Tyjae Spears' biggest concern going into Tulane’s finale against Memphis was avoiding injury. Then he put the hurt on the Tigers for four quarters.
Although his 264 yards on 30 carries were not enough for the Green Wave (2-10, 1-7 American Athletic Conference) to win in what has been a brutal season, his brilliance on Saturday night created plenty of anticipation for what he can do when healthy for a full year.
“Finishing this season injury-free, that’s amazing,” he said while admitting his frustration after Tulane lost another one it thought it should have won, 33-28. “Now I can go into the offseason and build from January. That’s the most exciting thing of all.”
Memphis had no answer for him even though his body never has been 100% healthy as he recovers from a torn ACL from September of 2020. He admitted he also tweaked his other knee at some point this season, hobbling him in practice.
His legs were plenty healthy in the game. He had carries of 6, 6, 16, 4, 14 and 8 on Tulane’s opening drive, setting up a rushing touchdown by quarterback Michael Pratt. He started the next drive with an 11-yard burst, followed with a 7-yard reception to convert a third down and capped it off by powering his way into the end zone from seven yards out.
He did not let up in the second half, jetting around the corner a 57-yard gain in the third quarter before carrying the ball four more times on the same drive and capping it off a drive with a 2-yard touchdown as Tulane went ahead 21-20.
Starting up the middle on a fourth-quarter run, he made a sharp cut and circled backward to get outside behind a wall of blockers for a 36-yard jaunt.
“He’s a really great player,” Wave coach Willie Fritz said. “He got stronger and stronger as the season progressed. Shoot, he was IV’d at halftime and still came out and did all that. He had a fantastic game for us.”
Spears streaked past Eddie Price, David Abercrombie, Mewelde Moore and Andre’ Anderson for fourth on Tulane’s single-game rushing chart with that last long run, trailing only a trio of Matt Forte performances in 2007.
Unsure about his reconstructed knee early in the year, Spears gained 51 yards on 19 carries through five games. But after gaining 65 on five attempts against Houston in game No. 6, including a 39-yard touchdown run, he ripped off 747 yards on 105 rushes in the last six.
Add those numbers to the 274 yards he had in a little more than nine quarters last season and the 88-yard touchdown reception he had as a true freshman while being limited to four games so he could redshirt.
“Tyjae’s a dog, man, but I knew that since our freshman year when he had his four games,” linebacker Dorian Williams said. “He gives it his all every play.”
Asked directly about his plans for the future, Spears made it very clear he was not leaving.
“Yeah, I’m coming back,” he said. “We’re going for the championship next year. I’m coming back.”
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Dazzling in defeat: Tulane's Tyjae Spears did everything he could to topple Memphis - NOLA.com
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