Picking the most outstanding offensive and defensive players for Tulane this year is not easy.
First, note the wording. I hate "MVP" awards because then you're basically giving the honor based on the quality of someone's backup, which always has been a strange way to give awards in my opinion. Anyway, it is difficult to pick a most outstanding player for different reasons on both sides of the ball.
On offense, despite The Green Wave averaging the second-most points in school history, there are no truly standout candidates. Michael Pratt established himself as Tulane's long-time quarterback of the future by playing pretty darn well in the present as a freshman, but he did not play in the first two games and did not play well in his first and last starts against Houston and Nevada, although the offensive line crumbling around him was a huge factor in both rough games. He led all freshman QBs with 20 touchdown passes but his 55-percent completion rate was modest. Cameron Carroll rushed for 12 touchdowns, an incredible total, but otherwise he was the third-best back on the team behind Tyjae Spears, who would have been the MOP if he had not gotten hurt, and Stephon Huderson. I give a lukewarm vote for Huderson, who did little before Spears got hurt but averaged 6.1 yards per carry in the last nine games, gaining about 82 yards per game in that span. He fumbled in four straighg games, though, so it's not an easy call by any means. You could make a strong case for Sincere Haynesworth, who did not allow a sack according to Football Focus, but I did not watch him closely enough to get a true measure of his performance.
On defense, there are four legitimately worthy candidates--Patrick Johnson, Cam Sample, Nick Anderson and Dorian Williams. I could make a case for all of them and maybe even convince myself. Johnson had double-digit sacks on his way to setting the school career record. Sample was effective down in and down out with the notable exception of Tulsa's Hail Mary, when his losing containment allowed the receivers enough time to get set in the back of the end zone before the ball arrived (though the real fault clearly lay with the secondary). Anderson, who was second on the team with 88 stops, including 10.5 for loss, is a tackling machine when he is on the field and an outstanding leader as well.
But my pick is the versatile Williams, who had a team-high 98 tackles with a whopping 16.5 behind the line of scrimmage despite starting only once in the first eight games. He also was decent in coverage. He did not receive all of the honors he deserved, but he will get them next year if he matches his performance as an unknown sophomore. He had 10 or more tackles in five games and set a career high with 14 against Nevada, when he played a big part in the goal line stand at the beginning of the game. He did it all for a defense that was very good in the front six but struggled mightily in the secondary.
Both of my selections are very much up for debate. Who are your picks?
First, note the wording. I hate "MVP" awards because then you're basically giving the honor based on the quality of someone's backup, which always has been a strange way to give awards in my opinion. Anyway, it is difficult to pick a most outstanding player for different reasons on both sides of the ball.
On offense, despite The Green Wave averaging the second-most points in school history, there are no truly standout candidates. Michael Pratt established himself as Tulane's long-time quarterback of the future by playing pretty darn well in the present as a freshman, but he did not play in the first two games and did not play well in his first and last starts against Houston and Nevada, although the offensive line crumbling around him was a huge factor in both rough games. He led all freshman QBs with 20 touchdown passes but his 55-percent completion rate was modest. Cameron Carroll rushed for 12 touchdowns, an incredible total, but otherwise he was the third-best back on the team behind Tyjae Spears, who would have been the MOP if he had not gotten hurt, and Stephon Huderson. I give a lukewarm vote for Huderson, who did little before Spears got hurt but averaged 6.1 yards per carry in the last nine games, gaining about 82 yards per game in that span. He fumbled in four straighg games, though, so it's not an easy call by any means. You could make a strong case for Sincere Haynesworth, who did not allow a sack according to Football Focus, but I did not watch him closely enough to get a true measure of his performance.
On defense, there are four legitimately worthy candidates--Patrick Johnson, Cam Sample, Nick Anderson and Dorian Williams. I could make a case for all of them and maybe even convince myself. Johnson had double-digit sacks on his way to setting the school career record. Sample was effective down in and down out with the notable exception of Tulsa's Hail Mary, when his losing containment allowed the receivers enough time to get set in the back of the end zone before the ball arrived (though the real fault clearly lay with the secondary). Anderson, who was second on the team with 88 stops, including 10.5 for loss, is a tackling machine when he is on the field and an outstanding leader as well.
But my pick is the versatile Williams, who had a team-high 98 tackles with a whopping 16.5 behind the line of scrimmage despite starting only once in the first eight games. He also was decent in coverage. He did not receive all of the honors he deserved, but he will get them next year if he matches his performance as an unknown sophomore. He had 10 or more tackles in five games and set a career high with 14 against Nevada, when he played a big part in the goal line stand at the beginning of the game. He did it all for a defense that was very good in the front six but struggled mightily in the secondary.
Both of my selections are very much up for debate. Who are your picks?
