History of Tulane Green Wave football
The "Olive and Blue" hit its stride in 1900 with a perfect 5–0 season and SIAA co-championship, beating the Southern Athletic Club, Alabama, Millsaps, LSU, and Ole Miss.
[11] It was a dark period for a program used to better times, but the seed of future success was present in halfback Bill Banker, who was to help Tulane back to football prosperity very quickly.
The Green Wave beat some big-time football teams in spite of being hard hit by graduation, but finishing 6–2–1 was considered a definite "rebuilding" effort for the Tulane program of that day.
[10] In 1951, believing that athletics had begun to overshadow academics, University President Rufus Harris voluntarily lowered Tulane's football scholarships to 75 from 100 and reduced coaches' salaries, among other changes.
Backfield coach Joe Blaylock turned the Tulane wing-T offense into a showcase for the athletic ability of junior quarterback Bobby Duhon, whose 748 yards rushing are the most ever by a Green Wave signal caller.
In the season finale, 83,000 fans packed Tulane Stadium to watch LSU win a hotly contested game in the fourth quarter as both teams finished 5–4–1.
[21] Coach Jim Pittman's second Tulane squad was again competitive, but the football began bouncing the wrong way and a lack of depth spelled defeat in several close contests.
Quarterback Bobby Duhon, who went on to a fine NFL career as a running back with the New York Giants, became the first Tulane player to amass better than 1,000 yards of total offense in three straight seasons.
Running back Warren Bankston, who went on to a long NFL career as a tight end with the Oakland Raiders, led the team in rushing despite missing several early season games with an injury to the leg.
[10] The Green Wave's 1969 record barely improved to 3–7,[21] but Pittman and his staff's recruiting efforts began to pay off as a strong sophomore class headed by three-year starters like Steve Barrios, Joe Bullard, Paul Ellis, David Hebert and Bob Waldron moved up to varsity play.
The defensive unit that would dominate opponents and catapult Tulane to its first bowl bid in over 30 years was beginning to come together, as junior linebackers Rick Kingrea and Ray Hester got better and better.
[22] Bennie Ellender returned to his alma mater as head coach, fresh from leading Arkansas State to a college division national championship in 1970.
[24] Ellender did not lose a season opener in his five years as head coach at Tulane, and Texas Tech was his first victim as sophomore defensive end Mike Truax blocked a fourth-quarter punt to spark a come-from-behind victory.
The Green Wave dropped its next three games, then rallied back to beat North Carolina and Pittsburgh to even the season record before going into a five-game slide.
Senior wide receiver Steve Barrios missed the first four games with a shoulder injury, but his return against North Carolina gave the Wave an obvious boost as he caught touchdown passes of 56 and 42 yards.
[10] Tenacious defense and the emergence of sophomore quarterback Steve Foley put Bennie Ellender's second Tulane team back in the win column in 1972, and the 6–5 record could have been a lot better.
Glenn Harder, Mike Mullen, Harold Asher and Rusty Chambers gave Tulane one of its deepest linebacking corps ever, while sensational sophomore Charles Hall provided a dominating presence up front.
Freshmen became eligible for varsity play in 1972 and middle guard Mark Olivari, wide receiver Jaime Garza and running back Steve Treuting made a huge contribution that fall.
[10] Ellender fielded his most successful football team in 1973, as quarterback Steve Foley and All-America defensive tackle Charles Hall led the way to a 9–2 regular season and an invitation to the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl in Houston.
With senior quarterback Steve Foley continuing his inspired play from the season before, Coach Bennie Ellender's fourth Tulane team roared off to a 5–0 start.
Tulane did not win another game that season and ended up 5–6,[24] a dramatic indication of the value a healthy Steve Foley brought to the Green Wave football program.
Ellender retooled his offense for the 1975 season to take advantage of the strong throwing arm of quarterback Terry Looney, one of the heroes of the Green Wave's win over LSU in 1973.
After a 4–2 start that included wins over Clemson, Ole Miss, West Virginia and Boston College, the Green Wave lost five in a row to finish 4–7.
[29] Its first bowl game in six years, Tulane lost to Penn State, 9–6, but Smith's ability to finish the season 9–3[29] attracted attention and he was hired away by Arizona.
[28][29] Under his guidance, ten Tulane players earned All-America honors, including two-time All-Americans quarterback Roch Hontas and kicker Eddie Murray as well as offensive tackle Eric Laakso and tight end Rodney Holman.
[1] Wally English, previously an assistant with the NFL's Miami Dolphins, took over the Tulane head coaching position in 1983, beginning a controversial two-year reign.
[1] The two games that Tulane won while Jon English played were forfeited to Ole Miss and Florida State,[1] and the Green Wave wound up with a 2–9 record.
[39] Dartmouth head coach Buddy Teevens was hired to turn the Green Wave program around, but he too failed to muster a winning season during his tenure at Tulane.
Nonetheless, this snub fueled questions about championships and revenue management in college football and caused Tulane's President Scott Cowen to demand reform of the system.
Cowen's efforts eventually led to changes to the BCS, including allowing more post-season access for schools in non-automatic qualifying conferences.
