage under a new staff.

Again, I will have a full report tomorrow, with a description of each play with some analysis, depth chart info and quotes from Sumrall, Eric Hicks and Horton.

The temperature was in the 40s a day before the end of winter and the start of spring, which is more than a tad unusual for these parts, but I dressed appropriately and had no issues. Tulane had extensive sessions of 11-on-11 work in shells, and the last play of the day may have been the best, with Darian Mensah moving in the pocket before hitting a pretty well covered Lucas Desjardins on a crossing route. All of Desjardins' teammates went up to celebrate with him as Jon Sumrall blew the whistle signifying the end of the practice, which came at 9:55 just as it did on Thursday.

Ty Thompson participated in everything day, so my skepticism about his full return before spring break proved unjustified. One of his throws was intercepted by Charleston Southern transfer DB Jared Moorer, who jumped a short route and returned it for a touchdown. Other significant moments: Idaho transfer wideout Terez Traynor, who looks the part, made a leaping grab downfield, showing his athleticism. Thompson also completed a passes to Garrett Mmahat and anothe one to Bryce Bohanon in the same sequence.

Mensah went in, and cornerback DK McGruder made a nice breakup of a throw intended for West Jefferson product Shaun Nicholas before Mensah hit Phat Watts underneath. Thompson went back in and missed a deep throw before scrambling in the pocket and finding Watts for a decent gain. Dontae Fleming, who is still trying to find his way after entering last season with high expectations as a transfer from ULL, then dropped a pass over the middle. There have been very few drops in the three practices I have seen, but that was a bad one. Thompson hit Iverson Celestine underneath on the next play.

Kai Horton went in and immediately threw a fade to Nicholas that looked ticketed for trouble midway there, but Nichols made a nice adjustment and hauled the slightly underthrown ball in for a big gain. Horton went to Celestine underneath next before trying a low-percentage deep throw to Desjardins on the sideline that was not close.

Mensah went in next and completed a pass to Arnold Barnes, who has looked good in the spring, before Barnes had a good run on the next play (although I don't put much stock in runs when there is no tackling or even simulated tackling).

It was Thompson's turn next, and he showed good footwork on a scramble before hitting safety valve Desjardins for a short gain. Horton went in and connected with Mario Williams deep. He tried to hook up with Williams deep again a little later but basically threw the ball away because of double coverage.

I did not notice any changes on the depth chart. The first-team offensive line was the same, although Josh Remetich got another chance to double up as the backup center after doing it on the first day, and this time his snaps came off without a hitch. I did not see Caleb Thomas practicing.

The second-team defensive line had Michael Lunz, Kam Hamilton, Adonis Friloux and Deshaun Batiste, whom I have heard very good things about from his one year at Troy. Without full pads on, I can't judge him here yet.

Shaadie Clayton-Johnson was in no-contact jersey today but participated in practice.

When they did the punt simulation drill they also ran Thursday, the three protectors for Will Karoll were Lunz, Elijah Champaigne and Patrick Jenkins. Lunz replaced Angelo Anderson in that role.

Sumrall and Phat Watts spoke after practice. My last communication with Watts came a week after the Southern Miss game last year when he DMd me on X telling me I had erroneously reported he no longer was on the team and I needed to check my sources. I responded my source was Willie Fritz, who had told me he was no longer on the team on the record, and Watts did not get back to me a second time. Anyway, Sumrall is giving him another chance, and thus far he is making the most of it.

SUMRALL

On his thoughts four practices in:

"The physicality was much better today. Saturday it was lacking at times. It looked we still thought we were in T-shirts for a little bit. The physicality was much better today. On Saturday our offense probably won the day with explosive plays. Mario (Williams) had a couple. Shazz (Preston) had a couple. Shazz was out today with a little bit of a back deal, nothing major we don't think but just kind of a bruise probably. And then Shaun Nicholas on Saturday had a big day. He had some long catches. He's flashed, but today was a much better day by the defense as a whole and good competition back and forth. We need to continue to fine tune and have a sense of urgency in learning the details of our job. There's still a little bit where we're getting to the line and a guy is misaligning or maybe not quite dialed in. It's practice 4. My expectation is probably a little advanced for where we are, but I want us to be a lot further along than maybe we are today."

On Alex Bauman's injury:

"He had a procedure. It's like a sports hernia type deal. He'll be fine. Really one of those deals we could have done it post-spring, but then it would have pushed his rehab back into the middle of summer, late summer or he could do it now and be back early summer. I just preferred let's go in and get that done."

On Phat Watts:

"A guy like that, when I took the job there was obviously a deficit at receiver in numbers maybe and proven playmaking ability. He came in and just asked could he maybe rejoin the team. We discussed it. I said look, here's the deal. This is what is essentially a spring tryout. You go through the spring and you got a clean slate with me. If you do great, great. If you don't, probably not great, probably time to go do something else. He's done a great job. I've been very pleased with his attitude, his effort. Last year coming off injury, he had some hiccups and some hurdles to clear that maybe he didn't feel good about, but I've been impressed with what he's done so far. I really was impressed with the offseason stuff, January, February, just with his leadership, his intangibles, the type of teammate he is. I'm encouraged so far with what I've seen from him to date."

On hiring Joe Craddock:

"I had coached against Joe in 2018 when I was at Ole Miss and he was the offensive coordinator at Arkansas. In 2019 I was at Kentucky and he was still the offensive coordinator at Arkansas. I remind him I've never lost to him. We beat him both times, but I knew of Joe. He was from Birmingham and played quarterback, went to Middle Tennessee, came back to Birmingham and was the offensive coordinator at Briarwood. They won a state championship when he was the OC there. He went to Clemson with Dabo (Swinney) and Chad Morris. When Chad got the SMU job, Joe went with him and was like 28 or 29 and was the offensive coordinator at SMU. They went from l08th in the country in scoring offense (actually dead last at 125th in 2014, the year before they arrived) to like eighth (actually 12th in 2017) in a couple of years. I really liked what they did. They were a fast-paced tempo spread, wide open. Went to Arkansas, played in the SEC and got beat enough that eventually they were out of there (at the end of 2019). Then when he went to UAB, he was able to get exposed to a different system with Bill Clark. Bill's a defensive guy, and Joe and those guys ran the offense a little bit more pro stylish. His diversity of what he's been around really sold me on him, but having coached against him, I saw his guys schematically know what they are doing. He is detailed, has big-picture stuff. He made a lot of sense for me when I took the job at Troy, and I've been very pleased with how he's pushed things along."

On emphasis on physicality:

"I don't care what your schematics are, whether you're spread or pro style or defensively a 3-4, 4-3 or 4-2-5. There's one way to play this game and it's physical. Tom Izzo has a quote, 'players play but tough players win.' I want our teams to be tough, and we're going to adapt and evolve schematically based upon what puts our players in the best position to be successful. But I don't care if we're playing any sport, we're going to be physical here. I want our guys to do walkthroughs physically. I want them to physically do everything with intensity and intentionality, so we're going to play the game with toughness and edge. That's something we believe in. That's an area we have to grow a lot in off of Saturday's practice. We got better today. We've got a long way to go, though."

Tulane was in shorts and shells today for practice No.7 after Tuesday's full pads workout and in anticipation of Saturday's scrimmage, with practice ending 13 minutes earlier than Tuesday. The first thing I noticed was Caleb Thomas practicing at center after missing the first two weeks with a minor injury. There were no snaps on the ground as a result, and Josh Remetich did not have to do double duty as first-team guard and second-team center.

The offense looked good in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 red zone work, with Dontae Fleming catching a touchdown pass from Darian Mensah in 7-on-7. Fleming has practiced well this week. I still have no idea what happened to him last year, when he followed a strong camp with next to nothing in games and struggled when he got his shot in the Military Bowl because all of the top receivers were unavailable. He is a talented player.

Ty Thompson was the first quarterback in the 11-on-11 work. With the ball placed at the 10, he handed off to Arnold Barnes, who is built like a bowling ball, for a nice run on the first play. He then completed passes to Yulkeith Brown and Terez Traynor on a crossing route before missing a well-covered Shaun Nicholas in the end zone.

Mensah was up next with the second unit and completed a pass to Phat Watts on his first attempt before hitting Trey Cornist on a pretty fade in the back of the end zone. He took a pressure "sack" on his next play.

Kai Horton went in with the 1s and handed off twice in a row to Iverson Celestine, who was stuffed on the first attempt but scored on the second. His first pass was deflected near the line of scrimmage, and he scrambled on the fourth rep.

Mensah went back in with the 2s and threw a touchdown pass to Shazz Preston before getting "sacked" on a blitz by Joshua Moore.

The defense fared better in the regular portion of the 11-on-11, with Jon Sumrall praising its physicality and effort level. The starting safeties were Jalen Geiger and Bailey Despanie. The starting cornerbacks were Jai Eugene and Lu Tillery.

Fleming and Mario Williams fielded punts during a special teams segment, with Will Karoll getting off several boomers.

Angelo Anderson and Matt Lombardi are in fact injured. Sumrall termed Anderson's issue short term but said Lombardi's issue, which he called "upper body," might linger longer. With Lombardi and Rashad Green out, Dominic Steward continued to practice with the first unit at right tackle while Trey Tuggle was the first-team left tackle.

SUMRALL

On how practice went:

"Solid. The first extended red zone work that we had gotten so far. Some give and some take early. The defense at the end of the practice in the move-the-ball period really stood out and kind of bowed their neck a little bit and won the period. The offense did well in the red zone 7 on 7 period, so some good on both sides. A lot of room for growth still. We're still a long way away from where I want to see us be, but the energy and the enthusiasm was good today."

On Ty Thompson:

"We saw his athleticism in the offseason drills and the winter conditioning before we diagnosed the problem he was having with his foot. He throws a really good ball. He's got a strong arm. Very accurate. Can extend and make plays with his feet at times. Commanding things at the line of scrimmage he's got to continue to grown and improve upon. He's really intelligent, but just understanding when to maybe speak up or change something or adjust something. The tools are there. In the middle of practice today I grabbed coach Craddock and said we've got three quarterbacks that can throw. Like three. Ty is really talented. Darian Mensah has done some really good things in this training camp so far, and then Kai is kind of the old head even though he hasn't started as many games as what you would consider an older guy. He's been around. All three guys I'm excited about, but Kai's done some really good things."

On the red zone work:

Offense installed a little bit for the red zone today. The defense just carried some calls over that we've already been running out on the field that made sense in the red zone. You play more quarters coverage at times, and so defensively we just kind of adapted calls that would fit. The offense did a nice job of scheming some things up for some guys. You saw some guys go make some plays in the passing game in particularly and a couple of good runs in there, too, but really the offense did a nice job of getting some plays designed that fit the red zone. I've been gradually more pleased with the physicality on defense. Our first shoulder padded today of spring practice about three weeks ago, I was not pleased with the physicality and they knew it. Today was much better. I was like, all right, we're starting to pop some pads a little bit and feel the physicality that needs to happen. This is meant to be a physical, tough game, and if you don't play the game that way you don't have a very good chance of winning. Our guys are just starting to understand that."

On Arnold Barnes:

"I've been following him since he was in high school, so I've really known the kid for a while. He's leaned up his body. This offseason's been good for him. He's paid closer attention to nutrition and those sort of things that can help you perform at a higher level, and his body's gotten better. He has great balance, power and vision. Obviously a low center of gravity, a hard guy to tackle because of the body type. He's not going to win a 30- or 40-yard sprint versus a receiver, but he has good speed. He's almost like a similar version of Makhi (Hughes) in some regards. He's got a battering ram mentality and sees things really well. The vision piece of playing running back is one of the most understated things. Long speed is maybe one of the most overstated. Top end speed is nice, but really having vision at the line of scrimmage and being able to set things up and see what's coming, and he's doing a really good job of that. He has really had a nice training camp so far through seven practices. I'm excited about the direction he's going."

On Lombardi and Angelo Anderson being out:

"Lombardi is a litte bit more to be determined. I don't have all the information yet. Not fully sure there. It's upper body. I thought he was going to be able to practice Tuesday. He didn't feel great. Today he still wasn't quite ready to go. Angelo I would describe as more of a short-term limitation. It's nothing major. You get bumps and bruises and I think he's got a bump and a bruise right now more than anything, a little bit of a strain if you will."

On his offensive line:

"Rashad Green is not practicing right now. We know what he is. I have to keep reminding myself that he'll be back because right now right tackle, Dominic Steward, a true freshman, is going with the 1s, which is pretty impressive. He's holding his own. He looks like a freshman at times but he should also still be in high school. He just got here a couple of months ago. After practice today I grabbed him and said keep your head up. Most people in your shoes are still in high school. You're doing fine. It's nice to have Caleb Thomas back. He was out for the first five practices. Having Caleb back has allowed us to operate better with that second group because he's got significant time on task and has played a lot of snaps. Shadre Hurst at left guard has a really high ceiling. I'm very impressed with what I've seen from him so far, and he's a tremendous worker and a great person. Trey Tuggle has gone a lot at right tackle. I really like Tuggle. He just has kind of a quiet, tough demeanor, plays really hard. One of my most impressive plays of training camp, Tuggle was running like 40 yards downfield right before we broke a couple of weeks ago from practice. I really have been pleased with his effort, so that group's growing.

"That's the position group that takes the most to develop. You can throw a young guy in at receiver like Shaun Nicholas and him flash. You can throw a young guy at DB like Jayden Lewis and him flash. It's hard to develop that whole group, and it's also hard to develop individuals at that position, so that takes a little time. It's about figuring out who's your best five, and that will be a work in progress as we go through training camp with Rashad out."

Jon Sumrall's practices definitely are faster paced than Willie Fritz's. On a muggy Tuesday morning, the offensive linemen looked exhausted several times during 11-on-11 work as Tulane ran play after play in full pads and changed directions often. The Green Wave is not deep enough in the spring at most positions to run three units, so the first- and second-team guys are getting half of the reps rather than a third. It was an energetic practice, although Sumrall got irritated midway through and called the entire team to the middle of the field to dress the players down when he thought concentration was lagging.

The quarterback competition began in earnest on the return from spring break because Ty Thompson has been cleared for all activity, including Saturday's 50-to-75-play scrimmage. All three quarterbacks got reps with the first and second units. I did not notice much separation between Kai Horton and Thompson, with both having good and bad moments. Horton completed a pass to Dontae Fleming on a short out that Fleming took a long way (there was not supposed to be tackling, although a couple of times guys forgot). Horton then completed a short pass to freshman tight end Gusieann Mirtil, but Mirtil came up hobbling and had to be checked on the sideline for a knee injury that appeared minor if there is such a thing with knee injuries. Later, Horton threw short TD passes to Bryce Bohanon and Phat Watts in red zone work. Thompson threw a beautiful TD pass to Yulkeith Brown in the corner of the end zone, showing nice touch, and he hit walk-on Trevor Evans for a score in the back of the end zone. Later, though, cornerback Jaheim Johnson made a nice read to pick off a Thompson pass as if he were running the route himself. Thompson was angry at himself as he ran to the sideline, but he rebounded in his next set of reps to complete passes to tight end Josh Goines and running back Iverson Celestine.

Horton's last segment was rough. First, Phat Watts dropped a pass that got on him in a hurry but that he still should have caught (my feature guy for NOLA.com also dropped a deep ball in one-on-one drills earlier in practice). Then, Horton dropped a snap that hit him in the hands.

With the full pads on, there were a lot of running plays. in 11 on 11. Since the coaches know what Makhi Hughes can do, he is not getting a ton of reps while the other four scholarship backs look to create a pecking order behind him. Shaadie Clayton-Johnson, Celestine and Arnold Barnes all had nice runs, but Barnes got popped hard to the ground by safety Jack Tchienchou on one of them. Tchienchou has stood out to me in the first six practices. As you know by now, I don't make many judgments on running backs outside of scrimmages, but this group is deep. I did not notice Trey Cornist in this practice, but he has showed some burst on other days. I am not sure how the race for the No. 2 and 3 spots will shake out other than I expect Barnes will be one of the two.

The first-team offensive line had Trey Tuggle, Shadre Hurst, Vincent Murphy, Josh Remetich and freshman Dominic Steward from left to right. The second-team line was Sully Burns, Lajuan Owens, Remetich, Landry Cannon and junior college transfer R.J. Whitehead. I did not see Michael Lombardi, who must be hurt, or Caleb Thomas, who has not gotten any reps since the start of spring.

The first-team safeties were Bailey Despanie at free and Jalen Geiger at strong, with Tchienchou getting some reps with the first unit at strong, too. The first-team cornerbacks were Johnson and Lu Tillery, which is kind of scary considering their lack of proven ability at this level. The No. 1 nickelback was Caleb Ransaw. Dickson Agu continued to be a first-team linebacker alongside Tyler Grubbs. The first-team defensive linemen had Matthew Fobbs-White (a personal favorite) at rush end along with three guys who usually line up inside, Eric Hicks was at end with Elijah Champaigne and Patrick Jenkins at tackle.

The second-team defense had Deshaun Batiste,Parker Peterson, Kam Hamilton and Gerrod Henderson up front, with Chris Rodgers and Makai Williams at linebacker, Jai Eugene and DK McGruder at cornerback, Kevin Adams and Joshua Moore at safety and Rishi Rattan at nickel.

I will post quotes later today. We talked to Sumrall, Thompson and Yulkeith Brown.

It has been hectic in the Smith household this week with four of my wife's relatives in the pad, including a 5-year-old and a 9-year old. This is when not having an office outside of the home becomes an issue, but things are getting back to normal with their departure this afternoon.

Here is my report on Pro Day, which would have gone up two days ago in normal circumstances.

It was supposed to take place at Yulman Stadium, but wet conditions from an overnight rainstorm and lingering light rain forces it to be moved to the Saints indoor facility about an hour before the event started. I was told 30 of 32 NFL teams were represented, but the number changed to all 32 in the Wave's official release to the media. For what it is worth, I am not optimistic about anyone as a draft certainly other than Michael Pratt, who will go at some point on the third day.

Jha'Quan Jackson is a possibility, but although he ran a fast 40 time at the NFL combine (4.43), this is an incredibly deep receiver class with a ton of speed. Eleven of the 29 other receivers who did the 40 at the combine ran faster times, and Jackson did not grade out well otherwise, ranking 29th overall out of 38 receivers (nine elected not to run the 40). A team may like his speed and returning ability, but his lack of tremendous production (33 catches for 554 yards in 2022 was his career high) could be a concern. He did not run the 40 Tuesday but looked pretty good catching passes from Pratt.

Jarius Monroe is another possibility, but his 40 speed is the red flag. I have a feeling once he gets into a camp, he can prove that numbers don't mean everything, but I had the same feeling about Nick Anderson, whom the Saints never really considered a serious candidate for the roster. The difference, of course, is Monroe's excellent size for his position compared to Anderson being undersized. They did not release 40 times at Pro Day, but Monroe looked slower than some of the other Tulane prospects. Will his production overcome concerns about his top-end speed, even with a likely move to safety? When it comes to the draft, history says no.

If I had to pick a dark horse, it would be Lance Robinson. He has the speed and the tackling ability and improved dramatically in coverage last year. The question is whether his coverage skills are good enough--Monroe was better at Tulane and has the size to transition to safety.

Prince Pines, who lost his starting job through injury and did not get it back last season but was a surprising invite to the combine, killed his chances in Indianapolis. He tied for the lowest overall grade with four others among the 70 OL prospects.

It does not look like Sincere Haynesworth will be drafted. The scouts appear to believe he was a good college player who lacks the run-blocking strength and the flexibility in his pass protection skills to be an NFL contributor. He will get a shot in a camp because of his intangibles.

The other Tulane players who participated at Pro Day were Valentino Ambrosio, Tahir Annoor, Chris Carter, AJ Hampton, Darius Hodges, Lawrence Keys, Shedro Louis, Kam Pedescleaux, Darius Swanson and Cameron Wire for a total of 16. Louis is insanely fast, but he showed next to nothing as a running back last year after transferring from Liberty because the coaches there wanted to move him to wide receiver. He dropped an easy pass from Pratt in individual work on Tuesday, so maybe he felt his hands were not good enough to make the move because his skill set otherwise is clearly more in line with a receiver than a running back.

Keys has the speed for the NFL, but he is small and has been injury prone.

Pedescleaux would be a star in a 5-9 and under league. He had an outstanding year for Tulane and can run, but he's just not big enough.

Hodges still has a bit of a spare tire. Jon Sumrall is searching for an elusive edge rusher to add to the roster out of the portal, but it should have been Hodges, who made a big mistake declaring for the draft. He was inconsistent this year, but on his good days he was a big factor in the pass rush.

Ambrosio kicked off for the scouts, something he never did in two years at Tulane but kickers are required to do with limited roster spots in the NFL. His kicks went to the goal line or barely into the end zone and were very high. With the change in NFL rules on kickoffs, maybe that's what the scouts were looking for, but leg strength on field goals probably precludes his chances of making it in the NFL as an undrafted free agent.

Everyone but Ambrosio, Pratt, Jackson and Pines ran the 40 (the latter two ran it at the NFL combine). Like I said earlier, Louis flew, and Robinson looked good, too.

Pratt was sharp in the individual drills. He threw a perfect deep ball to Phat Watts, who was helping out and is not applying for the draft, with Watts catching it in stride about 60 yards down the field. Pratt throws a good deep ball. The concern is his strength and accuracy on intermediate throws, but he was strong there Tuesday. Having Jackson, Keys and Watts catching passes certainly helped, with Carter and Louis running patterns, too. Jeff Duncan wrote a good column on Pratt having the it factor and the intangible to outperform his skill set at the next level. It's just a matter of him proving he can make all the throws in a game situation after playing in a relatively unsophisticated pass offense at Tulane. He looked awfully good in the opener against South Alabama before hurting his knee, which clearly affected him for the rest of the year.

Pro Day is not my thing. It's hard for me to understand how guys running around with no defense and no game situation is as valuable as multiple years of tape, but the reality is scouts consider it very important. Hopefully Pratt and Jackson helped themselves yesterday and someone else caught the scouts' eyes.

We talked to Jackson, Monroe, Robinson and Pratt after it was over. I also talked to Sumrall at the same time as Jeff Duncan. I plan to transcribe all of that stuff and post it here by the end of the week.

Announced on twitter. It is not mentioned if he was given a scholarship or if he is a PWO.

We also had an OLineman from Brother Martin announce his commitment last week. Again not sure if he is scholarship or PWO.

Tulane plays its second straight series against an AAC newbie starting tonight at Turchin Stadium. Everyone knows about Rice's history, but I looked up the history of the other four newcomers plus the non-ECU holdovers (everyone knows what ECU has done in the last 15 years).

UTSA, which started its program in 1992, has been to only three regionals and never won a postseason game, going two-and-barbecue in 1994, 2013 and 2017. The Roadrunners came very close to an at-large bid in 2022 and were in range for much of last season, too, before faltering at the end, so Tulane is getting the program at its height. UTSA was picked third in the AAC preseason coaches poll, had a poor start and finally lived up those expectations the past week, surprisingly beating ECU 2 out of 3 at home and winning at Baylor (which is only 8-16 this year) on Tuesday. The Roadrunners hit .312 as a team but had only one player on the preseason All-AAC list--third baseman Matt King, who is hitting .299 with 23 RBIs.

Tulane plays at UAB next weekend. The Blazers, who began playing in 1979, have been to only two regionals, going in 1991 and 2012. That's pretty awful. They did win a game against Rutgers in the '91 regional, so they have something over UTSA. UAB was picked last in the preseason poll.

Tulane plays at FAU April 19-21. The Owls, who began playing in 1981 and moved up to Division I in 1994, were really good in the recent past but have slipped significantly since the pandemic. Their last regional appearance was in 2019, which marked their fifth postseason bid in seven years. They advanced to a super regional in 2012, losing two straight to Georgia Tech. They were picked fourth in the preseason poll.

Tulane ends the regular season at Charlotte, which began playing in 1979, including last year, when the 49ers went from off the bubble to CUSA tourney champion and won two games in a regional, including a victory against Clemson. They also reached a regional in 2021 and are significantly better than when Tulane was in Conference USA with them. They never have won a regional but were picked second in the preseason poll.

As for the returning members, Memphis, which began playing in 1913, has made only five regionals--1976, 1978, 1981, 1984, 2007--and has never won one. The current 15-year drought has to be one the longest for any team in a top-10 conference. The Tigers, who lead the AAC in homers ahead of second-place Tulane, were picked sixth in the preseason poll with Matt Riser taking over as coach after being fired by Southeastern.

South Florida started playing in 1966 and has a tepid history considering its location in the baseball hotbed of Tampa, reaching 14 regionals but doing very little in them until their stunning run through Gainesville as a 4 seed in 2021 to reach a super regional. That was the team that beat Tulane in the game that determined one of the two representatives in the AAC Championship Game when Travis Jewett should have started Keagan Gillies but went with Trent Johnson, who had pitched really well in the opener but was spent and walked three guys in the first inning before being pulled. By the time Jewett got to Gillies, it was too late with the Wave trailing 7-0, and Gillies made him look foolish by striking out 11 in 4.1 innings. The Bulls were picked fifth in the preseason poll but got one first-place vote.

Wichita State, a former blue blood, started playing in 1899 and has a glorious history that has no relation to the present. The Shockers have been to 26 regionals, six College World Series and won it all in 1989, getting to another final. But since Gene Stephenson was forced out in 2013, the Shockers have not been back to a regional. Their last super regional appearance was 2008. They were picked seventh in the preseason poll with a new coach.

I think this weekend's series will be very telling. Tulane needs to win it and should win it, but it will have play a heck of a lot better than it did last Sunday at Rice or on Tuesday against Southern Miss. Rice can't hit. UTSA can. The pitchers need to prove they can limit a good hitting team.

Big series this weekend. Aside from the opener, Tulane played its worst two game back-to-back leading into this one, with the bats going silent in both and the bullpen breaking down against USM. UTSA has not been good, but it just won a series from ECU, beat Baylor on the road last night and is hititng .312 as a team. Tulane needs much better at-bats to take this series and stay at or near the top of the AAC.

CHANDLER WELCH

On strikeout to walk ratio of 32-4 (8-1), the best in the AAC and the 16th best nationally:

"It's extremely important. It's a representation of what we've worked on in the offseason of just getting the stuff to move the right way and attack the zone. I'm confident with what my stuff does when it's over the plate, so it makes my job a lot easier. It's honestly just trusting what I have and just going right at hitters."

On finding the consistency that has eluded him in the past (five of six starts have been good):

"It's just more like a belief thing for me. As long as I know what my stuff's capable of and just having the same mindset and being consistent on a weekly basis. I think that's something that goes a little unnoticed in a way. It's easy when everything's going well to just act good, but for me even if the outing isn't good I still have to attack my work the exact same way as if it were a nine-inning outing. For me it's just being consistent on a daily basis and never getting complacent."

On first eight-inning outing of his career at Rice:

"I felt good. I really did. Going out there, it was a little hotter than usual, but being out there for an eighth inning was really cool. It shows that I'm giving everything I have for us to go out there and win. As the game went on the offense started picking me up a little bit. That's really cool to see as a pitcher. As hard as you're working on the mound, you see the hitters doing it as well."

On if he wanted to go back out for 9th:

"Yeah, without a doubt. As a competitor you want to go out there as long as you can and you want the ball for the whole game. It was a discussion after the eighth inning, and it was the best thing to do. It's still relatively early in the year and a short week coming up as well, so the coaches did a really good job of reeling me in a little bit and saying this is the best for us right now, to not push anything if we don't need to."

On coaches eliminating his four-seemer:

"Once they expressed we have to make this change, there were some hard conversations that we had. It was like a hit on the head a little bit, so for me I had to understand they are doing whatever they think is best for me and I have to believe in that. I fully bought into it. It was the beginning of the fall. Once we had that conversation and we talked about this is the best thing for your arsenal and the best thing for the team is eliminate the four-seem and use the sinker, and then once I understood they were trying to do everything they could to get me to where they thought I could be, that showed a lot of confidence in me. I owe them everything and more for what they've done so far."

On how it felt at first:

"It felt really comfortable honestly. For me during a weekly basis I'm trying to be as athletic as possible on the mound, so being able to use the sinker and then use the new slider and all that stuff allows me to be athletic and trust my stuff on the mound. I adapted pretty quickly once the results starting kicking in and the outings were going really well. As soon as they told me, I was in."

On reducing number of hits allowed even though he is constantly over the plate (37 hits in 36.1 innings compared to 80 hits in 58 innings last year:

"It feels good. Of course I want to knock down the hits just a little bit, but it is a show of I'm attacking the zone and throwing a lot of strikes. If I'm giving up singles, it takes three of them to score a run, so that's kind of the process that coach Izzo and coach Jay have impressed to me. It might suck to give up a single in an inning, but if that's what it has to be in order to eliminate the free bases, that's what they want me to do."

On no wild pitches:

"I feel really good. I feel confident. On a weekly basis I'm trying to be consistent. Each Monday I reset. I enjoy the outing until Sunday. Monday is a full reset and move on to the next opponent, but understanding I know my stuff is good. I just have to go out there and trust it. I don't need to do more than I'm capable of."

On showing his emotions on the mound:

"It is fun. It is easy to get caught up in the good and bad outings and play with a bunch of weight on your shoulders. For me, whenever I feel like I'm a kid out here and I get to smile and I get to make a cool sliding play, it's really cool. It makes the game so much more fun and enjoyable."

On his sliding play against Rice when he reached the ball on the first base line and made the tag from a prone position:

"Maybe I did that in my high school days. Realistically I'll take the blame on this. I didn't communicate at all. I just went for the ball. It was one of those plays of whoever gets to it first. I honestly thought I was going to get run over, so I made the decision to slide and had time for the tag. Everything worked out. It was pretty cool."

On different from this year and last:

"There are so many new guys, but all of them are so comfortable with what we're trying to do here. They all have a personality that fits what we're trying to do and they are all competitive, they are all high energy. There is so much more camaraderie, a being a part of it is really cool to the culture we're trying to build here. Coach Jay and coach Izzio did an awesome job of bringing in guys who were not just talented, but who fit the personality here at Tulane."

On being second-generation Tulane baseball player (David Welch pitched in 1991 and 1992):

He told me loved it, but was one of those things where he didn't want to pry on me too much and force me to come here. But on the only visit I came here, this was the only place that felt like home to me. Once I committed here and once I came here for my first fall, that was my sign that this is home. I'm not leaving ever. You belong here, it's engrained in your blood. I'm loyal to this place for the rest of my life. I bleed green and blue."

On commute from Slidell (where he lived) to Holy Cross (his high school):

"30 minutes, 35 minutes. I started my fifth grade year there and it was kind of similar to here. Once you felt the environment, it was something you didn't want to pass up on. This is home, and Holy Cross at the time was home. Now the drive wasn't really favorable, but it was awesome. My parents took me until my junior year when I started driving, but I don't regret a single moment of it. I enjoyed every bit of it."

On team's potential:

"We're winning a good amount of games, but our potential is not even close to being reached. We're not even at our peak yet. It's a confident thing. It's not really like oh, we think we're the best and all that stuff. We're confident in each game, and with the camaraderie and the energy we have here, we know we're not at our full potential yet, and that's scary to view and something I'm really excited for the rest of the year."

On adjustment to pitching on Friday this week:

"A little bit. I threw a bullpen yesterday so it's a day sooner than usually for a Saturday start, but it comes down to me being accountable and getting the right sleep that I neede dand getting my treatment. We did an awesome job of that. I feel really good and Friday I'll be ready to go."

On UTSA:

"It's challenging, but every team in this conference is challenging. It's a bring-it-on mentality for me, and it teaches me more about myself how competitive I can be in each outing and the midgame adjustments i have to make. It's not going to be an easy challenge this weekend. It will be a mental challenge for our fortitude and our competitiveness."




I

"

Tulane gets mentioned in this recruiting story.

Southeastern QBs

Has retired.

Before taking a week off for spring break, Tulane had an energetic practice in shorts and shoulder pads on Thursday. Clearly, Jon Sumrall was not happy with the intensity the first time they went in pads last Saturday--the one practice I missed--and he made it very clear to the players because the intensity was through the roof this time. At one point, linebacker Makai Williams tackled Mario Williams to the ground near the sideline, and although that one produced no conflict, there were a few near scuffles and heated words as the day went along. Bailey Despanie tackled Terez Traynor. Tackling is not supposed to be allowed in these drills, but I did not hear any complaining. Kai Horton continued to impress, making a really nice throw to Phat Watts after rolling out and coming under heavy pressure at the end of a 11-on-11 drills just as I arrived. He did not have much space for the throw on the run, and Watts, who also has looked better than he has in a long time, made a nice catch.

They went to special teams next, and this time the punters actually punted instead of simulating the punt. There were no returns, but the returners caught the ball, giving us a look at who is being considered for the job now that Jha'Quan Jackson is gone. UCF transfer Jaylon Griffin fielded the first one, a booming effort by Will Karoll. Others in the role were Hunter Summers, who I had not noticed much in the first two weeks, Watts and Mario Williams. Williams never returned a punt at USC. The No. 2 punter is William Hudlow, a sophomore Jesuit product. The three protectors were Angelo Anderson, Parker Peterson and Patrick Jenkins. The backups in that role were DeShaun Batiste, Adonis Friloux and Reggie Brown, with Michael Lunz and Elijah Champaigne also getting reps.

They had a pass rush drill where the front four lined up against the offensive line and only one rusher was live, going one-on-one against the offensive lineman in front of him after the call right before the snap. Batiste, a local product who transferred from Marshall after one year, showed a lot of ability to my eyes, but Jon Sumrall said he was still pretty raw when I asked him about it afterward. Eric Hick is an underrated player. He pretty much overpowered whomever he went up against. In general, the defensive guys won more than the linemen, but the drill was slanted in their favor.

The search for a backup center continues. Although Caleb Thomas is dressed, he is not getting any reps. I think he tweaked his back at some point. When Josh Remetich got his shot, he dribbled another snap that drew a "what was that" response from one of the coaches. It's safe to say Remetich, who starts at right guard, will not be the guy to go in for Vincent Murphy if he gets hurt during the season. Rashad Green has gotten most of the work in that role, but it is preferable to have an actual backup at the spot so you don't have to move other guys around if there is an injury.

When they went back to 11-on-11 work, Jenkins had a "sack" of Horton. Jenkins is a beast and a lock for first-team All-AAC honors at the minimum if he stays healthy.

DK McGruder broke up a long pass from Ty Thompson a play after Terez Traynor made a nice gain on a slant Traynor, a transfer from Idaho, looks good. McGruder is making a move at cornerback, where the competition is wide open. Jai Eugene, Jaheim Johnson, McGruder and Lu Tillery have gotten the most work with the 1s. Jalen Geiger has been the second safety alongside Bailey Despanie, with Jack Tchienchou getting reps there as well. Caleb Ransaw is getting a lot of work at nickel as the Troy transfers look to make an impact.

When the team gathered in the middle of the field after practice ended at 9:56, Sumrall told the players not to become fodder for the ESPN bottom line on the screen, meaning don't get in any trouble during spring break. The next practice is Tuesday, April 2.

Sumrall, defensive coordinator Greg Gasparato and Jenkins talked after practice. I will post the latter two guys' quotes later.

SUMRALL

"I think the physicality has finally taken an uptick. Day 1 in shoulder pads last Saturday did not bring a whole lot of physicality to the field. Tuesday was a lot better physical practice, and today there were some pads popping and some thumping going on. The defense got the better end of the day for the most part and was probably a touch ahead. The offense has to start being more efficient and lining up cleaner and playing with better pace, but the physicality has definitely taken an uptick. I was worried after Saturday did we want to hit anybody?

On Ty Thompson:

"He's cleared to do 11-on-11 work obviously. He's still not 100 percent. You can see it kind of here and there when he's guarding himself, but he's allowed to do 11-on-11 action and really done it the last couple of days now, which has been good for him to go cut it loose a little bit and get some confidence and work at the line of scrimmage and have to take command of the offense. He did a couple of nice things today outside the pocket with his legs and he's still not 100 percent, so there are some things there that are encouraging."

On DeShaun Batiste:

"Three of the four guys that came with us from Troy were true freshmen that had just come there with us. DeShaun is big, physical, athletic, moves really well and competes at a high level, plays with some strength and some power. He still really has a long way to go with development. He's very raw, but a local product, a New Orleans guy, and when we came here it made a lot of sense for him to want to come just because of being a home-grown product. He really has had a big impact through five days. He's flashed and made a lot of big plays."

On Caleb Ransaw:

"We know what we've got in him. A lot of those guys have played a ton of snaps last year wherever they were. You have to be cognizant of the wear and tear a guy's body took last season. He played a lot of snaps last year. He's going out with the 1s mainly right now at the nickel position. We call is spear in the structure of the defense. He's doing some good things. There have been a lot of fun matchups with him and Mario and Yulkeith. A lot of speed in the slot right there."

On Jack Tchienchou:

"Another young guy who redshirted last year at Troy just like DeShaun did. Jack has been very vocal all offseason. He's a confident guy. He's a really smart guy. He's the kind of guy that would do well at Tulane regardless of football. He's a Tulane student, but he really has come into his own. We've had him play three spots the first three or four days. He's played safety, strong safety and the nickel. We've decided to let him settle in and just play the field (strong safety), which is probably really his home base. He's probably really more of a strong safety and more a nickel and not as much of a free. The last day or two we've really let him play the field so he can get settled, but he's flashed, too. He's made some big plays so far."

On Chris Rodgers:

"Chris is playing Mike. Him and Dickson Agu are the first guys going in at Mike. He's doing a good job. He played as a true freshman last year, did not redshirt, but is still a very young player, very raw, very green. Really last year for us he played the spear spot against 12 personnel (one running back and two tight ends). We knew long term the plan was to kick him inside. He played third-down Mike last year but not base Mike. Now he's playing base Mike. He's doing a good job."

On Dickson Agu:

'He's flashed. I'm excited about what he can bring to the table. He's physical. He's smart. He's tough. He's got great length. He reminds me of a couple of guys I've coached that played past college. He had a great offseason. When I got here, he was a guy that I pretty quickly noticed, that this kid's got some physical traits, and then you get to know him and he's pretty smart. He has a really high ceiling of what he can become for sure."

On Patrick Jenkins:

"Pat's been awesome. We always talk about who's the leader in the room and then who's the emerging leader. Pat wont' be here forever unfortunately. I'd keep him here forever if I could, but he's a great leader. The most impressive thing is the extra work he does on his own. He doesn't know that I catch this, but I may be walking by and he'll be out on the field just doing something by himself--little things to get better. I'll look out in the stadium and he'll be doing some drill work on his own by himself, nobody around. Guys that do that are usually pretty good players. Pat's got great talent and he's a really hard worker. When you combine both of those things, you've got a special player. We're really leaning on his leadership, his experience. He's a great veteran. He's a guy that we can definitely build around in regards to this 2024 team for sure."

On his versatility:

"He can play more to the boundary. He can play the field. He's got the ability athletically to slide and move around. I don't think you're gong to see him line up off the ball, but on the front he's a guy that has the skill set to be flexible."

Is apparently headed to Nebraska. I guess he determined he could not win a national championship at Washington.

This was by many accounts the deepest team with the most overall talent. Multiple all aac players a year older, with better transfers & recruits. Hunter said himself- this was the best and most talented team he has had.

No significant injuries to blame. A refusal to adapt strategies, finishing last after you were picked to finish 3rd by other coaches in pre season polls.

Thank you for your hard work coach, and you are leaving this job better than you found it. Time to build off the success we have had as a university and athletic program (football in particular) and hold ourselves to higher standards. We need success in basketball as well to aid our candidacy for the acc.

Best of luck

This much we already know abut Jay Uhlman's second team:

1) It is the best bunting group Tulane has had in memory. That's a low bar, but these guys have been nearly flawless in their execution of sacrifice and squeeze bunts, although the Wave was a little fortunate that Connor Rasmussen slid around the tag after a squeeze bunt that was hit too hard. Going hand in hand with that, this group also is much better with a runner on third base and less than two outs than any Tulane team in recent times. It already has nine sacrifice flies, six RBI groundouts and two squeeze bunts that scored runs from third base. Last year, Tulane had 19 sacrifice flies in 61 games. All of this is a good sign.

2) The pitching depth out of the bullpen is better than in any year of the Travis Jewett era. Henry Shuffler (0.00), Billy Price (1.04), Jacob Moore (1.35) and Blaise Wilcenski (1.50) all have sparkling ERAs, and Trey Cehajic has been imposing at times. Shuffler's history at ULM gave no indication he would be anything like this--I guess that could be a cause for concern--but he has been totally dominant in six appearances, allowing one hit. The coaches have a lot more options after taking out their starters on the mound than in a good while.

This much we do not know yet: can Tulane hit good pitching and get good hitters out consistently.

Those two factors will determine what type of season the Wave has, and it is too early to tell. Yale's three starting pitchers combined to give up 1 run in the first three innings and one in the fifth inning while allowing five in the fourth. It was not until Tulane got into their weak bullpen that almost all of the damage was done. I love Connor Rasmussen, who plays with a combination of aggressiveness, confidence and smarts that has not been evident on this team in a long time. Brady Marget is a professional hitter whose average always hovers around .300 but could be even higher considering his sweet swing. Jackson Linn is batting above .400 in limited time against bad pitching. Teo Banks figures to come out of his second straight dreadful start to a season. But it is still unclear how Tulane will fare against average to better-than-average pitching down the road.

Tulane's pitchers struggled with UC Irvine, which returned every at-bat from 2023 and appears to be a very good hitting team. They are truly elite at getting hit by pitches, refusing to get out of the way of any errant toss, particularly in the second game when Tulane plunked what likely was a school-record eight batters but also seven times combined in the other two games. I don't put much stock in that because it was an outlier, but Tulane also gave up 28 hits for a .364 batting average in the final two games of that series. Yale did not present a real test at the plate, so it remains to be seen what will happen.

With four road games against better-than-average competition this week (Nicholls tonight and ULL over the weekend), we will get a better read on whether this team has promise or not. I like the makeup and the execution to this point, and the middle-infield defense is markedly better with Marcus Cline and Rasmussen. The question is whether there is enough talent. Tulane is counting on a lot of transfers whose numbers frankly were not that good at their previous schools.

Guerry
I asked on another thread and it was totally ignored, so I’ll ask on a new thread.

Have they practiced since Tuesday?

My two cents on the most likely teams to win the AAC tourney with quotes from Ron Hunter and Sion James to follow:\

1) Florida Atlantic

Comment: I truly believe this team will get to the Final Four again. It will take some fortune like it always does, but the dramatic improvement of center Vladislav Goldin makes this group even better than last year. The key will be making a higher percentage of 3-point shots than they did in the second half of the regular season.

2) Memphis

Comment: Having to play four games in four days will make it much tougher for the talented Tigers to win this since they have a hard time with consistency, but their top three guys are gifted offensively and can overwhelm opponents. I see them knocking off UAB in their second game and setting up a heck of a semifinal with South Florida, with that outcome determined by how focused they are that day. David Jones should have been the AAC player of the year, but most of the other coaches don't like Penny Hardaway, so his players pay for it.



3) South Florida

Comment: This is an excellent defensive team. The numbers say USF is an excellent 3-point shooting team, but the Bulls take some really bad shots and have droughts. I can't see them losing in the quarterfinal to either East Carolina or Tulsa, but they will need to avoid the droughts if they face Memphis in the semis.

4) Charlotte

Comment: I thought Charlotte would be where USF is now, but I overrated this team massively a month ago. The 49ers absolutely blew their first meeting with the Bulls on the road, making a series of unforced errors down the stretch when they should have won it, but since then their lack of athleticism has been exposed big time. I'm stubborn, though. The disciplined team I saw earlier in the year might be built for a conference tourney. They will be an underdog to 6 seed SMU in the quarters if the Mustangs win their first-rounder, but I see them sneaking past that one and setting up a much more difficult semi with FAU.

5) North Texas

Comment: If North Texas gets by Tulane in the first round, its lockdown defense will give it a shot against FAU in the quarters. It's all about making shots, which the Mean Green struggled with for much of the year aside from its two games with the Green Wave.

6) SMU

Comment: The Mustangs looked really good when they won in New Orleans, but they have gone off the rails since then. I saw a team with the offensive and defensive ability to do damage in Fort Worth, but that team has disappeared for some reason.

(naturally, UAB will win the tournament since I'm discounting the Blazers even though they are a 4 seed with a double bye to the quarters.)

On another note, it was ridiculous that Kevin Cross was relegated to the third team. He put up first-team numbers, and although I will buy the argument that it is hard to reward a player on a last-place team with a first-team honors, he absolutely should have been no lower than the second team. Maybe he will play with a chip on his shoulder in Fort Worth as a result.

RON HUNTER

On draw:

"I didn't think we were going to get a great draw because all the teams are good and about the same whether you're playing the 7 team or the 14 team. Our league is that good. I'm just more happier honestly that we got the extra day of rest. That was more important for us than who we're playing."

On getting bye:

"It does. We had to do what we had to do. I wasn't looking for any type of opponent. I wanted to make sure that mentally we were ready to play."

On how Tulane played Friday night:

"It's funny because I felt we played about the same except we took care of the little things. We made free throws and they didn't. The flow of the game was almost identical to the last five or six games except for at the end we made free throws and the other team didn't."

On waiting all year for something like Wich St missing four free throws in a row on one possession down 6:

"All year long. Sometimes you've gotta have breaks fall your way and so finally something like that happened. I just thought it was ironic that the game was almost identical to the last 10 or 11 games we played."

On what needs to do to win it:

"I think anyone can win the championship on Sunday. I really, really do, and for us it's going to be the same thing. That stretch can we make the right play, can we hit that free throw, can we not turn the ball over in a critical part. Every game we've played have been one- or two-possession games. We feel confident that we can play and we can beat anyone. Can we finish games when we do that?

On four games in four days:

"You gotta remember we're in the AAU age of basketball and these kids play three or four games in a day and turn around and have to play Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. It starts when they are in AAU, so that doesn't bother me. These guys have played in conference tournaments before. Whether you play three games or four, there's really no difference. Whoever gets to Sunday is going to be tired. That's just part of it."

On his 10-1 recent record in opening games at tournaments, including 3-0 at Tulane:

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that. Things have been going kinda crazy. You can't get to that next game until you win the first one. That's what we want to do.."

On enjoying tournaments over the years:

"Yeah, I'm excited about it. I'm looking forward to it, mainly because sometimes you go into a tournament thinking we just don't have the team that can beat a certain team. For us the last couple of years, how do you climb that mountain with Houston? I don't feel that way. Florida Atlantic came down to one possession twice when we played them. We've beaten Memphis. We've beaten some of the better teams. Again, it's just can we make the plays at the right time. If you get to Sunday, anything can happen."

On if Houston was a mental thing:

"No, Houston was a mental, physical and every thing. Everything. Good riddance. Look what they've done in the Big 12. I'm sure the Big 12 teams are saying the same thing I used to say--get rid of these guys."

On what focuses on this time of year:

"The more relaxed you are, the better. It's not the physical part because everybody's tired or beat up. It's the mental grind and can you get through that and which team can play relaxed for three or four days, to be honest with you. You want your kids to walk into an environment enjoying themselves. I've been in other situations where I've been 17-1 and you've got to win a game to get to the NCAA tournament. That's why it was important for us to win the other night so we could be a little bit more relaxed, take that pressure off so we can just go play and see what happens."

On seed:

"I don't think seeding is going to really matter in this tournament. The teams are too close. I really look outside of the numbers next to it. I wouldn't call anything an upset. There are so many good teams that are all alike. I really believe that."

On North Texas:

"Not turn the ball over and make free throws. If we make free throws in both of them, we probably win those games. We've got to step up in those little things. When we get to the critical stretch, the number of easy free throws and lay-ups we missed at a crucial part of the game. We just can't have that. And really for us it's a road game because North Texas is near Dallas, so we have to treat it as a road game and play smarter basketball."

SION JAMES

On win helping:

"It's huge. We said for a while that we just needed to get a rhythm going into the tournament. Now we hoped it would have been more than one win as a rhythm, but to be able to pick up a win for our seniors on Senior Night feels good. It gets a little juice back in the building and we're ready to go to Fort Worth."

On mindset:

"The mindset's been pretty much the same. The job's still not finished. We've still got games to win. Winning one game feels great, but our goal wasn't to beat Wichita on a Friday night. It was to win the conference championship, which we still have an opportunity to do. Even through all the losing I feel like the vibe's still been pretty high in the building. We still know the talent we have. We know the opportunity we have, but getting a win kind of refocuses us and reminds us of what that feeling's like and what we're really chasing."

On extra day off:

"It was big. Obviously we're thankful because in a lot of sense we didn't really earn it. We were fighting to get out of the bottom. That's not the position we expected to be in, but we're thankful Temple was able to get a win, which was the last domino we needed. At the end of the day our goal's still the same. We still have control over what we want to do at this point."

On keys to getting that win against Wichita State:

"It was just a little extra sense of urgency. We knew that we wanted to get a win for our guys on Senior Night. We knew we had a lot of families in the building. We knew it was our last game of the year in Devlin and we wanted to send our fans out right, so there was a little extra focus which helped us make the timely plays, which we haven't done consistently this year."

On how can win the tournament:

"By being ourselves. That's really what it is. Being who we are, executing, getting easy looks on offense, getting stops on defense, just being us."

On no more Houston:

"Playing Houston is a different beast and I guess everyone is seeing that in the Big 12 right now. We know that we have what it takes to win the American this week. We know that on March 17, championship Sunday, we know that we have the pieces to be right there. It's not going to be easy, but we didn't ask for easy. We just asked for a chance, and we know that we have what it takes."

I did an entire update on Thursday after practice and it disappeared when I tried to post it, something that occurred a few times last fall but had not happened since then. Here is attempt No. 2.

Offensive tackle Rashad Green and tight end Alex Bauman will miss all of the spring drills. Sumrall did not say what Bauman's injury was, and I honestly did not realize he mentioned Bauman when I asked him about Green until I played back the tape

"Actually he's had a couple of shoulder procedures this offseason. He'll be fine for the summer. It's one of those type of deals where you get it done as soon as the season's over so he can be here for a fall and have as much time to rehab. Him and Alex both are out right now, but they both are going to be fine."

With onlookers ranging from Michael Pratt, who was there early before leaving, and Archie Manning, who addressed the team in the middle of the field after the workout ended, Tulane had its second practice of the spring under Jon Sumrall on Thursday morning. The first two plays I saw were a deep touchdown pass to Dontae Fleming, who had a disappointing year in 2023 after looking promising in preseason drills, and a diving catch by Bryce Bohanon, who came on a bit late last year but finished with only nine catches for 117 yards. All of the attention has been on Tulane's newcomers at wideout, but the development of the guys who already were on the roster will be key for depth. If Fleming and Bohanon and Phat Watts (who had a strong opening day) can contribute significantly, this group can be a strength despite the loss of Lawrence Keys (who has been at both practices to watch), Jha'Quan Jackson and Chris Brazzell.

Once again, Ty Thompson was limited to 1-on-1 and 7-on-7 work, but it is clear he has a strong arm and a quick release. He went 7 for 8 in consecutive sessions, hitting Fleming on a short out, Mario Williams down the middle of the field, walk-on Trevor Evans underneath and tight end Reggie Brown in the middle around a sole incomplete pass in the first set of reps and Bohanon on the sideline after holding the ball forever, walk-on Garrett Mmahat and walk-on Luke Besh underneath in the second set. I now believe it is going to be a close competition between Thompson and Kai Horton for the starting job, and I can't wait for Thompson to be ready for full 11-on-11 work later in the spring.

Horton's session in between the two Thompson 7-on-7 sessions I mentioned above had a dump-off to Arnold Barnes, a pass to Mmahat underneath, a throw that safety Jack Tchienchou broke up and a completion to Watts. Tchienchou, who played sparingly as a freshman at Troy last year, looks like has good instincts. Later, in an 11-on-11 drills, Horton made a nifty play when he avoided the pass rush and threw through traffic to walk-on Lucas Desjardins over the middle for a good gain. Horton also took off downfield scrambling, showing the underrated athletic ability that Sumrall mentioned Tuesday. He's no world-beater with his feet, but as he showed with his tying touchdown run in the second half of the Military Bowl, he's not afraid to run.

Darian Mensah makes some nice throws but is the clear No. 3 to my eyes and a little less accurate or sure of himself than Horton. He was off target to Barnes on a wheel route and threw behind Yulkeith Brown on a pass he still caught.

The first-team offensive line from left to right was Trey Tuggle, Shadre Hurst, Vincent Murphy, Josh Remetich and Sully Burns. The second-team line is Matt Lombardi, Noah Gardner, Hurst getting work at center ( a first-day experiment with Remetich did not go well), Landry Cannon and RJ Whitehead.

The first-team defensive line is Angelo Anderson, Eric Hicks. Patrick Jenkins and Jah'rie Garner. The second-team line is Deshaun Batiste, Adonis Friloux, Elijah Champaigne and AJ Thomas, with Gerrod Henderson and Parker Peterson rotating in, too.

The first-team linebackers are Tyler Grubbs and Dickson Agu. The second teamers are a combo of Mandel Eugene, Makai Williams and Chris Rodgers.

The first-team safeties are Bailey Despanie and Kentucky transfer Jalen Geiger, with Joshua Moore rotating in at times.The backups are Tchienchou and Moore along with Kevin Adams.

The first-team corners are Jai Eugene and Jaheim Johnson. The backups are DK McGruder and walk-on Rishi Rattan.

The guys I noticed playing nickelback were Lu Tillery and Tchienchou. I did not notice Jayden Lewis at any DB spot and will check on his status Tuesday.

They worked for a little while on special teams with Ethan Hudak snapping to Will Karoll, who simulated punting but never kicked the ball as the coverage unit ran downfield. The three protectors for Karoll in the backfield were Anderson, Champaigne and Jenkins.

Jesus Machado was at practice with a crutch and huge leg brace to protect his knee after ACL surgery. This is a full-service report, so I also will note 5-6 running back Tate Jernigan was in a walking boot on his left leg.

The practice ended at 9:55, six minutes earlier than Tuesday.

Sumrall spoke briefly after practice, followed by Makhi Hughes and offensive coordinator Joe Craddock. I will post the latter two's quotes shortly.

SUMRALL

"The energy was still really good just like day 1. We still have to work on some procedural stuff, some efficiency stuff offensively, substitutions, ball-handling. We're rolling three or four guys through at center, so we are just trying to get the C-Q stuff clean, and just the pace in drills, but we're on track. We're a very young team. We have a lot of new faces out there and are trying to get them up to speed, but all in all pleased with two days so far. We have to keep stacking days. It's about individual improvement, which I think we're doing."

On not having 15 guys back who started last year's opener:

"There's like four guys practicing right now that started game 1 last year (actually five: Patrick Jenkins, Eric Hicks, Bailey Despanie, Josh Remetich and Shaadie Clayton-Johnson. I was watching game 1 from last year and was like, all right, that guy's not here, that guy's not here. A lot of new faces, very young team. Not taking away from what we've got. We've got some talented guys. I like some of the young guys that were here when we got here and some additions we are excited about, but we are very unproven and very green."

On edge rushing need:

"Positionally it's not so much that I have to have a field end or a bandit. Moreso, we just need one or two more capable rush bodies. We're a 3-4 front with three guys with their hand down and the boundary stand-up guy is more of a rusher than a dropper. In a game we'd like to play eight down guys if we can, and for the bandit you'd like to have two guys, maybe three, that you can play in a game. We're working through that. We won't fully know until you get the pads on and evaluate who's ready and maybe who's not quite so ready, but that is an area we probably need to supplement what we have with a guy or two."

On Matthew Fobbs-White and Jah'rie Garner:

"With Fobbs, you see real natural movement patterns with regards to rushing the passer. He's really the last two practices and as we transition to football, you see what's there. And then Garner has had a great offseason through the winter conditioning all the way up until now."

On commitment to running game:

"Our running back last year (Troy's Kimani Vidal) was second in the country last year and is going to get drafted this year, and the type of offense we want to run, we want to be able to run the ball with physicality on our terms. Makhi had a great year last year. I think he is going to have a big-time year again. His work ethic is going to set him up for success because he is a fantastic worker and a great teammate."

On deep running back room:

"Yeah it is. Getting Shaadie back is nice. You got Trey (Cornist) in there, Duda (Barnes), all those guys. There's a good group in there competing and working. It's a group with a chance to compete at a high level."

The first practice of the Jon Sumrall era took place this morning at Yulman Stadium as Tulane opened spring drills with eight days left in the winter, and wide receiver Mario Williams' talent popped out immediately. With former wideouts Jha'Quan Jackson and Lawrence Keys in attendance, Williams made catches all over the field and just looked like a confident, elite player. It was a ragged practice, as you would expect on day 1 with a new coaching staff and a lot of players from the back-to-back AAC Championship Game appearances gone, but the overall speed at receiver was evident. The biggest play of the day came from Phat Watts, who was dismissed from the team after the Southern Miss game last year but hung around the program and worked himself back into good graces with the new staff. He beat a cornerback (I believe it was juco transfer DK McGruder) deep down the sideline, hauling in a pass from Kai Horton for a 75-yard touchdown. Watts had 17 catches in 2020 and 18 catches in 2021 before suffering an early-season injury in 2022 that lingered into last year, so he is 100 percent for the first time in nearly three seasons.

The biggest development Tuesday was Oregon transfer quarterback Ty Thompson sitting out all of the 11-on-11 work because of a left foot injury that was diagnosed during individual workouts. He participated in 7-on-7 and 1-on-1 drills but watched Kai Horton and Darian Mensah get the reps in any drill that featured a pass rush.

"He was going through the offseason drills and really dominating," Sumrall said. "He was doing a lot of movement stuff really well, and it's an injury that looks like after the imaging that he probably showed up here with that just was never fully aware of. He bit his tongue and kept fighting through it, and then felt like it was the best thing to get it addressed a couple weeks ago. I'm not a doctor, but he had something done, a procedure. We thought he could be in a boot this week. He got to throw some very static base stuff without really taking a drop. We're not comfortable with him being in an 11-on-11 period probably until next week. I would guess Saturday at the earliest, but next week probably. He'll be back. He's fine. It's nothing that he's done wrong. It's just a little procedure he had to have. We thought much better now. He really had two choices--get it fixed now and feel like in a couple of weeks green light, nothing really to worry about, and the medical folks thought that would be the way to have a long-term better comfort with his recovery, or we could have said, hey, no surgery, no procedure and just push it and see what happens, but then you run the risk of OK, what happens if something goes wrong in three or four weeks, then you're having to deal with something more serious. So we got it taken care of now so that hopefully he'll be fine for the long haul."

Sumrall added Thompson planted a few times one day during offseason conditioning work and it didn't feel right, so he went to the medical staff to say he was in discomfort. He told the staff he had felt that way last fall but never spoke about it to the Oregon staff and fought through it. Tulane had it looked at closer and was able to get ahead of the problem.

"I think at worst when we come back from spring break for practice 6, he'll be thumbs up, full go," Sumrall said. "Next week he'll probably be closer to normal.He was out there in tennis shirt, not cleats because we didn't want him to get stuck in the ground as much, but he was throwing and went through some of the early stuff, just not 11 on 11. You don't want to rush a guy that's dealing with a lower-body issue. 7 on 7 is pretty controlled, no rush, so we felt like he was good to go in those scenarios."

Sumrall said the issue was with the fifth metatarsal at spot in between the bone.

Thompson, wearing the No. 7 Michael Pratt wore (he had No. 13 at Oregon, which is Justin Ibieta's number), was not sharp in the 7-on-7 work, Defensive back Kevin Adams undercut a short sideline route and nearly had a touchdown interception but could not hold on to the ball. He threw a 50-50 deep ball that Bryce Bohanon got his hands on but could not come down with. Mostly, though, it was Horton and Mensah getting the reps, with walk-on Jack Risner the third quarterback in 11-on-11 work. Horton looked good, throwing a TD pass to freshman Shaun Nicholas Willie Fritz always said Horton had good arm talent, and Sumrall said the same thing after Tuesday's practice. Mensah had some good moments, too, but he threw a pass right to defensive back Jaheim Johnson, who dropped it. Later, he connected with Williams deep. Although the speed at receiver was clear, Williams was the one who really stood out. I have no idea why he had a rough year at USC, but he just looks like a difference-maker. The other guys are wait and see. Meanwhile, walk-on Garrett Mmahat earned praise from Sumrall, and I'm not surprised. I rarely get caught in the trap of thinking a walk-on should be playing when he is not, but after watching Mmahat get open consistently last preseason, I was surprised Fritz's staff never really gave him a shot in games, particularly when the receiving corps became depleted by injuries. It will be interesting to see if he can become a factor under Sumrall. He caught a deep ball from Mensah today and had several other catches.

Other notes from day 1:

The first-team defensive line at the start of 11-on-11 work was Angelo Anderson at end, Eric Hicks at nose tackle, Patrick Jenkins at defensive tackle and Jah'rie Garner at bandit, the new name for Joker. Matthew Fobbs-White rotated in for Garner and probably had the most reps with the first unit, and Deshaun Batiste got some time at first-team end.

The linebackers were Tyler Grubbs and Dickson Agu sinceJesus Machado will miss all of spring drills while he recuperates from knee surgery.

The cornerbacks were DK McGruder and Jai Eugene, with Jalen Geiger at nickel.

The safeties were Bailey Despanie and Jaheim Johnson. Former ULM walk-on turned scholarship player Lu Tillery got some time at nickel, and Jean Claude Joseph got some time at linebacker.

The offensive line from left to right was Sully Burns, Josh Remetich, Vincent Murphy, Shadre Hurst and Trey Tuggle for the first 11-on-11 work. The second-team line was RJ Whitehead, Landry Cannon, Hurst at center, Noah Gardner and Matt Lombardi. Hurst also got some time at left guard, with Cannon at right guard. Dominic Steward and Remetich also played center, but the drop-off in snap quality was dramatic. At one point,Remetich snapped one past Risner and told him he could not hear his snap call. Risner got more vocal, but Remetich dribbled the snap back. The coaches were on the players for a lack of focus a couple of times, particularly after the botched snaps.

Near the end, Troy transfer safety Jack Tchienchou had an interception. The long TD pass to Watts came soon after the pick, and practice ended at 10:01. There was more action and less special teams work on day 1 than under Fritz.

That loss to ULL yesterday was one of the biggest gut punches I've ever seen.

A day earlier, with a chance to win its eighth in a row after tying the score in the top of the 9th with two outs, the Wave lost in 10 after Teo Banks once again came up empty, missing a fat pitch with the bases loaded right after the Wave tied it. That should have at least been a two-run single and maybe a grand slam but he struck out two pitches later.

Yesterday was surreal. It's not just that Colin Tuft, who had been blocking every errant pitch with ease, let a bouncer that would have been a game-ending strikeout go through his legs with a 3-1 lead and two outs in the ninth inning, keeping the game alive. Tulane still was in commanding position, but Jacob Moore, who had been terrific all year up, either lost his composure or his concentration. After the single that put the tying run on the plate, who threw a hanger that was screaming "hit me out of the park," but the batter was too far in front of it and fouled it off. I figured he would get out of trouble then, but nope, the very next pitch turned into a walk-off three-run bomb.

Good teams overcome heartbreak like that, recovering a lot quicker than fans do. I guess we will find out whether Tulane is a good team. With series losses to the only two teams that have a pulse (UC Irvine appears legitimately really good), Tulane's at-large chances already are small considering the rest of the schedule and the lack of performance by the AAC as a whole through four weeks (it is ranked ninth). But there were some bad signs yesterday even before the awful conclusion. Tulane had only four hits and very few competitive at-bats in the later innings. With a chance to break the game open after Brady Marget's solo homer made it 3-0 in the fifth, they chose a terrible time to execute a hit-and-run, doing it with runners on first and second and one out on a 3-1 count from a pitcher struggling with his control. That forced Brock Slaton to swing (the pitch would have been a strike anyway, but I don't like the decision), he missed and Connor Rasmussen was a dead duck at third base. Slaton struck out on the next pitch, and the Wave went down in order in three of the next four innnings.

The pitching staff, comprised mostly of transfers who were unproductive elsewhere or played at a lower level. has been surprisingly good so far, but I wonder if it will last. Moore's confidence certainly will be tested. He was outstanding for LSU-Eunice a year ago, so maybe he will be OK. Henry Shuffler was wild yesterday and had to be removed for Moore. Trey Cehajic made some fantastic pitches to get out of a nearly impossible jam in the ninth on Saturday but got blown up an inning later. He, too, had really good numbers in Juco ball, and the coaches love his competitiveness, so maybe he'll be fine, too.

Tomorrow's game against Southeastern, which I will attend, is important. The Lions have been better than expected so far, and Tulane needs to wipe the sickening feeling of what happened yesterday away while improving to 5-0 in the midweek.

I can't wrap my brain around Banks hitting .1 9 through 16 games. That's even worse than his numbers at the same stage last year, although at least he is making contact (usually getting under the ball on pop-ups to the infield or shallow outfield). Obviously his return to form would be a big deal.

Pepperdine is an awful 3-13, so Tulane's only chance to do anything significant before conference play is against Southeastern and next Monday against St. Louis, which is 14-1 versus a light schedule.