A Slow Start Ramps Up as Practice Starts to Wind Down

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As we savored that sweet New Orleans heat this morning, Tulane got busy with a tough and gritty practice that would push its players to the limit.

With Tulane beginning classes this upcoming Monday, TU will see fewer practices throughout the week leading up to the season, so stay tuned!

A Rough Start

Over the past few days, quarterbacks have began to establish their position in the four-way race with two horses leading the charge. Zeon Chriss-Gremillion and Kadin Semonza seem to be the front-runners for this race, as Semonza has really come into his own over the past few days, and Zeon continues to display his athletic ability and his incredible arm strength.

However, as we got started today, all quarterbacks looked notably off. “(We) saw some weariness early on this day, which is disappointing, (but) I think we responded the right way,” coach Will Hall told us about this morning. It’s clear our eyes didn’t deceive us and that something was off early, but like Hall said, it’s all in how you respond.

Respond they did, as Semonza and Zeon would take advantage of space and take off running for big plays later on. Zeon himself zipped a ball into a tight, triple-covered window, but the throw was picture perfect as it fit flawlessly amongst three defenders. It’s also worth mentioning that the only reason why the ball was able to fit in that space was because Zeon had put so much power behind the throw that it zoomed into the receivers hands.

Maybe the weariness was due to the nature of the drills. Coach Hall told us today that they went with a lot of short and long yardage situations (fourth and short, third and long, etc.) that would force the QB to be smart with the ball and not get overzealous.

The biggest takeaway is the narrower gap between Semonza and Zeon. Over the past few practices, Semonza seemed to take a step forward in the race, but Zeon showed us today that this competition is far from over.

Growing Into Practice

”I was pleased with how the practice grew. As it went on I thought our leaders took charge and I thought we had more juice late,” Hall optimistically mentioned.

Ironically, it’s ideal that we’re seeing the quarterbacks make mistakes and get out to slow starts. You want these guys to go through the hardest of times, so they don’t go through even more difficult times when week one comes. Making mistakes is critical, because that’s the only way you can correct them in the first place.

Speaking to that, Coach Hall was spot on with his description. The energy and level of play had noticeably ramped up since the start of today's session, and you could feel it everywhere.

Just as impressive as the Wave’s growth today was their hydration. Throughout fall camp we haven’t seen anybody, if anyone at all, go down with a cramp.

Lots of Growing

‘Growing into the offense’ is something that Florida State transfer Jaylin Lucas has been doing since he got to New Orleans in the Spring.

When asked about his familiarity with the offense, Lucas said, “I’m feeling very confident.” Lucas, of course, bears a much bigger weight than some other backs, as he’ll be in what Coach Hall calls a 'superback’ position.

Lucas’ endeavors aren’t entirely limited to the offensive side of the ball. Although he’s a great runner and a natural pass-catcher, the other side of his game comes out in special teams.

Throughout his time at Indiana and FSU, Lucas mostly did kick returns. You could see that special teams potential today, as he looked sharp and quick splitting blocks and finding the edge to run around defenders.

”Vision and speed, once you see that cut just hit it,” Lucas responded after being asked what made his kick returning so good. He couldn’t take all of the credit though, “It’s not all up to me (though), as long as I’ve got good blocking up front, it’s going to go to the crib.”

Tulane returns to practice tomorrow at 7:45am.

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