Tulane Football Preview 2025: Jon Sumrall Is Keeping the Green Wave Rolling

Miami Herald

09-07-2025

It turned out to be a disappointment for a program with the talent and chops to have done a little more, but all Jon Sumrall did in his first season as the head coach at Tulane was come up with the fourth strongest season since 1979.This isn't a program used to winning a ton of games with just 11 seasons with nine wins or more, and Sumrall came up with one.Of course, the expectations are high now after Willie Fritz won 23 games before taking off for Houston, but Sumrall proved he could handle the gig. He was a great hire, and now, combining his two seasons at Troy, he has 32 wins in three years.And he's about to get a whole lot more, but this time around, despite a ton of key losses in the portal, it's about winning the American Athletic Conference title, not just getting there.
X CFN, Fiu | CFN Facebook | Bluesky Fiu, CFN - Tulane Season Prediction, Top Players, Win TotalThe offense in the first year under Sumrall threw the ball well, was efficient when it had a chance to score, and did a whole slew of nice things throughout the season.When the attack was on, Tulane won. It was 8-0 when scoring more than 27 points, 1-5 when it didn't, and it has to be more consistent. It sputtered against the five good teams on the slate, ripped through the weaker ones, and now it has to do more with a slew of new parts starting with …
- Star quarterback Darian Mensah was a massive deal in the transfer portal. Duke supposedly gave him a whole lot of dough to step in and take over after he threw for over 2,700 yards and 22 scores, so the Green Wave did some shopping of its own, bringing in Kadin Semonza from Ball State to keep it all going.
- The receiving corps is undergoing a bit of an overhaul, but Shazz Preston is back on the outside after missing most of the year hurt, Bryce Bohanon will do more with a bigger role inside, and the transfers will take care of the rest.Omari Hayes (Florida Atlantic) will be one of the new stars, and sixth-year senior Jimmy Calloway (Louisville) is a huge help for the depth. Justyn Reid (Southern Miss) is a dangerous deep threat prospect at tight end.
- The ground game took a back seat, and it'll have more work to do with top back Makhi Hughes leaving for Oregon. Second-leading rusher Arnold Barnes III is a 216-pound tough back who ran for 402 yards and six scores, and Maurice Turner (Louisville) should average close to five yards per carry.
- The Green Wave line should be interesting. It has the parts back on the left side with the First Team All-AAC tandem of Derrick Graham back at tackle and Shadre Hurst at guard. The rest comes from the portal.Center Jack Hollifield (App State) should be the best of the haul. Jordan Hall (Liberty) is a veteran tackle, and John Bock (FIU) is a nice get for the interior.
All things considered, the defense did a decent job. It had to undergo a bit of an overhaul, but this coaching staff is good enough to make it better with the transfer portal bringing in more depth to try overcoming all the massive losses through the portal and to graduation.The Green Wave finished 30th in the nation in total defense and allowed just 20.6 points per game, and it's getting some immediate help to replace …
- Patrick Jenkins only made 4.5 sacks last season, but the new Arizona Cardinal will be missed at tackle. Coming in to pick up the slack is Santana Hopper, a 265-pound tough edge rusher who made 70 tackles with 8.5 sacks over the last two years at App State. He's combining with Mo Westmoreland, a dangerous hybrid edge rusher with 15.5 sacks and 21 tackles for loss over the last two years at UTEP.There's no problem on the interior with Kameron Hamilton, an all-conference interior pass rusher, and Adonis Friloux, a 325-pound anchor whose job is to hold up and let everyone else work. 310-pound Derrick Shepard (UAB) is a good-sized pickup.
- Star linebacker and leading tackler Tyler Grubbs is gone, but Sam Howard is a big-time tackler who's always around the ball, finishing second on the team with 63 tackles and recovering a whopping five fumbles. He'll likely take over for Grubbs, and the quick Dickson Agu should be a statistical star in the middle coming off a 34-tackle season. Chris Rogers is a strong backup who'll get his share of work.
- The Green Wave went shopping for corners. KC Eziomume (Albany) is a good-sized corner who can get physical, and Isaiah Wadsworth (Wofford) is a sixth-year veteran who came on last season with 38 tackles and eight broken up passes.The safeties will be one of the team's biggest strengths. The combination of Bailey Despanie and Jack Tchienchou made 103 tackles last season and will be all over everything this year. Kevin Adams made 40 tackles and was a threat to get behind the line.- Tulane Season Prediction, Top Players, Win Total
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