How has Tulane's Reloaded Cornerback Room Taken Shape?

BY JAKE WEINSTOCK

After the 2023 season, there was a ton of concern over the new-look cornerback room at Tulane, and with good reason. The top four corners (in terms of snap counts during the 2023 season, at least) had moved on; Kam Pedescleaux, Jarius Monroe, Lance Robinson and AJ Hampton. During 2024 spring practices, while former Troy star Caleb Ransaw was in the fold at slot corner, he was often flanked during first-team reps by Jai Eugene and D.K. McGruder, two players who simply were not the answers and had left the program by summer 2024. We all remember the story, from there, Micah Robinson and Jonathan Edwards transferred in from FCS programs during the 2024 spring portal and Rayshawn Pleasant burst onto the scene in week one against Southeastern. Robinson finished with 546 snaps, Ransaw with 529, Pleasant with 480 and Edwards with 457. Those four players had four of the eight highest snap counts among Wave defenders in 2024. And now? Well, they too have all moved on, for one reason or another. Edwards exhausted his eligibility, Ransaw and Robinson are with NFL clubs, and Pleasant is expected to return kicks for Auburn.

I was on X the other day and I noticed that our good friends at The Uptown Update said that questions persist at cornerback heading into this 2025 training camp and season. On the one hand, I understand, because you may not know some of the names you're about to read. On the other hand, you will.

Starting on the inside, at slot corner, second-year player Javion White has to be considered the front-runner heading into fall camp to replace Ransaw. While was fantastic in his first start of 2024, against Rice in October (his second start was the bowl game against Florida, wherein he also performed admirably), when Ransaw was unable to go after an injury he suffered two weeks prior against UAB. Across 46 snaps, he was targeted just 4 times, allowing only 2 completions for a total of 18 yards. He was given an impressive 77.1 grade by ProFootballFocus and and a 79.7 grade in coverage. Tulane led Rice 17-10 with 1:43 to play in the 4th quarter, and Owls had the ball on their own 17 yard line, needing to go 83 yards to try and tie (or win) the game. Rice attempted a swing pass to the far side, White knifed past the line of scrimmage and upended the receiver. The ball came loose, Sam Howard scooped it up and scored, untouched, to seal the game for the Wave. Had there not been a fumble on the play, White still would have had a tackle for a loss of 3. I am fascinated to see how he grows as a true sophomore, after he was willing to play with such aggression and fearlessness as a freshman. The above-described play can be seen at the 5:48 mark, below:

Another returner that the causal fan is about 5-6 weeks from falling in love with is Jahiem "Joker" Johnson, who has spent the past two seasons waiting for his opportunity. Johnson, who redshirted in 2023, only saw 105 snaps and did not earn a start in 2024, but was unquestionably one of the stars of the 2025 spring practices. He got some valuable run in the second halves of blowout wins at UAB and at home against Temple, and has had a wonderful offseason, by all accounts. He's my pick to win the camp battle at boundary corner, and it's not hyperbole to say that Johnson could wind up on one of the All-AAC teams, come December. He'll need to hold off incoming transfers Isaiah Wadsworth (Wofford) and KC Eziomume (Albany), both of whom are seniors.

Now, at the field cornerback position is where things, I expect, will really get interesting. LJ Green, a redshirt sophomore who has transferred in from Troy should be in the mix. Green redshirted during Sumrall and Gasparato's 2023 season at Troy, but played 566 snaps for the Trojans in 2024 under the new regime, starting all 12 of the team's games. Green allowed just a 58.3% completion percentage when targeted, last season. He obviously should not have a problem relearning the playbook, terminology and signals.

Also expected to compete at field corner are two second-year players, sophomore Jayden Lewis and redshirt freshman E'zaiah Shine. Both were members of the 2023 signing class, and neither were holdovers from the Willie Fritz era, as both players only committed to Tulane after Sumrall had taken the job. Lewis saw 110 snaps and Shine saw zero, but both are exceptionally talented and were sought-after recruits. Lewis was a four-star member of the 2023 class, per 247 Sports, and had offers from Auburn, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida State, and Georgia Tech. Shine, on the other hand, was "just" a three-star member of the class, but had offers from Florida, Ole Miss, Iowa State, Kentucky, Georgia Tech, West Virginia, UCF, Oregon State, and Maryland, among others.