Dannen: Tulane secures 12-game football schedule in 2020

Despite having a pair of games canceled because of COVID-19, Tulane athletic director Troy Dannen said Thursday the Green Wave will operate with a 12-game schedule this fall.

“(There’s) no medical reason not to play 12. No medical reason not to start on time,” Dannen said. “We’ve obviously lost two games. We’ll announce today that both those games have been filled.”

Reports Wednesday indicated the Green Wave could open South Alabama’s new Hancock Whitney Stadium on Sept. 12, a spot on the calendar where Tulane was originally supposed to play at Northwestern and South Alabama was to play host to Grambling. Tulane also lost its Sept. 26 game at Mississippi State to cancellation when the SEC followed the Big 10 in playing a conference-only schedule in the wake of the coronavirus.

Dannen said that he is going into the fall not expecting to have fans at Yulman Stadium.

“I do not anticipate fans at any games this year, right now,” he said. “The plan is to announce 10 days in front of every home game. That’s tied directly into city’s restriction.”

If a limited number of fans can be admitted, first priority will go to player families and guests and second people would be Tulane students.

Tulane is scheduled to open the season at home Sept. 3 against Southeastern Louisiana, who, like Tulane, opened fall practice on Wednesday.

Like everything, these are plans, and they can change at any moment.

“I’ll qualify every statement I make with ‘if we play,’” Dannen said. “I think the jury’s still out.”