With the exception of Rayshawn Pleasant, Tulane has not lost a player who would have been a likely starter and significant difference-maker to the transfer portal since the spring semester started, although Adonis Friloux definitely could have been an important rotational piece and Jesus Machado could have been a factor if he regained belief in his knee. I had not heard anything about Ty Cooper likely leaving, but I also do not believe he was on the two-deep depth chart, so he likely saw the writing on the wall. Sidney Mbanasor simply never made enough plays as the tall target the coaches wanted, and Kellen Tasby looked better in that role from the day he switched to wideout than Mbanasor ever did. That means Tulane never got anything out of its post-spring transfers at wideout last year, with Khai Prean leaving at the end of the fall and now Mbanasor departing.
Here is my projected depth chart with analysis at each position on offense. I will do defense tomorrow.
QUARTERBACK
1) Kadin Semonza or Donovan Leary
2) Kadin Semonza or Donovan Leary
Analysis: Even though both of them had really rough days in the spring game, the QBs were ahead of where the three QBs were at this time last spring in the last week of practice. That's not really relevant, though, because Darian Mensah improved exponentially over the summer, and that type of improvement is an outlier rather than the norm. Tulane is going to bring in another QB to join the fray, but that obviously will have missed all of the spring and will come in behind. I have no idea who will end up being the starting QB--no idea--but I'm slightly partial to Semonza, who made plays off schedule frequently in the spring. Leary is the slightly better athlete and has a stronger arm, but I'm not sure about his decision-making. The concern with Semonza, though, is he sometimes panics and throws the ball up for grabs when he is under pressure, something that simply cannot happen in a game. I'm not worried about his height. The NFL is no place for quarterbacks with his height, but plenty of guys his size flourish in college as passers. The QB that comes in soon definitely will have a chance to win the job, too, but they have to find the right guy. It is not clear that Semonza or Leary can take this team to a championship game.
RUNNING BACK
1) Maurice Turner
2) Jamauri McClure
3) Arnold Barnes
4) Zuberi Mobley or Javin Gordon
Analysis: I list all five guys because all of them have a shot. I've been a McClure guy almost from day 1 of camp last year. He makes more big runs in live 11-on-11 action than any running back Tulane has had in the last 10 years other than Tyjae Spears, and that has to count for something. The concern is his lack of knowledge of the offense, which shows up in blitz pickups. He has to buckle down this summer and in preseason camp to earn the playing time his ability says he deserves. I expect Turner to be the starter against Northwestern because he does everything the right way, but I'm not sure he's an every-down back. He likes to go for the home run and reverse field a lot, but I want to see more from his as a downhill runner. Barnes, who missed most of the last two weeks of drills with a nagging injury, is a physical runner whose attention to detail needs to improve. Gordon, an early-enrolling true freshman, was impressive from the start of spring, and Mobley really came on in the last weeks. I'm not sure there's enough carries for five backs, particularly since Tulane opens with Northwestern and has zero cupcakes on the non-conference schedule, so the latter two will need to show out in camp to earn a shot. Gordon is physical and fast, but is he mentally ready? Mobley has good acceleration and is effective as a receiver out of the backfield, too. Obviously Makhi Hughes' consistency and ability to pick the right hole will be missed, but I like the running back room as a whole and believe McClure can be a difference-maker if his mentality approaches his physicality. In my opinion, this is the strongest position on offense.
WIDE RECEIVER
Starters: Bryce Bohanon, Shazz Preston and Omari Hayes
Backups: Anthony Brown-Stephens, Zycarl Lewis and Jimmy Calloway
In the picture: Garrett Mmahat, Oliver Mitchell and Kellen Tasby
Analysis: They really need to hit on a receiver in the portal, which as I referenced above they did not do last summer, because I don't see a No. 1 in the group like Mario Williams. Bohanon and Preston are locks to start, but Bohanon, who had a very impressive spring, still needs to prove he can get separation in a game after not being much of a factor in his first four years. Preston is big and fast but caught zero passes in two years at Alabama before being bothered by a hamstring injury last year. He did have two touchdown catches, but the first one may have come when he ran the wrong route. Consistency is the challenge for him. I'm completely speculating about Hayes, who missed almost all of the spring with a leg injury, but Sumrall mentioned more than once the coaches thought he was their top pickup out of the portal at wideout. Calloway was limited for most of the spring, too, so I don't really know what he can or cannot do. Brown-Stephens is small but made plays regularly in the spring. Lewis came on in the final two weeks and appears to be well-rounded. Sumrall likes Mmahat, who consistently makes plays in practice, but he had never played receiver in his life until Willie Fritz moved him from quarterback in preseason camp of 2022, and it is not clear he can duplicate his practice feats in games or will be able to get separation. Tasby is the wild card if he sticks around. He is gifted physically and showed a knack for high-pointing the ball in practice, but his learning curve will be pretty steep. Overall, I am as concerned about wideout as quarterback. The top three guys from last year are gone, and no one on the roster is a certain success.
TIGHT END
1) Anthony Miller
2) Justyn Reid
3) Ty Thompson
Analysis: I like offensive coordinator Joe Craddock, but he made what on the surface appears to be one of the most surprising statements I've heard in 16 years covering this team when he said the tight end room could be the best of any G5 school and maybe the entire country. Wow. I didn't see it in the spring. Anthony Miller was solid but does not appear to the weapon Alex Bauman was before he transferred. Justyn Reid made plays here and there but did not look special. And Ty Thompson, who looked really good in the first week playing a brand new position, has a serious knee injury that may or may not heal properly, although Sumrall insisted he would return ahead of schedule in the summer. I don't know. Craddock clearly sees something in this group or he would not have said what he said. It will be interesting to see how much of a factor the tight ends can be.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Left Tackle
1) Derrick Graham
2) Dominic Steward
Left guard
1) Shadre Hurst
2) Jayce Mitchell
Center
1) Jack Hollifield
2) Elijah Baker
Right guard
1) John Bock
2) Landry Cannon
Right tackle
1) Reese Baker
2) Darion Reed
Analysis: I had Jude McCoskey second at right tackle, but with his departure, I'm putting Darion Reed there although he got most of his work at left tackle in the spring. He and Steward may be flip flopped. I'm concerned about this group, too, which got overrun in the spring game and has only two proven performers in Graham and Hurst on the left side. I have not seen enough from any of the other three positions to be confident the offensive line will hold up, although the talent level of Tulane's mostly new defensive front could be distorting the picture. Hollifield started every game at center for Appalachian State last year, so he has experience. Bock started 10 games over the past two seasons at FIU (primarily at center), getting suspended for a calendar year for testing positive for a banned ingredient and returning for the last three games in 2024. Reese Baker is a redshirt freshman, and the other two guys competing at tackle have zero starting experience. If the defensive line is as good a I think it might be, the offensive line will not have to make as much improvement as it appears on the surface, but that's no guarantee. The line simply could not handle the defensive front in most of the live drills this spring. A portal addition who can start would be helpful, but Sumrall said those guys are hard to find in this window. Graham had a connection to the staff last year, having played for them at Troy.
I will write up the defense tomorrow.
Here is my projected depth chart with analysis at each position on offense. I will do defense tomorrow.
QUARTERBACK
1) Kadin Semonza or Donovan Leary
2) Kadin Semonza or Donovan Leary
Analysis: Even though both of them had really rough days in the spring game, the QBs were ahead of where the three QBs were at this time last spring in the last week of practice. That's not really relevant, though, because Darian Mensah improved exponentially over the summer, and that type of improvement is an outlier rather than the norm. Tulane is going to bring in another QB to join the fray, but that obviously will have missed all of the spring and will come in behind. I have no idea who will end up being the starting QB--no idea--but I'm slightly partial to Semonza, who made plays off schedule frequently in the spring. Leary is the slightly better athlete and has a stronger arm, but I'm not sure about his decision-making. The concern with Semonza, though, is he sometimes panics and throws the ball up for grabs when he is under pressure, something that simply cannot happen in a game. I'm not worried about his height. The NFL is no place for quarterbacks with his height, but plenty of guys his size flourish in college as passers. The QB that comes in soon definitely will have a chance to win the job, too, but they have to find the right guy. It is not clear that Semonza or Leary can take this team to a championship game.
RUNNING BACK
1) Maurice Turner
2) Jamauri McClure
3) Arnold Barnes
4) Zuberi Mobley or Javin Gordon
Analysis: I list all five guys because all of them have a shot. I've been a McClure guy almost from day 1 of camp last year. He makes more big runs in live 11-on-11 action than any running back Tulane has had in the last 10 years other than Tyjae Spears, and that has to count for something. The concern is his lack of knowledge of the offense, which shows up in blitz pickups. He has to buckle down this summer and in preseason camp to earn the playing time his ability says he deserves. I expect Turner to be the starter against Northwestern because he does everything the right way, but I'm not sure he's an every-down back. He likes to go for the home run and reverse field a lot, but I want to see more from his as a downhill runner. Barnes, who missed most of the last two weeks of drills with a nagging injury, is a physical runner whose attention to detail needs to improve. Gordon, an early-enrolling true freshman, was impressive from the start of spring, and Mobley really came on in the last weeks. I'm not sure there's enough carries for five backs, particularly since Tulane opens with Northwestern and has zero cupcakes on the non-conference schedule, so the latter two will need to show out in camp to earn a shot. Gordon is physical and fast, but is he mentally ready? Mobley has good acceleration and is effective as a receiver out of the backfield, too. Obviously Makhi Hughes' consistency and ability to pick the right hole will be missed, but I like the running back room as a whole and believe McClure can be a difference-maker if his mentality approaches his physicality. In my opinion, this is the strongest position on offense.
WIDE RECEIVER
Starters: Bryce Bohanon, Shazz Preston and Omari Hayes
Backups: Anthony Brown-Stephens, Zycarl Lewis and Jimmy Calloway
In the picture: Garrett Mmahat, Oliver Mitchell and Kellen Tasby
Analysis: They really need to hit on a receiver in the portal, which as I referenced above they did not do last summer, because I don't see a No. 1 in the group like Mario Williams. Bohanon and Preston are locks to start, but Bohanon, who had a very impressive spring, still needs to prove he can get separation in a game after not being much of a factor in his first four years. Preston is big and fast but caught zero passes in two years at Alabama before being bothered by a hamstring injury last year. He did have two touchdown catches, but the first one may have come when he ran the wrong route. Consistency is the challenge for him. I'm completely speculating about Hayes, who missed almost all of the spring with a leg injury, but Sumrall mentioned more than once the coaches thought he was their top pickup out of the portal at wideout. Calloway was limited for most of the spring, too, so I don't really know what he can or cannot do. Brown-Stephens is small but made plays regularly in the spring. Lewis came on in the final two weeks and appears to be well-rounded. Sumrall likes Mmahat, who consistently makes plays in practice, but he had never played receiver in his life until Willie Fritz moved him from quarterback in preseason camp of 2022, and it is not clear he can duplicate his practice feats in games or will be able to get separation. Tasby is the wild card if he sticks around. He is gifted physically and showed a knack for high-pointing the ball in practice, but his learning curve will be pretty steep. Overall, I am as concerned about wideout as quarterback. The top three guys from last year are gone, and no one on the roster is a certain success.
TIGHT END
1) Anthony Miller
2) Justyn Reid
3) Ty Thompson
Analysis: I like offensive coordinator Joe Craddock, but he made what on the surface appears to be one of the most surprising statements I've heard in 16 years covering this team when he said the tight end room could be the best of any G5 school and maybe the entire country. Wow. I didn't see it in the spring. Anthony Miller was solid but does not appear to the weapon Alex Bauman was before he transferred. Justyn Reid made plays here and there but did not look special. And Ty Thompson, who looked really good in the first week playing a brand new position, has a serious knee injury that may or may not heal properly, although Sumrall insisted he would return ahead of schedule in the summer. I don't know. Craddock clearly sees something in this group or he would not have said what he said. It will be interesting to see how much of a factor the tight ends can be.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Left Tackle
1) Derrick Graham
2) Dominic Steward
Left guard
1) Shadre Hurst
2) Jayce Mitchell
Center
1) Jack Hollifield
2) Elijah Baker
Right guard
1) John Bock
2) Landry Cannon
Right tackle
1) Reese Baker
2) Darion Reed
Analysis: I had Jude McCoskey second at right tackle, but with his departure, I'm putting Darion Reed there although he got most of his work at left tackle in the spring. He and Steward may be flip flopped. I'm concerned about this group, too, which got overrun in the spring game and has only two proven performers in Graham and Hurst on the left side. I have not seen enough from any of the other three positions to be confident the offensive line will hold up, although the talent level of Tulane's mostly new defensive front could be distorting the picture. Hollifield started every game at center for Appalachian State last year, so he has experience. Bock started 10 games over the past two seasons at FIU (primarily at center), getting suspended for a calendar year for testing positive for a banned ingredient and returning for the last three games in 2024. Reese Baker is a redshirt freshman, and the other two guys competing at tackle have zero starting experience. If the defensive line is as good a I think it might be, the offensive line will not have to make as much improvement as it appears on the surface, but that's no guarantee. The line simply could not handle the defensive front in most of the live drills this spring. A portal addition who can start would be helpful, but Sumrall said those guys are hard to find in this window. Graham had a connection to the staff last year, having played for them at Troy.
I will write up the defense tomorrow.
