Game notebook: Tulane LB Nick Anderson adds fake-punt success to his repertoire

Linebacker Nick Anderson played some fullback in high school, so he jumped at the opportunity for a carry on a fake punt against Tulsa.

Lined up as an upback in the first quarter, he took a direct snap and powered for a first down on fourth-and-2 from the Tulane 35.

That deception, which included punter Casey Glover leaping as if the ball had gone over his head, led to a 75-yard drive that ended in a 20-yard field goal as Tulane went up seven points on the way to a 27-13 victory on Saturday at Chapman Stadium.

“That’s one of the things we’ve been working on all year,” Anderson said. “It’s very different running in the game than it is in practice. In practice I score every time, and in the game I was just trying to get a first down. The guys in front of me did a great job of getting a push, and I put my head down and tried to get it for the team.”

Anderson ran into a wall of bodies before he gained the necessary yards, but his force and the push from the blockers around him were good enough for a 3-yard gain.

“When they spotted the ball, it looked like it was going to be about 2 feet,” coach Willie Fritz said. “I called (the fake), and the next thing you know, it’s 2 yards. We’ve worked on it a bunch. Nick did a good job of staying low with second effort and running through some arm tackles.”

In his normal role, Anderson tied fellow linebacker Dorian Williams for the team lead with 13 tackles. 

First penalty

An interference call on cornerback Lance Robinson in the third quarter was the first accepted interference flag on Tulane this season.

Robinson never turned his head while chasing JuanCarlos Santana on a floater down the sideline, but his contact was minimal enough that Fritz wondered if it should have been a penalty.

“It will be interesting to see that one (again),” he said. “I could be wrong, but I thought maybe the guy had Lance by the face mask. We work on (avoiding interference) a bunch. We do a lot of 7-on-7 against each other and a lot of 1-on-1 and try to get the DBs and the safeties not to panic when the ball is thrown down the field.”

The only other flag for interference on Tulane came against cornerback Jadon Canady in the fourth quarter against Southern Miss, but the Golden Eagles declined it because the ball was caught.

Big again

Running back Tyjae Spears had not been totally satisfied with his performance this year, even though he entered Saturday with a team-best 588 yards on 120 carries, another 203 yards on 16 catches and a walk-off touchdown reception in overtime at Houston.

Consider him closer to peak form after he rushed for a season-high 157 yards on 14 carries, getting the first 55 on mostly individual effort on the second snap of the game.

“I felt like I made a big improvement from last week to this week, but it’s a journey,” he said. “We’ve got to keep on striding.”

Spears sloughed off an injury that limited him to one carry after the first possession of the third quarter, saying he was fine. He was much more interested in talking about the performance of the blockers, who paved the way for a 357-yard rushing day.

“It was amazing,” he said. “The 350 yards was collective. The running backs couldn’t do it by ourself. The offensive linemen did their job.”

Lagniappe

Tulane beat Tulsa for the second time in their last three meetings in Tulsa after having never done it before Fritz arrived. … After Memphis was not called for a penalty in the Wave’s last game, Tulsa drew five flags for 44 yards — almost all of them costly. …  Jarius Monroe, starting in place of the injured Canady, added nine stops.