Tulane took care of business in week 1 against South Alabama, but week 2 is here and a new challenge awaits.  Ole Miss is coming to town, and with all due respect to South Alabama, Lane Kiffin and company are a different beast. 

Tulane enters the game number 24 overall, while Ole Miss comes in ranked 20^th.  In my opinion this game seems to be flying under the radar.  While Tulane has more respect from national media this year than in years past, it still feels like they are being written off by many experts.  But make no mistake about it, Ole Miss is absolutely on upset watch this weekend. 

Ole Miss comes into this weekend fresh off a STRONG  73-7 win over Mercer.  Sure, it was against Mercer, but 73 points is 73 points.  Junior quarterback Jaxson Dart was impressive in his first game throwing for 334 yards and four touchdowns while completing 78% of his passes.  He also added 36 yards on the ground.  Clearly, Lane Kiffin is going to allow his quarterback to let it fly.

For Tulane, the story of last week was also the quarterback position.  Michael Pratt was nearly perfect completing 14 of 15 passes for 294 yards and 4 touchdowns himself, as well as 41 yards rushing.  Senior receiver Jha ‘Quan Jackson was his favorite target racking up 106 yards and two touchdowns.  The difference here is, unlike Lane Kiffin, I don’t think airing it out is necessarily what head coach Willie Fritz wants to do.

Keys to the game 

• Establish the run
• Willie Fritz is known for being a run first head coach, and that was never more evident than it was last season.  The problem is, last year Coach Fritz was able to rely on superstar running back Tyjae Spears.  This year Spears is backing up Derrick Henry in Tennessee, so someone is going to have to fill the void left by him in the Tulane offense. The question is who?  Four different backs got touches in week one for Tulane as Coach Fritz tries to find his workhorse.  In my opinion, the guy who should get first crack at that role in week two is freshman Makhi Hughes.  I thought Hughes had the strongest first impression in week one.  He was the only back who seemed to get anything going and averaged 5.1 yards per carry.  I think Tulane should feed Hughes to establish the run like Coach Fritz would want, and that will open up the big plays downfield for Michael Pratt like we saw in week one.
• Limit Big Plays
• We had linebacker Corey Platt on the Who F’n Kneauxs Podcast this week, and he told us about a huge focus for the defense this week being limiting the shot plays that Coach Kiffin is known for.  So, the pressure is on cornerbacks Lance Robinson and Jarius Monroe and the rest of the secondary to make sure Jaxson Dart doesn’t have a repeat performance of week one.  Robinson had a fumble recovery and an interception against South Alabama, and it will be crucial for the defense to create turnovers again to get the ball back in Michael Pratts hands.  I believe they are up for the challenge.
• Get pressure on Jaxson Dart
• Tulane can’t afford to allow Jaxson Dart to be as comfortable as he was against Mercer.  It’s safe to assume the Green Wave will put up a better fight than Mercer in that regard.  In week one, the thing that stood out to me more than anything was the ability of the defensive line to get pressure on the quarterback.  Especially in third and long situations, it felt like Patrick Jenkins and crew were getting to the quarterback every single time.  So, if Tulane can get the Rebels behind the chains, I have faith in defensive coordinator Shiel Wood to draw up plays to get pressure on Jaxson Dart and force him to make a few mistakes.

Key injuries for the Green Wave

• Tulane linebacker Corey Platt Jr will miss this week’s game according to Coach Willie Fritz
• Quarterback Michael Pratt has been dealing with an ankle injury, but Coach Fritz says he’s available to play.  It’ll be worth keeping an eye on whether the injury limits Pratt in any way. 

Both teams dominated against weaker opponents last year, but neither Tulane nor Ole Miss will overlook each other this week.  Both teams know they are in for a battle Saturday afternoon.  For Tulane, this is a chance to prove last season’s success wasn’t a fluke.  And while losing to Ole Miss wouldn’t be nail in the coffin for the season by any stretch, upsetting the Rebels would immediately cause expectations for the Wave to skyrocket. 

Make no mistake about it, the Green Wave are underdogs in this game and rightfully so.  It’s not disrespectful to say that, but this isn’t a David vs. Goliath situation.  We saw David vs. Goliath in the Cotton Bowl, and if you recall, David won that battle.  Tulane doesn’t just have a puncher’s chance in this game.  They have the ability to go blow for blow with the Rebels for 12 rounds.  The question is can they do the things that are necessary to win this game. If they can limit turnovers while creating turnovers themselves, establish the run, and play sound defense, they can send Ole Miss back home with a loss.

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