Tulsa vs Tulane Odds

Written by InfoPlays

Tulsa vs Tulane NCAA Football Odds The Conference-USA opener goes Friday, September 4th between the Tulane Green Wave and the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. This game will be seen on National TV as ESPN airs it at 7:00 EST. With the excitement of the college football season getting underway, you can bet fans and bettors alike will be watching. These are two teams coming into this season with plenty of motivation. It’s time for head coach Bob Toledo to turn the Green Wave program around after going 6-18 in his first two seasons on the job, including 2-10 last year which featured eight consecutive losses to end the season. It’s time for Tulsa to take down the conference title after losing in the C-USA championship game for a second straight season last year despite going 11-3 in 2008 and 7-1 in conference games. College football odds set by linesmakers for Friday show Tulsa -14 over Tulane with a Total Set of 64.5 points.

Todd Graham has put the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on the map, going 21-7 in two years as the head coach of this program. His 11 wins last season were more than any other coach in Tulsa’s history, but now he needs to finish the deal. Tulsa lost to East Carolina, 24-27, in the C-USA Championship game last year, their second straight loss in the title game. But they bounced back nicely with a dominant 45-13 victory over a very good Ball State team in the GMAC Bowl. The biggest hurdle for this team to climb in 2009 is several key losses on offense. It starts with replacing QB David Johnson, who threw 47 touchdown passes last year en route to leading this offense to the No. 1 national ranking in total offense at 569.9 yards/game. Junior Jacob Bower should get the first shot, but if he can’t handle the load then there are two capable backups who will be chomping at the bit to handle starting duties. Look for WR Damarius Johnson, who led the team with 53 catches for 743 yards and 10 touchdowns last year, to help ease the load on the new quarterback. He also had 1,382 kickoff return yards and might be the top special teams guy in the league. Trae Johnson is also a talented receiver, registering 1,088 receiving yards for 13 scores en route to earning Freshman All-America honors back in 2007.

The Golden Hurricane defense let them down in big games last year, most notably in a 70-30 loss to Houston, a team that will give Tulsa a run for their money in 2009. This defense got burnt for 34 or more points five times last year, and surrendered nearly 250 passing yards/game. The 3-3-5 scheme should be in good hands with 7 of 11 starters returning.

Has Tulane turned the corner in Bob Toledo’s third year on the job? We’ll find out Friday as the Green Wave look to end an 8-game losing streak that has had them plenty motivated in the offseason. There is a lot of talent on this team, especially on offense. Sophomore QB Joe Kemp won the starting job in the spring and he’s certainly the biggest playmaker on the roster at the quarterback position. He’ll be able to hand the ball off to Andre Anderson, who finished fourth in the nation last year in averaging 142 rushing yards/game. Wide receiver Jeremy Williams averaged 16.2 yards/catch last season. Both have been plagued by injuries, but a healthy return for each means Tulane should be in good hands offensively to start the season.

The problem with this squad is their defense, where the Green Wave gave up 34.5 points/game and 218.4 rushing yards/game last season. Only six starters return, and new talent will have to step up quickly if Tulane is to improve on this side of the ball. One thing is certain; you will know whether or not this unit has improved right away as they face the nation’s most prolific offense from last year in Week 1. What the Green Wave has going for them is that Tulsa is primarily a passing team, and the Green Wave allowed just 172.8 passing yards/game last season which ranked 14th in the country. Now was that because the secondary was really solid, or because teams could run all over Tulane so they elected to keep the ball on the ground the majority of the time? You will find out Friday because this unit will be tested by the pass-happy Golden Hurricane.

Comments

One Response to “Tulsa vs Tulane Odds”

Sean on September 3rd, 2009 11:47 AM

Wow you can tell the writer didn’t do his research on Tulsa. He mentions Tulsa is primarily a passing team. Couldn’t have been more wrong, Tulsa averaged 268 yards on the ground last year to rank 5th in the nation for rushing per game, while passing for 301 yards per game for 9th in the nation. Giving an overall offense of 570 yards per game for the top spot in the nation. Tulsa had a stable of rushers and are returning with 3 stars at back this year. Watch them to pound it on the ground even more than last year

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