Tulane practiced an hour later than normal this morning. Running back Darius Bradwell did not practice and I doubt he will play against UConn. The same goes for defensive tackle Alfred Thomas, but everyone else who has logged significant downs appears available.
My focus for this report is the offensive line, which is playing better than any Tulane offensive line since I started covering the team in 2010. When LT Tyler Johnson went out with a leg injury in practice the week after the opener against FIU, the coaches moved Joey Claybrook from RT to LT, Keyshawn McLeod from RG to RT and inserted Virginia grad transfer Ben Knutson at right guard. I expected a lesser performance, but instead it was the opposite. Those guys have developed good chemistry along with left guard Corey Dublin and center Christian Montano, and the way Tulane knocked Army off the ball Saturday was impressive.
"They are really doing a good job," Willie Fritz said. "I've been very impressed with those guys and how they meshed together. People think it's not that big of a deal going from right tackle to left tackle or right guard. It's a big deal. Angles and leverage and pulls. They've done a good job. Keyshawn McLeod can play any place, which is great for us."
McLeod's development as the only fifth-year scholarship senior left from before Fritz arrived has been unexpected. He played a fair amount throughout his career, but he rarely played well, losing his job each time he started. Not this time.
"He's developed," Fritz said. "He's gotten better every year. Coach Atkins did a very good job with him and now coach (Cody) Kennedy has done a good job with him and he's just gotten better. He's gotten stronger. He's done a good job in the weight room with coach (Kyle) Speer and all those guys, but most of all it's him wanting to do it. He's stuck with it, he wants to be a good player, he's got a lot of pride and he's doing it."
Fritz explained why the coaches moved Claybrook to the left side and put McLeod at right tackle after Johnson's injury. It's simply that McLeod had not played left tackle before and Claybrook had, so they went with what would be most comfortable.
Knutson, who last started a pair of games in 2017 at Virginia before entering the lineup, needs to improve his conditioning now that he's playing every down, but he is effective when fresh.
"He's doing a good job," Fritz said. "He's getting better and better. He's a big guy. When he gets pointed in the right direction, he's dominating."
Tyler Johnson got some reps today, but it is looking like he might get redshirted and come back for another year. He is a true senior and has not played since getting hurt in practice the week after the opener (even though Tulane lists him as playing against Auburn, he did not).
With McLeod finishing his eligibility this fall and the line playing very well without Johnson, the move would make sense. Obviously, it hinges on everyone staying healthy the rest of the way. Some insiders considered Johnson the best lineman on the team in preseason drills.
"It's a possibility (to redshirt him)," Fritz said. "We're just seeing what's going on."
I also talked to Claybrook, McLeod and offensive line coach Cody Kennedy. For now I've transcribed Claybrook. I've always sensed resistance in interviews from the offensive linemen who have been in the program for a while because I've written a lot of negative copy on them in the past, but if they keep playing like this, it won't be an issue.
CLAYBROOK
You were entrenched at right tackle and then had to move to left tackle after the first game. It seems like is has gone pretty well. What are your thoughts?
"We all practice and play each position. Just each of us being reliable, we really practice on that, just making sure we can play each position in case anybody goes down."
How have you jelled?
"We've jelled very well. It's a big family in the O-line room. We all love each other and all have each other's backs no matter what happens."
It's been a long time since Tulane's offense was looked at as anything but a weakness. How nice it to play like you're playing now, and how frustrating was it to get that criticism in the past?
"It's awesome. I'm going on my third year here now and redshirted in my first year, and I've had to hear that ever since I was committed here and everything. We were just determined to change it, and we're still working to do that. Everybody sees we're doing well, but we're still not where we want to be, so we're just keeping on grinding every day to get there."
There have been six sacks through five games. Last year there were a lot more.
"Like coach Hall says, that's our form of ball security--protecting the quarterback. We really pride ourselves on straining past the whistle and just protecting our quarterback the best we can. We really take pride in that."
How much does Corey Dublin help you lining up next to him?
"He's good. We all help each other communicate. He's got the most experience under his belt. I came in with him in our freshman class and he started and I redshirted. It's been nice to learn a lot from him, but we all help each other out."
How good can this offense be this year?
"I feel with the weapons that we have and such good coaching, the only people that can stop us is ourselves. As long as we're executing and staying in a rhythm, nobody can stop us except ourselves."
The only real negative was all the false start penalties in the first four games. What was going on?
"We can't make excuses that defenses were (simulating the snap). It's all our mental focus. That's something we really, really worked on last week because it was one of our biggest problems. We've had our defense making sure they were yelling at us before the snap. It's just mental focus and what we've really harped on."
What's Cody Kennedy like as a coach?
"He's awesome. He brings such good energy every day and he relates to us. He played O-line and I feel like that's really important, so he understands what we go through. We love running the ball and he loves running the ball and that's nice."
There were several plays against Army where the running backs had huge holes.
"That's the best feeling in football. If it was up to me, we'd run every play. I love it. Our backs are awesome. They make it easy on us. We've got every type of back you could ask for and we're really close with all of them."
MCLEOD
The line changed in three spots when Tyler Johnson got injured in practice the week before the Auburn game, but the group appears to be playing better now than in a long time. What is your assessment?
"We're playing phenomenal right now. The biggest thing is we can't get too happy with that. We just have to keep it up, but we're playing great right now. It's good to see that happen. We're playing as a unit right now, so that's great."
There were times against Army when running backs were 10 yards down the field before they had to juke anyone. How nice was that feeling?
"It's a good feeling, man, just to know that we're playing as unit. I've seen both sides of it--not playing good and playing good, but we're playing as a unit now, so that's great."
What's been the difference for you personally this year?
"The difference is our coaching staff and our players and everybody feels like we're doing great as a team. Everybody sees we made a bowl last year and that's not our goal this year. Our goal is to go into conference championships."
The offensive line had not done great in the past. How does it feel to be a true reason the team is winning?
"Listen, we have the most confidence in ourselves and each other, so that's the biggest thing. We're playing as a unit right now, and that's great."
Was it tough to take the criticism in the past?
"Yeah. For people to say that, like I said, man, we always had confidence in ourselves but it's just things were missing. We're putting them together now and we've got to keep it up."
You line up next to Ben Knutson, and he's a big dude. What is he bringing to the line?
"He brings a big frame, good hands, he knows what's going on and is a pretty smart guy. He helps me out a lot. When I don't realize something, he'll tell me and we'll get the job done."
My focus for this report is the offensive line, which is playing better than any Tulane offensive line since I started covering the team in 2010. When LT Tyler Johnson went out with a leg injury in practice the week after the opener against FIU, the coaches moved Joey Claybrook from RT to LT, Keyshawn McLeod from RG to RT and inserted Virginia grad transfer Ben Knutson at right guard. I expected a lesser performance, but instead it was the opposite. Those guys have developed good chemistry along with left guard Corey Dublin and center Christian Montano, and the way Tulane knocked Army off the ball Saturday was impressive.
"They are really doing a good job," Willie Fritz said. "I've been very impressed with those guys and how they meshed together. People think it's not that big of a deal going from right tackle to left tackle or right guard. It's a big deal. Angles and leverage and pulls. They've done a good job. Keyshawn McLeod can play any place, which is great for us."
McLeod's development as the only fifth-year scholarship senior left from before Fritz arrived has been unexpected. He played a fair amount throughout his career, but he rarely played well, losing his job each time he started. Not this time.
"He's developed," Fritz said. "He's gotten better every year. Coach Atkins did a very good job with him and now coach (Cody) Kennedy has done a good job with him and he's just gotten better. He's gotten stronger. He's done a good job in the weight room with coach (Kyle) Speer and all those guys, but most of all it's him wanting to do it. He's stuck with it, he wants to be a good player, he's got a lot of pride and he's doing it."
Fritz explained why the coaches moved Claybrook to the left side and put McLeod at right tackle after Johnson's injury. It's simply that McLeod had not played left tackle before and Claybrook had, so they went with what would be most comfortable.
Knutson, who last started a pair of games in 2017 at Virginia before entering the lineup, needs to improve his conditioning now that he's playing every down, but he is effective when fresh.
"He's doing a good job," Fritz said. "He's getting better and better. He's a big guy. When he gets pointed in the right direction, he's dominating."
Tyler Johnson got some reps today, but it is looking like he might get redshirted and come back for another year. He is a true senior and has not played since getting hurt in practice the week after the opener (even though Tulane lists him as playing against Auburn, he did not).
With McLeod finishing his eligibility this fall and the line playing very well without Johnson, the move would make sense. Obviously, it hinges on everyone staying healthy the rest of the way. Some insiders considered Johnson the best lineman on the team in preseason drills.
"It's a possibility (to redshirt him)," Fritz said. "We're just seeing what's going on."
I also talked to Claybrook, McLeod and offensive line coach Cody Kennedy. For now I've transcribed Claybrook. I've always sensed resistance in interviews from the offensive linemen who have been in the program for a while because I've written a lot of negative copy on them in the past, but if they keep playing like this, it won't be an issue.
CLAYBROOK
You were entrenched at right tackle and then had to move to left tackle after the first game. It seems like is has gone pretty well. What are your thoughts?
"We all practice and play each position. Just each of us being reliable, we really practice on that, just making sure we can play each position in case anybody goes down."
How have you jelled?
"We've jelled very well. It's a big family in the O-line room. We all love each other and all have each other's backs no matter what happens."
It's been a long time since Tulane's offense was looked at as anything but a weakness. How nice it to play like you're playing now, and how frustrating was it to get that criticism in the past?
"It's awesome. I'm going on my third year here now and redshirted in my first year, and I've had to hear that ever since I was committed here and everything. We were just determined to change it, and we're still working to do that. Everybody sees we're doing well, but we're still not where we want to be, so we're just keeping on grinding every day to get there."
There have been six sacks through five games. Last year there were a lot more.
"Like coach Hall says, that's our form of ball security--protecting the quarterback. We really pride ourselves on straining past the whistle and just protecting our quarterback the best we can. We really take pride in that."
How much does Corey Dublin help you lining up next to him?
"He's good. We all help each other communicate. He's got the most experience under his belt. I came in with him in our freshman class and he started and I redshirted. It's been nice to learn a lot from him, but we all help each other out."
How good can this offense be this year?
"I feel with the weapons that we have and such good coaching, the only people that can stop us is ourselves. As long as we're executing and staying in a rhythm, nobody can stop us except ourselves."
The only real negative was all the false start penalties in the first four games. What was going on?
"We can't make excuses that defenses were (simulating the snap). It's all our mental focus. That's something we really, really worked on last week because it was one of our biggest problems. We've had our defense making sure they were yelling at us before the snap. It's just mental focus and what we've really harped on."
What's Cody Kennedy like as a coach?
"He's awesome. He brings such good energy every day and he relates to us. He played O-line and I feel like that's really important, so he understands what we go through. We love running the ball and he loves running the ball and that's nice."
There were several plays against Army where the running backs had huge holes.
"That's the best feeling in football. If it was up to me, we'd run every play. I love it. Our backs are awesome. They make it easy on us. We've got every type of back you could ask for and we're really close with all of them."
MCLEOD
The line changed in three spots when Tyler Johnson got injured in practice the week before the Auburn game, but the group appears to be playing better now than in a long time. What is your assessment?
"We're playing phenomenal right now. The biggest thing is we can't get too happy with that. We just have to keep it up, but we're playing great right now. It's good to see that happen. We're playing as a unit right now, so that's great."
There were times against Army when running backs were 10 yards down the field before they had to juke anyone. How nice was that feeling?
"It's a good feeling, man, just to know that we're playing as unit. I've seen both sides of it--not playing good and playing good, but we're playing as a unit now, so that's great."
What's been the difference for you personally this year?
"The difference is our coaching staff and our players and everybody feels like we're doing great as a team. Everybody sees we made a bowl last year and that's not our goal this year. Our goal is to go into conference championships."
The offensive line had not done great in the past. How does it feel to be a true reason the team is winning?
"Listen, we have the most confidence in ourselves and each other, so that's the biggest thing. We're playing as a unit right now, and that's great."
Was it tough to take the criticism in the past?
"Yeah. For people to say that, like I said, man, we always had confidence in ourselves but it's just things were missing. We're putting them together now and we've got to keep it up."
You line up next to Ben Knutson, and he's a big dude. What is he bringing to the line?
"He brings a big frame, good hands, he knows what's going on and is a pretty smart guy. He helps me out a lot. When I don't realize something, he'll tell me and we'll get the job done."
