Mason Voth, the managing editor of the Kansas State Rivals site, and I have exchanged questions for Q&A's about Tulane and Kansas State.

I hope to get his answers to my questions up tomorrow night. I fly to Kansas on Friday.

Tulane should be relatively healthy for its big game at Kansas State, missing only a few backups along with Adonis Friloux and Phat Watts, who are done for the year with ACL injuries. NoahTaliancich and Keith Cooper took their regular reps in practice this morning and have recovered fully from their injuries against Alcorn State. Their availability gives Tulane 10 players to rotate on the defensive line, with starters Darius Hodges, Patrick Jenkins, Eric Hicks and Angelo Anderson backed up by Carlos Hatcher, Talianich, Elijah Champaigne, Alfred Thomas , Kam Hamilton and Devean Deal. Armoni Dixon does not appear to be in the mix, though. He worked with the scout-team offense at tight end while remaining in his green defense jersey.

Tight end Wlll Wallace and running back Cam Carroll, who did not play against Alcorn State, likely will be game-time decisions. Everyone else appears to be ready on offense. At one point today, Tyjae Spears raised his arms over his head repeatedly before slapping the hand of Shae Wyatt. Spears has been put off limits for interviews this week, but not because of any health issues. It probably is because he chose Tulane over Kansas State and Willie Fritz does not want any potential inflammatory comments before the game. Lance Robinson, who played at Kansas State before transferring to Tulane, also was not made available. This is a really important game, and Fritz is taking no chances.

Kansas State is 9-2 in non-conference games (counting bowls) under fourth-year coach Chris Klieman, beating Nicholls 49-14, Bowling Green 52-0 and Mississippi State 31-24 in 2019 before losing to Navy 20-17 in the Liberty Bowl, losing to Arkansas State 35-31 in 2020, beating Stanford 24-7, Southern Illinois 31-23 and Nevada 38-17 last year before handling an injury-decimated, coach-less LSU team 42-20 in the Texas Bowl. Those results are pretty solid, but the Wildcats have not been a factor in the Big 12 race, going 5-4 in 2019, 4-5 in 2020 and 4-5 last year, when they began 0-3 against Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and IOwa State and also lost their last two against Baylor and Texas. It is hard to gauge exactly where they are in year No. 4 under Klieman, but they played one of their best all-around games against Missouri last Saturday. Their concern is the passing ability of Adrian Martinez, who threw a ton of critical interceptions as a four-year starting QB for Nebraska before transferring to K State for his final season. He made some nice throws against Missouri but was 9 of 20 for 101 yards overall. He is more dangerous as a runner than a thrower, but Tulane has been burned in the air by quarterbacks like that in the past when they committed too many defenders to the box and left openings downfield. This will be the first test for an experienced secondary of Macon Clark, Jadon Canady, Robinson, Larry Brooks and Lummie Young. Can they come up to support against the run while not letting guys get behind them when their eyes are too far into the backfield?

Special teams also will be critical. From the days of Bill Snyder, who has the stadium named after him, the Wildcats have been terrific on special teams, getting touchdowns on punt returns and kickoff returns and blocking kicks as well. I can recall some games from Snyder's first stint as coach when the Wildcats scored 50-plus points and barely had 300 yards of offense. Tulane has been strong on special teams in the first two weeks, but this is the real test. The Wave cannot give up any cheap points and expect to win.

Also, Kriston Esnard needs to keep being reliable. He has not really been tested to this point, but he has hit all 11 of his extra points and a 26-yard field goal. If called on, he has the range to kick from a long way out, but the key is making every one under 40 yards. I talked to him today for the first time since an interview I did for a feature on this site when he committed two years ago.

FRITZ

"I thought we had a good practice yesterday. We were OK today. We need to have a great one Thursday and Friday. The whole key's preparation. You look at both games they've played; they've jumped on people early. You want to be prepared for everything they might possibly do. If we play well those first couple of series. I like our chances a heck of a lot better. Play well early."

On Esnard:

"I just think he's trimmed down his approach when he gets ready to kick. That's helped him out big time."

On his range:

"I think 50 and in. It could be a little further than that, but he had a great preseason camp and obviously he hasn't been called on to do long field goals, but he's done an excellent job in everything we've had him do so far."

On his getting the job:

"That's the easiest position to evaluate. If it goes between the uprights, it's good. If it doesn't, it's not good. With everything else--safeties or corners or defensive linemen--sometimes it's very subjective in what a guy does and what's good. That's tougher. Kicker, punter, snapper, that's easy. You've got a stopwatch, you've got distance, location, through the uprights, all that stuff. That's a simple one. You've just got to do it over a period of time, and we did that for 25 practices. He won the job, and in games he's done a good job. You can't ask for more than that."

On his leg:

"The ball jumps off his foot. It really does. He had some winning 50-plus-yard field goals in high school. We've got a good operation. Ethan Hudak does an excellent job snapping. Casey's a very good holder as well. We just have to do a good job of protection. They (Kansas State) really do a good job of rushing, and we've got to do a good job of holding up in our protection."

On Angelo Anderson getting his starting job back:

"We're going to roll him and Keith Cooper. They are both really good players. Angelo does a good job playing with his hands. He plays hard and chases the ball. He does a nice job of that, too."

What everyone feared when Phat Watts injured his knee on a non-contact play against Alcorn State has become reality--the twin brother of Duece Watts is lost for the year with an ACL tear, Willie Fritz confirmed after practice on Tuesday. Phat Watts started the opener against UMass, and although I would not pick him as one of the top five wideouts on the team, he was playing a bunch and Fritz expected him to have a solid year. Injuries are a part of football, but they still stink. It will be interesting to see how Duece Watts responds to not being able to play with his brother for the first time in ... forever?

That said, I have a feeling the Kansas State game will boil down to a battle of the running backs--the Wildcats' Deuce Vaughn and Tulane's Tyjae Spears. Fritz said he recruited Vaughn out of Round Rocks High in Texas. A year earlier, Tyjae Spears' decision came down to Tulane and Kansas State. Both were rated 5.5 3-star backs by Rivals, and although Vaughn has put up bigger numbers than Spears in college (1,400-plus yards last season), Spears takes a backseat to almost no one when it comes to ability and will be very motivated to play Kansas State after getting token work against Alcorn State to keep him healthy for this big game.

Spears was not made available for an interview today, but Michael Pratt made it clear how much the offense would rely on him.

"No doubt he's gotta have a huge game, so it will be interesting. The first two games he didn't play a whole ton of snaps trying to keep him healthy and feeling good, so that will be a big bonus is that he's going to come into this game at the highest percentage that he can be, so it's going to be exciting to see what he can do. I don't know of too many defenses that can keep up with him. It will be interesting."

Spears is outwardly humble but has tremendous self belief. You have to figure he will take all the attention Vaughn deservedly is getting--the 5-6 back has similarities to former K State and Saints star Darren Sproles--and show he deserves accolades, too.

"It's going to be a running back battle and a trench battle," Pratt said. "The offensive lines are going to have to step up on both sides. We are going to see a lot from both sides of running backs. I think that will motivate him a little bit."

Spears practiced today, allaying any fears that he might have gotten hurt against Alcorn State, although none of the key guys got any reps in the last part of practice. The running backs being used at that stage were Levi Williams and Josh Coltrin.

Meanwhile, Keith Cooper and Noah Taliancich, who both got hurt in the Alcorn State game, practiced today. Cooper, though, is no longer a starter. Angelo Anderson replaced him as the starter at defensive end on Saturday and continued in that role today along with the usual suspects up front--Darius Hodges, Patrick Jenkins and Eric Hicks. I did not see Taliancich getting 11-on-11 reps, but I arrived a little later than usual.

A pair of true freshmen who made moves in preseason camp have yet to make an impact in the first two games. Center Shadre Hurst, who did not play at all against UMass after being the second-team center for most of August. made an appearance against Alcorn State but is not running with first two groups up front. Cornerback Cadien Robinson, the No. 2 guy behind Jadon Canady for much of camp, is playing sparingly, too. Shi'Keem Laister has passed him on the depth chart. Freshmen have to earn the trust of coaches during games, and those two apparently have not done so to this point.

Fritz, Pratt and Patrick Jenkins talked in the interview room today. I had requested Spears and Jenkins, was outstanding on Alcorn State's opening series, personally making sure the Braves did not go anywhere before they missed a field goal.

Crowd noise played loudly from the stadium speakers throughout 11-on-11 work to get the team prepared for what it will face at Kansas State in its first road game. Attendance was 50,108 for the Missouri game on Saturday at a stadium with an official capacity of 50,000.

Tulane should be catching Kansas State at a good time. The Wildcats made a statement by clobbering SEC opponent Missouri 40-12 on Saturday and they travel to Oklahoma for their Big 12 opener in two weeks. No matter what their coaches say, you have to figure the Wildcats are looking at Tulane's 2-10 record from last year and thinking they will win comfortably. On the other hand, that 28-point win indicates the Wildcats are pretty darn good. This would be Fritz's best road win by a long way at Tulane if the Wave accomplishes it.

FRITZ

"We are excited about the opportunity to go up to Manhattan, Kansas and play Kansas State. I am really impressed with them on videotape. We had a good game last Saturday. We played 103 guys. That might be a record. We had two guys we wanted to get in and weren't able to get them in. It's so rewarding for these guys with all the work they put in and they get a chance to go out there and play in a Division I football game. I think 1.5 percent of high school players actually get the opportunity to go play at the Division I level, and half of those are FCS, so about .75 of high school kids per year get a chance to get on a Division I team. I'm just happy those guys got in there and were able to mix it up and be able to have that in their back pocket the rest of their life."

On K State RB Deuce Vaughn:

"He's outstanding. A really good player. We recruited him a few years back. They jumped all over him and it was a smart move. He's a really good player. Great balance, really explosive. He catches the ball well. He'll block. I think the first game of the year they ran a screen sweep with him leading on the edge for a 75-yard touchdown. He got in the middle of a guy, so he's a complete player."

On what he got out of first two games defensively:

"We tackled well both games. The big thing for us is obviously we are playing a much superior team than what we played the first two weeks. We're going to have to out-populate them at times on the line of scrimmage because if you sit back and play all coverage, they do a good job of getting bodies on bodies out in the open field. This is a little bit more similar to week 1 in regards to the quarterback run. The quarterback is going to carry the ball 10 to 15 times probably on Saturday."

On K State being impressive on Saturday:

"Yeah, they really were. They got after Missouri. I was surprised by how they just really dominated the game. I thought they'd win, but it was in a convincing fashion. They dominated both lines of scrimmage and got on the perimeter and really showed their speed. They've got two quality receivers and both of them are great returners. One of them is a great kickoff return guy and the other guy's a great punt returner, and as I said before, a big part of the run game is the quarterback. When he's running the football. it helps open it up for 22 (Vaughn)."

On QB Adrian Martinez, a transfer from Nebraska:

"He's a very good player. He had a great career at Nebraska and he's now played two really good games at Kansas State."

On Kansas State not passing a ton:

"Obviously we've got to do a good job with the run game, but he was really crisp on two or three RPO throws last Saturday, too, where he threw it with some zip and right on the money, so he's got a good arm also."

On Spears potential impact:

"Huge. We've got to get him going and running. He hasn't a chance to play a whole lot in week 1 and week 2, but he's going to need to carry the ball this week."

On beating Kansas State for Spears' services:

"I always show the parents around this area how much it costs to go up there every weekend. The only trip they can pay for is the visit. Then you have to take your car some place and pay for parking and you have to fly somewhere, then you have to rent a car and drive somewhere and get a couple nights' hotels and you have to do it all over on the way back. Sometimes people don't take that into consideration until they do it for a year, and instead of seeing every game their kid plays, they see two or three. That's what I tell them. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't."

More on Spears:

"He's real close with his family. We were fortunate to get him, and he's also a great student. I think he's a 3.5 GPA."

On Phat Watts being out with ACL:

"Yes. Unfortunately. He got hurt on that play. He'll be out for the season. It's a shame because he was really playing well."

What everyone feared when Phat Watts injured his knee on a non-contact play against Alcorn State has become reality--the twin brother of Duece Watts is lost for the year with an ACL tear, Willie Fritz confirmed after practice on Tuesday. Phat Watts started the opener against UMass, and although I would not pick him as one of the top five wideouts on the team, he was playing a bunch and Fritz expected him to have a solid year. Injuries are a part of football, but they still stink. It will be interesting to see how Duece Watts responds to not being able to play with his brother for the first time in ... forever?

That said, I have a feeling the Kansas State game will boil down to a battle of the running backs--the Wildcats' Deuce Vaughn and Tulane's Tyjae Spears. Fritz said he recruited Vaughn out of Round Rocks High in Texas. A year earlier, Tyjae Spears' decision came down to Tulane and Kansas State. Both were rated 5.5 3-star backs by Rivals, and although Vaughn has put up bigger numbers than Spears in college (1,400-plus yards last season), Spears takes a backseat to almost no one when it comes to ability and will be very motivated to play Kansas State after getting token work against Alcorn State to keep him healthy for this big game.

Spears was not made available for an interview today, but Michael Pratt made it clear how much the offense would rely on him.

"No doubt he's gotta have a huge game, so it will be interesting. The first two games he didn't play a whole ton of snaps trying to keep him healthy and feeling good, so that will be a big bonus is that he's going to come into this game at the highest percentage that he can be, so it's going to be exciting to see what he can do. I don't know of too many defenses that can keep up with him. It will be interesting."

Spears is outwardly humble but has tremendous self belief. You have to figure he will take all the attention Vaughn deservedly is getting--the 5-6 back has similarities to former K State and Saints star Darren Sproles--and show he deserves accolades, too.

"It's going to be a running back battle and a trench battle," Pratt said. "The offensive lines are going to have to step up on both sides. We are going to see a lot from both sides of running backs. I think that will motivate him a little bit."

Spears practiced today, allaying any fears that he might have gotten hurt against Alcorn State, although none of the key guys got any reps in the last part of practice. The running backs being used at that stage were Levi Williams and Josh Coltrin.

Meanwhile, Keith Cooper and Noah Taliancich, who both got hurt in the Alcorn State game, practiced today. Cooper, though, is no longer a starter. Angelo Anderson replaced him as the starter at defensive end on Saturday and continued in that role today along with the usual suspects up front--Darius Hodges, Patrick Jenkins and Eric Hicks. I did not see Taliancich getting 11-on-11 reps, but I arrived a little later than usual.

A pair of true freshmen who made moves in preseason camp have yet to make an impact in the first two games. Center Shadre Hurst, who did not play at all against UMass after being the second-team center for most of August. made an appearance against Alcorn State but is not running with first two groups up front. Cornerback Cadien Robinson, the No. 2 guy behind Jadon Canady for much of camp, is playing sparingly, too. Shi'Keem Laister has passed him on the depth chart. Freshmen have to earn the trust of coaches during games, and those two apparently have not done so to this point.

Fritz, Pratt and Patrick Jenkins talked in the interview room today. I had requested Spears and Jenkins, was outstanding on Alcorn State's opening series, personally making sure the Braves did not go anywhere before they missed a field goal.

Crowd noise played loudly from the stadium speakers throughout 11-on-11 work to get the team prepared for what it will face at Kansas State in its first road game. Attendance was 50,108 for the Missouri game on Saturday at a stadium with an official capacity of 50,000.

Tulane should be catching Kansas State at a good time. The Wildcats made a statement by clobbering SEC opponent Missouri 40-12 on Saturday and they travel to Oklahoma for their Big 12 opener in two weeks. No matter what their coaches say, you have to figure the Wildcats are looking at Tulane's 2-10 record from last year and thinking they will win comfortably. On the other hand, that 28-point win indicates the Wildcats are pretty darn good. This would be Fritz's best road win by a long way at Tulane if the Wave accomplishes it.

FRITZ

"We are excited about the opportunity to go up to Manhattan, Kansas and play Kansas State. I am really impressed with them on videotape. We had a good game last Saturday. We played 103 guys. That might be a record. We had two guys we wanted to get in and weren't able to get them in. It's so rewarding for these guys with all the work they put in and they get a chance to go out there and play in a Division I football game. I think 1.5 percent of high school players actually get the opportunity to go play at the Division I level, and half of those are FCS, so about .75 of high school kids per year get a chance to get on a Division I team. I'm just happy those guys got in there and were able to mix it up and be able to have that in their back pocket the rest of their life."

On K State RB Deuce Vaughn:

"He's outstanding. A really good player. We recruited him a few years back. They jumped all over him and it was a smart move. He's a really good player. Great balance, really explosive. He catches the ball well. He'll block. I think the first game of the year they ran a screen sweep with him leading on the edge for a 75-yard touchdown. He got in the middle of a guy, so he's a complete player."

On what he got out of first two games defensively:

"We tackled well both games. The big thing for us is obviously we are playing a much superior team than what we played the first two weeks. We're going to have to out-populate them at times on the line of scrimmage because if you sit back and play all coverage, they do a good job of getting bodies on bodies out in the open field. This is a little bit more similar to week 1 in regards to the quarterback run. The quarterback is going to carry the ball 10 to 15 times probably on Saturday."

On K State being impressive on Saturday:

"Yeah, they really were. They got after Missouri. I was surprised by how they just really dominated the game. I thought they'd win, but it was in a convincing fashion. They dominated both lines of scrimmage and got on the perimeter and really showed their speed. They've got two quality receivers and both of them are great returners. One of them is a great kickoff return guy and the other guy's a great punt returner, and as I said before, a big part of the run game is the quarterback. When he's running the football. it helps open it up for 22 (Vaughn)."

On QB Adrian Martinez, a transfer from Nebraska:

"He's a very good player. He had a great career at Nebraska and he's now played two really good games at Kansas State."

On Kansas State not passing a ton:

"Obviously we've got to do a good job with the run game, but he was really crisp on two or three RPO throws last Saturday, too, where he threw it with some zip and right on the money, so he's got a good arm also."

On Spears potential impact:

"Huge. We've got to get him going and running. He hasn't a chance to play a whole lot in week 1 and week 2, but he's going to need to carry the ball this week."

On beating Kansas State for Spears' services:

"I always show the parents around this area how much it costs to go up there every weekend. The only trip they can pay for is the visit. Then you have to take your car some place and pay for parking and you have to fly somewhere, then you have to rent a car and drive somewhere and get a couple nights' hotels and you have to do it all over on the way back. Sometimes people don't take that into consideration until they do it for a year, and instead of seeing every game their kid plays, they see two or three. That's what I tell them. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't."

More on Spears:

"He's real close with his family. We were fortunate to get him, and he's also a great student. I think he's a 3.5 GPA."

On Phat Watts being out with ACL:

"Yes. Unfortunately. He got hurt on that play. He'll be out for the season. It's a shame because he was really playing well."

Did anyone else see on the broadcast when Tyjae had to run into the Alcorn St bench to retrieve his wristband with all the plays on it? The commentators didn't know what was going on but it was clear they took his wristband.

Does anyone know what the rule is on this? It seems like it is part of our uniform so the other team should be called for delay of game but I really have no idea. It shouldn't be any different than taking a shoe or helmet.

I have to say this is the first time I can remember every member of an offensive unit wearing a play card on their wrist.

Guerry, I know you can only report what you see but Esnard in the first two games doesn’t look anything like the kicker you’ve described in practice (or the little of him we saw in games last year.)

does Fritz still go with Rutgers transfer this week?

meanwhile STs across board look awesome so far against easy opponents. New coach matters or just level of competition?

That 2-10 season last year has really soured Vegas on Tulane's perception. Three years ago, Tulane was a 17-point underdog to then-No. 10 Auburn. Now the Wave is a 17-point underdog to unranked (but climbing) Kansas State.

Tulane has won three games outright as an underdog under Fritz, beating Houston 20-17 at home in 2017 as a 9-point dog, Memphis 40-24 at home in 2018 as a 14-point dog and USF 41-15 on the road in 2018 as a 7-point dog. I am taking the lines from Phil Steele's magazine.

Tulane was a 17-point underdog in Fritz's first game, against Wake Forest in 2016, and lost 7-3 in the second-ugliest performance by both teams I've seen at Tulane since I began covering the Wave, behind that 7-3 loss to UConn in a monsoon in 2015.

Tulane is 3-34 outright as an underdog under Fritz. The Wave is 29-9 as a favorite and won once in a pick'em game against Tulsa in 2018.

Tulane has been a double-digit dog 18 times under Fritz and gone 1-17. Of those losses, four were legitimately in doubt late--Wake Forest 2016, Navy 2017 and Oklahoma and UCF 2022.

Tulane has been a double-digit favorite 10 times and won nine of them. The exception was the 23-10 loss at FIU in 2017 as a 13-point favorite.

History is an impeccable guide to what already has happened but not always an accurate predictor of the future, so those numbers don't necessarily portend a defeat this Saturday.

I really don't see the value in games like, but almost every teams plays them now and it was fun for the walk-ons to get a chance to contribute and nice for the Wave to get its first shutout in 25 years. As for gleaning anything useful for the games ahead, I have no idea other than I like the play-calling of the new offensive staff. The coaches and leaders on the team need to make sure players understand they have accomplished nothing yet and that they need to go to Kansas State with the burning desire to prove themselves rather than thinking they already have arrived. it sounds silly to even say that, but I've been covering the mindset of 18-to-22-year olds for more than 30 years now and know over-confidence in their own ability is a real thing. The Las Vegas oddsmakers are not confident in Tulane's ability to hang with Kansas State at all, installing the Wildcats as 17-point favorites.

WILLIE FRITZ

"We're not getting full of ourselves. This is a tough league we play in. Every team we are going to play (the rest of the way) is an excellent team and well coached and superior to the two teams we just defeated. We know that, but I like being at 2-0 right now and going into a tough game, but we certainly are not sitting here resting on our laurels in any way, shape or form. We've got a long way to go and have a lot of improvement to make. We played a little sloppy at times. Offensively just in the protection we've got to work on. Two or three times we let some guys go, and we can't have those. If you get behind the sticks against good teams, it hurts you. We got behind the sticks three or four times tonight and still were able to convert. It doesn't happen very often."

On matching win total from last year:

"I hadn't thought of that. We all were disappointed with last season. There's no question about it, but we turned the page. We moved on. The kids understand that for us to win a bunch of games, we've got to play really well. We're not just going to roll the ball out there. We've got enough talent, but we've got to play real well. We certainly did that in week 1 and week 2."

On Pratt's performance:

"He was spot on with a bunch of balls. We've just to clean up like I said before the protection issues. We let some guys come clean, and we've just got to do a better job with that. It wasn't anything that we hadn't worked on. That's going to be a big part of it. We had some good pockets, too. We really did, and got the ball out of our hands quickly when we needed to and then also we were able to sit back there and pat it a little bit and get some long conversions. But like I said, we've got to stay out of the third and longs. We have to be in those third-and-manageable type situation. We converted them tonight, but against good clubs that's difficult to do."

More on Pratt's performance:

"Michael had a great game. It was his career high in terms of yardage. He had some really nice balls where he kept guys a runner. You are going to talk to Shae Wyatt here in a second. I don't think Shae had to move an inch off path to catch that ball (a 72-yard TD play) and run with it. That's the mark of a really good quarterback. When we measure guys in practice, it's not completions. It's how do you complete it. Sometimes you complete a ball and the receiver made a great catch on it. Sometimes you make a great throw and the receiver drops it. We're looking at accuracy, and Michael's gotten better and better at that through camp and then the first two games."

On shutout:

"It was great. We played great on defense. Coach (Chris) Hampton and the defensive staff had a good plan. We tackled pretty darn well. There were a couple of plays in space we missed that we've got to clean up a little bit with guys who are normally good tacklers. For the most part we stayed over the top. We didn't give up the long one. We put some guys in there later and a guy or two got behind them. There were really good things to build on defensively."

On Iverson Celestine losing another fumble:

"That's a big deal. Iverson's a really good back. We've got to have great ball security. He runs extremely hard, but you've got to hang on to that sucker. He knows that."He'll get better at that."

More on defense:

"We tackled pretty darn well and also we set some edges. We wouldn't let them bounce the ball outside for gains of 5 or 6. When they bounced outside, it was most of the time a line of scrimmage play or a loss of 1."

SHAE WYATT

On long TD catch:

"Pratt's as accurate as anybody in the country. Coming out of hafltime we knew we wanted to bury them and just put it away, and that's one way to do it."

On pitch and catch:

"This is a full week thing. When you guys watch us on Saturdays, you guys get the show, but everything that's behind the scenes, that's Monday through Friday and extra hours that we do. The pitch and catch is hours and hours of work, and that's not just me. That's Michael with the rest of our receivers, the running backs, the tight ends. When we come out on Saturdays it's just easy. It's kind of like clockwork, but speaking on behalf of who we play next week, coach Fritz had mentioned it's going to be a battle and it's going to be one of those games where we are going to have to put all our pieces together."

On offense coming together under Jim Svoboda:

"I always smile whenever I mention him. He always likes to drop gems, him and coach Mc (McMenamin) and everybody on this staff honestly. Every day I'm learning something new about the game. I love being a student of the game, so if I can find that being enjoyable, then going on the field and actually playing it, you can only imagine how I feel when I'm actually doing it."

On his improved YAC (yards after catch):

"This offseason I definitely tried to work on my speed. My teammates got on me a little bit about that, but like I said, it was just more working towards getting a little bit faster and putting my head down during the summer."

On shutout:

"It definitely feels good, but you know, the game's over. We can celebrate tonight and tomorrow we have to come in and focus on our next opponent, which is K State."

On K-State:

"I'm a Nebraska guy. I'm already very aware of (Nebraska transfer QB) Adrian Martinez. They've got a pretty good back, but I'm not too focused on what they are bringing to the table. I'm more focused on what Tulane has to do with our team. On Monday we'll go back to work and just start chopping wood."

On his feeling after two games:

"I feel pretty good, but we have some small things to work on. It's never a perfect game. There's never a perfect instance in football. There's always something going wrong. 2-0 is a great start, but we still hav ea lot to prove."

Under Fritz, in the past, especially against these type of opponents, in the first two games we have been able to put up outrageous rushing numbers.

Is there any reason for concern? Before 2/3rd team players went in we were averaging 1.6 or 1.9(don’t recall) ypc?

What's the story on Pierson Parent from Dutchtown? He tweeted that he was commited to Tulane and I've seen some say he's a long snapper. HIs hudl highlights list him at 5'9'" and 178# which is quite small for the middle of the line trying to block for field goals, punts, etc. after making the snap. On the other hand, he apparently played QB and WR for most of his high school time and appears to be quite quick. Does he have a scholarship offer or is he a preferred walk on? In either case, where is he projected to play.

Roll Wave!!!

As always, home teams are listed first, the Tulane game counts double and point spreads come from VegasInsider.com consensus, except for Tulane-Alcorn State, which comes from Wynn Sportsbook

Tulane (-33.5) Alcorn State
Texas (+20) Alabama
Florida (-5) Kentucky
Pittsburgh (+6.5) Tennessee
Iowa (-3.5) Iowa State
Texas Tech (-3) Houston
BYU (-3.5) Baylor
Kansas State (-7.5) Missouri

After a dreadful year of picking on my part, I was determined to get off to a good start this time ... and went 2-6 despite being right about Tulane. Oh, well.

WEEK 1 STANDINGS

7

chigoyboy

6

MNAlum
ny oscar
roll wave
Wavetime
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5

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4

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3

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2

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GAME-BY-GAME RESULTS

Tulane 10 of 18
East Carolina 9
Arkansas 16
Florida 10
Notre Dame 11
Mississippi State 8
Georgia 8
FSU 6

I would not be stunned if Darius Hodges is watching rather than playing on the first series for Tulane's defense this Saturday against Alcorn State. He is health and practicing but does not get much time with the first-team unit when I am watching. That was true last week, too, and he started against UMass (one tackle), but if the coaches want to send him a message about something he is doing wrong, this is the perfect week. I requested him for an interview last week for my generic feature previewing the UMass game, and the request was denied. That's the only time it is happened this year. I'm not sure what is going on there, but it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

I continued to look at the defensive line today as Tulane moves forward without Adonis Friloux (presumably), who watched practice today without any crutches while walking with a knee brace. As Willie Fritz said before the opener, they are playing a lot of guys up front and relying on that depth. Alfred Thomas was given today off because of his history of injuries but will be ready to play Saturday after getting 10 downs against UMass and making the most of them at nose tackle. It was hard to tell who was first team on the outside and who was second team today because they rotated so much, but Carlos Hatcher and Keith Cooper played together a bunch and Tylo Phillips and Devean Deal played together quite a bit. Hodges got time opposite Phillips at one point, and Angelo Anderson and Hatcher were paired at times. Inside, Elijah Champaigne and Noah Taliancich played behind Eric Hicks and Patrick Jenkins for the most part, but they mixed and matched there some, too.

This defense, I believe, can be really good if the line holds up against the run. The linebackers go four deep with Corey Platt coming on and Jesus Machado already good backing up the excellent duo of Nick Anderson and Dorian Willams. Anderson dropped an interception against the scout team after making an excellent read and getting back to make the play. These guys are football savvy in addition to having talent. Macon Clark looked good against UMass at nickelback, which was one of my concerns going into the opener. Obviously that was not a true test, but he looked comfortable. The cornerbacks go three deep with the irrepressible Jarius Monroe looking starter quality behind Jadon Canady and Lance Robinson. Overall, my impression is these guys play fast, which is as much a function of confidence and experience as ability. We will find out when this team faces more dynamic offenses down the road.

Monroe is incredibly vocal and enthusiastic in practice. At one point near the end of the scout-team work, he screamed "Blow it up, 2," referring to the second-team defense as they went back on the field for what some players could approach as drudgery. On the sideline, he was telling teammates Saturday was "closer than you know," and his love for the game is evident every time he steps on the field.

Josh Remetich definitely has taken over as the second-team center. Although Shadre Hurst was in uniform, I did not see him getting any reps with that group, which for the second straight day had Sully Burns at LT, Hutson Lillibridge at LG, Caleb Thomas at RG and Matt Lombardi at LT.

The scout-team offensive line includes Jackson Fort, whom I already have mentioned in other reports was second team for much of preseason drills. You might think he was bitter about the demotion, but I heard an exchange between him and a student assistant when he could not have been nicer during the workout. Fritz prides himself on having a classy program, and although no program can ever be perfect in that regard, this is what he is talking about. It really is a testament to him and his staff that almost no significant player transferred at the end of 2-10 season. I know Colorado lost at least 20 guys after its season, including Kanan Ray. Tulane lost Jeffery Johnson, Rudy Dyson, and who else of any significance? Maybe Kevaris Hall? Maybe Ygenio Booker, if he could stay healthy? That's the list. And the argument that they did not have anyone who wanted them doesn't hold sway. Guys enter the portal all the time and find out the pickings are slim. Tulane did not have many relevant guys enter in the first place.

Clearly, though. that unity and belief needs to transfer into wins on the field before it means something. After the scrimmage against Alcorn State this Saturday, we will begin to find out what this team is made of against Kansas State.

I talked to Fritz, Sincere Haynesworth and Monroe after practice.

FRITZ

On Tulane's culture:

"The thing I'm most proud of, and I may be a little different than other coaches because I've done this a long time--I've been a head coach since 1993. It's not just about winning; it's how you win. I think that's so important, and it gets lost sometimes. I'm just proud of the way our guys behave. I've said it 20 times. We had a horrible year last year record-wise, but our guys conducted themselves and represented Tulane in a first-class manner, so all those things are important. But we just feel like there's no reason why you can't win big here. We've come really close a few years where we just didn't get it done and it could have been eight, nine and 10-win seasons. Coulda, woulda, should've, but we've just got to keep pushing. We've got to understand every week's a battle for us. We're not going to roll the ball out. I've coached some teams where we were able to roll the ball out, and it's not going to happen here."

On if it hard to get over the hump at Tulane:

"We don't want to have any excuses and all that stuff. There are so many positive things to sell here, and that's what we focus on."

On not overlooking Alcorn State:

"They have to. We want to make great improvement from week 1 to week 2. Teams that are well coached and have good leadership do make that great improvement from week 1 to week 2, so that's what we're focused on."

On Alfred Thomas:

"He played 10 snaps and was great. We're being careful with him, but he's a big body, strong as an ox. His back must be four feet wide. We just need to keep him healthy because he's a big gap guy. It's hard to knock him off the ball."

On Thomas having a hard time staying healthy:

"It's been really tough. Our training staff has done a great job. He's done a great job. We're trying to be smart with him as well with what we're doing."

On Kam Hamilton:

"He did a good job. It would be an interesting story for you to do some time, you know, he's deaf (I did not know that). At the game I was sitting there and I saw the official talking to him after a play and he was just kind of looking at him. At the next time I told him (No.) 70 is deaf. He can't wear his hearing aids during the game. so that's something I'm going to tell them from now on before the game. He's deaf, so you are going to have to get in his face to talk to him, but he's a highly intelligent young man and a really good student. He picks things up in a hurry. You can't really tell at all. We were fortunate. Slade Nagel's dad coaches at Zachary High School. He was the one who highly recommended Kam to us."

On being able to play that position as true freshman:

"He's put on a bunch of weight. I think he was 270 when he got here. He's 286 now. He's going to be a 300-pounder in another year, and you've got to have that at this level."

Nothing much to report today. Alfred Thomas was full go after getting Wednesday off, so he will be part of the defensive tackle rotation again Saturday, and Darius Hodges practiced with the first team at the end of the workout against the scout-team offense. That means the starting four up front probably will be the same as against UMass--Hodges and Keith Cooper on the outside and Patrick Jenkins and Eric Hicks on the inside. The rotation at end and joker includes Angelo Anderson on one side and Carlos Hatcher and Devean Deal on the other. Armoni Dixon apparently will not play this week because he took a rep with the scout-team offense to get the defense ready for something, and I did not see him get any reps defensively. Noah Taliancich, Thomas, Kam Hamilton and Elijah Champaigne are the reservers in the interior rotation.

Willie Fritz said Adonis Friloux had surgery this week and is out for the year, confirming the expected.

Although Ernest Celestine lost a fumble against UMass, the coaches believe he has a lot of promise and he likely will be in the rotation again. Maybe this time Shaadie Clayton will get untracked. He was phenomenal at Warren Easton and had a good spring, but his production the opener was reminiscent of Devin Brumfield. He should be better than that.

'I tell these guys all the hay's not in the barn until 6:02 kickoff on Saturday,'" Willie Fritz said after the workout, which ended at 10:18. "We still have a lot of preparation left. It's more mental than it is physical the last couple of days, but Monday's practice was good, Tuesday's was OK, Wednesday's was good and today seemed to be pretty good, too, so we're going to be fired up."

Walk-on wide receiver Luke Bech has changed his number to 81 from 45.

Tulane leads the nation in pass efficiency defense and passing yards allowed after facing UMass's anemic passing attack. The Wave should remain close to the top through game 4 against Southern Miss before conference play starts. All of the Wave's non-conference opponents are run-first teams. UMass actually had a passer rating of minus-5.20, something I've never seen before.

If Tulane blocks a punt on Saturday, my money is on Lance Robinson to do it. He has a knack for that job.

If Jha'Quan returns a punt for a touchdown--a distinct possibility--it will be the first one since 2004. I was in Florida at the time, so I've never heard of Fred Smith, the guy who turned the trick against UAB back then.

I correctly predicted the Watts twins and Shae Wyatt would start at wideout last week. It doesn't really matter who starts there, but I expect Lawrence Keys to start this time.

Here are the quotes from my interviews with Jarius Monroe and Sincere Haynesworth yesterday:

MONROE

On interception against UMass:

"That felt amazing, man, to see all the hard work I've been doing this summer, transferring to this school, choosing to become a part of this family. It just felt good for it all to come together. I actually didn't expect him to throw it. We'd been watching that route all week. He's stemming in and then he comes back out, so I'm waiting for him to come out, and as i'm waiting, the quarterback must have thought I was in the flat and he threw it. I started smiling as soon as I caught it. Tears started coming down my eyes.

On culture:

"That's the first thing I noticed, kind of that family attitude, that family vibe, and I know these guys want it. They're very hungry, and I'm a hungry person myself. We are all trying to achieve the same thing, and you can see it in our play. It's a lot of passion, a lot of regret from last year. We just want to get back on top."

On chance to start 2-0:

"We look at every opponent the same. We don't discredit any of our opponents. We're ready to play Alcorn. We've been doing a lot of film study on them. We're locked in and trying to have the best practices we've had all year, and that's going to be every week. We're going to try to dominate the week, dominate that opponent. That's our goal going into Saturday--to dominate the opponent and treat them with a lot of respect. We respect every opponents. We're looking for that 2-0 this week, but respectfully."

On enthusiasm in practice:

"I like to bring that energy, that positive energy. I feel like that helps with winning and helps with culture. If everyone feels that positivity, if a guy is feeling down and I bring that one little positivity, like hey man, I see you, let's go, let's make a play, if that guy gets up for that one play, it's good and something I helped contribute. It makes me happy to help push the next guy."

On competition at cornerback:

"Our rotation is very tight. We got some really good guys. We're all really good and we work hard at practice. We try to dominate, so our rotation is doing really well. Every time I get in there i try to dominate my reps and show the world, show coach I'm here and i'm ready to play. if you need me to come off the bench, I'll be sixth man of the year. I'm ready to do whatever."

HAYNESWORTH

No 2-0 start since 2002:

"It's a great feeling. It will feel even better when we actually do it. It's a great honor for us to start off on the right foot, especially after last season and everything we went through. The guys worked really hard. The coaches worked really hard. It always feels great to see your work paying off inch by inch."

On not taking Alcorn State for granted:

"We respect everyone every week. No matter who we're going against, this is the best team we've seen. We can't play like there is a next game. Every game's the last game, so we've gotta keep that dog mentality. Every game is our Super Bowl, so we've got to keep preparing like that and playing like that."

On Pratt running effectively:

“It always makes me excited to see No. 7 out there getting loose,” Haynesworth said. “That’s my boy, but it’s also like, all right, be safe. I really want him to be safe, but I trust his decision-making. Whatever he feels is best, I know he’s going to do it.”

On O-line play in opener:

"We played well. I feel like we really gave out some good push and really showed our training and fell back on our training. We are going to keep working hard every week."

On Pines and Ray:

"They make my job easy. It's always great when you've got two guys around you that play really hard and are really physical. They bring a lot of great things to the table. I'm really glad we've added them to the team."

On Pines size:

"What they call guys like Prince are freaks. He's great. He's got good feet. He moves really well. You don't expect that out of guy his size. His effort is great. When he turns it on, he turns it on, so it's great."

On team confidence:

"I like to see how my guys react when game time comes, and everyone was very poised. That's what the game's all about is being poised and having confidence. You can never go line up in front of somebody with a lack of confidence, and to see everyone on the team just oozing confidence is a great feeling."

A season without nose tackle Adonis Friloux has become a reality for Tulane, although Willie Fritz stopped short of saying he was definitely out for the season with an ACL injury he sustained last week. I know for sure he practiced Tuesday and thought I saw him Wednesday (I don't have anything in my notes one way or the other) when he apparently got hurt, but regardless, it's a significant loss because he was Tulane's best player at the position by far and appeared poised for a breakout year. The Green Wave has decent numbers without him, so it has to be a group effort the rest of the way. Eric Hicks, who started in his place, won the coaches' award for most productive defensive lineman against UMass and has proven he can be solid, having outperformed De'Andre Williams two years ago before having a slight dip in 2021. It's the backups who are a concern. Alfred Thomas was active and pretty productive against UMass, but he has an injury history and simply has not played a ton since showing promise as a freshman back in 2018. True freshman Kameron Hamilton had a couple of tackles on Saturday and may be called upon to play a significant role. I believe Elijah Champaigne plays the other tackle spot along with Noah Taliancich, and those guys have to give quality downs when Patrick Jenkins needs a rest. That position is about a lot more than making tackles, but Taliancich had none on Saturday despite playing extensively. Jenkins and Champaigne had one stop each.

Alcorn State, coached by the older brother of the late Steve McNair, does not present a legitimate challenge, but it is a SWAC powerhouse and probably should have beaten FCS 10th-ranked Stephen F. Austin in its opener, having led 24-10 in the third quarter before giving up a late touchdown drive and losing 31-27. For perspective, SFA lost to Texas Tech 28-22 last season when a fourth-and-goal pass was intercepted with about a minute left. Alcorn State running back Jarveon Howard, a Syracuse grad transfer who scored seven touchdowns for the Orange in 2018, rushed for 199 yards on 21 carries with a touchdown run of more than 70 yards against SFA. He is 5-10, 200 pounds and will test the middle of the defense. Alcorn State was picked second in the SWAC West, one point behind Southern. Fritz has faced two SWAC teams, beating Southern 66-21 in 2016 and Grambling 43-14 in 2017.

Josh Remetich got the second-string snaps at center against UMass for Tulane instead of freshman Shadre Hurst, who had occasional snapping problems during the preseason. Remetich practiced with the second team this morning along with tackles Sully Burns and Matt Lombardi and guards Hutson Lillibridge and Kaleb Thomas. Thomas should be available to play Saturday, but he is not going to start anytime soon unless someone gets hurt. Starting left guard Prince Pines won the coaches' award for best offensive line against UMass, and right guard Kanan Ray had a good game, too. I'm not sure where Trey Tuggle was today--I might have missed his reps--but he was the first lineman off the bench against UMass at right guard and still is in the picture. He might have gotten dinged up.

As expected, Lawrence Keys led the receivers with four catches and a touchdown off a sweet inside-out move near the goal line against UMass. I expected him, Dea Dea McDougle, Duece Watts and Shae Wyatt to be Tulane's top four receivers coming out of preseason, and Fritz praised Jha'Quan Jackson at the end of camp, too, and sure enough, those were the five guys who made plays against UMass. Phat Watts dropped a pass in practice today, and that's been his issue since arriving. Freshman Chris Brazzell, who has potential, was targeted twice Saturday but did not have a catch and dropped an easy one today.

It will be interesting to see what Shaadie Clayton does against Alcorn State. Frankly, I was not surprised by his lack of production (five carries, 16 yards) on Saturday because he did not stand out in camp like he did at times in the spring. He, Cam Carroll and Ernest Celestine, who lost a fumble, will determine the playing time behind Tyjae Spears by whomever gets hots.

Michael Pratt, who had a pretty good game against UMass (Fritz counted only three plays he thought Pratt would like to have back), had a beautiful connection with Wyatt in the corner of the end zone in practice today. Whether Wyatt got a food down inbounds was in dispute, but he thought it was good and the throw and catch were on point.

Recovering onside kicks is largely a function of good fortune, but Tulane, which was incredibly successful in that department last year, practices them a lot and did again today.

Tulane can start 2-0 for the first time since 2002 and the only the third time since a four-year run from 1972-75, but of course, plenty of other Tulane teams could have started 2-0 against this schedule. For the most part I liked what I saw Saturday, but we won't really know anything about this team until the Kansas State game.

FRITZ

"We just had our second practice of the week for Alcorn State. Coach McNair has done a fabulous job with their program (he is in sixth year and has won the SWAC West four times and the overall SWAC title twice). It's one of the top teams in the SWAC. We're looking at getting better, though. The one thing I always tell me guys every year is the biggest improvement should be between week 1 and week 2 because you've worked out all the kinks running on the field and off the field and all those kinds of things, substitution patterns, tackling for a whole game, having officials out there for a whole game, so we're looking at making a lot of improvements this week."

On if Friloux is out for the year:

"We think so. We're going to find out here for sure in a few days."

On adjustments that need to be made without him:

"Nope. Next guy up. Unfortunately that's the only part of the game I don't like. It's a tough, hardnosed physical sport, different than all other sports on the planet. Sometimes unfortunately that occurs, but that's why you don't play with 22 guys on the team. We have to have somebody step up and do a great job in there. Eric Hicks last week had a start and played really well as our defensive lineman of the game. When that happens, when a guy misses a game or two or possibly the season, we gotta step in and play well."

On what exactly happened to Friloux:

"I'm going to wait on that."

On what jumped out at him watching the video:

"We played pretty hard. I was excited about that. Sometimes you can't see that when you're watching the game. We did a good job on the offensive line--good movement off the ball running outside zone, too. We ran horizontal and vertical and did a good job of that. We tackled pretty good for a week 1 game, too."

On how he used his running backs:

"We're very fortunate that we've got four or five really good running backs. We'll roll all those guys, but we'll make sure Tyjae gets all of his carries. He's a dynamic back and real good player, but we're fortunate we have a lot of good backs so we can spread the wealth out a little bit. Gone are the days when a guy would carry 30 times a game for the whole season. It doesn't happen anymore. We want him somewhere around 10 to 15 carries a game and playing 12, 13, 14 games."

On Prince Pines and Kanan Ray:

"They are really helping big time. Prince was our offensive lineman of the week. John Leglue of the Pittsburgh Steelers announced that for us. Kanan had a good game as well. Those guys have a lot of experience. Kanan started a little bit at Colorado but played a bunch, and then Prince has played over 2,500 snaps at the Division I level. He started some games at Baylor, too, so he's a really good player."

On Lawrence Keys:

"He's helped a bunch. He got hurt last spring and I think he only practiced three times, but he worked at it and had a great summer and a great fall camp and played well Saturday."

On having experience at QB rather than a transfer:

"It's big. We have three of them returning for us. There's a little bit new for him in that he had to learn a new offense, but they are all very smart. It's great to have Michael back. He played really well for a game 1. There's only three plays out of the 38 or whatever he played that he'd like to have back. He did a nice job."

On Pratt not sliding:

"I thought he did a good job. He got out of bounds one time. He found a soft spot between two guys. He has a knack of using his off arm as a weapon when he's running. He stiff-arms to get away from potential tacklers. I thought he did a good job. I thought it was different."

On Alcorn State:

"They are big up front on the offensive line and defensive line. They play really hard. They have big backs. One guy gained 199 yards last week against Stephen F. Austin. Their quarterback has some experience and played at Louisiana Tech and started a few games for them. It's just a good overall team. They'd love to have that game back. Stephen F scored at the very end. I'm sure they'll be very ready to go Saturday."

I think I have all of them here, but I might be missing somebody.

MADE 53-MAN ROSTER

Bears: Darnell Mooney, Cairo Santos

Vikings: Ryan Wright

Eagles: Patrick Johnson

Bengals: Cameron Sample


ON PRACTICE SQUAD

Jets: Tanzel Smart

Steelers: John Leglue

Vikings: Parry Nickerson

Bucs: Ryan Griffin

A lot to add to this post game thread, but wanted to get a varied opinion on the defensive line. The had some success with QB and Power Run game, showing success with some traditional power runs.

I saw some Alfred Thomas tonight, and caught a few positive plays from him. If his play is okay, it would be a huge and unexpected boost to the depth.

I wasn’t Able to focus on Hamilton, as a true Freshmen, but was curious what you saw.

I didn’t want to threadjack the contest thread. I have enough trouble figuring out Tulane spreads. So more power to Y’all who can do this over a season and come out ahead. I know I couldn’t. So I don’t compete


My immediate reaction to the odds posted was how overpriced SEC appears. It looks like Yankees or Man U odds. I know SEC is strongest conference but I think these odds reflect overconfidence from fan. bettors.

It struck me that a potential global strategy would be take the other team in every SEC OOC game in a season. Over 75-80 games, it works if you win 55%+ of time.

just speculative reaction but should I be heading to Caesar’s sports book or thankful I don’t have an online betting account?

If Kriston Esnard had missed one of his extra points, I would have gotten the final score exactly right. He hit them all, which is good news for Tulane because he could not make six kicks in a row from any spot on the field last year and this spring. I want to see him try a really long field goal next week because his leg is incredibly strong, but I doubt Alcorn State will stop the Wave to force a long kick.

Willie Fritz, Michael Pratt, Macon Clark and Tyjae Spears talked after the victory tonight. A solid win, but we won't really learn much about this team until the Kansas State game. I do fear Adonis Friloux may be out for the year with an injury he must have sustained late in the week. I missed almost all of Thursday's practice, but I'm almost positive he was out there Wednesday. No official word on what his injury is or the prognosis at this point because Fritz is loath to give out that info.

FRITZ

"We're just really pumped up about the win. It's been a long time coming. It seems like we've been practicing for a long, long period of time. I thought (UMass) coach (Don) Brown did a good job with his game plan. He really did a good job of running the clock and running the ball and making it into a 10-series game. I'm not sure how many there ended up being (UMass had 11 and Tulane 12), but if we hadn't gotten those takeaways it would have been a little tougher, but we came out in the second half and went right down the field and scored. I saw some good things in all three phases. I saw some good things in offense and defense and kicking game. We just need to clean some stuff up and stay away from some costly penalties, especially in the kicking game. Coach (Robby) Discher went over a thousand times about holding the ball and no penalties, and we had a couple away from the play or otherwise we would have had some big-time returns. We came within a whisker of a big kick return for a touchdown and had a punt return for a touchdown called back. Great learning experience for our guys, this first game."

On needing a game like this:

"We didn't scrimmage a ton in preseason camp. We just didn't do as much. Our last scrimmage was two Saturdays ago. If I had to do it over again, I might have done a little bit more the last week, at least one day where we did a little bit of live stuff, but the main part is just getting on and off the field and the kicking game. We were able to play a lot of guys. We played 70 or 80 guys at least (66 according to the game book, which may not be accurate) I think, so that's good also. A lot of these guys work extremely hard. It was great they had the opportunity to play Division I college football."

On Spears:

"He's a great player. I didn't think we blocked things up. Their game plan, too, was great. They said we're going to crowd the box and make it difficult for you to run, and they still got some yards. And we did block some stuff up pretty good as well, but it helped a little bit that he had a couple of nice catch and runs. Teams are going to do that on us, trying to stop us from being able to run the ball successfully."

On Spears coming back from injury:

"He's really a tough, hardnose competitor. He comes to practice every single day and enjoys it. He really loves football. It's just good to see a guy, it was a long-time rehab for him, and our people did a great job, too, with the rehab part of it. It's good to see him having the success with all the things he had to overcome."

On good to get a win:

"Great. Fantastic. I don't take any of them for granted. They (UMass) work their tails off. Out their before the game I said to myself a pretty good looking group of guys. I don't think it was recruiting why they haven't had a lot of success. I think they are going to get some wins. We'll find out, but we'll take a win any time."

On Jha'Quan Jackson:

"Really dynamic punt returner without question. He got behind that guy. I thought he got in the end zone, but they (the refs) said he didn't (Jackson was down inside the 1 on a catch initially ruled a TD). But a great job by him. He had a tough season last year. He was banged up, injured, kept coming back and playing and it was hard on him. Two years ago he had a great season for us. We're going to see when he's going to be able to come back."

On Jim Svoboda and offensive staff organization:

"They did a really nice job. I'm on the phone with them, and there was excellent communication from the box down to the field, getting the right guys in. The one thing we've got to work on is when we're going fast paced is to not sub. Sometimes guys had said they wanted to sub, and that defeats the benefit of trying to go fast. We'll work on. That's something you have to work on in that first game."

On going for it on fourth-and-4 from own 49 in first quarter and failing:

"Well, we're big into analytics. Some people hate it, but it was a go (for it situation according to analytics). Now I look at it and wish I hadn't of gone for it. You can't take it back. If we had made it, it was a hell of a call. it was fourth-and-4 and it (analytics calling for trying for the first down) was right at 4)."

On defense:

"They did a nice job. We knew there was going to be some quarterback run, but we didn't know they were going to do that many. I think (Gino Campiotti) threw the ball one time (the official stats did not have him with any passes) there at the end of the game, and that was it, so they had a good game plan. When the quarterback's running, you're playing 11 on 11 football and you have to fit it up really well. It took us a little while to understand our fits and who had which gap. We kind of got going with it in the second half, and they didn't have much success with it. When they did throw, we got a few sacks at the end of the game and three interceptions. That's good. We work hard in practice on ball security. I pride myself on doing a great job of ball security. Every day I'm going over with our defensive coaches what we're going to do as far as takeaways are concerned, so we really work on that. I believe we were plus-2 (in turnover margin) today. I haven't lost very many games when we've been plus-2 or better."

On Esnard making all of his kicks:

"It was good that we made them all. He should, so we're excited about that. We had a tough time with field goals last season and you've got to be able to do that, but our big thing we talk about, we get inside the 20, we score touchdowns instead of kicking field goals. We hold them to field goals instead of letting them have touchdowns. We work on that area of the field a lot."

On rain earlier in day:

"I was a little worried about the weather. When we were at our hotel it was coming down hard and I though, gosh darn it, I wish we would have nice weather in the first game. It was really a pretty nice night. It sprinkled a little bit and that was all, but we're not going to rest on our laurels. This was one game, that's it. We're going to get back to work tomorrow."

Welcome to another year of Pick 'em.

The rules remain the same. We pick eight games versus the pointspread each week that Tulane plays. The Tulane game counts double, the home team is listed first, neutral games are designated as such and the point spreads come from VegasInsider.com consensus.

Tulane (-28.5) UMass
East Carolina (+11.5) North Carolina State
Arkansas (-6) Cincinnati
Florida (+3) Utah
Ohio State (-17) Notre Dame
Mississippi State (-15) Memphis
Georgia (-17.5) Oregon (Atlanta)
LSU (-3) Florida State (New Orleans)

On the local sports yesterday there was a reporter on the field with the press box in the background. It looked like there was construction going on. If so will it be done by Saturday?

Willie Fritz delivered on his promise to announce his starting placekicker after Wednesday's practice, and the winner is Kriston Esnard.

Esnard, who has an incredible leg, begin kicking straight in preseason camp after having serious issues in practice during his freshman season last year and again this past spring. If he can maintain that form in games, Tulane will have quite the weapon, but his performance under pressure remains to be seen. He beat out walk-on Graham Dable in a two-way battle after Valentino Ambrosio sustained a leg injury two weeks into camp.

"Kriston will be our kicker," Fritz said. "He's got a great leg and he's had a great camp. He really has. He's done a good job with his get-off time, too, and he's won the job. We graphed it, and he did better."

Fritz said it was easier to pick a kicker than other positions because they can make the competition completely fair. Esnard and Dable operated with the same snapper and holder from the same spots on the field for all of their attempts, giving no one an inherent advantage or disadvantage.

Fritz said Ambrosio would be out at least a couple of weeks, so Esnard has a real chance to establish himself. For sure, everyone will be anxious on his first attempt.

I finally asked about the wide receiver starters, and Fritz said Jha'Quan Jackson and Phat Watts would rotate in and out at one spot, with Duece Watts and Lawrence Keys rotating in and out at another spot and Shae Wyatt and Dea Dea McDougall rotating in and out at the third spot. That leaves Bryce Bohnanon and true freshmen Chris Brazzell and Jalen Rogers out of the top rotation, which was predictable considering their inexperience. I have felt like Keys and Wyatt were the most consistent at the position in August, but I would not be surprised if any of the top six emerges as a playmaker. Fritz said Jackson would be a starter, and I assume Wyatt and Duece Watts will be the other two playing on the first snap, but again, it doesn't matter. Production will determine the pecking order down the road.

The backup cornerbacks and safeties in practice today were Jarius Monroe and Shi' Keem Laister (CB) and DJ Douglas and Bailey Despanie at safety.

The linebackers and DBs practiced tackling a donut for good form today, a staple drill for Fritz that I have not seen as much this August as in the past. It's possible they have moved it up near the beginning of practice and I missed it on other days.

Casey Glover walked on the sideline while others were punting today, and an observer asked him why he wasn't out there. He explained he punts on Tuesdays and Thursdays at practice and that's the way it has been since he arrived. The other three guys--Bobby Noel, Brice Busch and Ethan Greenberg--were punting for a punt return and coverage drill rather than an actual punting drill. Greenberg, a freshman walk-on from Georgia, got off some nice ones.

UMass probably has more unknowns about it than any team Tulane has faced under Fritz. The Minutemen have a new coach, new coordinators and about 43 new players in an overhaul after going 1-11 last year. Preparing for them is a little tricky.

"You have to look at a lot of what-ifs and you look at everybody on their staff," Fritz said. "The one thing that's good is you've got all summer to kind of guess what they are going to do. It's like special teams. This guy hasn't been special teams coordinator for a long time, but he's been at a bunch of different schools, so you kind of look at that a little bit. There are some areas you've got to be vanilla with the first week when you don't have tape. There are other areas you have a pretty good beed on. Defensively they are going to do what coach (Don) Brown has always done. That's his baby. But we're going to change some stuff up, too. The first game is a game of corrections and making adjustments during the game."

I also talked to Nick Anderson and Dorian Willams today.

ANDERSON

On how his sister (Addison Anderson) is doing after getting in awful car accident this time a year ago:

"It was a year ago August 29th. She's doing great. She's made a complete recovery. God is good. She even had to have the hole in her skull repaired, and actually the skull is growing back. The bone is growing back. It's just a blessing to see those pictures from a year ago, and to look at her now is almost scary. It's a testament to how good God is, but she's doing great. I was able to go home last week. She's in band (at Vicksburg High) and works with the color guard. I saw her perform and to see the smile on her face brightens up my day just to see like a year ago i could have lost my sister, but God just gave her another chance in life, so it's amazing."

On difference from a year ago for the whole team:

"It's just better to be able to focus on school and football, not to have those outside distractions and outside problems. It's a testament to how our season is going to go. I'm big spiritually, and the Bible says there is a time for everything--a time for good and a time for bad. I just feel like last year was out time to go through trials and tribulations, but now is the time for our breakthrough, our success story. We had to go through that so we could have a testament at the end of the season of how good God is and how we rallied and stayed together to accomplish a common goal."

On getting to play opener at home this time:

It's great to just see the excitement on campus, being at practice seeing these guys set up the stadium and making all these preparations to have a Tulane home game and just get that feeling back of playing on our home turf after everything that happened last year is amazing. I really can't wait to run out that tunnel and see the crowd, see my family and just enjoy this last ride. It's going to be exciting."

On family in attendance:

"They are coming deep. I have to get like 26 tickets together, but it's great to have them in the stands."

On what makes Shae Wyatt a good receiver:

"Just his work ethic. Shae's one of those guys, on the field he doesn't really talk much. He reminds me a lot of Darnell Mooney. He just puts his head down, comes in ready to work, knows this is his opportunity that he was given. He doesn't take it for granted each and every day he steps on that field. Some of the catches he makes are spectacular. He's not one of the guys that makes a catch and taunts the DB. He knows he is going to make another one. It's a part of his game, and to see how he challenges himself to come out here and be great is inspiring, especially when he's one of those quiet guys that just works. He's a dynamic receiver, and I can't wait to see how he goes into his second year here."

On preparing for UMass:

Week by week, the biggest thing is fine tuning what we can do ourselves and making sure that we're on par with our schemes and what we've got to do. UMass is going to be pretty talented. They've got transfers from all over. They've got a great coaching staff. I'm not looking at this game like a check off the schedule. I definitely respect them as a quality opponent, but at the end of the day it comes down to us. We've just got to come out here and play our style of ball no matter who lines up across from us. We've just got to take care of our business, and that's one of the things the coaches have been preaching. We're going over schemes, but they could come out and run something we've never seen, but as long as we're doing our job all across the board, we're going to be OK."

DORIAN WILLIAMS

On memories of last year at this time:

"We didn't know we were going to be leaving until a day before. They told us to pack for a couple of days. They didn't think the hurricane was going to be as bad. it just feels good to have the stadium back and have the fans come back and be in the stadium for real this time. The year before with COVID we couldn't have people in the stadium, so it will be nice to finally open up with fans in the stadium."

On how hard last year was:

"It was definitely tough. It was harder on the mentality of the guys, especially the guys from Louisiana. A lot of guys were worried about their family and we all had houses down here as well, and we didn't know what was going on down here. It's nice to finally have that stuff out the way and get the team together."

On hotel experience:

"It was a little bit of a zoo. Some guy had a snake. Different reptiles, hamsters, dogs, everything running around. We bonded a lot. There was nowhere to go, so we saw each other every day, played cards and kind of got bored out there, but there's no feeling like being back home."

on UMass unpredictability;

"We will worry about our assignments. Every week you want to do your assignment. Our whole thing is holding everybody accountable. You come off the field, you mess up, you mess up. It happens to everybody. Just holding accountability so you can get those things fixed on the sideline."

On defensive potential:

"It's going to feel great getting back out here with the guys and to finally get to actually hit. We build more of bond during the season when guys are flying around making plays and having a good time. It's going to be fun. We have a lot of experience."

A lot of talk has been made about all the transfers UMass has gotten. I quickly looked down their roster at the transfers. They certainly have gotten them from everywhere. They seem to have a pipeline from Rutgers to Umass. They also have a fair number of P5 transfers from other Big 10 schools.

Looking at these guys it appears most have hardly played. A fair number never played at their previous school. I easily could have missed someone but it appears only one transfer started all of last year for their previous school and that is an Olineman from Rice. I saw one receiver with 27 catches last year which is a decent number. The rest had less than 5 tackles, rushes, or catches at prior stops.

The closest position battles leading up to Tulane's opener against UMASS are at right guard, where Kanan Ray is trying to hold off Trey Tuggle, cornerback, where Lance Robinson and Jarius Monroe are competing, and kicker, where Willie Fritz said he would wait until after Wednesday's practice to make an announcement. The third wide receiver is up for grabs alongside Shae Wyatt and Duece Watts, but as I've written before, that decision is irrelevant because it will last only one or two plays. I consider Lawrence Keys the third starter regardless of who goes out on the field first.

This morning, Darius Hodges was back with the first team at joker after practicing with the third unit for most of last week. No surprise there. It may have been some type of internal discipline. Tuggle was working with the first-team offensive line against the first-team defense (which won that segment comfortably) when I got there, but later Ray went with the first team against the scout team defense and I'd be very surprised if Ray did not start Saturday. I expect Robinson to start at the second cornerback spot instead of Monroe, but I'm less certain there and clearly both of them are slated to play considerably. At linebacker, Jesus Machado rotates in with the first unit when Nick Anderson or Dorian Williams needs a rest, and he likely will get almost all of the action when they need a reserve against UMass rather than the other second-team linebacker, Corey Platt.

I expect the kicking situation to come down to Kriston Esnard and Graham Dable because Valentino Ambrosio did not practice again today. Leg injures tend to linger with kickers, as I wrote the second he was out. It will be a very scary situation if Esnard or Dable has to make a pressure kick. Neither performed well today after Esnard had been sharp the previous two weeks.

There were four scholarship players on the scout-team defense--cornerback T..J. Huggins and linemen Parker Peterson, Gerrod Henderson and Maxie Baudoin.

There were four scholarship players on the scout-team offense--linemen Jackson Fort, Keanon McNally, Joseph Solomon and Nik Hogan. Fort, who worked with the second team for a lot of preseason camp, has fallen down the depth chart. He and McNally actually got into a fight at one point and were still simmering after teammates separated them.

Shadre Hurst appears to be the backup center if Tulane needs one against UMass. I doubt Caleb Thomas will be available.

Fritz said Keys would be the primary kickoff returner and Jha'Quan Jackson would return punts.

This was the hottest practice of the preseason. I started sweating while sitting in the stands, which, for the first time ever, had not happened once in the first three weeks.

Fritz, Michael Pratt, Shae Wyatt and Jim Svoboda spoke at the press conference:

FRITZ

"We had a nice cool day to work out in (joking). It was a little NOLA weather. I hope it's like this on Saturday. We're excited about it. We took the weekend off. The NCAA is allowing you to have footballs in practice now, so we've really been training for about two months. We've got everything in and are raring to go for Saturday night. We had a pretty mild camp. It's been pretty decent weather. A bunch of rain showers. We had to stop practice only twice because of rain, but it almost looked like it was going to rain every day, so we were very fortunate to get our practices in."

On health and depth;

"We're pretty healthy. I feel like that's one of the strengths of our team. We have some depth. A couple of positions we are going to have to develop depth with some young guys being forced to play, but right now we're a little deeper than we've been in the past."

On Svoboda:

"He's been game planning for a long time. He's been a head coach at Nebraska Wesleyan and did a heck of a job there and at Central Missouri, my old school, UCLA, Montana State, so he's got a lot of experience putting the game plan together. There isn't really much he hasn't seen before."

On Svoboda's offense:

"There are a lot of similarities to last year and the year before and the year before that. But how we do things, there's a big difference in play calling. We have three different ways we can call plays, and it's really pretty simple for the guys. it would be hard for someone to pick it up and know what we're doing, so that's something that's kind of Jim's own deal that he brought here."

On kicker:

"We are probably going to name our kicker tomorrow. We've got one more day of competition. so that will happen. We are going to have one more day of competition. It's pretty close."

On Chris Hampton:

"He's added a few things, but a lot of it we've done before. We played really good defense the last five weeks of the season. We want to start off that way on Saturday. The last five weeks we played about as good defense as anybody in the conference. We've got a lot of returning guys. We'll probably roll about eight to 10 defensive linemen. We'll play our two inside linebackers most of the time. We may also have a couple of backups play there. The secondary is the area we are going to have to develop a little bit of depth, get a couple of these freshmen playing for us."

On flashbacks to Ida:

"We've just got to get through the week and everything will be OK. I met somebody the other day from Birmingham, and he said have you ever been there before? I said, yeah, I was there for a month. I know a lot of people there. No, we just want to have a regular season. It's been two years for us, so we want to have a regular season. Two years was difficult for everyone, but the last two years have been difficult for us and Nicholls and Southeastern. It was a different year."

On Shae Wyatt:

"He's very valuable. Great hands. He's an excellent route runner. He has better speed than you think and is just a smart and savvy player."

On step up from DII:

"That league that he came from, I know a lot about it and Jim Svoboda knows a lot about it. I consider it the top Division II league in the nation. They've had a lot of really good players that have gone on and played in the NFL from that league, so if you're a great player in that league, you can definitely play Division I football."

On UMASS coach Don Brown's defenses belng blitz happy at previous stops:

"He does an excellent job defensively every place he's been. We watched him when he was at Michigan and when he was Arizona, and we watched the tape from their spring game, which was actually on TV. He gets in and out of an odd and even front and does blitz quite a bit. It will be interesting to see how much he's got in right now because it's a whole new system for them."

PRATT

On flashbacks to a year ago:

"Yeah, we were in Birmingham right now. It's good to be home and have a first home game. Last year we didn't get to do that in week 1, so I'm happy to come out to Yulman."

On Svoboda:

"He's awesome. He's a really good coach. He doesn't try to make things too complex, like I've said before. I would hate to say that our offense is simple because it's not, but he does a really good job of not trying to overcoach things. He stays true to our reads. Sometimes defense is just going to play well, but he doesn't go back and forth between what the reads are. He''s very consistent and doesn't try to overcoach things."

On Wyatt:

"He's awesome. His ball skills. He's got great hips. He can get in and out of breaks really well. He's a really good one-on-one matchup. When I see him out there one on one, he's a guy that I'm definitely looking at. It's great to have that confidence in him. He makes a lot of big-time plays and adjusts to the ball really well. He's an exciting player to watch."

On rapport developing quickly last year with Wyatt:

"Just his work ethic, his attention to detail was something that I noticed first, coming in and having a good attitude every day. His performance on the field followed that and that's when we really started that bond and that chemistry together."

On focus this week:

"Just to play ball. The whole offseason is long. It's tedious. Now we have an opportunity to come out here and compete and show everything that we've been putting forth in practice, so it's been a major emphasis to just come out here and execute, do what we've been coached to do and everything will take care of itself from there."

On different way to get plays in:

"We'll have a couple of different ways. We do our wrist band. We'll have a bunch of different tempo stuff and signals and whatnot. He does a good job of mixing that up. It's hard for defenses to start on a fast tempo, be slowed down and then pick it back up. He tries to emphasize that a little bit."

On where his game has improved:

"Picking up blitzes, communication with the offensive line. Every year the game has just slowed down. I've had way more reps that I've had last year and the year before, so you pick up on things--coverages, blitzes, stuff like that so you can kind of cancel off certain reads through your progression and be a little quicker and have some better timing on things."

On what seen from film of UMass:

"It's actually tough because we don't have a lot of film on them. They've got a new defensive coordinator and something like 19 transfers. We know they are going to play a lot of man, a little bit of cover 2. Our biggest thing is when we get our matchups, we've got to win them and I've got to deliver a good ball."