Tulane Scores First ABC Game in 40 Years, The Preseason Poll, and a Watch Guide for USA @ USM
Green Wave Headed for the Biggest #TridentTrophy Game Yet
Write-up by Staffer Kelly Comarda and FTW Editor JP Gooderham. Follow FTW on Twitter, Facebook, and our podcast.
Slow news day! We’re going to dive into the big AAC Announcements that just came out, which included the Preseason Media Poll and news about several big TV slots for Tulane.
Kelly is going to share his watch guide for when the South Alabama Jaguars play Southern Miss on Thursday night. With both teams on the early Green Wave schedule, this will be a good one to keep an eye on if you’re looking ahead.
Tulane Gets First ABC Game Since 1980 + TV Announcements
Above, you can see the last time Tulane was on ABC — the year was 1980, the TVs were grainy, and the Green Wave played its home opener in the Superdome under Vince Gibson against the Mustard Buzzards of Southern Miss.
Unfortunately, the Buzzards would squeak out a 17-14 win in front of a national television audience in that opener. Tulane would start 0-2 after a close loss the following week to #13 Stanford in Palo Alto but later rally to finish 7-4 on the year.
I bring this up because we’ve just learned that Tulane and Navy will face off on September 19th in front of an ABC audience for the first time in 40 years.
That will be an 11 am (noon eastern) battle for what we like to call the “Trident Trophy.” This trophy, a nautical weapon for the two seafaring teams, does not exist. It really should, but I’ll just leave this here.
This burgeoning rivalry in the AAC has featured a number of hard fought battles. The highlight for us, of course, was the last time this game was played at Yulman when Charles Jones hauled in a 2-point conversion to sink Navy and send the Green Wave to the Cure Bowl in the final 1:27 of the regular season. Glorious.
This, in my opinion, is a huge deal for the program in terms of exposure. Navy checked in one spot ahead of the Green Wave in the preseason poll, and this game can really set the tone for Tulane’s conference slate as the home and AAC opener.
Here are the other TV spot announcements from the AAC today:
9/12: @ South Alabama on ESPN 2
9/19: vs. Navy on ABC
10/8: @ Houston on ESPN
10/16: vs. SMU on ESPN 2
11/27: vs. Memphis on TBD
Pretty good draw. This will certainly be the most “tuned in” Tulane Football has been since joining the AAC, which of course will be a secondary benefit of the PAC 12 and Big 10 opting out of College Football this fall. The Memphis game (later in the season) is scheduled for an ESPN network. We’ll likely find out later depending on how these two teams perform.
Tulane Picked to Finish 6th in the AAC Preseason Media Poll
The AAC also announced the annual Preseason Media Poll, which can be found below. Tulane was selected 6th between Navy and Houston and did not receive any first place votes.
This is roughly where we found Tulane last season at 3rd in the AAC West. Of course, without divisions, the structure is going to be different in 2020 and beyond.
It will be interesting to see how several prominent opt outs can impact things, which most notably included Memphis superstar RB Kenneth Gainwell dropping out of the Tigers’ season this week.
What to Watch: South Alabama @ Southern Miss
South Alabama and Southern Miss square off in Hattiesburg, MS on Thursday, September 3, 2020 at 8:00 p.m. CST on CBS Sports. This matchup features two of Tulane’s three non-conference opponents in 2020. Here are some things to keep an eye on as a Tulane observer.
Who are these guys?
Southern Miss is loaded with Junior College transfers. Of the 44 players listed on the team’s 2 deep depth chart, 16 are players who are new to the Golden Eagles squad. USM has been hit especially hard by COVID-19 opt outs, losing two difference makes on the defensive line as well as receiver/return man Jaylond Adams. If USM is going to have a successful 2020 campaign, the newbies have to step up. Of all the newcomers to the roster, the biggest name is Frank Gore, Jr., son of future Hall of Fame running back Frank Gore. The younger Gore lacks size at 5’9 170 lbs, but he’s proven to be effective in USM’s two preseason scrimmages.
Can South Alabama go on the offensive?
South Alabama struggled to generate consistent offense in 2019. If that is going to change in 2020, it will be up to Sophomore Quarterback Desmond Trotter. Trotter, a true dual threat, completed nearly 58% of his passes in limited action in 2019 and added 8 touchdowns against just 2 interceptions. Trotter also rushed 61 times for a net of 197 yards (3.2 ypc) and no touchdowns. USA will also have to replace its leading rusher and second leading receiver Tra Minter, who rushed for nearly 1,100 yards in 2019. Leading receiver Kawaan Baker returns for the Jaguars, but he only managed 35 catches for 574 yards in 2019. Can Trotter become the playmaker that USA desperately needs at QB? Who steps up at running back? Can Kawaan Baker take it to the next level? These are all things to keep an eye on in this opening game.
Will Jack Abraham become more of a playmaker?
USM is led by quarterback Jack Abraham, a former Tulane commitment. Abraham signed with Louisiana Tech out of high school and then took a detour to a Junior College before becoming USM’s starting QB in 2018. A redshirt senior, Abraham has played the part of the facilitator in USM’s offense, throwing short passes and letting his receivers make plays after the catch. Abraham doesn’t have speed demon Quez Watkins or Jaylond Adams to turn 3 yard passes into 30 yard gains. Will he be able to push the ball downfield and stretch defenses? If USM is going to have success in 2020, he’ll need to or else opposing teams will flood the box making it difficult to run or to throw short passes in traffic.
How does Tulane match up?
Five years ago this next statement would seem impossible, but Tulane is an experienced and deep team on both sides of the ball. In 2019, Tulane was vulnerable on defense to teams who could stretch the field vertically due to its inability to generate pressure on the quarterback and its lack of speed at safety. [See Memphis, SMU, UCF, Houston]. On offense, Tulane struggled with teams that could rush the passer [Temple, Auburn, Memphis].
On tape, USA had the ability to stretch the field at times in 2019, but that was mostly with its prior QB Cephus Johnson. Can Desmond Trotter add that skill to his repertoire? Can Jack Abraham take down field shots or is he content to continue completing passes under ten yards?
On defense, USA generated just 17 sacks in 2019 with no player having more than 4.5 sacks. Will anyone step up on the defensive line? USM lost two of its best defensive lineman who opted out of 2020 due to COVID-19. It’s projected starting defensive line has only 2.5 career sacks. Will anyone flash against USA?
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