Tulane Fall Ball Begins With Will Hall at the Helm
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We at ON SI Tulane woke up bright and early for today's 7:45 a.m. first practice of Tulane Football Fall Camp. Although there were no pads worn, and the first half of practice was spent doing walkthroughs, there's still plenty to be excited about and some news that we can share.
No, We Don't Have an Answer at QB
As we suspected, the first day of practice brought absolutely no clues to who would take the first snap of the 2026 season for the Wave. What it did bring, however, were some interesting observations and some entertaining play.
To start, freshman quarterback, Trace Johnson, took the first snap of today's practice. But, this likely means nothing. All four QBs got a shot today, taking reps with the first and second teams, allowing each player to show what they're capable of with all of their weapons available.
All four candidates had something to show: Johnson looked sharp, Dagan Bruno played solid, Zeon Chriss-Gremillion threw zingers all day, but Kadin Semonza looked a tad off. Take everything you’ve heard and what you’re about to hear with a grain of salt though, as there's still plenty of ways to go for Fall Ball.
It might’ve just been an off day for Semonza, but he did fail to hit a wide open receiver in the end zone on a post route, as he had underthrew him, allowing the defender to make up the space and cause a deflection. In addition, he seemed a bit late in hitting his receivers, but maybe he’s just knocking the rust off.
Zeon, Bruno, and Johnson on the other hand, looked sharp and on time. We’d like to see Zeon’s head move a bit more, as you could see Bruno and Johnson go through their progressions, and sometimes fooling the defense with their eyes for completions.
The Ever-Shifting O-Line
Another concern we had heading into 2026 was how Tulane wanted to shape their offensive line. Today, we had some questions answered. Although we'll hold our judgement on who the final five would be, there were two notable groups that played with the first and second teams.
The first group that went out in 11-on-11 consisted of John Bock II at center, Elijah Baker and Gresham Perry at left and right guards respectively, with Boston College transfer Ryan Mickow rounding out the left tackle slot, and Reese Baker on the right.
Backing them up when they needed rest was Mercer transfer at C Gavin Marks, LG Andre Amos Jr, LT Juelz Baptiste, RG Riley Rushing, and RT Darion Reed.
The line-play, as a whole, left a bit to be desired offensively, but we don't believe that's because the quality is necessarily bad. We believe the defensive line is just that good.
Togetherness in Defense
What we felt the strongest about, to no one's surprise, was the defense. Whether it was the big and physical defensive line, the loud and energetic linebackers, or the defensive backs with blistering closing speed who will break at the drop of a pin.
The group was communicative and together. A retention from last year, E'zaiah Shine, made several PBU's and was sticky in coverage. American Conference Championship Game MVP and Bronco Nagurski watch lister, Jack Tchienchou, picked up right were he left off last year, making plays and snagging a pick himself. On the other hand, what has us most eager about this defense is the line.
After bringing in Reshad Sterling from Houston and Ed Smith IV from South Alabama, the line has seen a bolstering in size, strength, and, most of all, experience. Smith is an incoming senior with plenty of D1 pedigree that he earned at USA. Sterling is a promising young talent that came over as a package with Zeon, and he'll look to cause a ton of disruption with the front seven.
Weapons, Weapons... and More Weapons
Although we've been focused on line-play and the quarterbacks, every skill position managed to have at least one player make us look at them. Tight end Ty Thompson played exceptionally, as his athleticism and understanding of the position has started to come full circle.
Thompson was originally a quarterback who shifted to TE when he enrolled at TU, and he'll be looking to shake up opposing defenses who dare line up with him in the slot or out wide.
Although we talked about Jaylin Lucas from Florida State quite often this off-season, someone who's flown under the radar is Mississippi State transfer, Johnnie Daniels. Daniels boasts solid between-the-tackle running with great burst speed. Once he finds that open space he seems to shift into another gear, turning on the jets as he did on a 20+ yard TD run that we saw today.
A guy who was getting a lot of open looks, though, is Baton Rouge native, Seth Gale. Gale is a smaller 5' 10" wide receiver, but he more than makes up for that with his legs, whether he was catching a short, underneath drag route with good YAC, or he was catching a post route after running straight past his defender. His blistering speed gives him great YAC potential, and his utility will no-doubt be useful as he adds even more versatility and speed to the Greenie offense.
Fall Practice Continues
The Wave will practice straight through Saturday before taking a day off on Sunday. Next week's schedule is more of the same, except Hall will be taking his squad to the Saints Practice Facility on Thursday.
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Colin has been following football for over a decade. Growing up supporting LSU naturally led him to be a massive Saints fan. He is a regular guest on the Ball Don’t Lie podcast on WBOK-AM in New Orleans as well as Apple Podcasts, where they discuss the NFL, College Football, and the NBA.