Official update on RB Rob Kelley

From a reporter for the Baton Rouge Advocate

Scott Kushner ‏@ScottDKushner19m

BREAKING: Curtis Johnson confirms he's lifted suspension on #Tulane RB Robert Kelley and he's 100 percent back on the Green Wave.

Some interesting & exciting football news...

Some interesting and great news I came into.

The subject is summer school and how critically important it is to college athletics but I will focus on football being the most important since the biggest factor to me in all of this is the workout aspect and the difference in strength and intensity from high school to college.

Many of us can remember years ago there was what seemed to be a battle to get our football team (all of them) to stay in NOLA during the summer to workout together. It was not that kids did not want to stay here but if you were not from NOLA and not in summer school it was financially hard for most to be able to stay in NOLA over the summer. There used to be X amount of room for all student athletes in summer school and that X was divided out among the different sports and then the priority obviously went to those kids that needed to get their GPAs up. That was just among current players on the team and didn't even factor in the incoming FR class. The only guys of that group that would be in town to workout (learn the playbook, do 7x7's,, etc) were local kids or kids that had families that could support them financially to be here. Then we slowly moved to a place where we could get a large amount of current players if not most of them here for the summer by getting them in summer school. Then in the last few years we have been able to get basically all of the current football team to remain in NOLA for the summer in addition to being able to get just about all incoming FR enrolled in classes for the second session of summer school. That was huge. They would be able to get here and workout/learn playbook for about 4-6 weeks before the official start of Fall camp. It also would allow them to get adjusted to college classes while it was not in season and hopefully get them started off on a high note with good grades.

Now the good news, no great news! I found out that this year that just about all incoming freshmen will now be enrolling in summer school immediately. That means when the first session begins this week all of them (or 98% of them) will be here working out/learning the playbook, taking classes, etc. That is freaking huge. Now, we may behind the 8 ball on that compared to the bigger programs but it is undoubtedly a huge step in the right direction. These guys will now get 12-14 weeks of working out with the older guys and learning rather than what used to be around 4-6 weeks if anything at all. This makes a huge difference in my opinion. Think about Fall camp when kids report and all the FR have to learn the playbook. All the team has to then blend, get familiar with each other and learn any new things in the playbook. That is in August with just about 2 weeks before a game. Now that all starts 3 months before Fall camp so when camp gets here they are working more than they are learning. They are getting better, improving working on the details instead of just trying to figure out what the hell is going on - not thinking about missing their mommies and their girlfriends. They have already adjusted (hopefully) to being away from home and the change of pace. Even for local kids it is huge because many don't realize that being Uptown at Tulane is nothing like where most of them live.

Does it make a difference in how many wins/losses we will have next year, I don't know but ask any football coach in the country how important this is and I bet you my dog they would say it is simply essential to the success of a program.

Folks, this is about as big as you can get in my opinion in so many ways. This is just downright fantastic.

Now for some lagniappe I also heard that this same deal might be holding true for other sports but not 100% sure so don't quote me on that. I am almost positive about it being the same for some of men's basketball rookies.

I know we want the wins to show the changes are there but there are so many little things here and there that have changed that all point in the right direction if you ask me. It is only a matter of time before we take our rightful place headed towards the top. There is absolutely no reason why Tulane & New Orleans should not have a top notch football program and I really think things are lining up for a bright future.

Tulane football stuff

I am not the official source but word passed along to me is that RB Rob Kelley is back to being fully academically eligible. Great news if it holds true.

In other news, you may want to check out these clips of some of our future stars at Tulane.
CB Richard Allen & RB Sherman Badie in state finals in 4x2, 4x1 and 100m
100M - http://la.milesplit.com/videos?id=39345
4 x 200 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGHbZ7Yk9yM
4 x 100 viewed below

Summer news

I posted this on April 14
http://tulanefootballtalk.blogspot.com/2013/04/football-additions-andor-subtractions.html

Be on the look for more news on this. Not sure when but I am sure.

In addition to this, we also lost WR Wilson Van Hooser today. He is graduating early and is hoping to be headed closer to home where his family needs him. I have to assume it was easier for him to make that choice now that he has earned his degree from Tulane and it is why I assume his brother will remain here to get healthy, try to crack the line-up and get that Tulane education.

http://theadvocate.com/sports/stateschools/6002975-123/receiver-wilson-van-hooser-to

Tulane Football sets game times for 2013 & plays on Thursday twice

Official Tulane Athletics site
http://www.tulanegreenwave.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/050713aaa.html

Fundraiser for Tulane’s Lowry set for Sunday

Fundraiser for Tulane’s Lowry set for Sunday

NEW ORLEANS — The man in the chair has changed.  The hair is gray. The trademark moustache is nearly white. The body — let’s just say, it’s smaller.  But the voice that called the names of countless high school, college and even professional athletes from press boxes across the state is exactly the same. It is strong. It says, “I will fight this.” And his community wants to help him.  David Lowry, the former high school softball coach turned equipment manager at Tulane University — and frequent press box voice of many athletic programs throughout the area — is fighting for his life. He was diagnosed in July with terminal renal cell cancer. Just a few weeks later, the LaPlace home he shared with his wife, Tricia, and six children, was inundated by flood waters cause by Hurricane Isaac.  But his community is stepping up its game. Moved by the plight of the 47-year-old Lowry, friends of the lifelong River Parishes resident have organized a fund-raising event to help with expenses — including the building of a new home for the family. “An Afternoon with David Lowry,” will be held from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. Sunday at New Orleans’ iconic Rock ’n’ Bowl. The event will feature free food, a cash bar, live music, local celebrities, a silent auction and bowling. Tickets are $150 and admit two. Students will be admitted for free.  An account also has been set up at a local bank.  Lowry was a longtime educator in St. John the Baptist Parish. He spent eight years at St. Charles Catholic High School in LaPlace, serving as athletic director for seven years and as an assistant baseball coach and the head softball coach. He led the Lady Comets to a state runner-up finish in 2005 and 2006. After leaving the school in 2006, Lowry landed at Tulane, where he became the Director of Equipment.  In between, he has been the press box voice of the Comets, the Nicholls State Colonels, the UNO Privateers, the Southeastern Lions and the Green Wave.  But in the fall of 2011, he began what he calls a “very noticeable coughing problem. Numerous tests failed to determine a cause, so he just lived with it. Then, after an offhand comment about his eating habits on the road, he began trying to lose weight. His diet was a success. But he kept losing weight, even after stopping the diet. And when he began experiencing chills at his kids’ swim meets during the summer, his wife said, “You need to get to the doctor.” Scans showed a growth on his left kidney. Less than two weeks later, he underwent surgery to remove the kidney, and all his cultures were clear. A few weeks later, however, doctors told him that the carcinoma had spread to his lungs. He is undergoing treatment.  He and his family have moved in with his former St. Charles Catholic Principal Drew Cupit and his wife, Helena. The parents of seven children, only one of which still lives at home, the Cupits were prepared to take in a crowd, Lowry said.  Meanwhile, a local homebuilding company whose owner and general manager are friends of Lowry is building the family a new 2,800-square-foot, six-bedroom raised home on the site of their old one. It should be completed in mid-June.  And the community is rallying behind him. Organizers say the response has been phenomenal, with donations of cash, services and items for the silent auction  “I expect people to be generous,” said Chris Eichhorn, one of the event organizers. “I expect them to respond because of the generosity and grace that is in our community. It is resilient. We pull together. This is just another example of that.”  And Lowry continues to have hope and hold on to his faith — leaning on his athletic background.  “It’s like there’s a score clock hanging over your head,” he said. “The only thing is, you don’t know what quarter it is or how much time is left.”  “The Lowry Family Fund” has been established. Donations can be made in person or mailed to Community Bank, 590 Belle Terre Blvd., LaPlace, LA, 70068.  Checks should be made payable to “The Lowry Family Fund.”

View all the amazing donated auction items here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/566800356664283/587976784546640/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity

Tulane's on-campus football stadium on schedule for fall 2014 opening

Tulane's on-campus football stadium on schedule for fall 2014 opening

In many ways, Tulane’s most fleeting dream in the past three decades doesn't look like much now. It looks like a pile of mud right now. The space that once was Westfeldt Practice Facility has been leveled and is covered with a layer of wet dirt. What was once the tennis complex is covered in mud, too, and the balcony connected to Tulane football coach Curtis Johnson’s second-floor office in the Wilson Center has been ripped off. It’s a little unsightly, but boy is it a glorious mess for Green Wave fans who have yearned for an on-campus football stadium since the old Tulane Stadium was demolished in 1980. There is no question, construction of what will be called Yulman Stadium is under way. The most recent phase is the driving of support piles to support the 30,000-person capacity facility that is expected to be finished in the fall 2014.  With fund-raising setbacks, Hurricane Katrina, and outcry from some neighbors it’s been a long, bumpy road from conception to shovel-in-the-ground on the project.  But to someone like university executive vice president Yvette Jones, who has worked at the school for 33 years, it’s nothing sort of a minor miracle that construction is under way.  “I really believe when the stadium opens and it becomes this place that our fans, the community - that people want to come to - I do think it’s going to change the dynamic of our athletic program,” Jones said. “I just think there is something about community we have lost by not having that stadium.”  There is still a long way to go, but after getting clearance from the city earlier this year, Tulane is moving full-force ahead in building the venue, which will be positioned between baseball’s Turchin Stadium and the Reily Center. The stadium will be connected to the Wilson Center and the Hertz Center, enveloping an athletic corridor on Ben Weiner Drive.  “Man, I’m happy. It’s changing the program,” rising sophomore safety Darion Monroe said. “It shows they care about athletics and they care about football and they are putting money into it and now there is a big stadium coming up. I can’t wait. We won’t have to travel to the Superdome no more.”  Monroe is part of Johnson’s first recruiting class – a group of talented players lured to Tulane with promises of a new on-campus stadium in the near future.  But it took years of planning and knocking on donor doors to get to a position where the university felt it had enough funding to announce the project. It took at least another year or so to secure title sponsors.  Tulane spent the final six months of 2012 in tricky negotiations with a group of angry neighbors who opposed the scope of the project so close to their Uptown homes.  “There are different levels of anxiety about the stadium itself. But we want to continue to have an open dialogue with the neighbors,” Jones said. "I think we’re having that. I think we’ve at least established some communication with them. We do send out emails to the neighbors and let them know what is going on at the site – if something is going to have an impact on weekends or nights. That probably helps a lot.”  The university said it is committed to continuing to work with the neighbors on their concerns. But the booming of the pile-driving and the constant bangs and hammering heard from outside the construction fences show that the project is moving.  It will be several more months before fans will see walls, however. Right now “construction” has consisted of clearing the site for sub-ground work and now support structuring below the ground.  “We are in the midst of pile-driving and I would say that we will be finished with the foundation work by early June and then you will start to see the stands coming up and the structure of the Glazier Club – the home side beginning to come up as we get toward the end of the year,” Jones said. “ You’ll start to see that start to get closed in and pretty much the finishing touches on the stands around the stadium, the field going in and then we’ll probably enter a phase where a lot of the interior work (is done) -- finishing out that club space, the multi-purpose room, concourses, all of that and then the last touches will be basically finishing up the outside site."  Jones said by late summer there should be some recognizable walls.  “We’re moving pretty much on schedule at this stage,” she said.  The intangibles with the project are also on-going. Jones said the university has $15 million more to raise for the stadium to fund the full cost.  “The price of the stadium is right around $65 million right now,” Jones said. “So we’re a little bit over $50 (million) and we feel pretty good about it. We’re hoping to get to $55 (million) by June and then we’ll pick up the rest during the following year and have it all completely fund-raised by the time we open.”  Another byproduct of the project is mapping out a way the football team can practice to prepare for the 2013 season, Tulane’s final season of home games in the Superdome.  “I guess that this season they are talking about using both the Saints (practice) facility and when they can, the baseball field,” Jones said. “So we are keeping as much practice on campus as we can. There will be times when that doesn’t work ideally but generally I think we’re going to be able to get through that.”  The money for transporting the team and its practice equipment comes out of the athletic operating fund, Jones pointed out, and is not a part of the stadium construction budget.  Overall, Jones said the university is prepared for the upcoming year of construction – and it’s something that holds personal sentiment for her as well.  “I have to tell you, it’s hard to believe that we have been able to come back full circle and have an on-campus facility and I am pleased that we got this far because raising the money is not always easy and that has been a challenge. … I want to see it come up out of the ground,” Jones said. “It’s a mess right now but you know, I’m just dying to see it come out of the ground and then we’ll know it’s really there. But I’m excited about it.”  After the past decade of talk about an on-campus stadium without seeing the project gain significant steam until the past two years, Jones said it’s a long time coming.  “It’s historic,” she said. “It’s been kind of unattainable almost.”

Tulane Football: "Victory Sunday" & "My Moment"

Offers Offers Offers

Make sure you stay up to date with the offer list for Tulane Football

http://tulanefootballtalk.blogspot.com/2013/04/2014-tulane-football-recruiting-offer.html

Tulane is hitting Louisiana and Florida with great force and even have at least five offers out for 2015 already.

http://tulanefootballtalk.blogspot.com/2013/03/2015-tulane-football-recruiting-offer.html

Wilson Van Hooser injured

Wilson Van Hooser injury

This was tweeted on April 15, 2013

"Corey J Olivier ‏@coreyolivier5h Praying for @wilsonvanhooser has he has surgery on his knee this morning! #comebackstronger"

Report is torn lateral meniscus