Jaylin Lucas rushes for 214 yards, and the Green Wave delivers a winning drive to secure its first victory of the season.
NEW ORLEANS — Tulane put the game in Kadin Semonza’s hands with less than five minutes remaining. He delivered the drive the Green Wave needed.
Trailing South Alabama 24–21, Tulane marched 78 yards in seven plays, finishing with Semonza’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Destyn Hill with 1:17 remaining. The defense then stopped the Jaguars on downs, sealing a 28–24 victory Saturday night at Yulman Stadium.
Semonza completed all three of his passes on the winning possession for 63 yards. The finish gave Will Hall his first victory as Tulane’s head coach. Crescent City Sports
The Green Wave improved to 1–1, with Semonza finishing with 212 passing yards and Hill leading the receiving corps with 91 yards. Tulane Athletics
Semonza delivered the decisive finish, but Jaylin Lucas supplied the explosive running that helped keep Tulane in contention. Lucas rushed for 214 yards on just 11 carries, including an 80-yard touchdown. Semonza finished 14-of-22 passing in his first start for the Green Wave.
Tulane’s defense also played a critical role in the closing sequence. Before stopping South Alabama’s final possession, it forced the punt that gave Semonza the opportunity to lead the winning drive. Crescent City Sports
Those stops mattered because the Jaguars had controlled substantial stretches of the evening.
South Alabama accumulated 478 total yards and held the football for 37 minutes, 40 seconds. The Jaguars produced 25 first downs to Tulane’s 13 and converted 10 of 16 third-down opportunities. Quarterback Bishop Davenport threw for 296 yards.
Tulane finished with 424 total yards, split evenly between 212 rushing and 212 passing. Tulane Athletics
The contrast explains the tension of the game: South Alabama sustained possessions, while Tulane relied on explosive production and a successful finish.
Lucas’ performance offers the Green Wave an important offensive possibility. A back who can turn limited carries into major gains can change a game quickly, particularly when an opponent is consuming time with longer drives. Tulane now has a reason to keep exploring how to create those opportunities.
The defensive numbers also identify a clear area for improvement. Allowing an opponent to convert third downs at that rate makes it difficult to control a game, regardless of how dangerous the offense becomes.
But Tulane’s late response deserves its own recognition. The Green Wave needed a stop, a touchdown drive and another stop. It delivered all three.
For a team searching for its first victory, that closing sequence provides something concrete to build on: execution with the outcome still undecided.
