Tulane Green Wave Defensive Star Accepts Hula Bowl Invitation

A Tulane Green Wave football star will play in the Hula Bowl in an attempt to interest NFL scouts in drafting him or signing him later this year.

Oct 28, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; The facemark of Tulane Green Wave defensive back Rayshawn Pleasant (25) reflects his teammates as he warms up before a game against the Rice Owls. | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

Tulane Green Wave defensive back Jonathan Edwards has accepted an invitation to play in the Hula Bowl later this month.

The Hula Bowl is set for Jan. 11 at Orlando’s FBC Mortgage Stadium on the campus of UCF.

Known by its full name, the Hula Bowl All-Star Football Game, the contest was first held in 1947 and was then comprised of college players from the Hawai’i. In 1960, the Hula Bowl became an all-star game between the best college football players from the mainland and a hot bed for NFL scouts to assess talent for the upcoming draft.

The game is now held in Orlando and is set to kick off its 79th edition.

Edwards, a cornerback for the Green Wave, started just two of 13 games for Tulane. He had 18 tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass break-up.

He helped the Green Wave go 9-5 in their first season under coach Jon Sumrall, as they finished second in the American Athletic Conference and qualified for the league championship game for the third straight year.

Tulane led the nation in non-offensive touchdowns with eight, defensive touchdowns with six and pick-sixes with five.

The Green Wave had a large number of players selected to the All-AAC football team. Offensive tackle Derrick Graham, offensive guard Shadre Hurst, running back Makhi Hughes and defensive lineman Patrick Jenkins were on the first time.

Graham, Hurst and Hughes were key pieces of one of the best rushing offenses in the country and one of only eight teams that rushed for 200 yards and passed for 200 yards per game.

Second-team selections included wide receiver Mario Williams, offensive guard Josh Remetich, center Vincent Murphy, linebacker Tyler Grubbs, linebacker Sam Howard, safety Bailey Despanie, cornerback Micah Robinson and return specialist Rayshawn Pleasant.

Third team selections were offensive tackle Rashad Green, tight end Alex Bauman, defensive lineman Kameron Hamilton, defensive lineman Adin Huntington and cornerback Caleb Ransaw. Wide receiver Yulkeith Brown was an honorable mention.

Tulane lost to Army West Point in the AAC title game and went to the Gasparilla Bowl, where they wrapped up their season with a 33-8 loss to Florida.

Tulane has already seen three key pieces of their offense go into the transfer portal. Quarterback Darian Mensah has transferred to Duke, while running back Makhi Hughes and tight end Alex Bauman are looking at other schools.

The Green Wave are set to open the 2025 season at home against Northwestern on Aug. 30.