The Tulane Green Wave enters the 2024 college football season with a lot of excitement. There is a lot of momentum for a program that has achieved double-digit wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time.
This success led to head coach Willie Fritz leaving the team and taking over as head coach at Houston. Jon Sumrall, who had spent two successful years with the Troy Trojans, was hired as Fritz’s successor.
Sumrall will get a lot of talent back on defense. Tulane, a top 25 defense in scoring percentage, brings back 59 percent of her 2023 production for her new head coach to work with.
On offense, Sumrall can rely on star running back Makhi Hughes, who is in his second season. Tight end Alex Bauman also returns, but there will be new faces at several key positions.
Michael Pratt, the 2023 American Athletic Conference Player of the Year, now plays for the Green Bay Packers in the NFL. Top receiver Chris Brazzell II moved to the Tennessee Volunteers.
The Green Wave were able to sign some outstanding, highly regarded new recruits to replace the lost talent. Former five-star quarterback Ty Thompson came to New Orleans from the Oregon Ducks.
Wide receiver Shazz Preston comes from Alabama, along with former Oklahoma and USC star Mario Williams. There are big shoes to fill and Sumrall will have to get everyone up to speed quickly.
That’s because Tulane is playing in one of the most highly anticipated non-conference games of the 2024 college football season. Stan Becton of NCAA.com picked their Week 2 game against Kansas State as one of the top 20 games pitting opponents from different conferences against each other.
“Will Tulane compete for an automatic berth in the expanded College Football Playoffs out of the AAC? A non-conference win against a Big 12 team is a boost to the record,” Becton wrote.
Some sources believe Kansas State will be in the running for a spot in the College Football Playoff. A win over the Wildcats would put Tulane in the running for a spot if they play well the rest of the season.
In addition to the game against Kansas State, another team to keep an eye on is the matchup against Oklahoma in Week 3. The Sooners are ranked 16th in the preseason polls, giving the Green Waves another chance to score a big win against a potentially higher-ranked opponent.
The game against the Wildcats will be at home, while Tulane travels to Norman to face Oklahoma.
