Tulsa Takes No. 20 Tulane to the Wire Falling 24-22

Saturday, November 11

New Orleans, La.

11:00 a.m.

Tulsa

3-7 , 1-5

Tulane

9-1 , 6-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Tulsa	0	10	3	9	22
Tulane	14	0	7	3	24

Tulsa Takes No. 20 Tulane to the Wire Falling 24-22

11/11/2023 3:51:00 PM | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

GAME STATS I POSTGAME NOTES

NEW ORLEANS, La. –– Tulsa's valiant comeback effort fell short 24-22 against the nation's 20^th-ranked Tulsan Green Wave Saturday in front of 20,126 fans at Yulman Stadium.

Freshman quarterback Kirk Francis, making only his second game appearance this year, finished with 345 yards and one touchdown by completing 22-of-34 attempts. Francis moved into second place on the school's freshman passing list, falling just 41 yards shy of T.J. Rubley's 386 yards in 1987 against Oklahoma State.

Tulsa receivers Kamdyn Benjamin and Carl Chester had career-highs with 157 and 132 yards, respectively. Benjamin also had a career-high two TD receptions to give him four on the year.

The Hurricane run game put up the second-highest total allowed by Tulane's 4^th-ranked run defense with 122 yards behind Anthony Watkins' 76 yards.

Tulsa fell to 3-7 overall and 1-5 in The American, while Tulane improved to 9-1 and 5-0 in league play.

Tulsa scored 12 points in the second half and held the Green Wave to 10. After a field goal gave Tulane a 24-16 lead at the 9:21 mark, Tulsa failed on its next possession but a drive later Francis led the Hurricane on a 4-play, 67-yard drive that cut the deficit to two points. Tulsa's try at tying the game on a two-point conversion failed, keeping the score at 24-22.

After 14 first-quarter points from the Tulane offense, the Golden Hurricane defense held the Green Wave to three points the remainder of the game one field goal, as the other Tulane score came on a 100-yard kickoff return.

Tulane jumped out to a 14-0 lead on the last play of the first quarter, but the Hurricane took the momentum into halftime outscoring the Green Wave 10-0 for a 14-10 halftime score.

The Tulane offense put up 169 yards in the first quarter compared to Tulsa's 50 yards, but the Hurricane turned the tide in the second period with 177 yards of total offense to Tulane's 60 yards.

Kirk Francis led the Hurricane on its first scoring drive, going 75 yards in five plays, to make the score 14-7. Tulsa added a field goal at the 7:23 mark for its four-point halftime deficit.

Tulsa will close out the home schedule next week when the North Texas Mean Green come to H.A. Chapman Stadium for a 2 p.m. kickoff.

1^st Quarter Breakdown
•      Tulane took possession off an interception and went 70 yards in 12 plays, taking 5:53 off the clock to take a 7-0 lead at the 7:14 mark.
•      The Green Wave made it a 14-0 game on a 39-yard TD pass that ended the first quarter at 0:00.
•      Tulane managed 169 total yards, while Tulsa was held to 50 first quarter yards with 48 of those yards coming on the ground.

2^nd Quarter Breakdown
•      Tulsa responded on its first possession of the quarter as Kirk Francis completed 3-of-4 passes on the drive for 74 yards on the five-play, 75-yard drive.
•      The Hurricane went 65 yards in 10 plays to the Tulane 19-yard line and had to settle for a 37-yard Chase Meyer field goal.
•      In the quarter, Tulsa gained 177 yards, while Tulane gained 60 yards in the quarter.

3^rd Quarter Breakdown
•      Tulane opened the second half with a 100-yard kickoff return by Shedro Louis.
•      The Hurricane took the subsequent possession to the Tulane 33-yard line before punting.
•      After Tulsa's defense forced a 3-and-out on Tulane's possession, the offense moved to the Tulane 6-yard line before Chase Meyer knocked through his second field goal, this one covering 30 yards, to make the score 21-13.

4^th Quarter Breakdown
•      Chase Meyer's 47-yard field goal cut Tulsa's deficit to five points at 21-16, with 13:58 remaining in the game.
•      Tulsa's defense forced Tulane to settle for a 30-yard field goal after holding the Green Wave on 3^rd-and-13 from the 20-yard line.
•      The Tulane field goal gave the home team an eight-point advantage going into the final nine minutes.
•      Tulsa scored with 3:03 remaining in the game on a 4-yard pass from Braylon Braxton to Kamdyn Benjamin.
•     Tulsa's two-point conversion failed making the score 24-22.
•      Tulane ran out the final 2:58 off the clock to hold onto the two-point victory.