The lights shone too bright in Oxford for the Tulane University Green Wave.
Tulane fell short to the University of Mississippi Rebels 45-10 this past Saturday, collecting its first loss of the year. With an abundance of momentum from the home win last week against the Duke University Blue Devils, the Green Wave looked to make a splash on the biggest stage: the SEC. A win over the Ole Miss Rebels would have skyrocketed Tulane’s chances of a playoff berth.
The Rebel faithful had Vaught-Hemingway Stadium rocking, as attendance hit 65,644 for the game. Ole Miss won the toss and elected to receive first. At the helm as quarterback was Division II transfer quarterback Trinidad Chambliss. Chambliss replaced the highly touted Austin Simmons, who has been sidelined since Week 2 due to an ankle injury. The Rebels’ offense looked terrific from the opening snap with an 8-play 75-yard drive that exposed holes in the Green Wave secondary. Chambliss’ proficiency as both a runner and a passer presented a difficult task for the Tulane defense.
Offensively for the Green Wave, Jake Retzlaff continued to successfully attack defenses on the ground as he had one of the longest plays on the day for the Wave with a 30-yard run into Ole Miss territory. Retzlaff finished the game with 51 rushing yards on eight attempts, averaging 6.4 yards per carry.
However, the hostile atmosphere along with a top-tier defense combined to restrict the Green Wave’s advance in the air. A now recurring and apparent issue is Retzlaff’s ability to connect with the wide receivers, as he concluded his day in Oxford with an underwhelming five completions for 56 passing yards.
With many of Tulane’s drives ending in punts, Chambliss and the Rebels’ elite receiving core had many opportunities to demonstrate their superiority in the air. Chambliss delivered an exceptional 47-yard strike to Cayden Lee that led to an Ole Miss field goal late in the second quarter. The first half ended with the Wave down 23-3.
The Tulane offense started the second half with a string of completions, demonstrating an ability to throw the football effectively, which had not been the case in the first portion of the game. The ground game proved to be reliable to open the third as well, as the Wave drove down to the Rebels’ 5-yard line.
In a must-score situation to overcome the deficit, head coach Jon Sumrall opted to go for it on fourth down, which ultimately led to a turnover on downs after an incompletion. The Ole Miss defense shut down Tulane in critical moments throughout, stopping them on all three of their fourth-down attempts.
From that point on, the Ole Miss offense was too much for the Wave. Chambliss led the onslaught with an impressive performance, finishing the game with 17 completions for 307 yards, and two touchdowns. The Tulane secondary could not restrain Deuce Alexander, who hauled in four receptions for 94 yards and one touchdown.
Interestingly enough, Sumrall chose to give Brendan Sullivan, the backup quarterback, an opportunity in the fourth quarter to make an impact after being down 31-3. Sullivan appeared relatively comfortable in the pocket and ended the game 5-12 for 48 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Tulane’s offensive struggles were obvious, with only 282 total yards through four quarters.
Even with a disappointing performance and the blowout loss, the Green Wave has a long season ahead to make up for the defeat. Tulane will head on the road next weekend on Sept. 27 to face the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricane, who are coming off a massive win against Oklahoma State University.