Mustangs needed the down time after brutal schedule, some injuries.

https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/co...tart-season-smu-finally-gets-much-needed-rest

Six weeks into the season, Central Florida, South Florida and Cincinnati are a perfect 16-0 and ranked in both in the Associated Press and USA Today Amway Coaches poll.

UCF, the defending league champion, climbed into the top 10 in the AP (No. 10) and Coaches poll (No. 9), while USF (No. 23) and Cincinnati (No. 25) made their season debuts this week. The AAC is the only league in the nation with three unbeaten teams.

Here is how the league stacks up in voting by beat reporters from every conference school:

Guerry's voting:

1) UCF
2) South Florida
3) Cincinnati
4) Houston
5) Memphis
6) Temple
7) Tulane
8) SMU
9) Navy
10) Tulsa
11) East Carolina
12) UConn

1. UCF

Previous ranking: 1| Points:143
Record: 5-0 (2-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated SMU, 48-20
This week: at Memphis
Trajectory: Steady. Tailback Adrian Killins amassed more than 100 yards in a game for the first time since Nov. 4, 2017 after rushing for 113 yards while quarterback McKenzie Milton extended his streak of consecutive games with at least one touchdown pass to 19 after throwing two against the Mustangs.
Did you know? UCF is converting third downs at a rate of 59 percent, which leads all AAC teams.
- Matt Murschel, Orlando Sentinel

2.USF

Previous ranking: 2| Points:130
Record: 5-0 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated UMass, 58-42
This week: at Tulsa (Friday)
Trajectory: Steady. The No. 23 Bulls, who have collected precious few style points during their unbeaten start, embark on a stretch of seven conference games in as many weeks. The only recent sign of consistency has come from tailback Jordan Cronkrite, who ran for an AAC single-game record 302 yards at UMass.
Did you know? USF is 33-6 over its last 39 games, tied with Ohio State and Wisconsin for the nation's fourth-best record in that span.
- Joey Knight, Tampa Bay Times

3. Houston

Previous ranking: 3| Points:119
Record: 4-1 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated Tulsa, 41-26
This week: at East Carolina
Trajectory: Steady. Houston overcame a slow start with its best fourth quarter of the season, wiping out a nine-point deficit with 24 unanswered points to beat Tulsa. The defense showed signs of life, limiting the Golden Hurricane to 32 total yards on the final five possessions. The Cougars are in sole possession of first place in the West division heading into back-to-back road games against East Carolina and Navy.
Did you know? D’Eriq King and West Virginia’s Will Grier are the only quarterbacks with at least three passing touchdowns in every game this season.
-Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle

4. Cincinnati

Previous ranking: 4 |Points: 114
Record: 6-0 (2-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated Tulane, 37-21
This week: Open date
Trajectory: Steady. The Bearcats became bowl-eligible for the first time since 2015 with the win over Tulane. Running back Michael Warren II got UC going with an 81-yard TD run, the second-longest rushing TD ever by a UC player.
Did you know? UC has achieved its first 6-0 start since 2009. The Bearcats now have six 6-0 starts (1932, 1951, 1954, 2007, 2009, 2018).
-Tom Groeschen, Cincinnati Enquirer

5. Temple

Previous ranking: 7| Points: 90
Record: 3-3 (2-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated East Carolina, 49-6
This week: at Navy
Trajectory: Surging. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Anthony Russo, making his fourth straight start, completed 21 of 25 for 254 yards, four TDs and one interception in the win over ECU. Isaiah Wright scored on a 59-yard punt return, the third return score of his career and was AAC special teams player of the week. Temple has scored a non-offensive TD in all six games.
Did you know? According to Temple, the Owls 43-point win over ECU was their largest margin of victory ever over a Football Bowl Subdivision team.
- Marc Narducci, Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News

6. Memphis

Previous ranking: 9 |Points:72
Record: 4-2 (1-2 AAC)
Last week: defeated UConn, 55-14
This week: vs. UCF
Trajectory: Steady. Memphis righted the ship against UConn thanks to its two-headed running back monster of Darrell Henderson (174 yards, 3 TDs) and Patrick Taylor (161 yards, 3 TDs). The true test if Memphis is back on its feet comes Saturday against unbeaten UCF, their first meeting since losing 62-55 in last year’s AAC championship game.
Did you know? Memphis has won 12 consecutive regular season home games but has lost its last 11 meetings to UCF.
- Evan Barnes, The Commercial Appeal

7. Tulane

Previous ranking: 5 |Points: 69
Record: 2-4 (1-1 AAC)
Last week: lost to Cincinnati, 37-21
This week: Open date
Trajectory: Skidding. There's no shame in losing to Cincinnati, but as in its other three losses, Tulane simply did not play well. The Green Wave committed 12 penalties for 90 yards, scored zero points off three Bearcats turnovers and has a quarterback quandary. LSU transfer Justin McMillan replaced Jonathan Banks and struggled.
Did You Know? The combined record of Tulane's first six opponents is 27-8. The combined record of the next six opponents is 16-15.
- Guerry Smith, The New Orleans Advocate

8. Navy

Previous ranking: 6 |Points: 67
Record:2-3 (1-1 AAC)
Last week: lost to Air Force, 35-7
This week: vs. Temple
Trajectory: Sliding. Navy’s program is in full-blown crisis mode in the wake of the lopsided loss in the first leg of the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy series. The Mids have serious issues on offense and it may be time to move Malcolm Perry back to slotback. Navy has gotten away from running the triple-option offense that has defined the program since 2002.
Did You Know? Temple and Navy rank second and third for best records within the American Athletic Conference since 2015. Temple boasts a 20-6 conference record over the past four seasons while Navy, which joined the ACC in 2015, is 19-7. South Florida ranks first with a 20-5 mark during that span.
-Bill Wagner, Baltimore Sun Media Group

9. SMU

Previous ranking: 8 |Points: 62
Record: 2-4 (1-1 AAC)
Last week: lost to No. 12 UCF, 48-20
This week: Open date
Trajectory: Skidding. After a third loss to a Top 25 opponent, the Mustangs get a break before a three-game stretch against Tulane, Cincinnati and Houston. In his third season, Ben Hicks set the SMU career passing yardage record with 7,205, breaking the old record 7,179 set by Chuck Hixson from 1968-70.
Did you know? James Proche has a touchdown catch in four straight games, the fifth-longest streak in school history.
-Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle

10. East Carolina
Previous ranking: 10 |Points: 32
Record: 2-3 (0-2 AAC)
Last week: lost to Temple, 49-6
This week: vs. Houston
Trajectory: Skidding. The Pirates took a step back last Saturday, going to Philadelphia as an 11-point underdog but getting overwhelmed in a 43-point loss to Temple. Up next is the daunting task of facing Houston, UCF and Memphis in consecutive games.
Did you know? ECU not scoring a touchdown against Temple marked the first time that has ever happened for the Pirates in an AAC game.
- Ronnie Woodward, Greenville (N.C.) Daily Reflector

11. Tulsa
Previous ranking: 11|Points: 28
Record: 1-4 (0-2 AAC)
Last week: lost to Houston, 41-26
This week: vs. USF (Friday)
Trajectory: Steady. The Hurricane led by nine early in the fourth quarter at Houston before surrendering 24 unanswered points. Despite a fourth consecutive defeat, there is some renewed optimism given the performance of quarterback Seth Boomer, who threw for 227 yards in his debut.
Did you know? Linebacker Cooper Edmiston has three interceptions in the last two games.
- Kelly Hines, Tulsa World

12. Connecticut

Previous ranking: 12| Points: 12
Record: 1-5 (0-3 AAC)
Last week: lost at Memphis, 55-14
This week: Open date
Trajectory: Skidding. Another week, another blowout loss. UConn enters its off week with the nation's worst defense and an offense that has seemed to regress. Huskies coach Randy Edsall says this is part of the process.
Did you know? UConn has lost each of its five games against FBS opponents by at least 30 points.
- Alex Putterman, Hartford Courant

I go to a Mississippi casino once a year with a friend to play blackjack. Last Friday was that time, but unlike last year, when I won more than $200 in my best gambling night ever, I lost about $60. On the way out, we stopped at the new sports book to place a bet. I was going to take Texas over Oklahoma, but because I hate Texas, I changed my mind and went with Kentucky as a 6-point underdog against Texas A&M.

Bad move. A&M controlled that game from start to finish, but it looked like I had lucked out when Kentucky scored a defensive TD to tie it with four minutes left. Then when Kentucky's FG in OT hit the crossbar and bounced back, I still thought Texas A&M would settle for a game-winning field goal and I would cover. Nope. A&M scored a TD easily for the push. But when I looked at my ticket, I realized the sportsbook thought I had taken Kentucky to win outright, so I won't even get my $20 back. Rookie mistake not looking at the ticket when they printed it.

Meanwhile, the spread I listed here was 5 1/2, so I lost that, too.

Week 6 results

6

mono41

5

winwave
Golfer81
paliii
Gang_Green
Guerry

4

MNAlum
charlamange8
diverdo
Wavetime
DrBox
highwave
WaveON

3

LSU Law Greenie
Kettrade1
Gretna Green
sscald
St Amant Wave

2

chigoyboy


OVERALL STANDINGS

34

winwave

33

mono41

29

sscald
paliii

28

GretnaGreen
highwave
WaveON

27

Kettrade1
MNAlum

26

LSU Law Greenie
Guerry

25

St Amant Wave
charlamange8
diverdo

24

chigoyboy
Wavetime (missed 1 week)

23

Gang_Green

22

Golfer81

18

DrBox (missed 1 week)
buck2481 (missed 2 weeks)


WEEK 6 GAME-BY -GAME RESULTS

Cincinnati 1 of 19
Florida 8
Texas 6
Notre Dame 11
Texas A&M 9
South Carolina 13
UCF 15
UAB 12

Tulane did not make any players available for interviews during the open week, but Fritz held his usual Tuesday press conference after practice. That's it for this week.

Opening statement:

“We played a really good team up in Cincinnati. I give a lot of credit to their staff and their team. They played extremely hard and did a good job. I see why they’re undefeated. Offensively, defensively, a big club. They do a good job without making very many mistakes. There were some mistakes made by them, and we didn’t capitalize on them like we needed to. Way too many penalties. When you’re playing a team like that you’ve got to do a good job of playing as clean as possible, and we didn’t do that. This is a good time for a bye week for us. We’re practicing tomorrow. We’ve actually got Fall Break here at Tulane. They don’t have school on Thursday and Friday. After practice, we’ll get done tomorrow and let the fellas head on and then we’ll be back Sunday evening to get after SMU. There’s a lot of games left in the season. We’re at the halfway point right now. We’ve just got to continue improving each and every week.”

On whether the bye week is at a good time:

“Yeah, I’ve had so many that were the second or third week of the year. I really don’t think that is a good time. I had one year that I had it the second-to-last weekend of the season. I think that’s a little too late. That was a physical ballgame on Saturday. We have some bumps and bruises. There’s some guys who might not have been able to play if we played this Saturday but should be able to play a week from Saturday. I do think for the healing process, it’s good [to have the bye this week]. Recruiting-wise, we’re going to jump out and hit the road running. Tomorrow after practice, our guys are going to have some time off, but our coaches won’t. We’ll get a lot of valuable recruiting work it. But I do think it’s a good time for the guys to rest and heal up.”

On this week’s focus:

“We’re sneaking in a bit of SMU right now. We did a unit period today for about 30 minutes at the end of practice. We watched some tape and we’ll do that tomorrow as well, watch some more tape on SMU. They’ve also got a bye week this week, so there’s not going to be any more new information. So we’re able to do a game plan and all that kind of stuff right now.”

On how he assesses quarterback play:

“Just run the offense. If it’s a run play, reading the end, you give the ball, when he’s up the field, that’s a good read. Pulling, that’s not a good really. So really just running the offense, whether it’s running game or passing game. You take that for granted sometimes. You want a guy who can run the offense smoothly, and then when there’s opportunities to make plays, you make plays. That’s how you’ve got to look at it. But you’ve also got to understand when a play is – it’s tough to be successful on a play based on not good protection. That’s also something you’ve got to look at. The main thing is when the play is blocked properly, do you read the play properly? Do you do a good job of running the play properly? That’s an easy one to evaluate. And it should be. That should be 100 percent. When someone misses their assignment, that effects the quarterback’s grade as well.”

On possible missed communication a failed fourth-down attempt at Cincinnati:

“No, that was a protection issue.”

On quarterback situation:

“I feel like we’ve got two guys who can be very capable quarterbacks in our conference. Ahead of time, looking at it, we were going to do two series each. See how they played, see how they looked. And the guy who played a little bit better was going to go ahead and play a little bit more. It’s just tough to evaluate sometimes when it’s not blocked clean. It’s difficult to do that. My big deal is just talking to both of those guys just about execution of the offense. Just making sure that we’re doing an excellent job of running the offense. We understand things bog down a little bit. That’s a little out of your control. Also sometimes you get a play that’s blocked very well and you get a bit of false pressure when there really isn’t pressure. And also it comes back to some drops sometimes. I think we had four this last week and all four would have been good to have. A couple of them for sure would have been big first downs, one of them might have been a touchdown. We’ve got to do a good job of catching the ball. You’ve got to factor in all those things when you’re looking at the quarterback position.”

On whether the quarterback battle will continue into next week:

“Yeah, it’s always different with the quarterback position when there’s competition and there’s not a clear-cut guy. Jonathan [Banks] has done some great things for us, and I thought Justin stepped in and did some nice things as well.”

On playing the best players:

“At all positions you’re trying to find guys who are playing the best, guys who are playing better you want to play them a bit more. Sometimes, you look at a guy and you think, ‘Why isn’t he playing more?’ But maybe he’s not assignment-sound and there’s only part of your offense or defense he can execute. This is a little behind-the-scenes, but one of my jobs is making sure we’re playing the right 11 guys out there on offense and defense and then also making sure – as I said before it’s not a bad time to have a bye week – you can really reflect on statistical data. Analytics is so important, the analytics of how guys are playing. We look at Pro Football Focus. They rank every player in the country. That’s someone who has no preconceived ideas about who’s playing or what they look like or whatever. They’re putting a grade on there. Sometimes it’s incorrect. You have to take it with a grain of salt. They may not understand the play and what was actually supposed to transpire. But by and large I think it’s pretty good. We show that to our guys. This isn’t our grades, it’s some dude who lives in California someplace, a former coach. He’s grading what you did as far as effort or execution. We try to get everything we can to make the right decisions about who’s going to play. And there is some subjectivity in it. I wish it was all objective, you’re able to make an easy determination. That’s why it’s so easy with the field goal kickers. In practice, you go between those uprights or not go between. It’s pretty easy. You understand if they’re getting it off in the right time or not getting it off. You’re trying to make something subjective as objective as you possibly can.”

On OL Noah Fisher being available against SMU:

“Hope so. We hope so.”

On quarterback battle’s impact on other 10 players on the field:

“When there’s not that much difference, you always hear about the quarterback when you have rhythm and all that other kind of stuff. I’ve done this in the past a bit where there’s been a couple guys who have played. I liken it though to linebackers, we roll three guys there. We roll running backs, we roll wide receivers. Doesn’t seem to get much attention. But when you do it with the quarterback position it does get a lot of attention. For the other [10] guys I don’t know how much it does matter.

On whether lefty vs. righty quarterback matters:

“I do think early in the year when Justin first got here it did make a difference because the ball comes out of his hand a little bit different. But this is six weeks in now. Just like last week with the punter, a left-footed punter. It comes off the foot different. It rotates different. Luckily we’ve got a jugs machine that can punt them left-footed too. It is different.”

On whether there’s a big difference between how the team plays on the road vs. at home:

“We’re looking at everything. I’m looking at how we warm up. You start looking at everything, you’re wanting to make sure that you’re doing everything perfectly. Obviously you’ve got to look too that we’re playing some good teams on the road. I don’t want to act like it’s all us, not the team we’re playing. Certainly we need to play better on the road, no question about that. I’ve won a lot of games on the road, generally speaking that means you’ve won a lot of games. We’ve got to play better on the road though. We try to keep our preparation almost identical to when we’re playing at home as far as what we do the night before or the morning of, our warmup. We try to keep things identical as much as possible. One of the things I’m going to do next time we do play on the road, if the opponent allows us to do it – we couldn’t do it at Cincinnati because they had a big high school game the night before – but we’re going to actually warm up the day before at the venue we’re playing at. I haven’t done it in the past. I shouldn’t say I haven’t, I have done it a few times. You get to the stadium so early, you’re there two and a half hours early. You walk around the field, you do all sorts of things. I don’t know how big of a difference it is. As I’ve said before, I’ve won a lot of games on the road doing it this way. But I’m also up for change.”

Here was Willie Fritz's postgame radio interview.

On not being able to win when you make that many mistakes:

"No, you can't. They did a good job. They made some mistakes, too, which was uncharacteristic of them, but as I just got done telling the players, our margin for error is really small. When we go ahead and shoot ourselves in the foot, it just makes it really, really difficult to win. I thought we started off and had some juice to us and did a good job, and they just really did a nice job stymying us offensively and getting us into some tough down and distance situations. Defensively, we were doing a pretty good job until we missed three tackles and they go 81 yards for a touchdown. We had a punt block. Other than that we played a pretty nice game in the kicking game with some good returns and some stuff not bad. We just can't have that (the blocked punt) when you allow a blocked punt and they score on the very next play. It was just pretty disappointing we didn't carry our momentum over from last week into this week at all."

On Amare Jones' kickoff returns:

"He's a good player and we need to get him the ball. When you get him the ball in space, he'll do some good things. We just missed him on a little swing and I think if he had caught that he'd have gone a long way. We don't have a bunch of guys who make you miss, and he's one of them. We've got to get the ball in space to those guys who can do that, and certainly we need to do that with him."

On going with McMillan in second half:

"We were going to go two series apiece. It looked he played a little bit better early in the game. We went back one more time switching the guys and we decided to go with him. We'll look at the tape and see. It might have been a mistake. It was difficult there at the end. There's a little bit of our offense we just can't run with him, and the game was a little bit out of reach. We wanted to give him a little experience. We're looking at that and seeing who should be playing that position without question."

On approach to open date:

"Well, it looks like we got beat up a little bit in the game. We got some guys hurt. We have to get those guys healthy again. We have to really analyze the tape and see who's doing things good and who's doing things bad. One of the big thing that's important is making sure we're playing the right guys. That's a big deal. I think for the most part we are, but I'm sure there are going to some things I'm going to look at and think we should play this guy a little bit more than that guy."

Donnie Lewis was the lone player on the radio interview for the second straight road game (also Ohio State). Here's what he said:

On defensive job but too many big plays:

"Coming into the game we knew he was a great running back, a good running back, physical. We had a game plan to eliminate the big plays and they came out and got big plays on us. That's something we can control. We just gave up too many explosives."

On Cincy QB Desmond Ridder:

'He was a better runner than we saw on film. Like coach (Jack) Curtis told us, don't sleep on this guy, he can actually run, and he extended some plays with his feet. That hurt us a lot of times."

On substitutions defensively:

"We have different packages for different personnel on each down. That's something we've been doing all year. We just have to get on and off the field better."

On locker room message:

"We just have to come out and play like we played last week. Play up, high tempo, fired up. We just didn't come out hot today. We didn't have it in us today."

On approach to bye week:

"We have to take this bye week and learn from it, rest our bodies. Learn from a lot of film, film, film, film, film, correct our mistakes from the first half of the season and come out the second half and fix that."

As always, the Tulane game counts double, home teams are listed first, neutral-site games are designated and the point spreads come from VegasInsider.com consensus:

Cincinnati (-7) Tulane
Florida (+2.5) LSU
Oklahoma (-8) Texas (Dallas)
Virginia Tech (+6.5) Notre Dame
Texas A&M (-5.5) Kentucky
South Carolina (-1) Missouri
UCF (-24) SMU
Louisiana Tech (-9.5) UAB

Sorry for getting this up late. Was a very busy week.

I have no complaints from last week's games. In the only close one, I benefited when Washington State got an 84-yard TD pass with 4 minutes left to beat Utah.

Week 5 results

8

mono41
sscald

7

winwave
diverdo
Guerry

6

paliii
chicoyboy
WaveON

5

MNAlum
LSU Law Greenie
Kettrade1
Wavetime
highwave
GretnaGreen

4

DrBox
Gang_Green

3

charlamange8
St Amant Wave

2

Golfer81


OVERALL STANDINGS

29

winwave

27

mono41

26

sscald

25

GretnaGreen

24

highwave
Kettrade1
paliii
WaveON
'
23

MNAlum
LSU Law Greenie

22

chigoyboy
St Amant Wave

21

charlamange8
diverdo
Guerry

20

Wavetime (missed 1 week)

18

Gang_Green
buck2481 (missed 1 week)

17

Golfer81

14

DrBox (missed 1 week)


GAME-BY-GAME RESULTS

Tulane 15 of 19
Penn State 3
Notre Dame 13
Kentucky 16
Florida 9
LSU 9
West Virginia 8
Washington State 13

Truthfully, I have no idea whether Tulane will beat Cincinnati. There are too many variables, including the real possibility Tulane will have a letdown after its best game in the Willie Fritz era. That was a near certainty in the past, but Fritz is a much better coach than his predecessors and his guys are not content with one nice win. It just depends on how good Tulane is--mediocre teams have a hard time following up big wins because the odds simply are not in their favor, but good teams do it regularly.

Plus, we don't know how good Cincinnati is. Fritz is legitimately impressed with the talent level on that roster, but I had a coach tell me Memphis had the best skill position players in the country last week, and Tulane's previously struggling defense stoned them. The Bearcats have not played anyone of merit, but they still might be better than anyone realizes. The rest of the season will provide the answers.

But here's one thing I am confident about--this whole idea that Tulane does not know how to win close games will have nothing to do with the result. This year, yes, the Green Wave lost both of its close games, but I contend the losses had much more to do with simply playing poorly from start to finish than having a problem finishing. Tulane was lucky to be even with Wake Forest, getting two long touchdown passes while otherwise getting whipped on both sides of the ball. Tulane was comatose at the start of the UAB game, putting it behind the 8-ball.

Last year, Tulane went 3-3 in close games. Everyone remembers the losses, but Banks led a dramatic touchdown drive to beat Army in the final minute, the Wave converted a fourth down in OT before beating ECU and it made a late fourth-and-1 stop, normally not a team strength, in its territory to hold off Houston.

Of the losses, Tulane was a referee's call short of a dramatic victory against SMU and drove into field goal range against Army before the kicker missed a 36-yard field goal that would given the Wave a 2-point lead with 81 seconds left. Only the Navy game fits the description of a team unable to make plays on either side of the ball when it mattered most.

If Tulane plays as poorly against Cincinnati as it did against Wake Forest and UAB, it will not win.

If it plays better, there's no reason to assume late-game execution failures will cost the Wave a breakthrough victory.

As always, the Tulane game counts double, home teams are listed first and the point spreads come from VegasInsider.com consensus. And just in case anyone is not familiar with what "even" means for the last game on the list, it means just pick a winner. Neither team is favored.

Tulane (+14) Memphis
Penn State (+3.5) Ohio State
Notre Dame (-4.5) Stanford
Kentucky (-1.5) South Carolina
Mississippi State (-7.5) Florida
LSU (-12) Ole Miss
Texas Tech (+3.5) West Virginia
Washington State (even) Utah

I posted it on the front page. It is another good one.

Practice must have started late today because I saw about an hour when I usually see about 30 minutes at most on Thursdays when I have to write all my copy for Friday's and Saturday's editions of The Advocate and usually am writing in the morning before I make it to practice (I got a lot of work done last night this time).

Tulane was a little thin at rush end today with Juan Monjarres, the surprise fourth quarter star against Memphis, sitting out along with Peter Woullard, who did not play against Memphis and likely got hurt last week. Both of them watched practice, and I was told Monjarres will make the trip to Cincinnati after getting hurt during a pass rush drill earlier this week with the anticipation he will be available to play.

With those two guys out, the backup OLB/DE was Carlos Hatcher and the backup OLB/DE on the right side was Larry Bryant, a nickelback who has spent plenty of time at OLB in the past. I know Tulane usually has only one OLB on the field, but both of them were playing in a two-point stance. If Monjarres cannot play, the Wave won't have anyone else available at the end spots other than starters Cameron Sample and Patrick Johnson. Alfred Thomas got some work at end in preseason practice but is more of an inside guy in his skill set.

Cameron Carroll has not practiced this week, so I asked Fritz about him today, concerned he might have gotten upset about not playing. Nope. Not the issue.

"He has pink eye," Fritz said. "It's infectious, so we're keeping him away. It's unfortunate. He's had it for a couple of weeks."

Reserve linebacker Quentin Brown also sat out, but other than the injured players, Tulane used its normal first and second teams defensively. Donnie Lewis practiced in a no-contact jersey but did not miss a rep. I would not be surprised if Chase Kuerschen plays a bigger role this week, athough he did not appear to get any more reps than usual as the backup free safety. I could see him sliding over to strong safety to provide run support if the P.J. Hall and Taris Shenall struggle early, but maybe that's just me.

The quarterback play has been so much better in practice since Justin McMillan's emergence. It was painful to watch Ledford and Daniels at times, but the offense looks crisp with Banks and McMillan taking all the reps.

Tulane had the same first-team offensive line out there today, but they had a combination of Joey Claybrook at LT, Corey Dublin at LG, Hunter Knighton at C, Dominique Briggs at RG and John Leglue at LT getting reps as a group, too. Cameron Jackel got some reps with the first unit at LG in place of Briggs, but Tulane has mixed and matched before with no change on Saturday.

I confirmed that Noah Fisher got hurt last week, so the move to Tyler Johnson was injury based rather than just him outperforming Fisher.

A few guys working on the scout-team defense who you definitely will not see play this year barring major injuries or late-season action due to the new four games and redshirt rule are Larry Brooks, Keitha Jones and Dorian Camel. Jamiran James was on the scout-team defense, too, but since he has a had injury, I would not rule him out for playing early. I do not expect him to be a part of the rotation, but it's possible when the hand heals.

It started raining just as practice ended. Here was my brief interview with Fritz aside from the Carroll question.

Darnell Mooney said he had a date with the Juggs machine after his three drops against Memphis. Did he have that date?

"He's been doing a whole bunch of it. It was very uncharacteristic of him He has great hands, makes the tough catch and makes it in traffic. He'll bounce back."

How impressed are you with the year he's having?

"It doesn't surprise me. He always plays hard and he knows his assignments inside and out. As I say all the time, he plays to his ability level every day and then he puts together good games."

You have such a young defensive line. Have they progressed the way you expected?

"Yeah, we know they had a bunch of ability. The thing I like that they are doing right now is last week, not just on the pass downs, but on run downs we were playing on the other side of the line of scrimmage. We have to be able to do that Saturday against a big, strong offensive line."

How much improvement have you see from those guys in the last five weeks?

"Oh, a bunch. That should be an area of strength for us for years to come."

As others on the site, particularly Guerry, have posted the differences in talent via recruiting rankings for our opponents; 24/7 has taken the guess work out of the process and posted a "talent composite" rankings list. It is free and located here:

https://247sports.com/Season/2018-Football/CollegeTeamTalentComposite/

Of note...Tulane is #83 and Cincy is #64....but Memphis was #74...sooo yeah. But UAB is #100, so take everything with a grain of salt.

While the AAC East division has gone according to plan with UCF and USF at the top, the West is in total chaos after the opening month of the season.

Defending champion Memphis is 0-2, and Navy is 1-1 as the calendar turns to October.

The biggest winner this week? Tulane, which jumped five spots to No. 5 after a dominating 40-24 win over Memphis, It’s the Green Wave’s highest ranking in the three-year history of the AAC power rankings, compiled by 12 beat reporters from every conference school.

Here is how the league stacks up heading into Week 6:

Guerry's Vote:

1) UCF
2) Houston
3) South Florida
4) Cincinnati
5) Tulane
6) Navy
7) Memphis
8) Temple
9) SMU
10) East Carolina
11) Tulsa
12) UConn

OVERALL POLL

1. UCF

Previous ranking: 1 | Points: 143
Record: 4-0 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated Pittsburgh, 45-14
This week: vs. SMU
Trajectory: Surging. Quarterback McKenzie Milton combined for six total touchdowns for the second consecutive week as UCF extended the nation's longest winning streak to 17 games, both a school and conference record. Tailback Adrian Killins had three catches for a career-high 140 yards including a 71-yard touchdown.
Did you know? The Knights recorded a takeaway in their 23rd consecutive game going back to 2016.
- Matt Murschel, Orlando Sentinel

2. USF

Previous ranking: 2| Points: 129
Record: 4-0 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: Open date
This week: at UMass
Trajectory: Steady. The Bulls, who had three tailbacks in street clothes two Saturdays ago against East Carolina, should enter New England healthier after a bye week. They've struggled in the first half their last two games, but should rectify that issue against a UMass team ranked 114th nationally in total defense.
Did you know? The Bulls have won their last seven games in which they've had more than a week to prepare (including four under Charlie Strong).

- Joey Knight, Tampa Bay Times

3. Houston

Previous ranking: 3| Points: 119
Record: 3-1 (0-0 AAC)
Last week: Open date
This week: vs. Tulsa (Thursday)
Trajectory: Steady. Among the preseason contenders, Houston opens AAC play with two of its main West division challengers, Navy (1-1) and defending champion Memphis (0-2), off to rough starts. Don’t think the Cougars have forgotten the 45-17 spanking Tulsa put on them in their most lopsided loss last season.
Did you know? This November is the 50-year anniversary of Houston’s 100-6 win over Tulsa.
- Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle

4. Cincinnati

Previous ranking: 4 | Points: 113
Record: 5-0 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated UConn, 49-7
This week: vs. Tulane
Trajectory: Surging. Redshirt freshman quarterback Desmond Ridder completed 20 of 26 passes for 270 yards and two touchdowns vs. UConn. UC outgained UConn 659-266 in total yardage. The Bearcats have held three of their opponents to seven points or less.
Did You Know? The Bearcats rank No. 2 nationally in scoring defense at 12.2 per game. Last year, UC finished 93rd in scoring defense at 31.8 per game.
- Tom Groeschen, Cincinnati Enquirer

5. Tulane

Previous ranking: 10| Points: 84
Record: 2-3 (1-0 AAC)
Last Week: defeated Memphis, 40-24
This Week: at Cincinnati
Trajectory: Surging. In its best performance of Willie Fritz's three-year tenure, Tulane rocked Memphis 40-24 and held the Tigers to their lowest yardage total (277) since the Birmingham Bowl in 2015. Translating that performance on the road against undefeated Cincinnati will be tricky, but the Green Wave enters the game with confidence.

Did You Know? The combined record of Tulane's first five opponents is 17-7 while Cincinnati's foes are 6-17.

- Guerry Smith, The New Orleans Advocate

6. Navy

Previous ranking: 6 | Points: 83
Record: 2-2 (1-1 AAC)
Last week: Open date
This week: at Air Force
Trajectory: Steady. Navy’s first bye of the season came at an opportune time as numerous players were banged up while midshipmen at the academy was going through six-week exams. Starting quarterback Malcolm Perry suffered a slight concussion during the loss to SMU, but was cleared to resume practice last week. Wide receiver-quarterback Zach Abey remains questionable with a leg injury. Offensive tackle Jake Hawk, outside linebacker Nizaire Cromartie and safety Jake Springer were players who left the SMU game with minor injuries and benefited from the extra time to heal.
Did You Know? Navy’s 31-30 loss to SMU marked the first time it went to overtime as a member of the American Athletic Conference. The Midshipmen last went to extra sessions on Nov. 22, 2013 against San Jose State, a 58-52 victory in triple-overtime.
— Bill Wagner, Baltimore Sun Media Group


7. Temple

Previous ranking: 7 | Points: 67
Record: 2-3 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: lost to Boston College, 45-35
This week: vs. ECU
Trajectory: Skidding. After trailing by 17 points in the first part of the third quarter, Temple got to within 38-35 in the fourth, had the ball, but couldn’t close the gap. The Owls had no sacks and allowed a season-high 275 yards rushing. Quarterback Anthony Russo started his third straight game and finished 20-for-45 with 255 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions. For the second straight week, the Owls receivers dropped too many passes. Running back Ryquell Armstead rushed for 171 yards and four TDs on 24 carries. It was his fourth consecutive 100-yard rushing game. Temple couldn’t contain standout defensive end Zach Allen, who had seven tackles, including four tackles for loss and two sacks. This ends a 1-3 non-conference schedule for Temple, with the win over Maryland and losses to Villanova and Buffalo.
Did you know? Temple has scored a non-offensive touchdown in each game this year.
- Marc Narducci, Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News


8. SMU

Previous ranking: 8 | Points: 66
Record: 2-3 (1-0 AAC)
Last week: defeated Houston Baptist, 63-27.
This week: at UCF
Trajectory: Surging. The surprising, first-place Mustangs face a third top-20 team this season in No. 12 UCF. SMU is hoping to get back three members of the secondary from injuries – safety Patrick Nelson and cornerbacks Cole Sterns and Eric Sutton – as it prepares for McKenzie Milton and the Knight’s high-powered offense.

Did you know? The 653 yards against Houston Baptist rank second in school history.
- Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle

9. Memphis

Previous ranking: 5| Points: 56
Record: 3-2 (0-2 AAC)
Last week: lost to Tulane, 40-24
This week: vs UConn
Trajectory: Skidding. Little went right for Memphis in its first loss to Tulane since 2000. The offense only managed 277 total yards, Darrell Henderson scored twice but was held to 51 rushing yards and the defense allowed Tulane to run wild for 318 rushing yards and 496 total yards. A bright spot was linebacker Bryce Huff tying the AAC single-game record with five tackles for loss.
Did you know? Memphis and UConn are meeting on Oct. 6 for the second consecutive year. The Tigers scored 70 in last year's meeting.
- Evan Barnes, The Commercial Appeal


10. East Carolina

Previous ranking: 9| Points: 38
Record: 2-2 (0-1 AAC)
Last week: defeated Old Dominion, 37-35.
This week: at Temple
Trajectory: Steady. The Pirates are on the verge of surging, which would happen if it gets a rare win at Temple. The Owls have won four straight in the series. ECU’s two victories this year are against North Carolina (1-3 record) and Old Dominion (1-4).
Did you know? ECU had the AAC defensive (Nate Harvey) and special teams (Jake Verity) players of the week.
- Ronnie Woodward, Greenville (N.C.) Daily Reflector


11. Tulsa

Previous ranking: 11| Points: 24
Record: 1-3 (0-1 AAC)
Last week: Open date
This week: at Houston (Thursday)
Trajectory: Steady. The Hurricane used its open date to re-examine its quarterback situation, opening the competition up again following Luke Skipper's five-turnover outing at Temple. A frontrunner this time around is Seth Boomer, a redshirt freshman who has not appeared in a game.
Did you know? Tulsa's defense is allowing 233.5 fewer yards per game this season compared to 2017.
- Kelly Hines, Tulsa World

12. Connecticut

Previous ranking: 12 | Points: 12
Record: 1-4 (0-2 AAC)
Last week: lost to Cincinnati, 49-7
This week: at Memphis
Trajectory: Skidding. Just when you think things can't get uglier for UConn, the Huskies go and lose by six touchdowns in a game that some observers thought could be close. UConn has now been outscored 218-52 by FBS opponents.
Did you know? UConn has allowed at least 500 yards in each of its five games this season.
- Alex Putterman, Hartford Courant

I may go back later in the week and try to determine which offensive linemen had the best game, but for now, here is my review of Tulane's dominating 40-24 win against Memphis.

1) Stephon Huderson, who was not effective in the first four games, was outstanding even while being overshadowed by Darius Bradwell and Corey Dauphine. He broke an arm tackle at the line on third-and-10 on Tulane's opening series to pick up a first down (if he had been tackled, fans would have been screaming about a terrible play call, but sometimes running on third-and-10 catches opponents off guard).

Huderson then gained 6 and 4 yards on his next two carries before breaking another tackle and showing second effort on a 7-yard run on his fourth carry, On the next play, he caught a swing pass for 22 yards (this is a play Tulane simply has to start using more). Right before the half, he probably scored on a 22-yard run when he turned the corner on the right side and showed more acceleration than in previous games. The refs marked him out inside the 1, and the replay was not totally conclusive, but I think he scored. He then got stuffed for a 2-yard loss on a play that never had a chance with the unblocked guy from the backside getting him before he could get started.

2) I was not sure whether I was watching the Tulane-Memphis game or an extended hype fest for Saturday's Ohio State-Penn State game. The announcers talked incessantly about that game--clearly under studio orders--and the broadcast failed to show some pertinent replays, like the illegal block that negated a good Bradwell run on the opening drive. With television showing replays of virtually every play these days, it was jarring to see important ones skipped.

3) I praised Thakarius Keyes' run support last week, so of course he promptly messed up his leverage on Darrell Henderson's long TD run on Memphis' first play. That was a fundamental error, letting Henderson get to the outside of him, where he was off to the races. De'Andre Williams got knocked to the ground to jumpstart the play.

4) A pulling Keyshawn McLeod had an excellent block on the second TD drive, showing good mobility, and tight end Charles Jones made a good block to help spring Bradwell for his 53-yard score on fourth-and-1. That was the correct call by Willie Fritz, one I knew he would make even though the sentiment in the press box was that he would punt. Tulane was controlling the line early, so there was no reason to think Memphis could stop a fourth-and-1 near midfield. Decisions aren't made in a vacuum. The flow of the game should and does affect coaching decisions.

5) Maybe the key play of the game was Donnie Lewis' touchdown-saving shoestring tackle on Memphis' third play. Safety P.J. Hall, who played like he was stuck in quicksand, got beaten easily, but Lewis just made it over in time to prevent another huge TD, and from there, Tulane whipped Memphis.

As well as the defense played, holding Memphis under 300 yards for the first time since the 2015 Birmingham Bowl against Auburn, it was a rough night for Hall and fellow strong safety Taris Shenall, both of whom are struggling. Hall fell down on what could have been another TD later, but the Memphis QB Hall overthrew Pollard badly when he was behind everyone. On the Tigers' final TD drive, Shenall got beaten twice in a row, first on a wheel route and then on the scoring toss when he was late to react. For the game, Hall was credited with one tackle and Shenall had none.

6) Patrick Johnson was a force, joining Cam Sample for what has the makings of a terrific pair of defensive ends (or defensive end/OLB in Johnson's case). On one drive, Sample pushed a lineman into the running back, allowing Robert Kennedy to make an easy tackle behind the line. Then Patrick Johnson got excellent penetration to blow up a run before registering his first sack. He was even good in pass coverage on one play, getting to the sideline to break up a short pass. Johnson did not do a whole lot when he played as a true freshman or in the first few games this year, but he has really come on.

7) Kendall Ardoin got whipped on the first sack of Jonathan Banks, but Tyler Johnson had a disastrous series on Tulane's field goal drive at the end of the first half. He played pretty well overall while replacing the disappointing Noah Fisher (who has not looked the same since coming back from an injury in the preseason; he showed really quick feet in pass protection the first week of camp), but not on that series, when he was flagged for a false start, gave up a sack, got called for a legitimate hold and then gave up another sack. It's amazing the Wave still scored on that possession.

8) I said it at the time, and I'l say it again: while Fritz showed a good feel for the game, Memphis coach Mike Norvell did not. He called a timeout on second-and-25 with 55 seconds left from the Tulane 48, hoping to get the ball back a la Sean Payton, but the risk/reward quotient was not in his favor. Predictably the way the game had been going, Bradwell immediately gained 22 yards on a draw, Tulane converted the first down and got points out of the drive. If Norvell had not called a timeout, more time would have run off the clock and Tulane might not have scored. The best-case scenario for Memphis was getting the ball back with about 30 seconds left at its 20 or even farther back. That timeout made no sense.

9) I loved the way Banks stretched the ball for a first down near the sideline in the third quarter. Anywhere else on the field, and that's a dangerous play, but if the ball had come loose, it almost certainly would have gone out of bounds. In that situation, stretching it was the right choice.

10) Once Memphis stopped trying to run, Tulane teed off with its pass rush, which was good to see. The contributions from freshmen Carlos Hatcher with a sack around the edge and in particular Juan Monjarres with his sack/forced fumble in the end zone for a safety were big. I'd seen it from Hatcher at times in practice but not from Monjarres, who had two sacks. That is a very good sign.

I will have other observations later in the day, but I've run out of time.

I had to take my son to the dentist this morning and then back to school, so I missed all but the last few minutes of practice. I know this much: Jonathan Banks practiced. He cramped up against Memphis but did not have any other injury--you could see him trying to flex his heel while he could not put it flat on the ground before calling a timeout and then exiting--and he will start against Cincinnati unless something happens later this week.

I don't have time for anything else right now because my whole schedule has been delayed, but I will have quotes from Fritz. Teamer, Sample and Patrick Johnson later.

I did some research on Tulane and the road last night, and the numbers are astounding. Since the start of the 1991 season, the Wave has won three games away from home against teams that finished with winning records. Fritz and company inherited a program with an almost unparalleled legacy of losing for a long time, and changing that culture takes time. I think it happened against Memphis, but we'll have to wait and see.

Tulane won at Cincinnati to open 1996, and the Bearcats turned out to be an above .500 team. Tulane won at Hawaii in the 2002 Hawaii Bowl, which was played in the Rainbows' home stadium. Tulane won at Houston in 2014 in a true outlier for the CJ era. And that's it. The 1998 team would have done it, but it did not play a road game against a team that finished above .500.

Unless Cincy loses to Tulane and goes into the tank, the 5-0 Bearcats will finish above .500. So will Houston and USF, so this is truly a season in which the Wave can make history. The last time it beat two teams on the road that finished above .500 was 1975 (Boston College and West Virginia). Starting with the 1970 season that ended in Tulane's second-to-last bowl victory against Colorado, the Wave has won 12 times on the road against teams that finished above .500, and half of them were in the 1970s.

Regardless of whether Cincy is good or not, a win Saturday could alter the program.

Noah Fisher was wearing a brace on his right leg and has been ruled out of the Cincinnati game due to injury, clearing up some of the confusion about what happened to him on the depth chart against Memphis.

I probably whiffed on his injury last week, when my attention was divided. He did not play a down against Memphis, and Willie Fritz is not going to volunteer injury information if reporters don't are not alert enough to notice at an open practice. Two weeks ago, Tyler Johnson got as many reps with the first unit at the end of the week as Fisher, so I just assumed Johnson had beaten him out when Johnson started Friday. Joey Claybrook practiced as the second-team left tackle and likely would go in if Johnson got hurt.

Jonathan Banks was sharp today, looking like he did in the first week of preseason drills. He started having some off days as preseason camp went along, and those issues continued into the first four games before he had a breakout performance against Memphis. He was making quick, on-the-money throws in practice today. Backup Justin McMillan threw a dart to Terren Encalade on an in route but also had some miscommunications. His arm talent continues to be impressive.

The same four hashtag messages repeated on the scoreboard throughout practice:#Tough Guys. # Unselfish. #Beat Cincy and #Compete. Tulane wore the same Angry Wave helmets that debuted against Memphis.

It rained lightly for the last 20 minutes of practice before lightning in the area forced the team into the bowels of Yulman Stadium just as practice was about to end.

There's not much else to report. Devin Glenn is back to 100 percent after missing the Ohio State trip and playing sparingly against Memphis, but he has a tough road ahead of him earning playing time at a deep running back position. Amare Jones looked good today. The coaches have rewarded his practice ability with carries that have not paid off in games yet, but his time is coming.

Here was Fritz:

How has practice been this week?

"It's been OK. We're still learning the game plan right now. Luckily we were able to get a full practice in today. It was kind of tight a little bit. You just have to stay consistent in your preparation, and we've done that."

What is the biggest challenge that Cincinnati presents?

"Well, they are really good. I made the comment the other day that they are the second most talented team in the state of Ohio behind some other group we played a few weeks ago. They are really good. I've recruited against these guys since 2014. Every year has been a great recruiting class and then coach (Luke) Fickell has amped it up even more, so they have quality, quality players. They may be the most talented team in our conference. Last year they were big, tall, long and physical and they kind of tried to find their way offensively, and they found their way. They are a really good inside zone read team. They average probably 6-4, 6-5, 320 or 30 pounds on the offense line. They are big."

Their freshman QB does not look that fast but he has been effective running and throwing the ball. What problem does he present?

"He runs pretty well. I'll be he's a 4.6 kid at the least. He's a smooth strider, so he doesn't look as fast maybe, but when he tucks it and runs it, he does a very nice job."

Does going to Ohio a couple of weeks ago benefit you in any way going back?

"This will be our second time. It's going to be a good atmosphere. They will have a heck of a crowd there. I've had some friends who've played there before, and they told me it's a really good atmosphere."

Will Noah Fisher be out for a while?

"He'll be out this week."

JONATHAN BANKS

How good is this defense you are going to face, and what is going to be the key against Cincinnati?

"Just being able to control the line of scrimmage. They have a real good interior D-line. They are an undefeated team. We just have to be able to come out there and execute."

What was working so well against Memphis for you?

"Just being in a rhythm, having chemistry, getting back in my groove, just being able to make the right reads and making some plays."

What do you mean by getting back in the groove?

"Just being comfortable and just playing football, not thinking too much and playing my game."

Coach Fritz talked about you making quick decisions Friday. Is that what you need to do?

"Yeah, you just have to adjust sometimes. I realized I have to get the ball out quicker and make quicker reads. I was able to do that and had a pretty good idea where I was going with the ball pre-snap, so I was good."

There have been so many big plays in the offense this year. How much is that helping you guys?

"It's helping us tremendously. We've got a lot of great players that I've been mentioning since the offseason. We're just ready to keep this thing rolling, not get too comfortable and go out there and play Cincinnati on Saturday."

Noah Fisher is walking around in a boot. How did you overcome his loss (not my question)?

"Yeah. It's next guy up just like last year. Whoever gets hurt, the next guy has to come in and do a good job of coming in. He (Tyler Johnson) played for us last season, so it's not like it's nothing new for him. He did a tremendous job and is ready to keep going."

This program has had a hard time sustaining victories in the past. How important is to to come off the win against Memphis and play the same way?

"It's huge just to be able to stay consistent. Memphis, they were an undefeated team (actually a one-loss team). Cincinnati is an undefeated team, so obviously we have a big task. It's all about being consistent and kind of taking track of what we did last week and doing the same thing this week with a few adjustments. Teams are going to adjust to us, so we just have to be able to adjust."

Before the season, you talked about trying to get six wins and becoming bowl eligible (actually, I heard them state higher goals than that). Does that create a little bit more of a one-game focus?

"Yeah, it's been tough. Just being able to start out 1-3, I feel like it makes us more hungry. We understood last week was a must-win situation, so we went out there and took care of business. We have to look at every week from here on out. We can't just go win at Cincinnati and be like, oh, we're going to win six games. We have to look at every week just like we did last week."

has anyone seen them play this year?

They play UConn at 2:30.

You could argue they haven’t played a real opponent yet, even concisering the struggling UCLA game.

Anyone know whether the national anthem was played before the Memphis game?

My desk at the Advocate had received three calls by noon today from people saying there was no national anthem at the game. I was busy writing my notebook because I had an early deadline and did not notice.

Finally unleashed he was allowed to use his ability to lead us to victory. Kudos to the staff for realizing their huge mistake. Too bad he got hurt.

Willie Fritz just said on the AAC teleconference that Cincinnati was very talented, echoing a comment he made after Tulane's disappointing loss to the Bearcats last year at Yulman Stadium when Cincinnati was on its way to a 4-8 year with a combined margin of victory of 18 points in the four wins.

He caught some flak for that statement a year ago, but the recruiting ranking validate his point. Recruiting rankings are not the be-all, end-all, but Cincinnati pulled in the No. 1-rated recruiting class in 2015 under former coach Tommy Tuberville and the No.-3 rated class in 2014. The only year the Bearcats dropped off was 2016, when Tuberville was on shaky ground and they ranked 7th. Coach Luke Fickell hauled in the No 2 class in his first year, which is very unusual for a new staff, and Cincy ranked No. 1 again for 2018.

The upshot: Cincinnati's struggles in recent years were not due to a lack of talent. It was dysfunction at the end of Tuberville's tenure and some quarterback issues as well.

This will be a very interesting game Saturday. For what is worth, Tulane's recruiting rankings in the same years were 8, 10, 9, 11 and 4, contrasting with Cincinnati's 3, 1, 7, 2 and 1.

Here is Fritz's quote from today:

"I thought they were very talented last with a really big offensive line. They've got some dominating players on the defensive line. They are just a really good, complete football team, very very physical. They are big into the RPO game and the quarterback can really throw it effectively and you have to keep your leverage in the pass rush or the quarterback will really make you pay for it.

"This is a really talented team. I was very impressed with them last year and sometimes that second year really helps a team out with the understanding of what the philosophy really is with the offense, defense and kicking game."

I see the key factor being Tulane's offensive line versus Cincinnati's defense. Of all the things that went well against Memphis, the hardest thing to sustain will be the dominance of the offensive line, which had its way with the Tigers. Until proven otherwise, blocking is still the shakiest part of Tulane's operation.

Andy Cox who was a GA under Mack Brown at Tulane in 1985 passed away earlier this week.

Wow! Despite a slew of mistakes, Tulane dominated Memphis tonight, serving notice it can be a contender in the AAC West.

Here's what Willie Fritz had to say:

FRITZ

"I'm really proud of our guys. It's been a tough week of practice. I thought our guys responded well. That was a big opening drive by our offense to go down and get points. We ran the ball very effectively tonight. We had 318 yards and threw for 178. I think we had four or five drop probably during the game as well. I'm just happy that it was a complete and total team win. The defense played extremely well. That is a tough team to hold under 300 yards (it has not happened since Auburn limited Memphis to 205 yards in the 2015 Birmingham Bowl). I think they are third and fourth in the country in offense, very explosive. And I thought we did some good things in the kicking game. It was a total team win. We made some mistakes, though, so we'll be able to go over those on Monday."

When you dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, how much easier does it make this sport?

"It really was. We've been trying to get a pass rush for the first four games, and I thought there at the end, and obviously when you know they are going to be throwing the ball every down, you can tee off on them, but I thought we got some good pressure in the fourth quarter, and that makes it a heck of a lot easier to cover on the back end. I thought up front we did a really nice job of creating seams and creases with the inside zone and also on the stretch play. It was a very good job by the O-line and D-line."

Justin McMillan comes in and throws a touchdown on his first play. How big was that?

"It was money. He came in and we had to throw the ball. I forget the down and distance. It was third and pretty long I believe. He did a nice job of hitting Darnell (Mooney) and he made a guy miss. It was a huge play for us."

How comfortable are you with him?

"You know what he does a good job of is he stands over there and he's really into the game and really processing what's going on. A couple of times I went over to talk to him and he's really locked in on what's going on, so that's great. You gotta do that when you're on the sideline, particularly if you're the quarterback."

How did he handle coming in and fitting in with this team?

"I think he's done a good job. The tough part was he got here so late. He got here maybe four days before the first game, and every week he's learning a little bit more about the offense."

What was wrong with Jonathan Banks when he limped off?

"He cramped up pretty good. Justin (McMillan) came in and did a nice job and we went with him the rest of the way."

After Darrell Henderson's big run at the beginning of the game, you did a good job shutting him down. What adjustments did you make?

"They ran a counter play, and when they pull two guys they really create four new gaps and we just didn't fit it properly. We were trying to spill it with the first guy, and he boxed and the second guy boxed and there was a crease in there and our corner lost leverage. If he had kept leverage, I think it would have been a gain of 6 or 7. If we do a good job of fitting it right, it might not be a play, and the rest of the game we did a pretty good job of fitting it up right."

There were some bad moments that could have turned the game the other way--the onside kick and the fourth-down failure on the long pass--but both times the team responded. What did that say to you?

"Well, we just knew we needed to be aggressive and tried to limit their possessions. We didn't really do that with the onside kick and some other things, but our defense played lights out. I think they ran 16 plays in the first half. That's playing pretty good defense, except on the first one. We just limited their plays and a big reason why was our offense, we had the ball over 21 minutes in the first half."

All three of your primary running backs had huge plays. Is that the way you want to see it?

"Yeah, we're going to run the ball quite a bit and play a bunch of guys in there. You call certain plays for certain guys, but you want the guys to be able to run everything so you don't have to sit there and figure out on every single play who's out there. I thought all the backs did a nice job."

What did you see from the defensive ends so that they put so much pressure on Brady White?

"Well number one we knew they were going to throw it every down. You pin your ears back and come. It was a package the defensive coaches came up with that gave them a few problems, particularly on the inside. We hadn't really gotten the pass rush we wanted in the last few weeks. I think this will give our front confidence to be able to do that every week."

Was this one of coach Curtis's better birthdays?

"Yes. The defense played great. The offense played well. I'm really proud of the coaching staff and all of the players."

What did you see from the offensive line today?

"Good creases. We didn't get behind the chains much. That was a bugaboo for us the first few weeks where we have gotten second and long, third and long. Those are tough to convert, particularly with the style of play we have. It was a good job of not allowing penetration and getting those minus plays."

You put Tyler Johnson in as a starter. He made some mistakes but the offensive line had by far its best performance overall. What was the thought on starting him?

"He did a good job in practice all week and we wanted to give him an opportunity. I thought with the exception of a couple of plays he played well."

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There is not a whole lot to glean from a game with a talent mismatch that large, but I looked closely at the pass plays Tulane gave up in the first half, trying to get a handle on the breakdowns. This is what I came up with:

1) I don't know why Taris Shenall started ahead of P.J. Hall even though Hall had not played particularly well through three games. Shenall's terrible tackle attempt on the second play on a simple pop pass when he was unblocked set the tone for the rest of the day. First he went too far inside but then he still should have made the play but got fooled by a hesitation move and missed the tackle, turning what should have been a 3-yard gain into a 35-yard gain. Will Harper took a poor angle, too and should have been able to push the receiver out of bounds at the 20 but failed to touch him instead. Those are the the plays Fritz and Curtis lamented this week, the unforced errors, and frankly, those are two positions of weakness for Tulane--strong safety and nickelback. Harper missed a sack opportunity on the same series and just was too tentative. Hall replaced Shenall during the first half but fared no better.

2) Donnie Lewis got beaten for the first touchdown. He did not have terrible coverage, and Dwayne Haskins had zero pressure, but he could not stay with Paris Campbell coming across the field.

3) The interference call on Thakarius Keyes during Ohio State's second TD drive was poor. Both he and the receiver had their hands on each other before the receiver tripped on his own. That is not interference.

4) Jaylon Monroe and Lewis were blocked by the same receiver, McLaurin, on a third-and-9 big gain on a quick out that set up the second touchdown. That's weak. Monroe fell down after being pushed slightly, and Lewis got blocked from the side to spring Campbell. That's weak defense. Two guys never should be taken out of the play by one blocker.

5) Hall was beaten over the middle for the second touchdown and was slow to react and come up to the ball, making the play too easy.

6) Rod Teamer had a terrific game as a run defender but was so-so in coverage. He followed a slot receiver inside at the start of Ohio State's third drive, forcing Lewis to cover two players. The result was a big gain when Haskins threw to the uncovered receiver.

7) Teamer was beaten deep down the sideline for the third TD, but it's hard to criticize him too much there. Covering fast guys is not his forte, and he was a little outmatched while Tulane once again got zero pressure. It also was a perfect pass.

8) Linebacker Zach Harris was beaten over the middle for an easy first down early in the next drive. Again, Tulane's secondary appeared slow to react, probably worried about Ohio State's speed.

9) Hall then missed a tackle to turn a short gain into a longer one although he got a handful of jersey that ripped off. There are worse missed tackles than that one, but Tulane just could not make a play.

10) Teamer and Keyes both ran up to cover a wideout on what they thought would be a WR screen on the fourth TD, and the "blocker" slipped the screen and ran uncovered to haul in an easy score. That's a busted coverage. Teamer probably should have stayed back, but again, Tulane made it far too easy with a mental mistake.

11) Shenall was in his customary position trailing over the middle of the field on a first down completion on Ohio State's fifth drive. Neither he nor Hall made any plays in the first half at strong safety.

12) EDITED: Willie Langham, getting some time because Jaylon Monroe is not playing with much confidence, was far too soft on a fourth-down conversion the only time Tulane got Ohio State to a fourth down. That's a time to take a risk, not let the guy catch it in front of you.

13) Teamer's coverage was too soft on the sideline on the next play, allowing an easy throw and catch for a first down.

14) Langham got beaten for the final TD, but he had decent coverage. It was a nice pass and a great catch on a fade, another example of Ohio State having superior athletes.

My overall take: Tulane can win games with Lewis and Keyes at cornerback if it just gets a little bit of pressure on the quarterback, something is has not done well enough. Everyone struggled in the first half, but those two did OK and Keyes is quite good in run support. Teamer is very good in run support and should be fine in pass coverage against most of the teams Tulane plays in the AAC.

Everyone else is a problem at this point, and Tulane needs to play with more aggression. Aside from Keyes' near interception of the backup QB in the end zone during that guy's lone first-half possession, the Tulane DBs did not play like they wanted the ball. They were tentative, worrying about making mistakes to the point that they made them anyway with mental busts.

One note that has nothing to do with the pass coverage. Tulane should have forced a fourth down on Ohio State's opening drive because Dobbins was stopped short on third down, getting a generous spot that moved the chains. It didn't really matter because Ohio State almost certainly would have converted the fourth and inches, but there was no mention of the generous spot on the broadcast and no replay. Unless the yellow line superimposed on the screen was wrong, he definitely did not get the first down.

Also, Lawrence Graham made a terrible play tackling a running back on a screen he had snuffed out. He did not need to touch him because Haskins already was on the run, eventually getting called for grounding as he got rid of the ball right before Jeffery Johnson tackled him. If Graham had not thrown the running back to the ground, Ohio State would have had third-and-20. Instead, with the down replayed because of offsetting penalties, the Buckeyes ended up scoring easily. Graham needs to be smarter than that, and he was just coming off a face mask penalty on the same series.

Just got a text from a trusted source that said, 4* safety Tyler Scott, is seriously considering committing to Tulane! Stay tuned...