College Football News Preview 2020: Previewing, predicting, and looking ahead to the Tulsa Golden Hurricane season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Schedule Analysis
– Tulsa Previews 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2019 Record: 4-8 overall, 2-6 in AAC
Head Coach: Philip Montgomery, 6th year, 25-37
2019 CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 78
2019 CFN Final Season Formula Ranking: 86
2019 CFN Preview Ranking: 120
No one knows what’s going to happen to the 2020 college football season. We’ll take a general look at where each team stands – doing it without spring ball to go by – while crossing our fingers that we’ll all have some well-deserved fun this fall. Hoping you and yours are safe and healthy.
5. College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Offense 3 Things To Know
– The offense improved a bit over a rough 2018, but it still wasn’t always enough – the defense let the team down far too often. Still, the Golden Hurricane averaged 420 yards per game with a decent enough passing game to get by.
Starting quarterback Zach Smith – after transferring over from Baylor – is back after throwing for close to 3,300 yards and 19 touchdowns with just nine picks. No. 2 man Seth Boomer also returns – neither one will run much, but either one can handle the passing attack and push for close to 300 yards.
– Keenan Johnson is gone after making 46 grabs. All of the other top receivers are expected back, starting with the dangerous Keylon Stokes – who led the team with 62 catches for 1,049 yards and six touchdowns – along with junior Sam Crawford, who caught 59 passes for 777 yards and five scores. This is a deep group – helped by the addition of Oklahoma State TE transfer Grayson Boomer – that should be even more explosive.
– The 1-2 rushing punch of Shamari Brooks and Corey Taylor are back. Brooks is the 5-9, 190-pound scooter, and the 215-pound Taylor handles more of the thump. 229-pound sophomore TK Wilkerson also returns after running for six scores.
They’re all working behind a line that’s shuffling things around a bit. Four starters are back, but there are some moving parts for a group that struggle for the running game and allowed a way-too-many 3.25 sacks per game.
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Defense 3 Things To Know
4. College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Defense 3 Things To Know
– The defense that wasn’t totally miserable – allowing 395 yards per game – but when it broke down, the team lost. The Golden Hurricane gave up more than 31 points five times, and lost all five games. Now the D has to replace five of the top six and seven of the top ten tacklers.
– The secondary that wasn’t bad, but didn’t come up with enough interceptions has to replace almost everyone. Allie Green is back at one corner spot after coming up with 45 tackles, but everyone else is done including three of the team’s top five tacklers.
There’s good size at safety, with 6-4, 200-pound Kendarin Ray and 6-1, 203-pound TieNeal Martin to go along with the 6-3, 215-pound Green.
– There’s no replacing top pass rusher Trevis Gipson on one side. but massive 6-3, 351-pound senior Tyarise Stevenson is back on the inside along with 6-0, 290-pound junior interior pass rusher Jaxon Player. Now the pass rush has to come on the outside – Cullen Wick and Deven Lamp will have the spotlight on in place of Gipson.
The linebacking corps has to replace everyone but Zaven Collins, a 6-4, 260-pound hybrid who was second on the team with eight tackles for loss and two sacks. There’s excellent size, and senior Yohance Burnett is experienced enough to be in the mix to be the leading tackler with Cooper Edmiston gone.
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Top Tulsa Golden Hurricane Players
College Football News Preview 2020: Top Tulsa Golden Hurricane Players
Best Tulsa Golden Hurricane Offensive Player
RB Shamari Brooks, Sr.
He’s not all that big, but the 5-9, 190-pounder has been a key part to the offensive puzzle over the last three years with 2,700 yards and 23 scores on the ground, and just enough catches to be potentially better. He’s enough of a workhorse to carry the workload, with four 100-yard games last year highlighted by a 202-yard day in the win over East Carolina.
2. QB Zach Smith, Sr.
3. WR Keylon Stokes, Sr.
4. RB Corey Taylor, Sr.
5. WR Sam Crawford, Jr.
Best Tulsa Golden Hurricane Defensive Player
LB Zaven Collins, Jr.
Is he a linebacker, a defensive end, or a bit of both? The Golden Hurricane didn’t generate a whole lot of production behind the line other than what Trevis Gipson provided, but the 6-4, 260-pound Collins was the second-best player behind the line with two sacks and eight tackles for loss while finishing second on the team with 97 tackles.
2. CB Allie Green, Sr.
3. S Kendarin Ray, Soph.
4. DT Jaxon Player, Jr.
5. LB Yohance Burnett, Sr.
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Keys To The Season
College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Keys To The Season
Biggest Key To The Tulsa Golden Hurricane Offense
The offensive line has to give everyone time to work. The Golden Hurricane have a great stable of running backs and a strong quarterback in Zach Smith, but they need room to move.
Last year’s running game averaged just 3.3 yards per carry and came up with only 1,660 yards. That’s because the O line allowed over seven tackles for loss and 3.25 sacks per game. That’s where the shifting of parts come in – all it might take is an extra half second of time for a more consistent attack.
Biggest Key To The Tulsa Golden Hurricane Defense
The run defense can’t be barreled on. There’s decent enough size up front to be okay, the defensive backs are good-sized and they all hit, but stopping the run for this D means everything.
Tulsa won four games last year, two of them came when the defense allowed 115 yards or fewer.
The defense was good at generating third down stops, but there weren’t enough sacks outside of what Trevis Gipson came up with, and there has to be more big plays overall. Not allowing 200 yards on the ground – the program is 1-20 in the last 21 games when allowing 190 or more – is a start.
Key Tulsa Golden Hurricane Player To A Successful Season
OT Tyler Smith, RFr.
Can he be the team’s anchor? The line has experience with four starters gone, but Chris Ivy is done at left tackle. The 6-5, 332-pound Smith was the backup last season, but was able to preserve his eligibility and is going into his first year. If he’s a rock on the left side, the rest of the line might be the best yet in the Philip Montgomery era.
Key Game To The Tulsa Golden Hurricane Season
Toledo, Sept. 5
The Rockets are good enough to win the MAC with the explosion and talent to also pull off the road win in the season opener. Tulsa has winnable games against Northwestern State and Arkansas State in September.
Beat Toledo, and there’s a chance to build up a nice base of three wins to build on to potentially get to six and bowl eligibility. Lose to the Rockets, and good luck finding six wins on the slate.
– Tulsa Golden Hurricane Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2019 Tulsa Fun Stats
– Sacks: Opponents 39 for 242 yards – Tulsa 14 for 97 yards
– Tulsa 1st quarter points: 41 – 2nd quarter points: 129
– Fumbles: Tulsa 21 (lost 10) – Opponents 14 (lost 13)
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Win Total Prediction, What Will Happen
1. College Football News Preview 2020: Tulsa Golden Hurricane Win Total Prediction, What Will Happen
Tulsa showed just enough last season to think there might be something about to happen this year as a possible breakthrough team in the American Athletic Conference.
It pulled off a win over UCF, came as close as humanly possible to beating Memphis without actually doing it, and it showed the potential of turning a corner in a few decent performances here and there.
It’s not like there was a truly embarrassing loss. There were some blowout defeats, but there was no shame in losing to Navy or Oklahoma State or Cincinnati. The one bad defeat was at home to Houston, but the team bounced back to close out the year with a win over East Carolina.
And now that has to carry over with an offense loaded with decent veterans, and just enough parts back to be okay for a defense that wasn’t all that great and needs to be simply not awful.
Set The Tulsa Golden Hurricane Regular Season Win Total At … 5
Bet at BetMGM Win Total Line: 4.5
There will be some games when the whole thing just doesn’t work. The defense won’t have the stuff against the run, the offense won’t be effective enough, and there will be an ugly loss – like, possibly, at UCF and at Oklahoma State.
But East Carolina, SMU and Tulane are all winnable home games, Northwestern State is a W, and beating Toledo and winning at Arkansas State is a must.
The Golden Hurricane will get to five wins – keeping in line with the run of a one-win improvement in each season since 2017 – and it should come down to the road game at Houston to get to a bowl.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Schedule Analysis
