Pac-12 expansion candidates: Tulane Green Wave

The rebuilt Pac-12 has eight members signed up for the 2026-27 athletics season: Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, Oregon State, San Diego State, Washington State and Utah State.

The conference must attract at least one more football-playing member before 2026 to reach the NCAA’s eight-team minimum to qualify as an FBS conference. Gonzaga does not have a football program.

The Pac-12, which poached five teams from the Mountain West and Gonzaga from the West Coast Conference, is expected to add between one and six additional members in the coming weeks and months.

As conference realignment wages on, Boise State Broncos on SI is taking a look at schools that have been linked to the Pac-12 in various reports.

We have already covered the Memphis Tigers, North Texas Mean Green, Rice Owls, Sacramento State Hornets, Saint Mary’s Gaels, South Florida Bulls and Texas State Bobcats. Now we will head back to the American Athletic Conference to profile the Tulane Green Wave.

Tulane University

Location: New Orleans, Louisiana

Current conference: American Athletic Conference

Enrollment: 14,027

Endowment: $2.11 billion

Athletics budget: Unknown*

Football stadium: Yulman Stadium (30,000 capacity)

Basketball arena: Devlin Fieldhouse (4,100 capacity)

*As a private institution, Tulane is not required to release revenue and expense figures.

The case for Tulane

A charter member of the SEC, Tulane began de-emphasizing athletics in the 1950s and left the conference in 1966. Other than a 12-0 season in 1998 under head coach Tommy Bowden, the Green Wave had been largely irrelevant in football for decades until Willie Fritz arrived in 2016.

Fritz, who is now at Houston, went 23-4 overall during his final two seasons at Tulane, including a 12-2 finish and Cotton Bowl victory over USC in 2022. New head coach Jon Sumrall led the Green Wave to a 9-2 start last year and a No. 17 ranking in the College Football Playoff rankings before stumbling against Memphis, Army and Florida.

Tulane is one of the top universities in the country and sits in the middle of New Orleans, an events-oriented city that is a desirable destination for traveling fans.

Yulman Stadium is a state-of-the-art, on-campus stadium that opened in 2014. The Green Wave basketball teams play in historic Devlin Fieldhouse, which underwent extensive renovations between 2012 and 2015.

The case against Tulane

Tulane’s three-year football run under Fritz and Sumrall is a complete anomaly in modern history. In fact, it’s the first time the program has compiled three straight winning seasons since 1948-50.

Just like Memphis and South Florida, Tulane lies completely outside of the new Pac-12’s geographic footprint. Unlike USF, New Orleans and Memphis are in the Central Time Zone, but travel concerns remain significant.

And once again, the AAC’s exorbitant exit fee looms over everything.

Verdict

Tulane’s investment in athletics paid off as Fritz elevated the football program to a perennial contender in the AAC.

Fritz has moved on, but Tulane remains one of the top all-around athletics programs outside of the Power 4.

If another Southern school (Memphis, Texas State and/or UTSA) is willing to come aboard with the Green Wave, Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould should welcome Tulane with open arms.

MORE BOISE STATE NEWS & ANALYSIS

Ranking Boise State’s best additions of transfer portal era

2025 NFL mock drafts: Will new Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer covet Ashton Jeanty?

Mountain West commissioner releases statement on conference realignment

Boise State transfer portal tracker: Cam Camper withdraws from NFL Draft, now in portal

FBS coaches unanimously approve single transfer portal window

Pac-12 maintains Mountain West poaching penalties are ‘invalid and unenforceable’

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Continue to follow our Boise State coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter.