Tulane Green Wave puts AAC on the map with dominant win over South Florida

The Tulane Green Wave dominated the first American Athletic Conference game of the season, winning 45-10 over the South Florida Bulls. What many expected to be a dogfight between these two conference teams was anything but, as Tulane dominated in all facets of the game.

The Green Wave looked like a different team on the field after going 2-2 in non-conference games, including a tough battle against the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns just last week. Head coach Jon Sumrall had his Tulane team ready to begin AAC play.

It was truly a breakout game for Tulane quarterback Darian Mensah as he exposed the USF defense throughout the game.

Mensah and the Green Wave offense immediately took advantage of the home atmosphere at Yulman Stadium, scoring on their first drive. The Tulane quarterback started the first drive with a 34-yard pass to Alex Bauman. They capped the first possession with a five-yard rushing touchdown from Makhi Hughes.

Hughes showed why he was the leading rusher in the AAC a season ago when he scored two rushing touchdowns on the day. He finished the day with 61 yards and two scores on 17 carries.

Tulane's passing game began at 10-10 for 162 yards before a drop occurred and the team's fourth drive ended with the first Green Wave punt of the contest. The first incompletion came just over six minutes before the end of the second quarter.

Mensah finished the first half with three passing touchdowns, including two to USC transfer Mario Williams. The redshirt freshman finished the day with 326 yards passing and three touchdowns. The entire Tulane team totaled 528 yards of offense in the matchup.

Offensively, it was an all-round great day for the Green Wave.

The Tulane Green Wave defense started strong, defeating the Bulls with a three-and-out drive. They forced punts on South Florida's first four drives to start the contest.

South Flordia reached the end zone for the first time just before halftime on their seventh drive of the game, but not after turning the ball over on two consecutive drive-end fumbles. One of the turnovers was made up for by Rayshawn Pleasant, who had another solid game this weekend after suffering a turnover 95-yard kick return for a touchdown just a week ago.

South Florida's star quarterback Byrum Brown left the game with an injury in the third quarter and did not return.

Tulane stopped South Florida's running game to just 24 yards on the day. The Bulls entered the weekend ranked 25th in the country with 217 rushing yards per game.

With the win, the Tulane Green Wave move to 3-2 on the season and 1-0 in conference play. They have now won 11 straight games in conference play. They will continue their AAC schedule and travel to Birmingham to face UAB.