Tulane Football Lands JUCO Transfer Offensive Lineman With Valuable Size

The Tulane Green Wave football team is looking for starters on the offensive line.

While development of players on the roster is crucial, Tulane football head coach Jon Sumrall will need to rebuild the trenches through the transfer portal.

Offensive line is arguably the most important position in college football, and experience is essential.

The Green Wave added offensive tackle Ananian Harris as a transfer from Georgia Military College.

What Traits Does Harris Bring to Tulane’s Trenches?

At 6-foot-6 and 335 pounds, Harris has monstrous size that can't be coached.

The Tuscaloosa, Ala., native also brings a year of experience, albeit from the junior college or JUCO level.

That is an untapped resource that has gotten lost in the shuffle of the transfer portal and NIL discussion, as those types of players don't typically end up in the latter's headlines.

As teams look to add star power from proven Power Four programs in the portal, they'd do well to balance that search with a survey of JUCO prospects who may have been overlooked in the initial high school recruiting process, much like FCS transfers.

Tulane is also in need of players who have collegiate football snaps as they look for starters to fill out center, right guard and right tackle.

They lost seniors Vincent Murphy, Josh Remetich and Rashad Green at those respective positions, and spring practice didn't produce a ton of answers.

Perhaps Harris could provide value as either a starter or a depth player at right tackle given his stature and experience in that position.

It won't really matter who wins the Green Wave quarterback competition if they can't fill out those slots.

Harris doesn't have proven ability at the FBS level, but he enters a room coached by offensive line coach Evan McKissack in his first season alongside assistant Kanan Ray.

While McKissack assumes the role from former offensive line coach Dan Roushar, who is now with the Chicago Bears, he is likely to continue the coaching style that Roushar demonstrated last season.

The starters had many years of college football experience, but they began developing the depth players by putting them in games that had gotten out of hand throughout conference play.

That approach is endearing to players looking for playing time who may need some time assimilating to the FBS level. Harris' abilities and game-readiness won't be known until fall camp begins.

However, it's an encouraging sign for the program to see continued movement and pickups through the portal as the offseason gears up for an anticipated second season under Sumrall.

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