TULSA FOOTBALL NOTES: CAL DAVIS GAME

Photo by: American Athletic Conference

TULSA FOOTBALL NOTES: CAL DAVIS GAME

8/29/2021 12:00:00 PM | Football

TULSA KICKS OFF SEASON THURSDAY NIGHT AT CHAPMAN STADIUM

GAME #1
TULSA (0-0, 0-0 AAC) vs. CAL DAVIS (0-0, 0-0 Big Sky)
Thursday, Sept. 2, 6:30 pm (CT)
Stadium: H.A. Chapman Stadium (30,000)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: Big Country 99.5 FM

FOR FULL GAMES NOTES PACKAGE, CLICK HERE

TULSA 6-3, 6-0 The American (2020)
Head Coach:           Philip Montgomery
(Tarleton State '95)
7th year at Tulsa
Career Record:       31-40 (6 years)
TU Record: same

CAL DAVIS 3-2, 3-2 Big Sky (2020)
Head Coach:           Dan Hawkins
(UC Davis '84)
4th year at UC Davis
Career Record:       134-80 (19 years)
UCD Record: 23-18 (3 years)

THE STORYLINES . . .
•     Tulsa is in its 125th season of Tulsa football.
•     Tulsa has the smallest FBS enrollment with 2,929 undergraduate students (based off 2020-21 statistics) … Tulsa's overall enrollment is 3,961 … Cal Davis' enrollment is 39,629.
•     Tulsa opens at home on the first weekend of the season, whereas a year ago Tulsa did not play at home until Oct. 30, the
fourth game of the year for the Golden Hurricane.
•     Tulsa is 5-1 under Philip Montgomery in home openers.
•     UC Davis Head Coach Dan Hawkins is not a stranger to Tulsa, having faced Tulsa as the head coach of Boise State four times (2001-04).
•     This is the first meeting between Tulsa and Cal Davis.

TULSA IN SEASON OPENERS . . .
•     In the 124-year history of Tulsa football, the Golden Hurricane has posted a 70-52-2 record in season openers.
•     The last time Tulsa opened the season at home came in 2018 with a 38-27 win over Central Arkansas.
•     Tulsa was scheduled to open the 2020 season at home vs. Toledo, but that game was canceled.
•     Tulsa did not open the home season in 2020 due to COVID-19 until Oct. 30 with a 34-30 win over East Carolina … it was Tulsa's fourth game of the season.

IN HOME OPENERS . . .
•     Tulsa has a 66-25 record for a .725 winning percentage in home openers at Skelly Field since it was built in 1930 (no matter if it was the season opener or not).
*     The Hurricane is 15-6 in home openers since the 2000 season, including winning 13 of its last 15 home openers … the only losses over the past 15 years have come against Oklahoma State (2011 and 2019).
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BROOKS 5th ON ALL-TIME RUSHING CHART . . .
•     Running back Shamari Brooks missed the 2020 season with an ACL injury.
•     The senior from Tulsa's Union High School enters the 2021 season ranked 5th on the school's career rushing list and 12th for career rushing TDs.
•     He has played in 32 career games and has 2,700 total rushing yards and 23 TDs.
•      Brooks enters this season needing 1,217 yards to tie D'Angelo Brewer (2014-17, 3917 yards) for the school's all-time rushing lead.

STOKES 3rd ON TULSA'S CAREER ALL-PURPOSE YARDAGE CHART, 12th FOR RECEIVING YARDS. . .
•     Senior receiver and kick return specialist Keylon Stokes enters 2021 ranked third on the school's career all-purpose yardage chart with 3,956 yards.
•     In 42 career games, Stokes has caught 155 passes for 2,402 yards, has 60 kickoff returns for 1,244 yards, 211 rushing yards and 99 punt return yards.
•     He is ranked 12th on the school's career receiving chart with 2,402 yads and needs 941 yards to tie Howard Twilley (1963-65) for the school record.
•     Damaris Johnson (2008-10) ranks first on the all-purpose chart with 7,796 yards and Trey Watts (2010-13) is second with 5,877 career yards.

11 ALL-CONFERENCE PLAYERS RETURN . . .
•     Tulsa returns a total of 11 players who earned American Athletic Conference honors last year … two first-team, five second-team and four honorable mention selections.
•           Defensive lineman Jaxon Player and offensive tackle Tyler Smith were first team selections.
•           Tulsa returns five second-team selections including wide receiver Keylon Stokes, offensive tackle Chris Paul, safety Cristian Williams, linebacker Justin Wright and place-kicker Zack Long.
•           Four honorable mention selections return including 3 offensive linemen –– Dante Bivens, Dylan Couch and Gerard Wheeler – giving league honors to all five Hurricane players on the offensive front … on defense, safety Kendarin Ray earned earned honorable mention merits.

GRADUATES . . .
•           Tulsa has 20 total players who have already graduated, including 17 who have spent their entire careers at Tulsa.
•           There are three graduate transfers among the group of 20 graduates playing this season.
•           The offensive players include Abe Anderson (TE), Dante Bivens (OG), Seth Boomer (QB), Dylan Couch (OG), Sam Crawford Jr. (WR), Cannon Montgomery (WR), Ezra Naylor II (WR) and Josh Stewart (WR).
•           Defensively, the graduates are Yohance Burnett (LB), Tyon Davis (CB), Deven Lamp (DL), TieNeal Martin (S) Bryson Powers (NKL), Treyvon Reeves (LB) Robert Revels III (LB), Jon-Michael Terry (LB), Elijah Taylor (DL) and Cristian Williams (NKL).
•           Special Teams include Adam Higuera (DS) and Zack Long (PK).
• The graduate transfers are Naylor II, Terry and Taylor.

FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICAN TYLER SMITH BACK FOR SOPHOMORE SEASON . . .
•           Sophomore left tackle Tyler Smith started all nine games in 2020 as a redshirt freshman and ended up earning Freshman All-America honors by the FWAA and The Athletic.
•           Smith was also an American Athletic Conference first-team selection.
•           In the AAC Championship game at No. 6 Cincinnati, Smith perhaps had his best game when he graded 94 percent on 72 offensive snaps.

LONGEVITY FOR CRISTIAN . . .
•           Tulsa's nickel safety Cristian Williams is entering his seventh season in a Tulsa uniform.
•           Williams redshirted as a true freshman in 2015, played in 13 games in 2016 and 12 in 2017.
•           He played in the first 2 games in the 2018 season and following the second game (Texas), it was revealed that his playing career would come to an end when diagnosed with Arnold Chiari Type 1 malformation.
•           He had taken to the whistle helping TU coaches the rest of the season, but in February 2019 decided to have a surgery that could land him back in uniform.
•           Williams was cleared to return to the football field in July 2019.
•           Since then, he has started all 20 games that he has played, 12 in 2019 and eight in 2020.

OFFENSIVE LINE . . .
•           Tulsa returns a total of nine players to the offensive line that have at least one college start.
•           Only 9 teams in the nation have 9 or more players with starts, including Minnesota with 10 each … other schools with 9 are Arkansas State, Florida State, Fresno State, Miami (Fla.), Michigan State, SMU and UTSA.
•           Tulsa has 121 starts among its 9 players on the offensive line, with 110 at Tulsa and 11 by Bryce Bray at Oklahoma State.
•           Tulsa starts looks like this … Chris Paul (28), Gerard Wheeler (20), Dylan Couch (17), Dante Bivens (16), X'Zauvea Gadlin (12), Tyler Smith (11), Bryce Bray (11, all at OSU), Tiller Bucktrot (5) and Jaden Muskrat (1).