The progress the Tulane Green Wave’s defense has made in the offseason is notable. Defensive coordinator Greg Gasparato is impressed with his unit, which has dominated recent practice games against the offense.
Last week, the defense nearly shut down the offense on 11 possessions, with the lone point coming on a 44-yard play by Khai Prean against mostly walk-ons and freshmen. However, looking more closely at the practice game, there are still some areas of concern.
The first drive of the practice game was a long one, 13-play drive, and the offense was one Mario Williams drop away from a point. Another drive gained a lot of yards, with three plays for 11 yards before running back Jamauri McClure dropped the ball.
Gasparato knows that no matter how good or bad things look in practice, you have to keep your expectations in check. He commented on the near shutout and emphasized the need to play hard throughout the game.
“It’s never as good as you think and never as bad as you think,” Gasparato said. “There are some mistakes we need to iron out, but effort makes up for a lot. If you play harder than the other team, you have a chance to win every game.”
Effort is something that any player can bring to the field, regardless of skill level. A single effort can be the difference between winning and losing in a game that may have hundreds of snaps.
But Gasparato knows it’s unrealistic to expect guys to play their best on every snap and make it through the season. Depth is what matters, and Tulane has plenty of that.
“We’ll put guys in when they’re ready, but you can’t play 75 snaps in a game and expect to be just as good at the end of the season,” Gasparato said. “If you take the weight off your legs a few times, you’re only going to get better.”
On defense, there is depth at every position group. Patrick Jenkins leads the defensive line, but Gasparato believes he can play three deep in the trenches without a significant drop in his performance.
At linebacker, Makai Williams, who received a lot of praise in the offseason, worked with the scout team over the weekend, according to Guerry Smith of NOLA.com. Tyler Grubbs and Sam Howard were on the first team, with Chris Rodgers and Dickson Agu next.
In the secondary, Gasparato has at least five safeties he trusts, led by holdover Bailey Despanie. Jalen Geiger, like Howard, transferred from Troy and followed Gasparato and head coach Jon Sumrall this offseason.
