Notebook: Braun clarifies Tulane jersey controversy, tries to steady the ship

EVANSTON-You’d think that David Braun‘s Monday press conference would be primarily focused on the 23-3 drubbing Northwestern took from Tulane on Saturday. Instead, the first issue on the docket was the controversy over uniforms.

Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall said in his postgame press conference that Northwestern was disrespectful to New Orleans when they declined his team’s request to wear white jerseys to match the uniforms the Green Wave wore after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Tulane was already set to wear decal-less green helmets in tribute, which they did for the game. But Sumrall said that the Wildcat program turned down their request to wear white jerseys too.

Braun weighed in with his perspective, saying Sumrall’s postgame remarks “caught him off guard.”

“The second I heard about his comments, I immediately tracked down Jon’s number and gave him a call,” Braun said. “I left him a message, he texted me back Saturday night and we connected yesterday, which I appreciated.

“It caught me off guard. I understand where he’s coming from, and I thought he did a great job utilizing that to really motivate his team. They played inspired football.”

Braun confirmed reporting by the Inside Zone’s Matt Fortuna that the request was received by Northwestern on Aug. 17, 13 days before the game, a window the program deemed too tight to make the change.

“Decisions like that are always going to come down to alignment between myself, [athletic director] Mark Jackson, and [chief operating officer] Pat Goss,” Braun said. “I love the way that the three of us work together… [It] certainly [was] not a gesture of disrespect, but the timing of the request did impact our ability to honor the request.”

Braun’s charitable connection to New Orleans

Braun became emotional at a couple different points in the press conference around the topic of New Orleans and Katrina, drawing on memories of the work he did in the community. It was a surprising revelation for a former player and coach who spent the vast majority of his life and career in the Midwest.

Braun told the story that, when he was a player at Winona State in May of 2006, after finals were over, he and about 20 of his teammates and coaches drove down to New Orleans for a week of work, digging houses out of the muck with Samaritan’s Purse, an international humanitarian aid organization led by Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham.

It was an idea brought to Braun, then a junior, and the rest of Winona State’s leadership council by Matt Entz, who was then the Warriors’ defensive coordinator. Entz would go on to become head coach for North Dakota State, hiring Braun as defensive coordinator there in 2019, and is now the current head coach at Fresno State.

The other coach on the trip was Bruce Carpenter, then Winona’s offensive coordinator and now a high school coach in the Twin Cities area.

“A couple coaches and a bunch of players, our finals got done in early May,” Braun said. “We loaded up in a bunch of vans and headed down.

“It was devastating to see, but hopefully we played a small role in having a positive impact on some people’s lives. I think it comes back [to the] respect and appreciation for the way the city of New Orleans has rebounded the last two decades and speaks to the people that call it home.”

Whether or not Tulane’s request was reasonable is a matter of debate, but Braun’s character is clear.

Braun has faith in team, Stone to improve after Tulane

Northwestern knew Tulane would be a tough test to start their season, but a 20-point loss was still a shocking result.

“The reality is, as a program, we need to take a deep breath and say that one day doesn’t redefine the last nine months of work we’ve put in,” he said. “Let’s also acknowledge that we played really poorly. Okay, let’s get back to work.”

The most surprising stat of the game was quarterback Preston Stone‘s four interceptions, and five turnovers overall. It was very uncharacteristic for a fifth-year veteran who threw just eight interceptions in 28 games over the previous four years at SMU.

Braun said that his interactions with Stone since the game were “steady [and] consistent.

“Truth is kind. He knows he didn’t play well, he knows he needs to play better. It was our first time in the arena with him on game day. We recognize the ways he sees the game and rein things in here a little bit, [and] clarify that, ‘Preston, you don’t have to do it all for us. Just play your game, man.'”

Even after a borderline worst-case scenario opener, Braun is still fully behind his starting quarterback.

“I really appreciate [our] relationship and the first interaction in the locker room postgame was an acknowledgement to the team: we can’t win football games when you turn the ball over fives times,” Braun said. “And, Preston Stone, I got your back, we’ve got your back. We believe in you, man, let’s respond.”

Northwestern’s deficit hampered the ground game

Braun gave his input on his team’s struggles on the ground against Tulane, citing the early two-score and three-score deficits as reasons his team got away from running the ball the way he wanted with the team’s three backs: Joseph Himon II, Caleb Komolafe and Cam Porter. The Wildcats finished with just 76 yards rushing against the Green Wave.

“Dang it, we need to play better,” he said. “We need to play better in the first half, play with a lead or keep games within one score, even if we do get put back on our heels a little bit…

“In the second half it was really difficult down three scores, when the offense gets the ball back for the first time with eight minutes in the third quarter, to actually gain a rhythm and stay committed to those guys getting touches. All three will be utilized heavily.”

Braun preaches patience for his receivers

He also advocated for patience with the team’s inexperienced receiving corps when asked about Ricky Ahumaraeze, who made his starting debut at Tulane but hauled in just one catch on eight targets.

“It’s timing, it’s Ricky continuing [to improve],” Braun said on the disconnect. “His first catch was, I think, for a 22-yard gain. But I think with more game reps between Preston and Ricky, there’s going to be opportunities to continue to get him the ball.

“The thing about Ricky, he’s big and physical,” Braun said of the 6-foot-4, 195-pounder. “He may be covered, but he can create separation at the top of the route. We’re going to have to continue to make sure he’s utilized heavily within our offense.

Injury and depth chart updates

Braun remains stingy with injury details, but he did disclose that cornerback Ore Adeyi has returned to practice. Safety Damon Walters remains week-to-week.

He also confirmed that punter Luke Akers will pull double-duty as the team’s punter and placekicker this season. Jack Olsen does not have an injury designation and is full-go in practice this week, according to Braun, so it was a coaching decision to give Akers both the punting and kicking roles against Tulane.

Akers made a 21-yard field goal at Tulane on Saturday. He made 10-of-14 attempts last season when Olsen was injured, including 10-of-12 inside 50 yards.

True freshman Niki Dugandzic, who was the No. 1 punter in the nation for the 2025 recruiting class, handled kickoff duties at Tulane.