The Tulane Green Wave won a hard-fought game against rival Louisiana Ragin Cajuns 41-33 on Saturday.
It was hot at Cajun Field. At kickoff of the 30th meeting between these two teams, the temperature on the field was 36 degrees.
After struggling with some early struggles in last week’s game against top-25 team Oklahoma, Green Wave quarterback Darian Mensah led Tulane to its most points since its season opener against SE Louisiana. They didn’t have to pass the ball often to get the win, as he completed just 11/17 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown to start.
After starting the first drive with some speed, Mensah did a good job of extending some of the plays that broke down in the backfield but was forced to punt.
That didn’t stop the Wave from fighting for points, though. Mensah broke through several tackles to push Tulane to the ten-yard line and set up the offense for 1st and goal. Transfer quarterback Ty Thompson continues to be a dangerous threat in goal-to-goal situations and finished the drive for Tulane’s first score of the day.
The Green Waves defense made a statement on the opening drive, forcing Louisiana into a three-and-out, with Parker Peterson and the rest of Tulane’s defensive front applying hard pressure.
However, on the ensuing drive, Tulane’s defensive secondary was exposed as the Cajuns took advantage of several defensive pass interference penalties and a 32-yard pass to wide receiver Jaydon Johnson, who found space between coverages for a big play. Louisiana scored the game’s first point when Ben Wooldridge took a QB draw into the end zone to take an early lead.
The secondary made some solid adjustments as the game went on and made a crucial play just before halftime. On a crucial 3rd and 5, Tulane pressured quarterback Wooldridge, which ultimately led to redshirt freshman Jack Tchienchoutook hitting a pick six to extend the Green Wave’s lead.
Until one minute before the end of the third quarter, the Cajuns failed to score a single third attempt.
The game remained close only because of the mistakes and lack of discipline of the Green Wave defense, which was reflected in the number of penalties. Tulane’s defense received eight penalties for 91 yards, including five pass interference calls, two of which were in the end zone.
The team maintained its momentum through halftime, opening the second half with a 95-yard touchdown by sophomore Rayshawn Pleasant.
The special teams showed a huge improvement from last week, when they missed several kicks against the Sooners. Freshman kicker Ethan Head tied the game just before halftime with a successful 37-yard field goal to make it 10-10. However, the young kicker’s inexperience became apparent late in the fourth quarter.
Tulane’s offense helped keep the ball out of the Ragin Cajuns’ hands with a long drive in the fourth quarter. The Green Wave were 9-14 on third down conversions, including a huge drive that extended the game when Darian Mensah found Mario Williams on 3rd-and-13 to move the sticks.
Louisiana made a questionable decision when they tried fourth and 9 deep in their own territory. They were unsuccessful, but Tulane was unable to capitalize as Head missed a field goal and the Cajuns got the ball back with just under three minutes left.
Tulane finally sealed the deal when Green Wave defensive back Jalen Geiger caught the third interception of the game against the Louisiana offense.
With this victory, Louisiana ends its 13-game home winning streak against non-conference opponents.
The team will now turn its attention to AAC play as it faces conference rival South Florida next Saturday.
