Following a hurricane-displaced 2021, Willie Fritz has rebuilt his rebuild at Tulane

NEW ORLEANS -- For the archetypal 23 minutes of Saturday's crippled against UCF, Tulane appeared to buckle nether the value of history.

The Green Wave, often overlooked successful the modern assemblage shot landscape, recovered itself squarely successful the spotlight past week, ranked for the archetypal clip successful 24 years and hosting a Top 25 matchup for the archetypal clip since 1949 -- backmost successful the halcyon days arsenic charter members of the SEC. Yulman Stadium, usually astir fractional full, was lone a fewer 1000 tickets shy of a sellout.

But past came kickoff and alternatively of fans griping astir College GameDay turning down a travel to the Big Easy, they wondered what happened to their squad that had gone 8-1. Tulane, which committed the third-fewest penalties successful the FBS, jumped offsides connected the 3rd play of the crippled connected defense, moving the chains escaped of complaint earlier yet giving up a tract goal. Then, the discourtesy went three-and-out connected its opening thrust for the archetypal clip each season. And past the defense, which had fixed up an American Athletic Conference-best 4 rushing touchdowns, fto UCF backmost John Rhys Plumlee scamper 67 yards into the extremity zone.

In the blink of an eye, Tulane was down 24-7.

Spoiler alert: UCF won.

This isn't a fairytale, aft all. This is reality, and teams that crook the shot implicit twice, springiness up 83 yards successful penalties and let conversions connected 11 of 18 third-down attempts mostly person nary concern winning. But the mode successful which Tulane played the last 37 minutes, warring alternatively of folding and making it a one-score crippled precocious successful the 4th quarter, showed that this squad mightiness not beryllium a flash successful the pan. It showed that what manager Willie Fritz has enactment unneurotic mightiness beryllium built to last.

The 62-year-old manager knows shot and knows however to crook astir struggling programs. After all, helium has won astatine astir each level: inferior college, Division II, FCS and FBS. This season, helium has pulled disconnected the uncommon rebuild wrong a rebuild. After taking implicit a struggling Tulane programme successful 2016, helium led the Green Wave to 3 consecutive vessel games earlier a two-win play successful 2021 successful which the squad was displaced by Hurricane Ida. Now they've bounced backmost again and are threatening to scope 10 wins for the archetypal clip since 1998.

Sure, Fritz was disappointed aft the nonaccomplishment to UCF. He told reporters helium would've liked to person a fewer decisions back. But helium had position and knew they didn't play their best. "Luckily," helium said, "it's not the past crippled of the season."

Captains Sincere Haynesworth, Dorian Williams and Michael Pratt said they were keeping their heads up and reminding 1 different that the eventual extremity -- playing for a league title -- was inactive attainable. The Green Wave volition apt request to triumph their last 2 games, the archetypal of which comes connected a abbreviated week arsenic Tulane hosts SMU connected Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

"You can't beryllium and dwell connected this for excessively agelong erstwhile you person these opportunities presented successful beforehand of you similar this," Haynesworth said. "Just get backmost to enactment arsenic soon arsenic we can."

When Fritz talks astir having a "1-0 mentality," that's precisely what helium means.

If players and coaches got hung up connected what happened successful the past oregon what mightiness hap successful the future, they ne'er would person gotten this acold successful the archetypal place.

DURING A TWO-HOUR signifier earlier this month, Fritz carried a microphone with him, occasionally barking retired orders oregon speedy words of encouragement. He seemed to beryllium everyplace each astatine once, bouncing from presumption to presumption and adjacent wandering disconnected into the extremity portion successful bid to get a circumstantial constituent of view. Eighty-one times helium whispered notes into a integer recorder -- a wont helium picked up from erstwhile Kansas State manager Bill Snyder.

Even now, successful the mediate of his 30th play arsenic a caput manager and his seventh play astatine Tulane, Fritz sees country for betterment everyplace helium looks. Take a receiver drill helium watched successful signifier that day. Each subordinate ran a route, caught a walk from receivers manager John McMenamin and past meandered backmost to the presumption to repetition the drill. Fritz didn't similar the optics of players walking -- it drives him nuts -- and besides, the other steps were a discarded of energy. So aft transcribing his notes, Fritz went to McMenamin and told him the program moving forward: Instead of the receivers coming backmost to him to repetition the drill, he'd tally to them and they'd spell successful the other direction.

Hours spent astatine signifier and successful speech with the coaching unit revealed nary concealed condiment for Tulane's turnaround -- lone the small things, stacked connected apical of 1 different to signifier a coagulated foundation.

It's not sexy, but Troy Dannen wasn't looking for that erstwhile helium became Tulane's diversion manager successful 2015. If helium wanted to marque a splash and triumph the quality league with his caller shot coach, helium would person hired idiosyncratic younger, idiosyncratic from the South oregon idiosyncratic with Power 5 experience. But speaking to each those imaginable someones during the coaching search, Dannen said, "They astir didn't cognize what to do" with specified a challenging job.

Dannen needed idiosyncratic who wouldn't beryllium turned disconnected by what helium described arsenic an administrative "laissez-faire attitude" toward wins and losses. He needed idiosyncratic who wouldn't get "tied up successful knots" by the precocious world standards, either. To enactment chrome alongside each those aged sterling metallic trophies connected campus, helium needed a proven winner, nary substance what that looked like.

One of Dannen's archetypal calls was to Chicago-based cause Bryan Harlan, who asked what benignant of manager helium was successful the marketplace for. Dannen's caput went to idiosyncratic he'd seen a fewer times during trips to Sam Houston State arsenic portion of the FCS title committee. That manager seemed to person it figured retired and treated radical with respect. Plus, his résumé was impeccable. Sam Houston had gone 25-28 successful the 5 seasons earlier helium arrived, and helium ended up going to 2 title games. Before that, he'd taken implicit a Central Missouri squad that had won 4 games successful each of its erstwhile 2 seasons, and helium ended up winning an MIAA nationalist title. And earlier that, he'd taken implicit a Blinn College squad that had gone 5-24-1 successful its erstwhile 3 seasons, and helium ended up winning 2 inferior assemblage nationalist championships.

Dannen told Harlan, "I'm looking for a Willie Fritz type."

Funny thing, Harland said, they signed the erstwhile Sam Houston manager a fewer months earlier. Fritz was successful his 2nd twelvemonth astatine Georgia Southern astatine the time, having led the programme to 9 wins successful each of its archetypal 2 seasons competing astatine the FBS level.

Dannen was impressed erstwhile helium interviewed Fritz aft a National Football Foundation gathering successful New York City successful December. And alternatively than hazard him getting acold feet during the formation home, Dannen hashed retired declaration presumption that aforesaid night.

"I spell backmost to erstwhile Brian Kelly got hired astatine LSU and everybody saying it was a taste mismatch," Dannen said a fewer days aft Kelly and the Tigers upset Alabama. "LSU is going to predominate due to the fact that Brian Kelly -- the aforesaid happening -- he's won each spot he's gone. He's been astatine places that possibly weren't arsenic resource-starved [as Fritz], but he's ne'er been successful a spot that didn't person a cap. He doesn't person a headdress anymore. And those guys tin spell anyplace and manager anyplace due to the fact that they cognize kids, they cognize systems, they cognize players and they've seen things happen. That's what Willie is."

Fritz didn't caput that Tulane had lone 1 winning play and a 46-110 grounds successful the 12 years earlier helium arrived. He'd gotten utilized to a bully aged fashioned rebuild by then. In fact, helium couldn't recognize wherefore coaches took jobs with everything already astatine their disposal: awesome facilities, a monolithic enactment staff, a contented of winning.

"I'm not rather definite what the situation is, to beryllium honorable with you," helium said. "I'd astir apt beryllium disquieted I'd screw it up.

"But I bask the challenge. It's antithetic each time."

Fritz and his unit person leaned into their New Orleans location. They held authoritative visits successful the French Quarter and performed 2nd lines done the streets with recruits and their families. They ate similar kings and listened to Zydeco music.

Signing players from the astir talent-rich shot authorities successful the country, the roster steadily improved. So did the prime of play. They won 4 games that archetypal play and 5 the next. In each of the 3 consequent seasons, they won six regular-season games apiece and won 2 of 3 vessel games.

So erstwhile the dip yet came past season, it didn't acceptable disconnected panicked alarms.

"You tin person each the endowment successful the world, but the concern sometimes overrules talent," Dannen said. "And concern overruled endowment a twelvemonth ago."

LAST SEASON WOULD person breached a batch of teams. Riding precocious aft reaching 3 consecutive vessel games, Hurricane Ida struck successful precocious August and threatened to instrumentality the wheels disconnected the Willie Fritz Mardi Gras float.

The Category 4 tempest made landfall successful Louisiana a week earlier the play opener, and the squad was forced to evacuate to Birmingham, Alabama, wherever they stayed for astir a month. They bussed to signifier astatine Legion Field erstwhile the upwind cooperated. Once, they drove an hr to the University of Alabama to usage their indoor installation due to the fact that it had rained. Other days, erstwhile they couldn't find a adust tract to play on, they skipped signifier entirely.

And past determination was everything successful betwixt shot that they had to contend with. Imagine being stuck successful a edifice and distant from location for that agelong -- during the tallness of COVID. The on-site edifice was closed and options were limited.

"We were giving them $50 a time to telephone Uber Eats and bid Subway," Dannen said. "I mean, they were eating similar s---. But that's each you tin do."

When the squad yet did instrumentality to New Orleans, it wasn't backmost to normal. The metropolis was inactive recovering. Some players' homes had been destroyed and they had to find impermanent accommodations.

Playing 1 of the toughest schedules successful the Group of 5 -- including nonconference games astatine No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 17 Ole Miss, and league games against No. 21 SMU and No. 2 Cincinnati -- it's nary wonderment they struggled to triumph games.

"Most places don't fto a manager past past year," Dannen said.

But Tulane, for amended oregon worse, has a steadfast position erstwhile it comes to losing records. Dannen considered each the variables astatine play. While determination needed to beryllium immoderate changes among the adjunct coaches connected staff, helium felt the squad had held unneurotic nether Fritz. He was impressed however players didn't kick astir the adverse circumstances, however they kept competing and adjacent improved down the stretch. During the last 4 games, they bushed South Florida and mislaid to UCF, Tulsa and Memphis by an mean of 5.3 points.

Once the play ended, players didn't unreserved to the exits. The lone accordant starter they mislaid to the transportation portal was antiaircraft tackle Jeffery Johnson, who had already graduated. And not conscionable that, Fritz and his unit went retired and signed a fistful of erstwhile Power 5 players, including Lawrence Keys from Notre Dame and Patrick Jenkins from TCU (both are from New Orleans).

Bouncing backmost wasn't easy. But it was a full heck of a batch easier than fixing what they walked into 5 years earlier. Offensive coordinator Jim Svoboda said players lone needed to beryllium reminded that they were capable. "All the ingredients were already there," helium said, referencing a halfway radical of veterans that included Pratt, moving backmost Tyjae Spears and cornerback Jadon Canady.

Beating UMass and Alcorn State by a combined people of 94-10 to unfastened the play was conscionable the assurance boost they needed. Then they went connected the roadworthy to Kansas State and won successful beforehand of a sellout crowd. It was Fritz's archetypal Power 5 win. Being from Kansas City and having gone to assemblage lone a fewer hours away, helium said, "It was special."

Dannen was successful the locker country for the postgame celebration.

"I've had tears successful my eyes 3 times since I got here, and that was 1 of them," helium said. "It was a truly chill experience."

The landmark triumph could beryllium spun arsenic vindication -- for hiring Fritz and for overcoming the aberration of past season. But Dannen looked astatine it different way: "Affirmation of what we tin be."

If Tulane stays the course, Dannen has nary uncertainty they'll physique a statue to Fritz successful beforehand of Yulman Stadium 1 day. The lone question is whether immoderate different diversion manager volition effort to lure Fritz distant earlier then, hoping to person him rebuild yet different struggling program.

Dannen said they're committed to keeping Fritz happy. He already makes astir $2.5 cardinal per year, and built-in incentives volition boost him supra $3 cardinal this season. But erstwhile you've mowed fields and painted lines yourself arsenic a manager successful the little levels of assemblage football, Dannen is convinced that wealth won't beryllium the determining factor.

Might competitiveness? Sure. Dannen said he's thought astir it and realizes there's "only 1 nexus near successful the chain" for Fritz.

"If you tin sanction idiosyncratic who's gone from a nationalist title manager astatine juco level, to Division II, to FCS, to FBS, to Group of 5 to Power 5, I don't cognize who's connected that list," helium said.

But if it's entree to the playoff that's driving Fritz, Dannen said there's an statement for staying enactment and waiting for the format to grow to 12 teams successful the adjacent future, yet opening up a way to Group of 5 squads.

Fritz, for his part, doesn't privation to speech astir immoderate of that. He said helium gets annoyed astatine coaches who are successful 1 occupation and reasoning astir another. And frankly, it's hard to ideate however helium made the ascent up from juco to FBS without taking things 1 measurement astatine a time.

He could've gotten huffy earlier this period erstwhile the team's formation to Tulsa was delayed by 4 hours and they didn't get to their edifice until 9:30 p.m. But was helium truly going to kick astir aerial question erstwhile helium utilized to instrumentality the bus? There was a time, not that agelong ago, erstwhile helium utilized diesel substance to people the lines connected the tract due to the fact that overgarment was excessively expensive.

A twelvemonth ago, they lived successful a hotel. So, yeah, they tin grip conscionable astir anything.

His connection to the squad arsenic it heads down the location agelong of the regular play is to rotation with it -- don't interest astir the past, don't interest astir the future, conscionable support a 1-0 mentality.