Saturday, August 30, 2014

Tulane and the NFL

Recap
Darkwa, Santos & Grant make teams.
Sullen, Strozier, Warmsley are cut.

Saints keep Ryan Griffin.

Lots of talk that Stro and Julius will be kept on as practice squad members if another team does not claim them off of waivers

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

NIMBYs prepare for Yulman - so you should prepare for the NIMBYs

If you are planning on driving to games and you are not using the official parking lots you may want to read this.

http://uptownmessenger.com/2014/08/what-will-tailgating-be-like-for-tulane-home-games/#more-41971


Tulane 2014 Season Predictions Sure To Go Wrong

Offensive MVP: T. Lee
Defensive MVP: S. Scofield
Breakout Player Offense: L. Thompson
Breakout Player Defense: T. Gilbert
Best Incoming Freshman (non-red shirt) Offense: T. Veal
Best Incoming Freshman (non-red shirt) Defense: R. Marbley
Prediction: Tulane will leave a crap load of points on the field due to not being able to make FGs or because Tulane won't even attempt some that seem like no-brainers.
Prediction: At the end of the season people will look at the production players on this team and think "boy, this staff has pretty much nailed it when it comes to recruiting regardless of what the services rankings say"

No long explanations trying to qualify or sugarcoat anything.

Wins & losses
@ Tulsa - WIN - 14-13
Georgia Tech - LOSS - 24-10
Southeastern LA - WIN - 31-24
@ Duke - LOSS - 34-10
@ Rutgers - WIN - 14-10
UCONN - WIN - 28-17
@ UCF - LOSS - 38-7
Cincy - LOSS - 27-13
@ UH - LOSS - 42-17
Memphis - WIN - 31-20
@ ECU - LOSS - 31-7
Temple - WIN - 28-14

Bowl Game
BBVA Compass vs Toledo
or
Bahamas vs Tennessee

Overall:
The starting defense is as good as any but the overall quality depth and experience will hurt when injuries come.
The offense will continue to struggle moving the ball like last year with the biggest difference being the max potential in this years offense is higher. The overall play-making ability in this offense if greater than 2013, if people step up and make those plays.
Special teams should be solid with the exception of kicking (not punting) and we are still not set on deep snapping being a non-event each time.
When the dust settles there will be as low as 2 or as high as 4 coaching moves made, some voluntary and some not. We have had great luck keeping the majority of the staff here since day one but this off-season we come back to the norm of college football a little bit.

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

NFL Update

Here are some quick notes

NFL cuts were today to get down to 75 by 3pm.
Seems as though everyone has made it SO FAR but WVHooser who was cut today by the Pats.
Warmsley, Texans - they released two other DL today
Sullen, Broncos - they released a safety
Cairo still battling
Grant will make team no matter what and Wash released 3 WRs today.
Strozier still hanging in there
Moses was released before camp from KC, not sure if anyone picked him up before that but does not seem like it. He may get picked up when injuries happen i guess
Darkwa, dolphins - they put one RB on PUP/IR list

Overall thoughts are that Grant will get his chances. He is good enough to be on someones NFL roster.
Even if Cairo gets released he will get a shot somewhere. His FGs have been great and they one thing bad in the only one game we saw him kickoff once or twice was that his kickoffs were not deep. That is assuming the coaches didnt purposely ask him to kick it short so they could work on covering.
Sullen and Warmsley seem to have legit chances at someones practice squads at worst case.
Strozier fits what the Saints want but they have a few smaller RB types. The person that can pick up pass protections, playbook and shows the best hands will get to stay. If the Saints release Strozier we think he can help someone somewhere because he can play offense, defense and special teams and he is fast as all heck.
Darkwa did well last week but other than his big run his YPC have been really low but that has also been with the deep backup OL. Best thing from Orleans is that he has been steady as a pass catcher for them. He might be able to pull a Mewelde Moore and be a 3rd down back for a decade. Hell, who would not take that in a heartbeat!

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Predictions

A buddy of our started a predictions topic and since we were too busy to do our own so far, we are game on this one.
Okay Long Green, We will play along!
http://yogwf.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=43421

We will make this qualifier, who will end up being the MVP is very different from who should be or needs to be the MVP in order for the team to be successful.

Offensive MVP: Better be the offensive tackles, right?
Defensive MVP: With the youth at LB, it has to be the old man - true soph Nico Marley.
Breakout Player Offense: Needs to be Tanner Lee.
Breakout Player Defense: Tyler Gilbert. Just can't fathom him not having an incredible year.
Best Incoming Freshman (non-red shirt) Offense: Teddy Veal
Best Incoming Freshman (non-red shirt) Defense: RaeJuan Marbley
Prediction (good): The starting defense plays damn near as good as last years defense did for most of the season.
Prediction (bad): I agree with Long Green, this staff has stayed mostly intact so far but these defensive coaches are only going to turn so many jobs before sooner or later someone jumps.
Prediction (bad): I said this before last years breakout season, Lorenzo Doss leaves for the NFL after his JR year. Only way this turns good is if we make a bowl game and this happens making it two winning seasons in a row and for us - a crap load of kids getting in the NFL paired with the new conference, new stadium and new money all hopefully equals a major boost in recruiting. That all said, nothing would be better than Doss and Monroe leading this team as seniors in what I think will be the best Tulane football season in a long time in 2015.
Prediction (good): The stadium. The American. ESPN. There are a wide range of opinions out there about it but one thing that should be undeniable is the positive financial impact the stadium will have on all of Tulane Athletics. Most importantly the stadium along with the new conference should continue to provide increased money to the football program and soon provide them with other much needed new amenities such as a up-to-date state of the art locker room, weight room, training room, academic center and meeting rooms. We are in full support of the money helping all of athletics but let us not be ignorant of the facts that football (college football) is big business and taking care of football, winning in football in the most important on the field factor for a flourishing department.

Wins & losses - TBD

Sunday, August 17, 2014

How Tulane Is Making Their Comeback, The last step is to retake their city.

How Tulane Is Making Their Comeback, The last step is to retake their city. 

What do you think the chances of him coming to Tulane? Any info as to why he left Louisville?

Brian sent us this question.

Chances of him coming to Tulane after the way everything was handled just prior to signing day last year and him going to Louisville.... slim to none. By stating slim it means there is a tiny window but we would not count on it happening. Tulane has a lot of young talent and depth a year later at the same positions Clark would be coming in for after sitting out a year and more importantly this year we have a much lower number of scholarships available and they are at a premium. We just don't see it happening right now however if Clark decides to wait it out this season and see what options he has in January or May instead of enrolling right away somewhere we may just have something available for him. Like the quote from the movie Angels In The Outfield - "It could happen"

No idea what went down at Louisville. We wish Lyn Clark the very best moving forward.

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Tulane sports fans

Tulane sports fans feel free to email questions to tulanerecruiting@gmail.com and we will post them and respond to them for the public.

Projected Depth Chart

After just over one week, here is what we think. This is based off of the positions/spots listed on the official Tulane website from the post-Spring depth chart. We will note this, if you have paid attention to Tulane football under CJ you should know that the offense is just like the NFL. CJ uses just about everyone on offense in a wide variety of packages and guys stay fresh. Depending upon what the opposing defense is doing that week, you could easily see guys get 5 reps one week and 30 reps the next. When it comes to listing the HB, FB and TE positions you will see a ton of guys rotate and we just list who we think will see the most reps essentially.

WR 1                                        DE
J. Shackleford                            R. LaFrance
D. Breaux                                  A. Aruna
D. Boutte                                   A. Bryant

WR 2                                        DT
X. Rush                                     T. Smart
T. Veal                                      C. Thomas
T. Encalade                              

LT                                            NT
A. Uzdavinis                              C. Redwine
T. Jacquet                                  K. Welcome
K. Santa Marina                         B. Edwards

LG                                            DE
C. Hanson                                 T. Gilbert
J. Stewart                                  A. Robinson
                                                Q. Carroll
     
C                                             BOSS
N. Shienle                                D. Monroe
J. Diaz

RG                                          MLB
C. Taylor                                 R. Marbley
B. Godfrey                               E. Williams
                                               E. Thomas or Z. Harris

RT                                          WLB
S. Donnelly                              N. Marley
N. Scold                                  M. Bailey

TE                                          CB
S. London                               L. Doss
C. Jones                                  R. Allen
T. Scott                                  D. Lewis
M. Marfisi

QB                                           CB
T. Lee                                       T. Nixon
D. Powell                                  P. Nickerson
N. Montana

FB                                           FS
L. Thompson                           S. Scofield
D. Butler                                  L. Davis

HB                                           SS
S. Badie                                    B. LeBeau
D. Hilliard                                 D. Monroe


Thursday, August 7, 2014

4 Days of Camp

Observations & Conversations

It is has only been 4 days and only 2 of those days has the team had any sort of pads on and none of been full pad practices so please, keep that in mind. Since there is such a small sample, we will focus on the positive things we have noticed. We will also lay this disclaimer out there - a person naturally tends to focus on and notice the young players or new players this early on in camp.

These are our opinions, not facts.

Things that should standout to the casual observer - so far:

OL: We will start here because for most of what we write below regarding the offense all depends upon this group. This has the potential to be pretty solid and just as easily this group could be pretty bad. There are all sorts of things we could talk about here but to keep in simple, the success or failure of the OL this season will come down to technique, communication and effort. Not all of them are big and and not all of them are strong but as individuals if they focus on the techniques they are coached, give great effort every play and communicate as a one unit they can surprise a lot of people. The ability is there, it just needs to be consistent.
No, we won't name any names here. The OL operates as one unit.

QB: Pretty similar to the Spring. T. Lee looks as solid as you can running an NFL offense as a red-shirt freshman. He looks like a polished vet sometimes and like a rookie other times. His command of the huddle and respect from the offensive players is however undeniable and that is where everything begins when you are looking for a leader and a QB. It his not his time yet but true freshman G. Cuiellette is a football junkie with an incredible arm and was an outstanding find by the staff.

RB: We could write paragraphs on most of these guys and what they can bring to the table but in an attempt to keep this brief we won't. Simply put - S. Badie = homeruns, L. Thompson = get the hell out his way & D. Hilliard = Oh my goodness! Could be best overall RB right now as a true freshman.

TE: Freshmen C. Jones and T. Scott - you will see them early and often. Ask a coach about those two and watch their eyes light up. It is lagniappe that their effort is equal to Dennis Rodman or Ben Wallace crashing the boards. Those were NBA basketball players in case you didn't know. We are excited to see how these two players can help transform the offense.

WR: T. Veal, T. Encalade and L. James were all hits in recruiting. L. James is the most raw of them having the least of experience at WR in HS based on his teams needs but you can clearly see the potential he has. You should see all three of them contribute this year. Regardless of how talented the young guys are, this team needs X. Rush and/or J. Shackleford to step up to the plate this season and be great.

DL: Freshman B. Edwards might be a very large human being but he can move, he very well may play a big role this year. T. Smart continues to pick up where he left off, just a phenomenal young defensive lineman. T. Gilbert is really good. Our first four on the front four are really exciting to watch. Freshman D. Williams was a great grab. He has a great frame and he has a motor that does not turn off. A. Aruna is getting more and more comfortable out there. We could end up with the best group of 4-5-6 DE's in the league.

LB: L. Jackson is back playing football. Hooray!
N. Marley is N. Marley. He is a humble young man but we would like to see him take even more of a leadership role on this team. We would not be surprised to see 1-2 freshmen take over some of the other spots at LB. R. Marbley and Z. Harris have been extremely impressive. M. Bailey has also stood out and it would be great to see the potential we saw him have as a true freshman finally come to fruition. L. Jackson is back playing football.

DB: L. Doss, D. Monroe and S. Scofield are all rock solid studs. T. Nixon looks really impressive and R. Allen has made huge strides in his technique and will be a major contributor this year. True freshman D. Lewis will definitely see plenty of action this year.

Special Teams: No comment.

Overall: Speed. Another year you should notice we have so much more speed (finally) on offense and even more now on defense.

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Hey! Support our Tulane Family this upcoming NFL Season!

Darkwa, Orleans - Miami Dolphins - Running Back
Forte, Matt - Chicago Bears - Running Back
Grant, Ryan - Washington Redskins - Wide Receiver
Griffin, Ryan - New Orleans Saints - Quarterback
Kropog, Troy - New York Giants - Offensive Tackle
Moses, Dezman - Kansas City Chiefs - Linebacker
Santos, Cairo - Kansas City Chiefs - Place kicker
Strozier, Derrick - New Orleans Saints - Running Back
Sullen, Jordan - Denver Broncos - Defensive Back
Warmsley, Julius - Houston Texans - Defensive End

2014 Tulane Football Camp News

Here are links to news articles and videos, most recent ones will be up top.

Roughly Day Four

Transcript From Football's Media Day Press Conference

Get To Know the 2014 Tulane Football Freshman Class

Tulane QB Tanner Lee sees speed and leadership in the receiving corps

Tulane football coach Curtis Johnson's first take at Thursday's Tulane football media day: video

What Tulane's Tanner Lee feels he brings to the team

Tulane CB Lorenzo Doss talks preseason awards and facing Jordan Batiste as an opponent: video

Tulane football coach Curtis Johnson calls Southeastern Louisiana 'best team' on his schedule

Tulane football's Curtis Johnson likens receivers to what he had with New Orleans Saints

Tulane football notebook: Curtis Johnson could name a starting QB early in camp

Tulane coordinators looking for improvement

Curtis Johnson skirts naming starting quarterback

Tulane camp quick read

Curtis Johnson expects new challenges this season

Rabalais: More and more Louisiana players calling Tulane home

Video: Green Wave players at Football Media Day

Roughly Day Three

Tulane Practices Outside for First Time During Fall Camp

Tulane football coach Curtis Johnson talks heat, Devon Walker, and Junior Diaz: video

Tulane LB Nico Marley expounds on wide open opportunities at linebacker: video

Tulane QB Devin Powell talks about yet another camp of passer battles: video

Wednesday Tulane fall football camp notebook: Heat becomes a factor, Devon Walker appears, and players rise

Video: Johnson likes the way Tulane handled practicing outside on Wednesday

TULANE CAMP REPORT: Wave braves heat

Tulane freshmen catching on


Roughly Day Two

Nick Montana starts over to salvage senior season at Tulane

Tulane camp report: Royce LaFrance gets a taste of the middle

Teddy Veal back; Kedrick Banks gone for Wave practice

Tulane indoors for day two of preseason camp

Tulane's Tuesday fall practice: Former Catholic League players Tanner Lee and Charles Jones II hoping to form deadly combo

Tulane DL Royce LaFrance not afraid to work inside

Tulane DL Royce LaFrance talks about young talent on the line: video

Tuesday's Tulane fall football camp notebook: Coach Curtis Johnson enjoying watching players wrangle for spots

Tulane DBs Darion Monroe and Lorenzo Doss do not participate in Tuesday's practice

Tulane S Darion Monroe explains why he did not practice Tuesday: video

Tulane freshman TE Charles Jones II talks about his journey to St. Augustine and his chemistry with QB Tanner Lee: video

Tulane QB Tanner Lee talks about practice Tuesday and his new, large TE target Charles Jones II: video

Tulane football coach Curtis Johnson talks positional battles and young standouts at Tuesday's fall football camp practice: video


Roughly Day One

TULANE CAMP REPORT: Tanner Lee confident for fall

Tulane quarterback competition between Nick Montana, Tanner Lee and Devin Powell underway

Tulane freshman wide receiver Teddy Veal excited to be back on the football field after reinstatement to program

Tulane opens preseason camp with action-packed day



Tulane officials confident new stadium will be ready

Tulane officials confident new stadium will be ready