Friday practices for the Tulane football team are going to be nothing like they were in the past, and that was clearly evident on Wednesday morning as coach Jon Sumrall gave a preview of the day-before-game sessions under him in a simulation of the short work week the Green Wave will have before facing Charlotte on Halloween, with a scrimmage tomorrow night starting at 6. Since it is still preseason came, this one ran an hour-and-a-half (including a stint in the cold trucks) nstead of the hour it will take during the season, but this was not and won't be the traditional light walk-through every team I've covered in the past has done. Citing studies that date back to Oregon under Chip Kelly, Sumrall believes players need to run the day before a game to be in optimal shape for the game, so the team had a lot of 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 non-contact football around a significant emphasis on special teams.
As promised, Darian Mensah continued to get a majority of the reps, and he led the first-team offense right down the field on his first series of 11-on-11. The drive nearly stalled in the red zone when he threw the ball away on first down and could not connect with Yulkeith Brown on a fade to the back of the end zone, but on third down he took advantage of a busted coverage to hit Indiana transfer tight end Anthony Miller for an easy touchdown in the corner of the end zone. No one was within 10 yards of Miller.
Kai Horton went in with the 2s and hit Garrett Mmahat for back-to-back completions, with Mmahat having to slide to the ground to corral the first one. On the next step, Jalen Geiger tipped a hard pass intended for Bryce Bohanon on the inside and Jayden Lewis, wearing No. 17 now, intercepted it. It was a really nice play by Geiger, who has been with the first team at strong safety all week while primary competitor Jack Tchienchou is banged up.
Mensah had another series and got picked off by Bailey Despanie on a careless floater. Despanie, the only member of the secondary who played a significant role for Tulane last year, has has an excellent camp.
Ty Thompson was next and had a completion when Shaadie Clayton-Johnson made a one-handed grab underneath without slowing down and turned it into a sizable gain. No other running back on the team could have made that play. Thompson connected with Bohanon inside, but on the next play, a handoff went awry and the ball ended up on the ground. I can't say whether Thompson was at fault or not, but he has to avoid those plays. He then got sacked on third down by Chris Rodgers, who is part of a talented rotation at linebacker along with Tyler Grubbs, Sam Howard, Makai Williams and Dickson Agu. Grubbs and probably Howard will start, but all five can play.
On a later possession, Thompson had a nice completion to Shaun Nicholas, who has been pretty quiet in camp, before getting sacked by Shi'Keem Laister. Laister has been rushing the passer a lot in camp.
Mensah, using his tight ends effectively, threw a touchdown pass to an open Alex Bauman in a red zone. Horton followed with a scoring toss to Mmahat, his favorite target today, in the corner of the end zone.
They worked extensively on punt and kickoff returns, with the pecking order at punt returner Dontae Fleming, Mario Williams and Bryce Bohanon. The No. 1 kickoff returners were Clayton-Johnson and Bohanon, while Rayshawn Pleasant and Khai Prean worked with the second team. It was not a live drill, but Pleasant took one all the way to the end zone when he found a seam. They also practiced several onside kicks with the emphasis on the return team recovering them, and there was not a single bobble.
Tight end Reggie Brown, who has been solid in camp, was out with an unspecified injury. I did not notice any other new injuries.
Terrell Allen appears to have the edge on Matthew Fobbs-White as the first-team rush end, but that's a position Sumrall specified was a close competition entering Thursday's scrimmage. Gerrod Henderson lined up with the first team at end alongside the regulars inside--Patrick Jenkins and Eric Hicks.
Vincent Murphy continued to be held out of 11-on-11 work in favor of Caleb Thomas, the lone O-line backup with a lot of playing experience. The second-team line today was Reese Baker, Landry Cannon, Elijah Baker, Jayce Mitchell and Darion Reed from left to right.
As promised, Darian Mensah continued to get a majority of the reps, and he led the first-team offense right down the field on his first series of 11-on-11. The drive nearly stalled in the red zone when he threw the ball away on first down and could not connect with Yulkeith Brown on a fade to the back of the end zone, but on third down he took advantage of a busted coverage to hit Indiana transfer tight end Anthony Miller for an easy touchdown in the corner of the end zone. No one was within 10 yards of Miller.
Kai Horton went in with the 2s and hit Garrett Mmahat for back-to-back completions, with Mmahat having to slide to the ground to corral the first one. On the next step, Jalen Geiger tipped a hard pass intended for Bryce Bohanon on the inside and Jayden Lewis, wearing No. 17 now, intercepted it. It was a really nice play by Geiger, who has been with the first team at strong safety all week while primary competitor Jack Tchienchou is banged up.
Mensah had another series and got picked off by Bailey Despanie on a careless floater. Despanie, the only member of the secondary who played a significant role for Tulane last year, has has an excellent camp.
Ty Thompson was next and had a completion when Shaadie Clayton-Johnson made a one-handed grab underneath without slowing down and turned it into a sizable gain. No other running back on the team could have made that play. Thompson connected with Bohanon inside, but on the next play, a handoff went awry and the ball ended up on the ground. I can't say whether Thompson was at fault or not, but he has to avoid those plays. He then got sacked on third down by Chris Rodgers, who is part of a talented rotation at linebacker along with Tyler Grubbs, Sam Howard, Makai Williams and Dickson Agu. Grubbs and probably Howard will start, but all five can play.
On a later possession, Thompson had a nice completion to Shaun Nicholas, who has been pretty quiet in camp, before getting sacked by Shi'Keem Laister. Laister has been rushing the passer a lot in camp.
Mensah, using his tight ends effectively, threw a touchdown pass to an open Alex Bauman in a red zone. Horton followed with a scoring toss to Mmahat, his favorite target today, in the corner of the end zone.
They worked extensively on punt and kickoff returns, with the pecking order at punt returner Dontae Fleming, Mario Williams and Bryce Bohanon. The No. 1 kickoff returners were Clayton-Johnson and Bohanon, while Rayshawn Pleasant and Khai Prean worked with the second team. It was not a live drill, but Pleasant took one all the way to the end zone when he found a seam. They also practiced several onside kicks with the emphasis on the return team recovering them, and there was not a single bobble.
Tight end Reggie Brown, who has been solid in camp, was out with an unspecified injury. I did not notice any other new injuries.
Terrell Allen appears to have the edge on Matthew Fobbs-White as the first-team rush end, but that's a position Sumrall specified was a close competition entering Thursday's scrimmage. Gerrod Henderson lined up with the first team at end alongside the regulars inside--Patrick Jenkins and Eric Hicks.
Vincent Murphy continued to be held out of 11-on-11 work in favor of Caleb Thomas, the lone O-line backup with a lot of playing experience. The second-team line today was Reese Baker, Landry Cannon, Elijah Baker, Jayce Mitchell and Darion Reed from left to right.
