Nov. 18, 2006

Final Stats |  Quotes |  Notes

Tulane-UCF Game Book in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

NEW ORLEANS, La.-Tulane's 17-member senior class was honored before the start of Saturday's Conference USA contest against UCF, so it was only right that at least one of those student-athletes would provide the play of the day.

Senior quarterback Lester Ricard completed a nine-yard touchdown pass to fellow fifth-year player Damarcus Davis with 34 seconds left in the first half, and senior cornerback Israel Route thwarted a late UCF comeback attempt by forcing a fumble, recovering it and returning it 42 yards in the game's final minute as the Green Wave defeated the Golden Knights, 10-9, in the Louisiana Superdome.

"I think today's game showed a lot of character and pride by our guys," Tulane head coach Chris Scelfo said. "They went out there and put (last week's loss to Southern Miss) out of their minds today; went out there and won a football game.

"After what they've been through from January to May and not having a facility, just getting back onto campus at the end of December and for those guys to go out there late in the season with the only thing left to play for being pride and they went out there today and did that against a team that won the Eastern Division Championship last year. We've won a lot of games around here, 45-40. Today I am really proud of our defense. Ten-to-nine is a great win."

The Green Wave claimed a 10-0 first-half lead courtesy of a 29-yard field goal by rookie Ross Thevenot early in the second quarter and Davis' grab from Ricard in the waning seconds of the period, but UCF got back into the ballgame with 20-, 35-, and 35-yard field goals by kicker Michael Torres.

A Tulane fumble gave UCF a chance to take the lead, but the defense held and forced a 35-yard field goal try and Torres pushed it just wide right. The Green Wave had to punt four plays later, and the Golden Knights had good field position as Joe Burnett returned Chris Beckman's 48-yard punt 16 yards to the Tulane 47.

But once again, Tulane's defense came up with the big play as Route drilled UCF receiver Mike Walker at the 35, recovered the fumble and returned it to the Golden Knights' 23 yard line. Three plays and as many kneel-downs by Ricard let the clock run out, and the Tulane celebration was on.

"You always want to get off the field as soon as possible," Route said. "They had pretty good field position and (Torres is) a pretty good kicker. He missed that one at the end, but we knew we had to keep him out of field goal range and so we went out their with the mind set to attack the ball and get the ball back and we knew the game would be over".

By limiting UCF to three field goals, Tulane kept an opponent out of the endzone for the first time since Oct. 5, 2002, when the Green Wave defeated Louisiana-Monroe, 52-9, on the road. The game also marked Tulane's first game decided by one point since a 27-26 loss to Marshall last Oct. 29 in a "home" game played in Mobile, Ala. The Green Wave's last one-point victory came on Oct. 7, 2000, when the Green Wave edged Louisiana-Lafayette 38-37 at Cajun Field.

The Green Wave offense rolled up 235 yards in the first half, and appeared to continue that trend in the second half as Tulane drove 43 yards on the opening drive of the third quarter. An interception in the endzone by UCF defensive back Johnell Neal shifted the momentum to the Golden Knights' sideline, and the Knights tallied 216 of their 304 yards of total offense following the pick. Tulane's defense was able to keep the damage to a minimum by giving up field goals rather than touchdowns.

Following Torres' third field goal, the Green Wave was forced to punt, and senior punter Chris Beckman bobbled the snap and Blake Carter tackled him at the Tulane 24 to give UCF excellent field position for a potential go-ahead score. Tulane held the Golden Knights to just six yards on the ensuing drive, and the miss plus Route's big play turned out to be the difference in the ballgame.

Ricard completed 26-of-43 passes for 267 yards, and redshirt-freshman Jeremy Williams was his favorite target as the native of Baytown, Texas, posted career-highs with 10 catches for 106 yards. Junior Ray Boudreaux - who started for the second consecutive game for the injured Matt Forté - led the Green Wave ground game with 39 yards on 11 carries.

Senior cornerback Jeremy Foreman paced the defense with a career-best nine tackles, including eight solo stops, and also broke up one pass. Route followed with eight tackles and team-best two passes defensed.

Kyle Israel - one of two quarterbacks used by UCF on the day - led the Golden Knights with 173 yards on 16-of-20 passing, and sophomore wide receiver Rocky Ross paced the club with a career-best nine catches for 124 yards. Tulane limited the Knights to 74 yards on the ground, as Phillip Smith led UCF with 41 yards on 16 carries.

Tulane returns to action on Friday, Nov. 24, when the Green Wave close out the 2006 season on the road against C-USA foe Tulsa at 2 p.m. at Skelly Stadium. The season finale will be broadcast on the Tulane Network (local WIST AM 690) and audio streaming is available on TulaneGreenWave.com to registered members of the All Access Pass. Live stats will also be provided free of charge on the internet via GameTracker.

2011 Season
Tickets
Recruits
Camps
Tulane Sports Marketing Radio Network

Follow the Green Wave