re: ***[as of 7/30/09 - SEE NEW POST]***

DJ Banks will have a great career at Tulane. I spoke with him yesterday and he said he chose Tulane b/c academics come first to him and he wants to play early rather than waiting 3 years at a big school like LSU (if they had offered)

Best of luck to DJ

I expect him to play corner at Tulane, but he could be a beast in the slot where ever he is at.

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"They also have prestigious academics, that's No. 1, a great coaching staff and I get to play the best game in the world for free. Coach (Bob) Toledo was excited just like me and my family are. He's a great guy."

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Sounds to me from this quote like that top 50 Academic stuff is helping Tulane, not hurting. You guys can't have it both ways.

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It is beyond me why they dont play all their games in Tad Gormley...it just seems like sucha better fit.

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You think thats fair to the high schools such as Brother Martin, Jesuit, St. Augustine & Holy Cross which that stadium was origionally built for? Why should these schools which have been playing at the stadium since it first opened have to find other places to play because Tulane is a sorry excuse for a football program? Brother Martin vs. Jesuit is being played at Yenni in Metairie this year. Both schools who have developed one of the biggest rivalries in all sports & both with a ton of tradition dating back many years have to play at Yenni. You think thats fair? Tulane should just either sack up & give their fans a reason to go to the games, or build their own stadium, maybe by the fly uptown or something, I don't know. I think its embarassing that in order for Tulane to have more of a "college" atmosphere, they play at a high school stadium. No one sees the irony in that? Tad Gormley was built to give the high schools a place to play, and just like the Yankees that go to Tulane try to act like New Orleans is THEIR city, the Tulane football team is acting like Gormley is THEIR stadium. One of the many reasons why I can't stand that school.

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You think thats fair to the high schools such as Brother Martin, Jesuit, St. Augustine & Holy Cross which that stadium was origionally built for

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Aren't the high school games played on Friday? How would this conflict. It would be like Tulane and the Saints sharing the dome.

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Sounds to me from this quote like that top 50 Academic stuff is helping Tulane, not hurting. You guys can't have it both ways.

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i really don't think it hurts that much because we have a school of continuing studies that athletes with borderline grades/test scores can enroll in and still play. it should be more of a draw for kids, which sounds like it was the case with the last 2 commits. there's really no excuse for tulane to recruit as badly as we have been recently between the academic reputation and the great college city

I agree - although TG may seem like a better alternative to the Super Dome, it's not an appropriate venue.

The creation of a true on-campus stadium (e.g. Tulane Stadium) is the true measure of how serious Tulane's AD/Admin. are about the football program, athletic revenue/support, etc.

That said, viable property in Uptown NOLA is limited, especially on/near Tulane's campus.

Despite the locally/nationally reports of the dramatic 'brain-drain' NOLA has suffered, I'm surprised by your shots at the "Yankees that go to Tulane."
- Isn't Tulane the city's largest private employer?
- Don't you prefer Tulane grads to remain in NOLA, increase the skilled/educated population and attract new businesses to the area?
- Tulane has continued to attract positive national attention in post-Katrina NOLA for various community service efforts - a benefit to all, including the good people of Bucktown.

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You must not be from New Orleans, much less an big city. With so many schools in New Orleans, there isn't enough room for schools to build their own stadiums. There are only 3 stadiums on the East Bank where the big schools play...Gormley, Yenni, & Pan American. Games are played on Thursday nights, Friday afternoon, Friday nights, Saturday afternoon & Saturday nights for high schools just at Gormley alone for one week. Schools share stadiums, so your logic doesn't make sense.

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I guess that answers my question. However, I did live in New Orleans for 10 years (1993-2003). I can also tell you that the major cities I've live in (and based on population and wealth I don't think I can include New Orleans in that catagory) have pleanty of stadiums for their football teams.

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That said, viable property in Uptown NOLA is limited, especially on/near Tulane's campus.

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did you read the rivals article with toledo where he mentioned the fly? i think that would be a beautiful place for a stadium, but there's no way in hell it would ever fly with the uptown crowd. i can see where they're coming from too. that is a really nice area and green space is at a premium

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I went to Jesuit...I love Gormley...the games are on FRIDAY nights....Tulane's games are played on SATURDAY. Finding uses for and under-utilized architectual gem is a good thing.

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I played at BM & all but 2 of our games at Gormley were on Friday nights. Check any of the school's schedules now & you will see the same. Just ask Rummel also. They have maybe 1 Friday night game at Yenni.