On Saturday, the Tulane Green Wave hosted the newest member of the American Athletic Conference: the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The Blazers beat the Green Wave in their last two matchups. This time, former NFL quarterback and coach Trent Dilfer hoped to do it again. 

The Tulane defense started strong. A reverse from UAB got them 36 yards, but the “bend don’t break” Green Wave defense stood firm. A sack from Devean Deal moved UAB back 7 yards, which forced a 31-yard field goal. 

After a 10-yard gain from Chris Brazzell II, the Tulane offense fell flat. Two straight incompletions from quarterback Michael Pratt forced Tulane to punt, but Will Karoll had a 61-yard beauty that was downed inside the 1-yard line. 

Although the Green Wave was unable to capitalize and get a safety, the team forced a punt from the UAB 19. A 33-yard punt gave Pratt and the offense the ball at their own 48-yard line. The Green Wave came out rolling, with Arnold Barnes III rumbling for 10 yards. Pratt threw another two incompletions, but Barnes III rushed for 9 yards on a third and 15 which allowed for a fourth-down conversion attempt. Pratt found Jha’Quan Jackson wide open, and his run after catch ability extended the drive to the UAB 15. A jet sweep to Texas A&M University transfer Yulkeith Brown gave him his first touchdown of the year, and the ensuing Valentino Ambrosio kick put Tulane up 7-3. 

After an 11-yard run, a facemask from Patrick Jenkins gave the Blazers an extra 15 yards. Again, the Green Wave defense stepped up to the task, allowing zero yards on two consecutive plays. An offside penalty on Darius Hodges allowed for a fourth and 6, which UAB converted. A quick pass from quarterback Jacob Zeno caught the Green Wave off guard, giving UAB an extra 11 yards to end the first quarter. The Tulane defense held at the goal line, but a controversial late hit penalty gave UAB a fresh set of downs. UAB running back Isaiah Jacobs punched it in from 2 yards out, and the extra point gave UAB a 10-7 lead. 

A screen to Shaadie Clayton-Johnson gained 44, but another costly penalty set Tulane back 10 yards and an Arnold Barnes fumble on the next play gave UAB possession at the Green Wave 24. Jacobs reached paydirt from 17 yards out, and the extra point extended the UAB lead to 10 points. 

A Tulane three-and-out gave UAB the ball at its own 32. After a fourth-down conversion, a Hodges sack moved the Blazers back 8 yards and out of field goal range, but Zeno’s pass negated the loss and the Blazers hit a 48-yard field goal, extending the UAB lead to 20-7.  

A switch must have flipped after the UAB field goal, as Pratt led the team down the field for a score in nine plays for 75 yards, including a 26-yard rush to set up a Makhi Hughes 1-yard score. The Ambrosio extra point moved the Green Wave within one score, leaving only 46 seconds on the clock for UAB. The Blazers were unable to capitalize and took their 20-14 lead into halftime. 

Lawrence Keys III started the second half with a return to the 39-yard line. A sweep to Jackson allowed him to show his speed, bouncing to the sideline for a 24-yard gain. Hughes ran 21 yards to give Tulane possession at the UAB 18, and Pratt fed Hughes again for an 18-yard score. Ambrosio’s third extra point of the game gave Tulane a 21-20 lead, with just over 13:30 to play in the third quarter. 

After a 9-yard pass from Zeno to Jacobs,  Jenkins tackled Jacobs in the backfield to set up a third down. Deal got in on the action too, with a tackle for a loss on third down to force UAB’s first three-and-out of the day. 

The Green Wave got the ball at its own 32 and hoped to score on its third consecutive drive going back to the end of the first half. Hughes started the drive with a 19-yard rush, moving Tulane into UAB territory. After a great drive from Hughes, who ran for 40 yards on that drive alone, Clayton-Johnson subbed into the game. The Green Wave offense had yet to run a passing play in the second half, and UAB predicted the run and forced Clayton-Johnson to fumble. 

The Blazers recovered their second fumble of the day but had a lot of work to do starting at their own 5-yard line. After Jacobs pushed a 12-yard rush, freshman wide receiver Amare Thomas missed a Tulane defensive back for a 31-yard grab to give the Blazers the ball at midfield. The Green Wave defense forced a fourth and 4, and the defense got the ball back. After an incompletion and 1-yard run, Pratt hit Brazzell II for a 39-yard gain to set up Alex Bauman’s 14-yard score.

UAB advanced the ball quickly, going 74 yards in just four minutes. But the Green Wave defense stopped the Blazers at the 1. After a failed quarterback rush, Dilfer dialed up the same play again, Zeno fumbled the ball trying to leap into the endzone and Bailey Despanie recovered the loose ball. 

Tulane looked to extend their lead, but the Blazers defense held and forced a fourth and 2 at the Tulane 28. The Blazers were called for an illegal substitution penalty for having 12 men on the field, which gave the Tulane offense a fresh set of downs. 

The drive eventually stalled at the UAB 27, where Ambrosio missed a 45-yarder which would have given the Green Wave a two-score lead. The UAB offense advanced to the Tulane red zone again, but the defense stayed strong and forced a 36-yard field goal that cut the Green Wave lead to 5. The UAB defense did all they could, forcing two fourth downs, but a conversion on the first and a touchdown to Keys III sealed the win for Tulane. 

Pratt ended the day 14 of 23 for 184 yards and two touchdowns, but Hughes was the star of the show. Hughes went over 100 yards for the first time in his career, ending the day with 123 yards on 22 carries. Coach Willie Fritz involved the receivers in the rushing game as well, having six carries of their own for a total of 72 yards. Keys III led the way in the receiving game, catching three passes for 54 yards and a touchdown, and Cotton Bowl legend Bauman added the other. 

The defense totaled 77 tackles on the day, with Jesus Machado leading the way with nine. Including Machado, six players had over five tackles in this game. Deal and Hodges added a sack each. However, there is a little cause for alarm. A stout Tulane rushing defense gave up 170 yards, which is the most they had given up all season. Facing Ole Miss and Quinshon Judkins, a back who rushed for over 1,500 yards last year, the defense only allowed 89 rushing yards on only two less runs. 

The Green Wave have a bye this week and face the University of Memphis on Oct. 13 at 6:00 p.m.