2013 Tulane Green Wave football team

2013 Tulane Green Wave football
New Orleans Bowl vs Louisiana–Lafayette, L 21–24
Conference	Conference USA
Division	West Division
Record	7–6 (5–3 C-USA)
Head coach	Curtis Johnson (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Eric Price (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Co-defensive coordinator	Jon Sumrall (2nd season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Lionel Washington (2nd season)
Base defense	3–4 or 4–3
Home stadium	Mercedes-Benz Superdome
Seasons ← 2012 2014 →

The 2013 Tulane Green Wave football team represented Tulane University in the 2013 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by second year head coach Curtis Johnson and played home games at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. They were a member of Conference USA in the West Division. This was the Green Wave's last season playing in the Superdome and Conference USA as they will open the new, on-campus Yulman Stadium in the fall of 2014, and move to the American Athletic Conference in July 2014. They finished the season 7–6, 5–3 in C-USA play to finish in fourth place in the West Division. They were invited to the New Orleans Bowl where they lost to Louisiana–Lafayette.

In the 2013 season, Tulane reached 500 program wins, had its first winning record since 2002, and went to its first bowl game since the 2002 Hawaiʻi Bowl.

College recruiting information (2013)
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	40‡	Commit date
Richard Allen CB	River Ridge, LA	John Curtis Christian	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	4.38	Jul 9, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 68
Ade Aruna DE	La Porte, IN	La Lumiere School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	4.6	Feb 6, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Sherman Badie RB	River Ridge, LA	John Curtis Christian	5 ft 11.5 in (1.82 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	4.3	Nov 5, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 71
Eric Bell DE	Edgard, LA	West St. John	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	N/A	Jun 22, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 67
Quinlan Carroll OLB	Belle Chasse, LA	Belle Chasse	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	N/A	Jun 22, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 68
Tristan Cooper WR	Tampa, FL	Plant	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	N/A	Feb 4, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Leonard Davis S	Reserve, LA	East St. John	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	4.55	May 30, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jarrod Franklin S	Baton Rouge, LA	LSU Laboratory	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	4.4	Jan 4, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Brandon Godfrey C	River Ridge, LA	John Curtis Christian	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	280 lb (130 kg)	N/A	May 29, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Luke Jackson OLB	LaPlace, LA	St. Charles Catholic	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	4.55	Jun 14, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 64
Tanner Lee QB	New Orleans, LA	Jesuit	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	N/A	May 25, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 69
Mike Lizanich LS	Phoenix, AZ	Pinnacle	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	N/A	Jun 18, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 68
Nico Marley S	Weston, FL	Cypress Bay	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	N/A	Jun 24, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 61
Sergio Medina S	Boutte, LA	Hahnville	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	4.45	Jan 27, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Nick Montana QB	Walnut, CA	Mt. San Antonio JC	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	4.8	Dec 18, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 76
Parry Nickerson CB	Harvey, LA	West Jefferson	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	N/A	Jun 28, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Kenneth Santa Marina OG	New Orleans, LA	McDonough 35	6 ft 5.5 in (1.97 m)	320 lb (150 kg)	N/A	Jan 25, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 77
Tanzel Smart DT	Baton Rouge, LA	Scotlandville Magnet	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	290 lb (130 kg)	N/A	Feb 6, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jason Stewart OG	New Orleans, LA	Warren Easton Charter	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	330 lb (150 kg)	Apr 30, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 70
Anthony Taylor OT	River Ridge, LA	John Curtis Christian	6 ft 6.5 in (1.99 m)	330 lb (150 kg)	N/A	Mar 29, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Chris Taylor OG	Zachary, LA	Zachary	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	307 lb (139 kg)	5.2	Jun 22, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 83
Eric Thomas MLB	River Ridge, LA	John Curtis Christian	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	4.55	Nov 1, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
William Townsend CB	Miami, FL	Miami Norland	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	4.5	Nov 26, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Eldrick Washington DE	Harvey, LA	Helen Cox	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	N/A	May 17, 2012
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 67
Edward Williams MLB	New Orleans, LA	Warren Easton Charter	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	4.6	Mar 5, 2013
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 73
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 93   Rivals: 77
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2013 Tulane Football Commitment List". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 1, 2013. "2013 Tulane Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved August 1, 2013. "Tulane Green Wave 2013". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 1, 2013. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved August 1, 2013. "2013 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 1, 2013.

• Orleans Darkwa – Doak Walker Award Candidate^[1] (3rd consecutive year)
• Ryan Grant – Fred Biletnikoff Award Watch List^[2]
• Cairo Santos – Lou Groza Award Watch List^[3] (2012 award winner)

• Cairo Santos – Special Teams Player of the Year
• Ryan Grant – First Team, Offense
• Lorenzo Doss – First Team, Defense
• Cairo Santos – First Team, Special Teams

2013 Tulane Green Wave football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 1 Devin Powell  Fr WR 3 Ryan Grant  Sr WR 8 Devon Breaux  Fr WR 9 Kedrick Banks  Fr QB 11 Nick Montana Jr QB 12 Tanner Lee Fr WR 15 Marc Edwards  So QB 16 Jordy Joseph Jr RB 24 Danté Butler Jr RB 25 Josh Rounds So RB 26 Orleans Darkwa Sr RB 28 Rob Kelley Sr RB 29 Alex O'Neill Fr RB 32 Sherman Badie Fr RB 33 Lazedrick Thompson  Fr WR 36 Devin Boutte Jr WR 42 Carlos Wilson Sr RB 43 Marshall Wadleigh Fr WR 44 Alec Macias So C 50 Brandon Godfrey Fr OL 60 Preston Paine Jr OT 61 Colton Hanson  Fr C 64 Mike Henry  Sr C 65 Zach Morgan  Sr OT 66 Nathan Shienle  Fr G 67 Bob Bradley So OL 68 Arturo Uzdavinis  So OT 70 Sean Donnelly  Jr G 71 Jason Stewart Fr G 72 Rio Mares  Sr G 73 Alex Paul So G 74 Adam Skidmore  Jr OT 75 Chris Taylor Fr OT 76 Nate Skold  So OT 78 Todd Jacquet So OT 79 Kenneth Santa Marina Fr WR 80 Justyn Shackleford Jr TE 81 Sydie London So WR 82 Xavier Rush Jr WR 83 Fudge Van Hooser  Fr WR 84 JoJo Dobbs Sr WR 85 Larry Dace So TE 88 Matt Marfisi  Jr WR 89 Thomas Vaughan So	Defense Pos. # Name Class S 2 Darion Monroe So CB 4 Taurean Nixon Jr S 5 Brandon LeBeau Jr CB 6 Lorenzo Doss So S 7 Edward Williams Fr CB 10 Leonard Davis Fr CB 13 Derrick Strozier  Sr CB 14 Jordan Batiste So LB 20 Nico Marley Fr S 21 Kyle Davis Sr S 22 Jordan Sullen Sr CB 23 Richard Allen Fr S 27 Richard Carthon So S 30 Tristan Cooper Fr LB 34 Jarrod Franklin Fr S 35 Sam Scofield Jr S 37 LJ Parker  Sr S 38 Anthony Bronzo Jr WR 39 William Townsend Fr FB 40 Taylor Bullock  Jr DE 41 Aaron Bryant  So LB 43 Tyler Gilbert Jr CB 44 Luke Jackson Fr LB 45 Matthew Bailey Jr LB 46 Sergio Medina Fr LB 47 Cameron DeJean  Jr LB 48 Royce LaFrance So DE 51 Max Herman Fr LB 52 Eric Thomas Fr LB 53 Andre Robinson  Jr DT 54 Quinlan Carroll Fr DT 56 Dominique Robertson Sr LB 57 Zach Davis Sr LB 58 Brandon Schmidt Jr LB 59 David Laborde So DT 77 Tanzel Smart Fr DT 87 Ade Aruna Fr DE 90 Jeremy Peeples Sr DE 91 Eldrick Washington Fr DT 92 Julius Warmsley Sr DT 93 Kenny Welcome  Jr DE 94 Chris Davenport Sr DT 96 Corey Redwine  So DT 98 Eric Bell Fr DT 99 Calvin Thomas So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 19 Cairo Santos Sr P 31 Peter Picerelli So P, K 62 Steven Broccoli So K, P 63 Casey Spinelli Fr P 69 Jonathan Ginsburgh Sr P, K 95 Logan Hilton So DS 97 Michael Lizanich Fr	Head coach Curtis Johnson (2nd season) Coordinators/assistant coaches Eric Price – Offensive Coordinator Jon Sumrall – Co-Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line Lionel Washington – Co-Defensive Coordinator/Secondary David Johnson – Tight Ends/Running Backs Barry Lamb – Linebackers/Special Teams John McDonell – Offensive Line Mike Neu – Quarterbacks Jason Rollins – Secondary Keith Williams – Wide Receivers Byron Ellis – Director of Football Operations Doug Lichtenberger – Assistant AD for Football Operations/Recruiting Kwahn Drake – Graduate Assistant Coach, Defense Chad Jenkins – Graduate Assistant Coach, Defense Mike McCarthy – Graduate Assistant Coach, Offense Casey Robottom – Graduate Assistant Coach, Offense Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: October 10, 2013

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 29	7:00 pm	Jackson State*	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA		W 34–7	20,992
September 7	2:30 pm	South Alabama*	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA	CST	L 39–41	19,414
September 12	6:30 pm	at Louisiana Tech	Joe Aillet Stadium Ruston, LA	FS1	W 24–15	22,035
September 21	11:30 am	at Syracuse*	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY	ACCN	L 17–52	36,128
September 28	6:00 pm	at Louisiana–Monroe*	Malone Stadium Monroe, LA	ESPN3	W 31–14	20,476
October 5	2:30 pm	North Texas	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA	FCS	W 24–21	20,734
October 12	2:30 pm	East Carolina	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA	WHNO*	W 36–33 3OT	15,157
October 26	2:30 pm	Tulsa	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA	CST	W 14–7	22,414
November 2	4:00 pm	at Florida Atlantic	FAU Stadium Boca Raton, FL		L 17–34	16,406
November 9	1:00 pm	at UTSA	Alamodome San Antonio, TX	WHNO	L 7–10	24,606
November 23	2:30 pm	UTEP	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA	CST	W 45–3	19,771
November 30	2:00 pm	at Rice	Rice Stadium Houston, TX	FCS	L 13–17	20,048
December 21	8:00 pm	Louisiana–Lafayette*	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA (New Orleans Bowl)	ESPN	L 21–24	54,728
*Non-conference game Homecoming All times are in Central time

x- *(Tape Delayed broadcast ) Source ^[4]

This was the first meeting in football between Tulane and Jackson State.

This was the first meeting in football between Tulane and South Alabama.

Tulane last played Louisiana Tech during its undefeated 1998 season, winning 63–30 at home. Tulane has never lost to Louisiana Tech in football.

Orleans Darkwa led the team with 118 rushing yards, and the defense held their opponent scoreless in the first half for the second time in the season. Tulane forced 5 turnovers in the game and outgained ULM in rushing yards by 253 to 26.

This was the first meeting in football between Tulane and North Texas. Tulane won as time expired on the clock with a 27-yard field goal from Lou Groza Award-winner Cairo Santos. It was Tulane's first homecoming victory since the 2006 season and gave the Green Wave its best season start since 2003 and best conference start since 1998. The victory was also Tulane football's 500th win all-time. The defense held their opponent scoreless in the first half for the third time in the season and had two interceptions. Special teams blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown for the first time in school history.^[11]

Devin Powell played quarterback for Tulane, as starting quarterback Nick Montana was out with a shoulder injury. Cairo Santos kicked 5 field goals, including a 42-yard kick to win the game in triple overtime. Derrick Strozier intercepted an East Carolina pass and returned it 99 yards for a touchdown, while wearing one shoe.^[13] The game was the longest in school history and Tulane's first win over East Carolina since 2003. Following the victory, Tulane players won all three Conference USA weekly awards: Offensive Player of the Week (Devin Powell), Defensive Player of the Week (Derrick Strozier), and Special Teams Player of the Week (Cairo Santos).^[13]

Tulane came away with a 14–7 victory, beating Tulsa for the first time since their initial meeting in 1968, a 25–15 Green Wave victory in Tulane Stadium. In the two teams' last 8 meetings, the Green Wave lost by an average score of 43–12.^[15] Tulane forced 4 turnovers and 8 penalties from a Tulsa team that was the least penalized in college football coming into the game. The Golden Hurricane managed only 7 points in a game for the first time since their season opener against Bowling Green.^[16] Devin Powell played quarterback in place of Nick Montana, who was still on the bench with a separated shoulder. With the win, Tulane became bowl-eligible for the first time since 2002.^[17]

This was the first meeting in football between Tulane and Florida Atlantic.

This was the first meeting in football between Tulane and UTSA. While the Green Wave compiled more yards and first downs than the Roadrunners, while holding the ball for 15 minutes more, the team committed 14 penalties for 105 yards. UTSA kicked a field goal with 14 seconds remaining on the clock to break the 7–7 tie and win the game. With the loss, Tulane dropped to 6–4.^[19]

Tulane dominated UTEP in the program's final scheduled home game in the Superdome, scoring 38 points in the first half alone. Numerous former players from the Superdome era attended the game, and the "All-Dome Team," an all-star team of players from those 38 seasons, was introduced at halftime.^[21] The Green Wave's 45–3 victory was the largest margin of victory for Tulane in a C-USA game, and the 3 points allowed were the fewest the program had ever allowed in a C-USA contest. The win brought Tulane's record to 7–4, ensuring its first winning season since 2002.^[22] The Green Wave offense totaled 482 yards, with 205 passing and 277 rushing. The defense allowed 232 yards total and forced 3 turnovers. The team also reduced its penalties from the previous game to 4, totaling 35 yards.^[20] The win kept Tulane in contention to win the West Division of C-USA, provided it gained a victory at Rice the next week, while UTSA lost to Louisiana Tech at home.^[23]

This was the last conference game between Tulane and Rice. The Green Wave defense continued its above-average season by holding Rice's conference-best offense to 124 rushing yards, less than half its average coming into the game.^[25] It also forced two turnovers to place the Wave in position to score a field goal in the first half and a touchdown in the second half. The defensive effort could not make up for Tulane's offense, however, which struggled throughout the game and gained a season-low 123 yards, scoring only 3 points in the first half.^[26]

This was Tulane's first bowl game since its 36–28 Hawaiʻi Bowl win over Hawaiʻi in 2002. It was also the first all-Louisiana New Orleans Bowl game.

^[27][28]