Green Wave Collides With East Carolina Saturday
Nov 17, 2003 | Football
Nov. 17, 2003
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TULANE (4-7, 2-5) vs. EAST CAROLINA (1-9, 1-5)
November 22, 2003 -- 1:30 p.m. (CST)
New Orleans, La. -- Louisiana Superdome (69,767)
Tulane Head Coach Chris Scelfo
In his fifth season as the Tulane head coach, Chris Scelfo has a career record of 25-34 as he tied Andy Pilney for seventh place on the school's wins record at UAB. He became the first coach to win two bowl games at Tulane with the Green Wave's win in the Hawai'i Bowl last year. A 1985 graduate of Northeast Louisiana University (now Louisiana-Monroe), Scelfo began his coaching career at his alma mater and made coaching stops at Oklahoma (1986-87), Marshall (1990-95) and Georgia (1996-98) before arriving at Tulane in December 1998. He coached four teams that played in the I-AA national championship game, two of which won championships. A native of New Iberia, La., Scelfo ranks ahead of 29 other coaches in Tulane wins, including Greg Davis, Mack Brown, Buddy Teevens, Tommy Bowden and Larry Smith.
Top of the Class
Tulane Athletics, and specifically Tulane Football, continues to rank at the top of the NCAA heap in terms of graduation rates of its student-athletes. The football squad ranked 10th in the nation this year as 79 percent of the football players who entered school in 1996-97 graduated. In addition, 82 percent of the African-American football student-athletes earned their degrees. The Green Wave's overall graduation rate was also at 79 percent, the 14th-best mark in the nation.
GREEN WAVE GAMEDAY
The theme for Tulane's 2003 football season finale is "One Moore Time" in honor of record-setting running back Mewelde Moore and his 10 fellow 2003 seniors. The seniors will be honored during pre-game introductions, but the pregame fun will begin at 11:30 a.m. on the stage outside of Gate G as the "Great to Be Green" Pre-Game Bash features a performance by Reggie Hall and the Twilighters. In addition, there will be a special GMAC Bowl display in the Tailgating area, where tents, tables and chairs and grills are available for rent by calling the Tulane Marketing Office at 504-865-5625. The Wave men's basketball team will be introduced at the game, and fans will have a chance to win a trip to this year's Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. There will be a special halftime performance by the Tulane Marching Band, the Spirit of New Orleans, and by the marching band from Archbishop Rummel High School. Tulane's Student-Athlete Advisory Board (SAAB) will kick off a holiday toy drive at the game and are asking fans to bring an unwrapped toy which will be given to an underprivileged child in the New Orleans area. Finally, Saturday is Boy Scout Day, sponsored by Bell South, in the Superdome and more than 1,000 area boy scouts are slated to be in attendance.
NEWS & NOTES
Closing It Out
Tulane completes its 2003 season Saturday with a Senior Day game versus East Carolina in the Superdome. The Green Wave is home for the first time in four weeks after three straight road contests. Tulane finishes its 2003 season earlier than any other team in Conference USA.
Senior Day
Eleven Green Wave seniors will play their final game in a Tulane uniform today, although two of those seniors, captains Mewelde Moore and Daniel Nevil, had their years cut short by injury and will not be in action. The remainder of the 2003 senior class consists of S Winfred Brown, FB Kris Coleman, WR James Dunn, RB Chino Fontenette, QB J.P. Losman, WR Nick Narcisse, DB Byron Parker, LB Brandt Quick and DT Terrence Tarver. All of the seniors have contributed on the field this year with eight having started games.
Last Time Out
The Green Wave lost a heartbreaker at Southern Miss when the Golden Eagles turned a fake field goal attempt into a 34-yard touchdown with 1:27 left in the game, securing a 28-14 victory over Tulane in Hattiesburg. The Wave had come back from a 17-0 first-quarter deficit to trail just 20-14 before Southern Miss' decisive drive and play.
A Year Ago...
A year ago in Greenville, N.C., Tulane played well in a see-saw battle that saw the Pirates score the last touchdown to claim a 24-20 win. The Pirates' Art Brown rushed for 185 yards and a pair of scores to lead ECU while Mewelde Moore gained 114 yards on 30 carries and J.P. Losman completed 31 passes. Tulane had chances to win in the fourth quarter but a pair of Green Wave drives were stymied in the last five minutes of the game as neither team scored in the fourth quarter.
Series Situation
Tulane and East Carolina meet for just the seventh time Saturday with four of the previous six meetings coming in Greenville. Aside from a 1991 game at ECU, each of the contests have been in Conference USA action. The Pirates have defeated the Wave in each of the last four seasons, as last year's game was the closest in the series. Tulane defeated East Carolina 33-16 in the Superdome in 1997 for its only series win to date.
Home Sweet 'Dome
Since moving into the Superdome in 1975, the Green Wave is 75-89 (a .457 winning percentage) all-time in its home stadium. The Green Wave is 1-2 in the Superdome so far in 2003 and won four of its six 'Dome games last year. Tulane is 26-14 (.650) in the building since the beginning of the 1997 season.
New Look 'Dome
While the Superdome is certainly a familiar home to the Tulane Green Wave, the Dome floor has a new look this week thanks to the new AstroPlay surface installed in the facility since Tulane's last game there Oct. 25th. On Oct. 23, the Superdome announced plans to remove the seven-year-old Astroturf and replace it with AstroPlay, the same surface which is on Tulane's Westfeldt Practice Facility fields. The new surface, which includes synthetic grass cushioned by sand and rubber, was in place for the New Orleans Saints game on Sunday, Nov. 16th.
In Conference
In seven seasons of competition, Tulane is 23-29 (.442) in Conference USA games and is 2-5 in league games to date in 2003. Both of Tulane's C-USA wins so far this year have come on the road, with wins at Army and at UAB for a road C-USA mark of 2-2. At home, Tulane is 0-3 versus the league. League schools will play eight conference games in 2003, with each team missing two C-USA foes. The Green Wave will not play the newest Conference USA football member, South Florida, and for the first time since the school's played the first-ever C-USA game in 1996, Tulane will not meet Cincinnati.
Tulane vs. C-USA
The Wave is 47-67-2 (.414) all-time versus schools that currently comprise C-USA. Tulane's all-time records with its conference brethren, both all-time and since the league began in 1996.
Third!
When Chris Scelfo coaches his 60th game as head coach of the Green Wave on Saturday, he will become the third-longest tenured coach in Tulane history in terms of games. He will trail only Hall-of-Famer Clark Shaughnessy, who coached Tulane in 91 games over 11 seasons in two stints from 1915-1920 and 1922-1926, and Andy Pilney, whose Green Wave tenure spanned eight years and 80 games. Scelfo is the 36th head coach in Tulane history. Only four of those coached the Wave for more than five seasons as Henry Frnka (58 games from 1946-51) joins Shaughnessy, Pilney, Scelfo and Dawson on the longest-tenure list.
Respectable
Of Tulane's seven losses this season, all have come to teams which currently sport a winning record and at least six wins on the year, including three losses to teams that are or have been ranked this year in TCU (currently #9 ESPN/USA Today), Texas (#7) and Louisville (formerly #25). The seven teams Tulane has lost to in 2003 currently have a combined record of 52-19, including 10-0 TCU, a trio of 7-3 teams from Conference USA in Southern Miss, Memphis and Louisville, as well as 6-4 Houston. Non-conference foes Texas (9-2) and Navy (6-4) are the other teams on the list.
No More Moore
Tulane all-time great running back Mewelde Moore will be sidelined for the remainder of the regular season after breaking the second metacarpal bone in his left hand in the fourth quarter of the Navy game. Moore underwent surgery on the hand on Tuesday, Nov. 11th. The senior, who started 41 of the 44 games he has played at Tulane, is expected to make a full recovery from the injury, the first significant one he has suffered since a high ankle sprain sidelined him for one game and parts of two others in his freshman year of 2000. He finishes his career as the most prolific running back in Tulane history, with 23 school and seven Conference USA records. He also ranks 11th on the all-time Division I-A list for all-purpose yards.
In the Zone
Quarterback J.P. Losman has quietly put together one of the most productive seasons by a Tulane quarterback in school history. Losman's 29 touchdown passes, including at least one in every game this year, are the second-highest single-season total ever at Tulane, behind only Shaun King's 36 in 1998. Losman's passing yardage (2,850) and total offense (2,953) totals are also already the fifth and fourth-best season numbers. He is on his way to just the third 3,000-yard passing and fourth 3,000-yard total offense season in Tulane history.
Pepper's Points
Freshman kicker Barrett Pepper has hit 38-of-40 extra point attempts in 2003 which does not seem extraordinary until you consider that with two more attempts, he will have the second-highest single season total in the 111-year history of Tulane Football. And, if he makes three extra points, that total will also rank second all-time. Former kicker and Lou Groza award winner Seth Marler made 39-of-40 PATs in his top season of 2001.
Out of Nowhere
Senior running back Chino Fontenette had a career-day, literally, last week versus Southern Miss. Tulane's third-string tailback over the last two years, the Houston native doubled his career rushing total in one game with 32 yards on eight carries versus the Golden Eagles, including a career-long 11-yard run. He entered the contest with 32 career yards on 12 totes, including one rush for 0 yards in 2003. Fontenette also caught three passes for 48 yards, with a career-long 17-yard play, in the game, after coming on for Jovon Jackson who was bothered by an ankle injury.
Standout
Junior wide receiver Roydell Williams is having the finest year of his Tulane career and currently ranks second among Conference USA receivers in both catches per game and receiving yards per game. Among his eight catches at USM was his eighth TD grab of the year, an acrobatic three-yard snatch in which he brought his toes down just inside the end-zone line on a high three-yard lob pass. Williams has four plays of 50-plus yards on the year, including a career-long 78-yard TD catch-and-run versus UAB and a similar 77-yard play against Texas. Tulane had not had a longer play since 1999. The Green Wave's leading receiver with 63 catches for 962 yards and eight TDs, Williams has five 100-yard receiving games this year and eight in his career. His 22 career TD receptions rank fifth all-time at Tulane. Back from a broken ankle which led to a redshirt season last year, Williams' other 100-yard days have come versus TCU (5-110), Mississippi State (10-114), Texas (5-129,) Louisville (5-119). He has caught at least one pass in his last 26 games. A 15-yard TD catch versus Texas which he juggled and corralled while on his back in the endzone, was featured on ESPN's "SportsCenter" as its top play of the day.
The Century Mark
Linebackers Brandt Quick and Anthony Cannon joined safety Tra Boger in the 100-tackle club at Southern Miss, giving Tulane three players over the century mark in stops for the first time since 1992. That year, Mike Staid (133), Wilbert Gilmore (118) and Willie Smith (100) all reached the 100-mark. Tulane has a chance to put a fourth player in that category as defensive back Sean Lucas has made a career-high 95 stops to date, including 65 solo.
The "Survivors"
Through 11 games, Tulane has just eight players who have started every game this year. A year ago, 12 Green Wave players made it through the entire season, starting all 12 regular season games. Six of this year's "survivors" are on offense in QB J.P. Losman, OT Chris McGee, WR Nick Narcisse, OG Matt Traina, C Joe Traina and WR Roydell Williams. Defensively, Sean Lucas has started at three different positions in the secondary at right and left cornerback and at free safety while getting the start in all 11 games. Senior defensive tackle Terrence Tarver is the only player on the Green Wave defense who has started every game at the same position this year.
Hurting
To say the Green Wave has been bitten by the injury bug in 2003 is an understatement. In fact, Head Coach Chris Scelfo says the list of players who missed games this year is unlike anything he has experienced in his coaching career. On a roster that numbers just 88 players, 26 (including three lost late last year or this spring to career-ending injuries) have missed games for the Green Wave in 2003. Of those 26, 18 are defenders and at least 15 have started games or were projected to start. The injury list has included linebackers (Blake Baker, Wesley Heath, Anthony Cannon), offensive linemen (Jimmy Kosienski, Will Blaylock), tight ends (Bobby Hoover), defensive backs (Jeremy Foreman, Joey Dawson, Darren Sapp, Alton Widemon) and defensive linemen (Bamm Mateen, Daniel Nevil, Michael Roberts, Tremell Jack) and ranges from players lost for the season to those who missed one game.
Decimated
The Tulane defensive line has been particularly hard hit by losses. Nearly two full defensive lines have been wiped out, necessitating a huge influx of freshmen, not just into the mix, but into the starting line-up. Tulane has experimented by moving a pair of offensive linemen (Willie Christian and Mark Burgess), a linebacker (Brandt Quick) and a wide receiver (Preston Brown) to the defensive line at times. Christian, less than three weeks after moving to d-line, started the Memphis game at defensive end and is now settled into a second team position. Brown and Quick have since been moved back to their original positions.
Coincidence?
Is it coincidence that Tulane's defensive improvement in the last two games has come as the Green Wave has started to achieve a level of consistency in its starting line-up. Tulane started the same line-up in back-to-back games for just the second time this year against UAB and Southern Miss, and had the same starters on the defensive line for the third consecutive game. And even as sophomore Antonio Mason (LB), freshman Kelvin Johnson (LB) and senior Winfred Brown (SS) made their second consecutive starts, the people they had replaced in the line-up -- junior Brandon Spincer, senior Brandt Quick and junior Joey Dawson -- all returned to see significant action in the game. In all, 24 different players have started games on the Tulane defense this year, including eight freshmen. Prior to the last two games, the only games this year when Tulane started the same line-up on defense were the Mississippi State and Army contests, both Green Wave wins.
Mr. Jackson
In Mewelde Moore's place, sophomore Jovon Jackson made quite an impact in his debut as a starter, rushing for 183 yards on 26 carries and two scores versus UAB, including an 85-yard touchdown run to ice the victory for Tulane. The 85-yard score tied for the seventh-longest in Green Wave history and was the longest since Jerald Sowell's record-setting 98-yard jaunt versus Alabama in 1993 which, coincidentally, also came at Legion Field. Jackson's 183-yard effort ranks ninth on the Green Wave single-game chart. Entering the game, Jackson had career totals of 59 rushes for 237 yards and one touchdown while his previous single-game best was 11 carries for 42 yards versus Southern Miss in 2002. He surpassed those totals in the first half at UAB.
Mr. Consistency
Mewelde Moore finishes his Tulane career just eight yards shy of the NCAA Division I-A career Top 10 in all-purpose yards with 6,505 total yards. Moore, who was averaging 147 all-purpose yards per game this year, could have climbed into the all-time Top 3 at that pace and had a chance to become just the third 7,000-yard man ever.
Exclusive Club
Tulane running back Mewelde Moore joined an exclusive club versus Louisville. Needing 37 rushing and 50 receiving yards to become just the SECOND man in NCAA Division I-A history to gain 4,000 rushing and 2,000 all-purpose yards for his career, Moore picked up 123 rushing and 57 receiving yards. The C-USA and Tulane career leader in rushing and all-purpose yards, Moore joined Stanford's Darrin Nelson (1977-78, 1980-81) as the only two players in the 4,000 /2,000 club.
Upperclass 11
Between the injuries, the relatively small number of seniors in this year's class (11) and the emergence of youngsters in key positions, Tulane lists just 11 upperclassmen (5 seniors/6 juniors, 7 offense/4 defense) in its starting line-up, which actually has 25 players, due to the Wave's many different offensive sets. The five senior starters include three on offense in WR Nick Narcisse, QB J.P. Losman and FB Kris Coleman and a pair on defense, DT Terrence Tarver and LB Brandt Quick, although Quick has not started the last two games due to a shoulder injury which limits his practice time. Three of the six junior starters are receivers in Chris Bush, Tristan Smith and Roydell Williams. They join offensive tackle Jimmy Kosienski and safeties Tra Boger and Joey Dawson.
Special Specialist
Freshman punter Chris Beckman continues to improve and has moved up to rank second in Conference USA, and 27th in the country, in punting average with a mark of 42.6 yards per punt. He established a new season high for average at UAB with six boots for a 45.7-yard average and kicked a season-long 62-yard punt in his home state of Mississippi last week. In Tulane's last five games, Beckman has punted 30 times for a 44.5-yard average with at least one 50-plus yard punt in each of those games. Beckman also made a nice play to get his first punt away at USM, leaping to grab a high snap and then avoiding a rusher.
Line Time
Tulane's young offensive line continues to improve, with the two sophomores who man the left side of the line leading the way. Left tackle Chris McGee has been Tulane's top lineman again in 2003, as he shared Offensive Player of the Game honors with Jovon Jackson for his effort at UAB after grading out to a season-high 91 percent. McGee also won the award following the Louisville contest when he compiled a 90 percent mark. Versus Texas, both McGee and left guard Matt Traina, who have started 24 consecutive games dating back to 2002, graded out over 80 percent. Traina earned the Offensive Player of the Week honors after the Houston game while right tackle Jimmy Kosienski took the same award for the Navy contest. Versus UAB, the line, which also includes right guard Donald Madlock and center Joe Traina, helped Tulane, even without star back Mewelde Moore, to its top rushing yardage total (244) in its last 28 games, since a 282-yard day versus Cincinnati on Oct. 6, 2001.
Pressed Into Service
Sixteen freshmen -- five redshirts and 11 true -- have played significant roles for Tulane this year, with 12 of those having started games and nearly all of the rest listed no lower than second on the depth chart. The Wave is starting three freshmen on the defensive line, ends Michael Purcell and Billy Harrison, and tackle Taurean Brown while Kelvin Johnson has started the last two games at middle linebacker. Add cornerback Alton Widemon and the Green Wave's starting D has included a season-high five freshmen in each of the last two games. Of course, Tulane's three most visible special teams players -- kicker Barrett Pepper, punter Chris Beckman and return man Fred Smith, are also all freshmen. Other freshmen starters for the Green Wave this year have included nickel back Israel Route, cornerback Jeremy Foreman, defensive tackle Alvin Johnson and offensive lineman Derek Rogers, the only offensive rookie to start.
A Finalist
Tulane senior J.P. Losman was named one of seven finalists for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, joining Eli Manning (Ole Miss), Jon Navarre (Michigan), Matt Schaub (Virginia), Jason White (Oklahoma), Philip Rivers (N.C. State) and B.J. Symons (Texas Tech) on the list. The senior's 29 passing TDs are tied for fifth in the nation and he leads Conference USA in passing and total offense. The California native totalled 303, 353, 349 and 350 yards passing in the Wave's first four games this season and among his 237 completions are 78 and 77-yarders. Complete information on the Tulane quarterback, who has been projected as one of the top seniors for the 2004 NFL draft, is available at www.JP-Losman.com.
Harrison is HOT
True freshman Billy Harrison continues to lead the Green Wave defensive rookies, and all TU defensive linemen, in tackles with 61, while also leading the entire TEAM in tackles for loss with 7.5. Harrison's big-play ability was on display versus UAB as the Pensacola, Fla. native batted the Blazers' first pass and then caught the tipped ball for his first career interception, setting up the Green Wave's second TD of the game. Harrison has had at least one "big play" in each Tulane's last six games, all of which he has started at defensive end.
ON THE AIR
Tulane-ECU on TV The Tulane-East Carolina game will be broadcast back to North Carolina on East Carolina local station WITN-TV. The broadcast is not expected to be available for pick-up outside of North Carolina.
Tulane-ISP Radio Network
Tulane games will be heard in the New Orleans area on WTIX-FM (94.3), WTIX-AM (690) and WJSH-FM (104.7) in 2003 as part of a 13-station network that stretches across the state and even into Florida. Sean Kelley calls the play-by-play action while former Tulane wide receiver Steve Barrios returns with color commentary and Todd Graffagnini is back on the sideline beat.
Tulane Coaches' Call-In Show
Head Coach Chris Scelfo will be the featured guest on the Tulane Coaches' Call-In Show every Monday from 7-8 p.m. during the season. Tulane radio voice Sean Kelley hosts the show, which is broadcast live from Superior Grill on St. Charles Ave. in New Orleans.
Tulane Football
with Coach Chris Scelfo "Tulane Football with Coach Chris Scelfo," will get you ready for the big game with game highlights and player features. Hosted by Sean Kelley, the show airs Saturday mornings at 10:30 a.m. throughout Louisiana on Cox Sports TV.
"Ringside" Radio
Tulane Athletics will be the featured topic on the radio show "Ringside" with host Jeff Crouere each Wednesday from 1:30 to 2 p.m. on WTIX-AM 690 in New Orleans. Tulane coaches, players and staff will be featured each week throughout the 2003-2004 school year.
