It's up to the Tulane Green Wave now to prove that their season opener loss was a fluke as they try to turn the page to face South Alabama.
New Orleans, La. – The Tulane Green Wave used to have a saying in response to adversity under head coach Jon Sumrall: Good.
It’s hard to find much good out of what the team did in Raleigh, NC., against the Duke Blue Devils.
But they’ll have to find their own way through adversity under coach Will Hall as they look to put the 24-hour rule to the test and wipe the slate clean from a Week 1 stinker.
It was about as bad of a start to the season as one could imagine. The biggest question for the Green Wave is whether and how long they’ll let that linger.
All things considered, the energy was in a good place for the team inside the indoor practice facility for Monday’s short practice.
There were a few notable things to observe.
A good sign was seeing center John Bock back in uniform and practicing first team reps at starting center. The offensive line as a whole was a failure last Saturday, but if there’s a chance to reinsert an injured starter, it would be a welcomed sight.
It was also noteworthy who he was snapping to.
For Monday at least, it looked like Kadin Semonza is the starter, but potentially being backed up by true freshman Trace Johnson as he slotted in for most of the second team reps.
So for now, it appears that the staff is going to roll with the quarterback who did offer a bit of a spark off the bench in the second half.
Whether or not that matters to this offense is up to the players to prove this Saturday.
It’s also up to the staff to prove that they’re willing and able to make the necessary fixes from opening weekend.
One of those top tasks is figuring out the right combination on the offensive line. Be it due to a lingering injury for left tackle Dominic Steward, ineffectiveness, or just looking for a spark, there was a rotating turnstile at tackle all game against the Blue Devils.
For Monday’s practice, Ryan Mickow was at left tackle with Darion Reed in his spot at right tackle with the ones. It’ll be curious to see how that develops throughout the week.
The team didn’t look lost or out of sorts. And there was a sense of urgency. But it didn’t feel like outright panic.
Nearly all of the goodwill that was built up this offseason was drained by an ugly 17-3 loss to start the season.
But the team can’t concern themselves with that. Now is a chance for them to truly look inward and lock in to prove doubters wrong this weekend.
