Feb. 1, 2006

NEW ORLEANS - The Tulane Green Wave added 24 players from six states to their 2006 football roster on Wednesday as Head Coach Chris Scelfo's eighth class was also one of his largest.

2006 Tulane Football Signing Class

Coach Scelfo's Comments on the Signing Class

PDF of Signing Class Roster and Bios

"This is an outstanding class from a depth and talent standpoint," Scelfo said. "We signed quality at each position with guys that have the maturity to come in and fill immediate needs."

The Green Wave signed nine players from Texas, six from Georgia and five Louisianans, along with two players from Virginia and one each from Pennsylvania and Florida. Tulane's 24 signees include 14 defensive players, eight on offense, one specialist and one athlete who could play on offense or defense.

"Our coaches did an outstanding job of recognizing our needs and addressing them," Scelfo said. "We lost some quality players on defense due to graduation and attrition. It was an area we needed to fill, especially at the linebacker and safety positions."

The 2006 class will arrive at Tulane with a long list of accolades as eight players earned all-state accolades during their prep careers, among them all five of Tulane's Louisiana signees. Another seven members of the class picked up all-county or all-city recognition in both Atlanta and Houston.

With National Signing Day, the Green Wave ends another chapter in its 2005-06 saga which began when Hurricane Katrina chased the team from its New Orleans home in August. After spending the season attending class and practicing at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, La., Tulane played 11 games in 11 different stadiums in 11 weeks, compiling a record of 2-9 on the 2005 season. Following its last game on Nov. 26, the Tulane coaching staff returned to Ruston until moving back to New Orleans in late December. Tulane did not host a recruit on campus until the weekend of Jan. 20-22, when 29 players visited, including the largest number of parents ever, according to Scelfo.

"Obviously members of this class recognized the difference between perception and reality when it came to New Orleans and Tulane University," Scelfo said. "Getting them to visit was a lot more difficult than getting them to sign. Once they saw the facilities and were able to see that our goals have not changed, the end result was this class."

Due to the continuing reconstruction of the James W. Wilson Center, which received up to three feet of floodwater when the levees broke, and the replacement of the AstroPlay field at the Westfeldt Facility, Tulane is not expected to hold spring practice until late March or early April this season.

-- Roll Wave --