Tulane Green Wave Football Offseason Preview

The Tulane Green Wave had been improving and generally moving in the right direction through the 2020 season. As they prepared for 2021, they had a lot of reasons to be optimistic about their evolution and their prospects. When they very nearly defeated the No. 2-ranked Oklahoma Sooners in the season opener on the road – they had the ball in the final two minutes of regulation near midfield with a chance to upset the Sooners – Tulane surely felt that a promising season was just getting started. Tulane’s offense looked excellent, and the team showed a level of resilience which offered a promising sign heading into the rest of the campaign. Yet, that was the only strong performance of the season against an FBS opponent until a late November blowout of South Florida. Tulane played only three complete 60-minute games last season, cratering to a 2-10 record, only 1-7 in the AAC. It was a spectacular failure for coach Willie Fritz, who has done a generally good job building this program. In 2021, he lacked the magic touch.

Incoming transfers Lawrence Keys III from Notre Dame and running back Ashaad Clayton will try to revive an offense which scored at least 30 points in only three of its 12 games.

Key Personnel Lost

Linebacker Darius Hodges and punter Ryan Wright are among the notable players Tulane lost, but on a team which won only two games, the issue is less about the players the Green Wave lost and more about the players the team has to develop better in 2022. Talent simply wasn’t cultivated, and players did not improve on the field over the course of the 2022 season. That has to change this year if Fritz is going to lead this team back to a bowl game.

Important Incoming Freshmen

Tight end Blake Gunter and defensive lineman Maxie Boudoin IV could give this team a shot in the arm. Baudoin chose Tulane over Auburn in a real recruiting industry surprise. He could give this defense a level of physicality which enables it to improve upon the 34 points per game it allowed last year.

Key Position Battles

Tulane’s offense really failed to live up to its potential last year, so at the various offensive position groups, the Green Wave need to see players who are hungry for success and improvement and who will take it upon themselves to make sure this team scores big in 2022. No position group on the offensive side of the ball covered itself in glory last season. Tulane’s defense did more than enough to win several games, most notably against College Football Playoff team and AAC champion Cincinnati. Yet, the offense couldn’t do its part. The offensive line has to become more physical and provide the room needed for the skill players to take a necessary step forward.

Biggest Offseason Goal(s)

Willie Fritz has a very creative and diverse offensive system, but it fell apart last year. Getting confidence that every member of the starting offense knows exactly what to do, and how to do it, is the primary goal of an offseason in which Tulane’s offense needs to be built back from the ground up. The defense wasn’t great last season, but this is a program where the offense has to lead the way. If it doesn’t, the Green Wave are in trouble.