The Tulane Green Wave has had multiple players at the Reese’s Senior Bowl the last few seasons, and head coach Jon Sumrall has an equally strong track record in developing NFL prospects in college football.
Tulane football is the only Group of 5 program with multiple players on the Senior Bowl roster the past three years. Jon Sumrall is the only Group of 5 head football coach to do the same in his two seasons with the Troy Trojans and his first leading the Green Wave.
Cornerback Johnathan Edwards was a late addition to the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl, joining spear Caleb Ransaw. Ransaw was developed by Sumrall and his staff at Troy, while Edwards came as an FCS graduate transfer from Indiana State. Tulane’s secondary will miss the impact of these two players.
College football has come down to NIL money and a trajectory to the NFL draft. The Senior Bowl is one of the most valuable and life-changing opportunities for prospects looking to have a chance in the league.
All Green Wave players who have received an invite in that span have immensely benefitted from the week in Mobile, Al. The three-year span is pretty incredible to look back on. Just one season prior, the 2-10 team was on no one’s radars. The greatest single-season turnaround in college football history demanded eyes that haven’t left the program.
The draft might start in Mobile, but the Senior Bowl starts Uptown! #UptownFootball X @seniorbowl pic.twitter.com/vass5mTAqg
— Tulane Football (@GreenWaveFB) January 30, 2025
In 2023, running back Tyjae Spears and linebacker Dorian Williams were the pair invited, and both were selected in the third round by the Tennessee Titans and Buffalo Bills, respectively. They became the highest-drafted players from Tulane since the Chicago Bears selected Matt Forte in the second round in 2008.
The Green Bay Packers drafted quarterback Michael Pratt last year, and he currently plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jha’Quan Jackson, a wide receiver, transformed from a relative unknown to one of the most diligent players during practice, ultimately joining his former teammate in Tennessee.
The Green Wave had Cincinnati Bengals’ Cam Sample in attendance at the 2021 Senior Bowl. In recent years, the program has left a strong legacy in Mobile for a Group of 5 program.
Troy had a bit longer of a dry spell until Sumrall arrived in 2022, with the last player from the program receiving an invite in 2017.
Once Sumrall became head coach, he sent back-to-back pairs; linebacker Carlton Martial and center Jake Andrews, and edge rusher Javon Solomon and running back Kimani Vidal.
It’s one thing for Tulane football to have three consecutive years of multiple players invited to the Senior Bowl. It’s a legitimate competitive advantage having a head coach in Sumrall with the same resume of development for the NFL draft.
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