American Stories – Banks’ Statement Win Gives Tulane High Hopes

It was the victory Tulane was searching for.

The Green Wave, which hasn’t had a winning season in its first three years in the American Athletic Conference, fancied itself as a legitimate bowl contender this year.

Second-year coach Willie Fritz’s team took a giant step forward when he gambled and junior quarterback Jonathan Banks, a transfer from Kansas State, scored on a 4-yard scramble with just 23 seconds left as the Green Wave defeated Army, 21-17, on Military Appreciation Day at Yulman Field in New Orleans.

“Our program needed a win like this,’’ Fritz said after the game. “I think this is the biggest win we’ve had here in a couple decades,’’ Fritz claimed. “Army is a good team. They won eight games and a bowl game last year.’’

The come-from-behind win improved Tulane’s record to 2-2, and the Green Wave, which lost to Navy, 23-21 in the second game of the season, showed signs that it will be more competitive in The American.

This is a team that is coming off a bye week and gaining confidence heading into tomorrow’s home game against traditionally high-scoring Tulsa.

Tulane is changing the culture that has existed down here far too long. There is an energy that comes from the addition of Yulman Stadium, bringing college football back to campus after the Green Wave had played its home games at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for years. Recruiting has improved, bringing quality players from a talent-rich state to the school. So long as Banks, who missed the previous game-and-a-half, stays healthy, Tulane could be well-positioned to make a postseason run.

Banks grew up in Houston and was a huge Vince Young fan ever since he was 8-years old, when Young’s Texas team won the 2006 national championship at the Rose Bowl. Banks felt it was his destiny to follow in Young’s footsteps ever since, even wearing No. 10 in Little League football.

Banks learned the game from his father Sean and started for Nimitz High, where he was the Offensive MVP of talent-rich District 15 5A as a senior and received attention from schools like Oklahoma and LSU. But both schools projected him as a wide receiver or a defensive back.

Banks had his heart set on being a quarterback, so he decided to enroll at Contra Costa Community College in California where he quickly became one of the top quarterbacks in junior college and accounted for 2,692 yards and 28 touchdowns and was named Northern California Football Conference Offensive Player of the Year.

Banks was then recruited as a quarterback by schools like Kansas State, Utah and Cal, and he finally signed with K-State, willing to compete for the job against a deep group of passers.

After Wildcats quarterbacks Jesse Ertz and Alex Dalton went down with knee injuries early in Banks first season, he moved up to second on Bill Snyder’s depth chart. Joe Hubener started the first four games of the season, but was forced to leave the game after taking a huge hit to the head against Oklahoma State. Banks ordinarily would have been next man up, but he was battling a case of mononucleosis, which kept him from traveling with the team.

K-State moved wide receiver Kody Cook into the spot and Cook kept the Wildcats competitive until the Cowboys kicked a game winning field goal with 32 seconds left in the game.

Banks was back on campus, feeling sick to his stomach over a missed opportunity. He never got another chance to work his way up the depth chart. Banks still wasn’t ready to give up on his dream and opted to play another year of junior college football at Independence Community College in Kansas. He accounted for 1,953 yards and 16 total touchdowns, drawing attention from Tulane, Kansas and SMU.

Banks, who entered the 2017 season with two years of eligibility, was lukewarm on Tulane at first but Fritz and his staff convinced him he was the right man to resurrect a non-existent passing game in his spread-option offense.

Banks looked like the man in the summer, and in Tulane’s season-opener against Grambling State, when he threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score in a 43-14 victory against a team that brought an 11-game winning streak to New Orleans. But he had another hiccup, suffering an ankle injury the following week against Navy which also kept him out of a marquee matchup against No. 2 Oklahoma.

Banks was not 100 percent against Army, but the Green Wave got spectacular 75-and 72- yard touchdown runs from Dontrell Hilliard and Sherman Badie to give Tulane a 14-10 halftime lead before Banks came up huge when the Green Wave needed him the most on the final drive.

Banks’ heroics were set up by a Tulane defense that got two huge fourth down stops when Army was controlling the ball with its running game and threatening to score, including an interception by Donnie Lewis in the end zone during the third quarter.

But Army looked like it was about to spoil an inspired effort when Connor Slomka scored on a 5-yard touchdown with 5:32 to play to give the Black Knights a 17-14 lead.

Banks didn’t shy away from the pressure. Figuring that if Army were to get the ball back in the closing minutes, the Black Knights’ potent rushing offense might be able to eat up most of the remaining time. So Fritz went for it on fourth-and-8 from his own 28-yard line, and Banks picked up a first down to the 37, even though he got drilled on the play, which he said woke him up.

Banks sat out one play, then converted another fourth down to the Army 28. Hilliard converted a third fourth down play to the Army 6 before Fritz decided he had no desire for overtime and passed on a game-tying field goal, unleashing Banks to score and complete a 19-play, 75-yard game winning drive.

An interception by Parry Nickerson locked the game down.

“I feel like we worked on coming through in the fourth quarter all summer and being clutch,’’ Banks said. “That’s what it’s all about. Grabbing momentum and holding on it.’’

Banks finished 10-of-22 passing for 102 yards and also ran the ball 10 times for 40 yards – statistics that won’t knock your socks off, but don’t nearly measure the impact that Tulane’s quarterback had on the outcome.

“He gives you a dynamic at quarterback that gives you a chance,” Fritz said. “We’re going to take time to figure this guy out. He’s a unique player. Sometimes, he doesn’t draw between the lines and that’s okay.’’

“You could feel the energy once we crossed midfield,’’ Fritz added. “Jonathan wasn’t 100 percent, but to take a team down (the field), that showed a lot of poise,’’ Fritz said. “He improvised a lot of that final play. We could have given the ball to Dontrell and he would have walked the ball in. But Jonathan wanted to make a play. He’s a tough kid. That’s why we took him.’’

The schedule doesn’t get any easier from here. After Saturday’s game against Tulsa, the Green Wave closes the nonconference portion of its schedule at Florida International, then has games against The American’s two divisional favorites, USF and Memphis.

The Green Wave will likely have to score closer to the 43 it had in the opener than the 21 it had against Army to keep pace in the high-powered American West Division. But the win against the Black Knights was a huge confidence builder for a team that finally has bigger goals than it has had in recent years.