NEW ORLEANS – Tulane used a balanced offensive attack and a stingy defensive effort to pull away for a 58-6 non-conference victory over Missouri State Saturday evening at Yulman Stadium. The Green Wave scored on five of its six offensive possessions in the first half and converted each of their three takeaways into touchdowns.
 
The Green Wave ground game rolled up 298 rushing yards and tallied six rushing touchdowns by four different players, led by Tyjae Spears' 89 yards. Amare Jones turned in a dominant all-around night for the Tulane offense as well, totaling 169 all-purpose yards, while quarterback Justin McMillan 171 totaled yards in the first half.
 
The Bears (0-2) generated just 11 first downs and 182 yards of total offense against the Tulane defense, which permitted just two third-down conversions in 12 attempts for the game. In contrast, the Green Wave moved the chains eight times in 15 combined third and fourth-down tries and finished the night with 540 yards of total offense.
 
Tulane (2-1) rode strong early performances by Jones and McMillan to establish a 24-point advantage that the Bears would never seriously threaten. McMillan completed his first seven passes for 65 yards and added 17 rushing yards on five first-quarter carries, as the Green Wave scored on its first three offensive possessions. After Jones returned the opening kickoff 60 yards to the MSU 38, Merek Glover put the first points of the night on the board via a 23-yard field goal after the Bears' defense stiffened to stop McMillan on a third-and-six try from the Bears 8.
 
Tulane's defense stifled the MSU offense in the early stages of the game, forcing a three-and-out on the Bears' opening possession, then registering the first of two first-half interceptions on the second drive when Larry Brooks stepped in front of a Huslig pass at the Tulane 31.
 
Jones would strike for two more key blows on the Green Wave's ensuing two drives. After McMillan completed three passes for a total of 39 yards to start the drive, Jones scored on a rush from three yards out to cap the 11-play, 64-yard march with 4:37 left in the first. He then broke off a 57-yard run to stretch the lead to 17-0 on the second play of the second quarter.
 
P.J. Hall's interception and 30-yard return to pay dirt with 11:49 left in the half made it a 24-point bulge. The Bears answered with their lone score of the half, as Damoriea Vick's 25-yard run fueled the 75-yard drive. Huslig connected with Donovan Daniels on a screen for a 37-yard gain to the Tulane 11, then hit a wide-open DJ Frost for the touchdown with 9:51 on the clock.
 
But the Green Wave offense responded in a big way, using a pair of big Corey Dauphine runs to set up a four-yard scoring rush by McMillan that set off a string of 34 unanswered Tulane points to close the night. After another three-play possession and a Bears punt, McMillan scampered for 15 yards and completed a 17-yard strike to Kevin LeDee before taking it in from a yard out to hand Tulane a 38-6 edge at intermission.
 
The Green Wave defense permitted just 107 yards of total offense over the game's first 30 minutes, as MSU converted just one of its five third-down attempts in the half. On the offensive side of the ball, McMillan inflicted all of his damage on the Bears in the opening half, going 13-of-16 for 122 yards to help TU total 307 yards of offense, including 185 on the ground.
 
Tulane turned to a quick strike attack in the third period, using an 88-yard scoring pass from Keon Howard to Tyjae Spears to add to its lead. Brooks then logged his second interception of the night to set up a short field at the MSU 13. The Green Wave would need just three plays to score again, getting a nine-yard rush from Cameron Carroll before Ygenio Booker scored on a three-yard run with 2:21 left in the quarter to extend the margin to 51-6.
 
Spears put the finishing touches on the victory with a 52-yard touchdown run with just over three minutes left on the clock.
 
McMillan and Howard combined to complete 17-of-22 passes for 242 yards, while Darnell Mooney led all receivers with five catches for 51 yards.
 
Missouri State returns to Springfield to open its 2019 home slate Saturday (Sept. 21) against nationally-ranked Kennesaw State. Single-game tickets for all 2019 MSU home contests are available through MissouriStateBears.com, in person at the OMB Box Office at JQH Arena, or by phone at (417) 836-7678.
 
Postgame Notes: Missouri State fell to 1-35 all-time against NCAA FBS competition and 1-10 against American Athletic Conference foes…Peyton Huslig made his 24th consecutive start for the Bears at quarterback, while Lorenzo Thomas started for the 19th straight game at wide receiver; on the defensive side of the ball, McNeece Egbim logged his 20th start in a row at linebacker…Huslig's 11-yard TD pass to DJ Frost marked the senior quarterback's 25th scoring pass as a Bear, which ranks sixth all-time at MSU…Huslig's 37-yard completion to Donovan Daniels matched the Bears' longest gain from scrimmage this season…Damoriea Vick's 25-yard second-quarter rush represented the longest of his MSU career; the sophomore also extended his consecutive game streak with multiple receptions to six in a row dating back to Oct. 27 of last year…Armand Baker registered the first three receptions of his Bears career, totaling 17 yards…Brendan Withrow averaged 40.2 yards on his eight punts, with two kicks of 50 yards or more and three downed inside the Tulane 20…Missouri State yielded six rushing touchdowns for the first time since Oct. 21, 2017 vs. South Dakota State.