Tulane Finally Shown Some Love by the Voters, Entering Both Top-25 Polls
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Fresh off their 35-24 victory over Florida Atlantic and coupled with losses by teams at the bottom of the Top-25, Tulane jumped into both polls this week.
Associated Press Top-25
The Green Wave leap-frogged a number of schools, including Willie Fritz's new digs in Houston, as Tulane entered the AP Top-25 at the #24 position, more than doubling the number of votes TU received last week by national media. Also in the polls from the American, North Texas who entered at #22 this week. Of note, the Sun Belt's James Madison is one spot ahead of the Mean Green.
Other American Conference teams getting votes, but not enough to be in the AP Top-25, Navy with 61 tallies, South Florida with 6, and East Carolina with 4.
There was some shuffling near the top of the AP voting. Ohio State, Indiana, and Texas A&M remained 1, 2, 3, however Georgia, Ole Miss, Texas Tech, Oregon, and Oklahoma all moved up. Notre Dame stayed at #9, with Alabama dropping six spots to #10.
USA Today Coaches Poll
The Green Wave was able to impress enough coaches around the nation (and take advantage of three teams toward the bottom of the voting last week who lost) to eek in at the #25 spot in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Tulane jumped up five notches to enter there. Fellow AAC member North Texas enters this week at #23. Again, James Madison is one spot above, this time at #22.
Other American Conference teams getting recognition by the coaches, but not enough to enter the USA Today Top-25 included Navy with 56 tallies and East Carolina with three.
The USA Today top teams also had some shuffling. Top three remain Ohio State, Indiana, and Texas A&M, then, Georgia is at #4 followed by Oregon, Ole Miss, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma all moving up. Notre Dame stays put, followed by Alabama, dropping to #10.
Tulane, with their newly minted rankings will head to Philadelphia this Saturday to take on Temple. The Green Wave and the Owls square off against each other at 2:45 p.m. CST in a game that will also be broadcasted on ESPNU.. The Green Wave is 2-4 all-time against the Owls. The Wave defeated Temple by a 52-6 score last season.
Doug has covered a gamut of sporting events in his fifty-plus years in the field. He started doing sideline reporting for Louisiana Tech football games for the student radio station. Doug was Sports Director for KNOE-AM/FM in Monroe in the mid-80s, winning numerous awards from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association for Best Sportscast and Best Play-by-Play. High school play-by-play for teams in Monroe, Natchitoches, New Orleans, and Thibodaux, LA dot his resume. He did college play-by-play for Northwestern State University in Natchitoches for nine years. Then, moving to the Crescent City, Doug did television PBP of Tulane games and even filled in for legendary Tulane broadcaster, Ken Berthelot in the only game Kenny ever missed while doing the Green Wave games. His father was an alumnus of Tulane in the 1940s, so Doug has attended Tulane football games in old Tulane Stadium, the Superdome, and Yulman. He was one of the 86,000 plus on December 1, 1973, sitting in the North End Zone to seeTulane shutout the LSU Tigers, 14-0. He was there when the Posse ruled Fogelman and in Turchin when the Wave made it to the World Series. He currently is the public address voice of the Tulane baseball team.