NFL Draft 2017: Tanzel Smart Shines In Tulane’s Exciting Win
By Matt LaPan
With the 2017 NFL Draft getting ever closer by the day, Tanzel Smart absolutely starred in Tulane’s marathon victory over Louisiana-Lafayette
No team expects to have a game go through four overtimes and end on a dramatic stop on a two-point conversion. But that is exactly how Tanzel Smart and the Tulane Green Wave picked up their second win of the season by a count of 41-39 over Louisiana-Lafayette.
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“It’s not how we drew it up,” Smart said when asked about the win. “But any time you can battle through adversity and get the win it makes you more prepared for the future.”
Not only did the Green Wave battle back form an early deficit, they were able to come away with the win despite being out-gained 377 to 311 on the day. The 377 yards was the most the defense has allowed on the year, but they also forced a season-high tying four turnovers.
The defensive effort was spearheaded by Smart’s 10 total tackles on the day. The season-high for Smart set a new career-high, besting his nine tackles against Army in 2015. Smart also matched a career-high with three tackles for loss in the game. For good measure, the defensive tackle added one sack to round out arguably his top performance of his career.
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“I know the lord blessed me with the skills to perform,” Smart said when asked about the performance. “It just felt good to get it done and come away with the win.”
Smart credits the ability to get after the quarterback and make plays in the backfield to offseason training on and off the field. He trained hard both with the new coaching staff and on his own to work on foot quickness and hand placement. Smart still notices that he has a long way to go to become a more complete player, but the work has already paid off. Through just four games of his senior season, Tanzel Smart has already matched his career-high for sacks in a season—a number he hopes continues to grow.
“It’s great to get them, but I know I have a long way to go,” Smart said. “Just gotta keep working.”
On Saturday in Week 5 of the season, Smart and Tulane have a chance to hop above .500 for the first time in 2016 when they travel to take on the UMass Minutemen. While they carry a 1-3 record into the matchup, UMass has fought hard through a very difficult early-season schedule.
They are a team that Smart says are big and physical when watching on film. Even with this size, they are still averaging just 17.5 points per game. This is where Smart and Tulane’s defense can capitalize. They enter the game tied for 41st in the country—allowing just 22 points per game.
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If Tanzel Smart and the Green Wave defense can continue their success of keeping teams off the scoreboard, they could leave Massachusetts with a record above .500 for the first time since the end of the 2013 season.