Wave Battles Heat In Two-and-a-Half-Hour Practice

NEW ORLEANS, La. – Senior linebacker Anthony Cannon has been a key member of the Tulane football game for the past three years and Monday afternoon he and the rest of the Green Wave battled the typical New Orleans heat for a two-and-a-half-hour practice at the Westfeldt Facility. Following the practice, Cannon heard the news that he had been selected to the Watch List for the 2005 Rotary Lombardi Award which honors the top lineman or linebacker in the nation.

“It’s good when you receive personal accolades from playing the game to win,” Cannon said. “I’ve been working hard, not for any personal reasons, but to help the team, and I appreciate those who recognized that and put me on the list.”

Cannon has 323 career tackles and led Tulane in tackles and sacks in 2004. He needs 19 tackles to crack the top 10 on the Tulane career list and was also rated the No. 19 inside linebacker in the nation by The Sporting News.

“Anthony has had over 100 tackles in each of his first three seasons,” Tulane head coach Chris Scelfo said. “And this is the first year he has come into camp healthy. He has the experience and he knows what to do. I think he’ll be in the thick of things when the winner of the award is announced.”

The long Green Wave practice came after Scelfo had given the team a day off on Sunday following Saturday’s scrimmage, their second of the season.

“We were real sluggish, which is normal with a day and a half off, especially on defense,” Scelfo said. “The offensive line played well and the running backs ran well. The quarterbacks did not have their best day, but that happens. Overall, I thought it was a good afternoon of practice.”

The team logged 21 periods of practice followed by selected conditioning. The highlight of the afternoon was a catch-and-run by sophomore Matt Forté which went for over 60 yards late in the team’s two-minute drills. Sophomore safety Joe Goosby picked off a pass late in the same drills as well.

Tulane opens the 2005 season on Sunday, Sept. 4 in a nationally-televised (ESPN2) game versus Conference USA foe Southern Miss in Hattiesburg, Miss. The Green Wave opens its 2005 home schedule on Saturday, Sept. 17 in the Louisiana Superdome versus Mississippi State. Season tickets for the entire 2005 home schedule are on sale now at the Tulane Athletics Ticket Office in the James W. Wilson Center, on-line at www.TulaneGreenWave.com and by calling 504-861-WAVE.