Preview: South Alabama Opens Season At #24 Tulane
Kickoff: Saturday, September 2 7:00 PM
Venue: Yulman Stadium – New Orleans, LA
TV/Streaming: ESPNU
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
#5 Jersey: Devin Voisin
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Preface
The Thunderjags family have been going through a lot over the last few months and our coverage leading up to the season has been basically non-existent unfortunately. It’s been a struggle to get back into gear. We have and continue to be a partnership, but while my family life has calmed down a little bit lately and I am eager to get back to some normalcy, my partner is still going through his own family issues. However you send support, I would humbly ask you to keep my partner, his family (and also my family) in your thoughts, prayers, or however you support people in your personal belief system. Speaking for both Thunderjags, we appreciate it!
Now, on with the preview!
The Season Is Here
South Alabama will open their 2023 campaign with a top 25 matchup versus the Tulane Green Wave in New Orleans at Yulman Stadium.
Tulane was the darling of bowl season finishing with a 12-2 record, which included a win over UCF in the AAC championship game. That win vaulted Tulane into a New Years Day 6 bowl game as the top ranked team with the best record in the Group of Five conference. The Green Wave then defeated the top 10 ranked USC Trojans 46-45 in the Cotton Bowl.
South Alabama finished their 2022 campaign with a 10-3 record. Marking their best FBS season in program history with five straight wins to close out the regular season. However, their streak would come to an end in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl with a 23-44 loss and remain winless in three bowl game appearances over the program’s short history.
Between these two programs, there are lofty expectations for 2023.
But past performance does not guarantee future results, especially not in college football.
Tulane
Tulane finished 2022 ranked 9th in the nation in the AP poll. But you only have to look back to 2021 and the Green Wave’s 2-10 record to understand how preseason rankings don’t necessarily indicate how a new team and a new season will perform. But eighth-year head coach Willie Fritz hopes to maintain the standard set forth by the 2022 team.
Offense
The Green Wave returns three-year starter Michael Pratt who threw for 3,009 yards and 27 touchdowns last season. However, they have to replace running back Tyjae Spears, who was the Cotton Bowl MVP, that rushed for 1,581 yards and 19 touchdowns last season.
Coach Fritz has not said who will be replacing Spears, but that he had five good running backs and they will be testing them out over the first few games.
The likely starters on the offensive line are all senior or redshirt-seniors that have quite a bit of experience under their respective belts. They also weigh an average of 308lb.
At receiver they have a somewhat untested group of potential starters. A senior transfer from Notre Dame who only saw five snaps in the season opening game in 2021. His usage has trended down from 2019 when he played in 12 games with three starts until sitting out the remainder of the 2021 season.
Defense
The Tulane defense lines up in a base 4-2-5 package, similar to the Jags. The defensive line is experienced and deep but their likely starting linebackers seem to be less experienced.
The secondary is comprised of all upper classmen but the likely starters are mostly transfers into the program at one time or another.
Special Teams
Punter Casey Glover (R-Sr) returns from a season where he averaged over 41 yards per attempt with 20 fair catches, 20 downed inside the 20, 9 punts of 50+ yards and 0 blocks. His longest recorded punt was 65 yards. Glover is also the kickoff specialist and played in all 14 games last season with 45 touchbacks and only one kick out of bounds.
Also returning is placekicker Valentino Ambrosio (R-Sr). He transferred in from Rutgers last season. For the Green Wave he played in eight games going 10-of-11 with a long of 47 yards.
Ethan Hadak (R-Jr) played in 34 games over three seasons for the Green Wave, including all 13 last Fall.
South Alabama
The Jaguars enter the third season under the direction of head coach Kane Wommack with an unprecedented set of expectations. Despite the expectations from what some may consider a season where the Jags overachieved, the players and coaches, when they allow themselves to look back, they see both an amazing season with some undertones of slight underachievement.
They lost to UCLA on a last second field goal and lost to their rival Troy 6-10 in a defensive slug match. But many took the loss to Western Kentucky personal, include coach Wommack.
The Jags felt like they could have easily been in the Conference Championship game and could have been the Group of Five representative in the New Years Day 6 bowl games.
Offense
Coach Wommack and offensive coordinator Major Applewhite return nine starters on an offense that put up an average of over 31 points per game last season. Receiver Jalen Wayne was drafted by the Cleveland Browns but leaves a very talented and experienced pair of receivers for quarterback Carter Bradley to target.
Speaking of Carter Bradley (Sr) he set school records in passing yards (3,326), completions (276), and touchdowns (28) in his first season at USA. He ranked in the top 50 nationally in 11 different categories. He has been named to at least five different watch lists this season including: Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, the Manning Award, the Davey O’Brien Award, The Wuerffel Trophy, and the Maxwell Award Watch Lists.
Veteran Desmond Trotter will back up Carter and freshman Gio Lopez is listed as 3rd string, seemingly beating out redshirt-freshman Bishop Davenport, a Utah State transfer.
La’Damian Webb (R-Sr) returns after setting the regular season rushing yard mark with 1,015 yards in his first regular season with the program. He saw action in 12 games, missing only one with an injury but was held to minimal carries in two others due to injury. He ran for 152 yards and three touchdowns against Arkansas State and then for 247 yards and four touchdowns (both school records) against Georgia Southern in a game where he willed his team to victory. He ranked in the top 50 in seven categories nationally including 13th in rushing touchdowns and 10th in total touchdowns.
Webb is backed up by Braylon McReynolds (So) who played in 11 games as a true freshman with 326 yards on 59 carries. He was able to show his speed and explosiveness only a few times last season, but look for him to get more opportunities this season.
The staff added Kentrell Bullock (Jr), an Ole Miss transfer, and he will also factor into the rotation with McReynolds.
Marco Lee (Sr) returns after his first season with the Jags where he had 67 carries for 247 yards and four touchdowns, including a pair of touchdowns against UCLA. He will be the bruiser back they can send in for those tough goal line and short yardage situations.
Replacing Wayne as the starter in week one is Jamaal Pritchett (So). He saw action in eight games last fall but only has two catches to his resume. On the other side is Devin Voisin (R-Jr) who played in all 13 games. He was named an honorable mention All-SBC team and All-Conference by Phil Steele. He had 64 catches for 867 yards and five touchdowns on the season, including a season-high 11 catches and 153 yards in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl against Western Kentucky.
Caullin Lacy (Jr) started all 13 games last season in the slot with a team-high 65 catches for 816 yards and six touchdowns with a career high 12 catches for 133 yards against Louisiana-Monroe. He also serves as the primary punt returner with 21 returns for 189 yards and a touchdown return against Louisiana Tech.
What may be one of the more underrated positions of strength on the offense is at tight end. The Jags return five seasoned and talented players in Lincoln Sefcik (Sr), DJ Thomas-Jones (Sr), Brandon Crum (Sr), Jacob Hopper (Jr), and Todd Justice (R-Jr). While they haven’t been featured pass receivers over the last few seasons, they are excellent possession receivers and tend to come through when the ball is thrown their way and a catch is needed.
Sefcik and Thomas-Jones will likely split starting duties again this season.
But what allows the offense to do what it does, the offensive line returns all but one starter from last year. James Jackson is gone since his eligibility was exhausted. But Josh McCulloch (Sr), Dontae Lucas (Sr), Reggie Smith (Sr), and Adrein Strickland (So) all return. Reggie Smith will move over to center and James Robinson (R-Jr) will start at left guard. Robinson transferred in from Tennessee and saw action in eight games last year as a backup guard and also on special teams.
Defense
The defense returns their own fair share of starters from last year while returning some talented players from injury too.
Jamie Sheriff (R-Sr), Wy’Kevious Thomas (R-Jr), and Charles Coleman (Sr) all return as starters on the defensive line. Brock Higdon (R-Jr), Jamall Hickbottom (Sr), and Carlos Johnson (Jr), Nathan Rawlins-Kibonge (R-So), and Maurice Strong Jr. (Sr) all return with game experience from last season. Unfortunately it seems that Ed Smith (So) will miss this game and possibly the season with an injury in the last practice of fall camp.
James Miller (Sr), Trey Kiser (Sr), and Quentin Wilfawn (R-Jr) all return as starters at linebacker. Ke’Shun Brown (R-Jr) also has starting experience and returns to bolster the group as a reserve along with Khalil Jacobs (So) and LaMondre Brooks (So) are both listed on the two-deep with game experience from last season.
The coaching staff added Gavin Forsha (Jr) from Kansas State, Taylor Milton (Jr) from Texas A&M, Emauri Sibley (So) from JuCo ranks, and Eli Webb (So) from Belhaven to add some additional depth at linebacker.
Ricky Fletcher (So) and Marquise Robinson (Jr) return as starting corners with Reggie Neely (Jr) and Dallas Gamble (R-Jr) both return with game experience as reserves.
Keith Gallmon (R-Sr) returns at free safety after missing all of 2022 with an injury. He is backed up by Rickey Hyatt (R-Jr). Jaden Voisin (R-Jr) or Jalen Jordan (Jr) are listed as the starter at Rover. Yam Banks (Jr) is back to start at Husky after leading the team with six interceptions last season.
The coaching staff added a long list of players in the offseason to add quality depth in the secondary. Reggie Neely (Jr Juco), Eli Ntsasa (Jr community college), Cameron Rutledge (Jr Division II transfer), Wesley Miller (R-Fr Mississippi State), Jordon Buchanan (R-Fr Purdue), Jamarrien Burt (R-Fr Oklahoma), Brian Dillart (R-So West Georgia), and Mike Harris (R-Jr Baylor) all transferred.
Coach Wommack also hired former Southern Miss head coach Jay Hopson, who previously served two years as Director of High School Relations at Mississippi State to coach the cornerbacks along with defensive coordinator Corey Batoon, who coaches the safeties, but calls plays from the press box during games.
Special Teams
Diego Guajardo (Sr) will handle placekicking duties, his fourth season as the starter. Desmond Trotter or Jack Martin are listed as serving as the holder. Jacob Meeks (Sr) will return to serve as kickoff specialist. With Jack Brooks deciding to depart the team, Jack Martin (Sr) who transferred from Alabama but didn’t see any action in 2022, is listed along with true freshman Aleksi Pulkkinen from Helsinki Finland as the punter.
Travis Drosos (Jr) will handle the long snapping duties with Anthony Zaccaro (Jr) backing him up.
Caullin Lacy will handle punt returns and Braylon McReynolds and Caullin Lacy will line up for kickoff returns.
Keys to the Game
Consistency
More often than not, the team that executes more consistently in the first game of the season tends to win the game.
Over the last two seasons with Coach Wommack and his staff, they have been pretty consistent in the early games of the season. In 2021 they defeated Southern Miss, now a fellow conference member, in the season opener. Then in 2022 they handled FCS Nicholls as expected, but they also went to Central Michigan and defeated the Jim McElwain coached Chippewas with consistent execution.
Quarterback Pressure
South Alabama was picked apart by a very talented and experienced quarterback at Western Kentucky. It really exposed and exploited the secondary as the weak point of the Jaguars defense.
Tulane is returning a three-year starter at quarterback who completed 62% of his passes last season for 2,684 yards while also rushing for 494 yards. They may not set off alarm bells, but Pratt has shown that he a player.
He is regarded enough to be named to the Maxwell Award Watch List in 2022 and again for this season.
Tulane will definitely test all aspects of the Jaguar defense. If the Jags defensive front can’t get pressure on Pratt and the Jag secondary struggles against the pass, it could be another long game in New Orleans.
Running Backs
The edited mantra for the Jags last season was “Run the Dang ball.” It was such a thing that strength and conditioning coach Matt Shadeed was, I believe, the first one to have a shirt made to wear at practice with….a version….of the saying prominently displayed on it.
And La’Damian Webb sure did his part!
This may be the deepest and most talented group of running backs, from top to bottom, that have all suited up for the Jags in one season. They may only be three listed on the two-deep chart, but there are five running backs who could easily be put in to start.
Last season the Jags averaged just over 155 yards per game rushing. They have a good opportunity with the talent they have to improve on that this season.
Meanwhile Tulane averaged just under 205 yards rushing per game. Their leading rusher, Tyjae Spears, is gone this season which leaves their top returning rusher as quarterback Michael Pratt.
Coach Fitz and his staff will undoubtedly find someone who fill Spears’ cleats.
The Jags defense held opponents to just over 92 yards rushing per game last season. So this could be a very interesting matchup on the field Saturday night.
Prediction
South Alabama is a 6.5 point underdog to Tulane in New Orleans.
The first game of a new season is often a tricky one. It can set the tone for the entire season to come. You find out quickly where you need to improve and likely where your strengths lie.
This couldn’t be truer than this season opener.
Two teams who exceeded expectations last season who now have higher expectations for this season. But we also have two teams that couldn’t be more opposite once the final whistle sounded last season.
Tulane held off a top 10 ranked USC, while the Jaguars suffered their worst loss of the season in their bowl game. Coach Wommack, his staff and the players all looked back at what the season could have been. A one-point loss on the road at UCLA on a field goal as time expired, a four-point loss at home against Troy in their lowest offensive output of the season, but then the 21-point loss to Western Kentucky in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
South Alabama still has the bitter taste of defeat fresh in their mouth. But they are also going back to the same city where that bitterness originated.
I can’t help but think that’s some extra motivation.
While I may be looking at this through my red, white and blue glasses, I think the Jags not only cover the spread, but they win outright 38-34.