1st Half
Tulane would receive to put the rolling wave offense on the field first. On the first play from scrimmage, Wave RB Corey Dauphine would gain 11 yards and a first down as he got the edge on UConn’s front seven. Dauphine carried again, this time picking up 5. Tulane QB Justin McMillan then tested the air with two consecutive throws, both incomplete and forcing a Wave punt. A slow start for the Wave offense.
The Huskies took over at the 26 following the punt, and quickly picked up a first down behind the running of Kevin Mensah. On the new set of downs, Tulane’s defense locked down the UConn Offense and QB Mike Beaudry, who tried scrambling on a 3rd and 5 but was quickly wrapped up by Marvin Moody, forcing a Husky punt.
The Wave started their second offensive possession through the air, picking up 3 yards on a screen, 11 yards to Amare Jones, then another 8 to Jones as the offense began to find some momentum. Following the series of passes, Corey Dauphine took a handoff, burning the entire Husky defense for a 57 yard touchdown run. Fantastic answer for Tulane on offense following a lethargic opening drive. Dauphine’s 57 yarder would be his longest rush of the season and 11th touchdown of the year.
Tremendous defense by Tulane forced another UConn 3-and-out. The Wave front seven shutdown Mensah, while the secondary took care of business as well, causing a second straight punt for the University of Connecticut.
An electric punt return put the Wave offense in great field position, beginning their third possession near midfield. McMillan came out under center, running a bootleg to the left and finding Jalen McCleskey for a first down, but a personal foul penalty would bring it back to a 1st and 12. The Wave rushing attack was able to quickly pick up the loss yardage from the penalty, however. Amare Jones got his first carry of the night, picking up 9 yards and a 3rd and 1 for the Wave. Jones carried again, but came up short of the line to gain making Tulane 0-2 on 3rd downs. On 4th down, HC Willie Fritz opted to go for it, with McMillan keeping it on the sneak and picking up the 1st down. Dauphine’s rushing continued to flourish as he dodged a tackle on first down, bouncing to the edge for 14 yards. On the following play, McMillan found Darnell Mooney on a 22 yard dime in the endzone for the Wave’s first score through the air. Mooney’s touchdown grab marked his 25th consecutive game with a reception.
UConn and QB Beaudry tried to answer Tulane’s score through the air, completing a handful of passes with the Huskies finally crossing midfield. Mensah would carry on two consecutive plays, picking up 5 yards on both and a Husky first down inside the 35. An incompletion and a tackle by Wave DE Cameron Sample put the Huskies in a 3rd and 6 scenario with the 1st quarter coming to a close. Marvin Moody and Patrick Johnson forced a 4th and 4, which the Huskies would attempt to convert, but Cameron Sample went airborne to swat down Beaudry’s pass, giving Tulane the ball at the 25.
McMillan and the Wave O continued its air attack, completing 3 straight passes including a 39 yard reception to Tulane’s Tyrick James. Once in the redzone, Corey Dauphine would fail to pick up a 3rd and 3 and Tulane’s offense would stay on the field to try for the 4th down conversion. McMillan dropped back and found an open Mooney in the endzone, but Mooney failed to retain possession as the Wave turned it over on downs.
The turnover mattered, as on the second play for the Husky offense, Tulane safety Macon Clark picked off Beaudry’s pass for a 22 yard pick six and a 21 point Tulane lead. The interception marked a career first for Macon Clark.
Tulane’s defense upheld its utter dominance as it forced yet another 3-and-out. A wobbly punt placed Tulane’s offense at the 35 yard line as the Wave looked to add to their 3 score lead. The Green Wave came out up-tempo, picking up chunk yardage through the ground with RB Stephon Huderson. Huderson would convert a 3rd and 2 for Tulane’s first 3rd down conversion of the game. McMillan then scrambled for a 5 yard gain, getting the Wave to midfield. Tulane converted another 3rd and short, this time with Amare Jones picking up 3 yards. McMillan then connected to Tyrick James again for a 12 yard reception, moving Tulane closer to the redzone. Huderson would record a 16 yard reception from McMillan, then McMillan would keep, rushing for 12 yards and a Green Wave score.
Following another defensive stand by the Wave, Tulane’s offense kept things rolling through the air as the game clock fell under 3 minutes to go in the first half. A personal foul penalty hindered the Wave offense, putting them in a 1st and 25 scenario, which the Wave would fail to dig themselves out of.
UConn moved into their 2 minute offense, completing a few passes to cross midfield with under a minute to go in the half, but would eventually sputter and punt back to the Wave.
Tulane would be content with their 4 touchdown lead and take it into half up 28-0.
2nd Half
The UConn offense began the second half on the ground, picking up a first down through a few gritty runs behind Mensah. A deflected pass and an interception for the Wave was negated by a pass interference call, which pushed the Husky offense to their own 40. Husky RB Art Thompkins bullied his way through the wave d-line on consecutive carries, getting UConn’s offense across midfield and down to the Tulane 35. The Huskies also made a change at signal, with freshman Zack Zergiotis getting his first reps of the game. The Wave defense forced a 4th and 8 and successfully defended a pass by Zergiotis, returning the ball back to Tulane’s offense.
McMillan began the Wave’s first possession of the half with a handoff to Amare Jones for a gain of 2, then followed up with a 17 yard scramble and a Wave first down as he crossed the 50. Jones took the next handoff for a gain of 9 and a 2nd and 1. McMillan connected to Mooney on the next play for a gain of 43 yards through the air, giving the Wave the ball at the 1 yard line. McMillan then found Cameron Carroll for a 2 yard reception and Green Wave touchdown. The Wave increased their lead to 35-0, with UConn posing little threat of a comeback.
Following McMillan’s score, Keon Howard took over at quarterback, giving McMillan much needed rest with the game well in the hands of the Green Wave. Howard made some great throws, including one to Tyrick James for over 20 yards, which set up Howard for a 9 yard QB draw for a Tulane score.
The Green Wave would go one to put another touchdown on the board, while UConn would finally find the endzone, denying Tulane the shuttout.
Final Score: Tulane 49, UConn 7
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