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Sept. 23, 2007

By Tammy Nunez
New Orleans Times Picayune

One guy saved the day.

And probably the season.

Tulane was staring down its first loss in school history to a Division I-AA team -- Southeastern Louisiana -- on Saturday in front of frustrated Tulane fan section that easily issued as many groans as cheers.

Matt Forté didn't have a cape, but he brought a busy pair of cleats and gained superhero status by rushing for a school and Conference USA-record 303 yards on 40 carries and scored all five Tulane touchdowns -- another program record -- in the 35-27 victory.

And boy, did Tulane need it.

The Wave (1-2) was in a drought. Tulane stumbled into the game with losses to Mississippi State and Houston with No. 2-ranked LSU up next. First-year coach Bob Toledo had no wins to show for his offseason overhaul.

Southeastern (1-3) had the Wave on the mat, carrying a 20-14 lead from the second quarter through half of the third quarter. But Forté refused to give up, forging ahead with 28 of the team's 43 yards on the go-ahead drive. The other 15 yards came from a late hit penalty he endured.

"Matt Forté is a man. He really carried their team tonight," SLU Coach Mike Lucas.

Forté, showing no signs of wear despite handling at least 50 percent of the team's touches, burst 3 yards to the left side of the end zone and put Tulane ahead for good. When Ross Thevenot's kick split the uprights, the Green Wave was back in control with a 21-20 lead and 7:25 remaining in the third quarter.

Then the defense picked up, ending any Southeastern answer with Adam Kwentua's 8-yard sack that ended the Lions' next drive.

Here came Forté again.

Forté took the first pitch on the next possession and leapt over would-be tacklers as he surged down the field for a 44-yard run. He stepped out of bounds on the 4-yard line but finished the job on the next carry when he ran untouched for a touchdown that -- with the kick -- put Tulane ahead 28-20 with 4:48 remaining in the third quarter.

"I knew we were going to run the ball tonight -- a lot -- I'm a senior, and I had to put this team on my back and carry them. The holes were there all night, my teammates were making them, I just had to run through them. That's what I'm supposed to do," Forté said.

Until that point, Tulane seemed in jeopardy of losing to a team that had only one win coming against a weak Division II opponent.

Ominous upset signs abounded early.

Southeastern swarmed Tulane's first punt, and Travis Williams blocked it, smashing the football to the turf. Donald Frazier picked up the ball and ran 12 yards into the end zone with a Lions escort. With Jeff Turner's kick, the Lions were first on the scoreboard with a 7-0 lead and 8:29 remaining in the first quarter.

Though Tulane came back with two Forté touchdowns, Southeastern kept pressing and controlled the tempo for most of the second quarter. Forté, who rushed for 126 yards on 15 carries in the first half, could only do so much as the rest of the Wave resembled still water.

Southeastern was the one rolling.

It recovered a fumble, converting it to a field goal.

It had the blocked punt for a score.

It had Brian Babin's 63-yard touchdown pass to Merrick Lanaux.

It had Trey Douglas' interception of Scott Elliott that ruined a chance to respond to Babin's touchdown.

It held Tulane scoreless in the second quarter.

And it wasn't like Tulane didn't have its openings.

Antonio Harris, who had eight tackles and two sacks in the first half, smashed Babin to the turf as the Lions were clicking on a late second quarter possession. Logan Kelley scooped up the ball to recover the fumble on the Southeastern 45-yard line with 36 seconds remaining. Tulane had a chance to salvage pride and regain the lead before halftime.

But three dangerous Elliott passes -- all nearly picked off -- and one too-short completion to Forté forced the Wave to turn the ball back over to the Lions on downs.

The Lions hooped and hollared as they sprinted into the Superdome tunnel for the break with a 20-14 halftime lead. The Tulane players trailed behind, their eyes fixed on the turf, walking in a stunned silence.

The mood had abruptly shifted from a solid first quarter and beginning of the second where Tulane scored 14 points after Southeastern's special teams score. Forté set up both touchdowns and then ran almost uncontested both times -- one for 20 yards and the other for 21 -- to give the Wave its first lead in a game all season.