Tulane coach Curtis Johnson is competitive to the point he fights his wife to brush his teeth first -"I'm beating her to the toothpaste"-so he admits incredibly frustration with the Green Wave's 2-9 record in his first season.

He also believes he and his staff have started to change the losing culture that has left Tulane below .500 for 10 consecutive seasons.

"What I like about the culture here now is I'm seeing a lot of enthusiasm," he said. "I don't see guys hanging their heads as much. I see a lot of guys running to the football. I see a lot more plays being made. We have to change the winning percentage, but what leads up to winning? Enthusiasm, playing together as a team, not letting the next man down and never quitting. I've been looking for guys in the program that I can point out and say, 'look, man, you can't quit on us,' and I don't see them very much. We are moving in the right direction."

Johnson can point to the scores once Ryan Griffin returned from the shoulder injury that cost him three-and-a-half games. Tulane legitimately had a chance to win its last six, coming up short four times but covering the spread all but once.

Moral victories are a loser's lament, but Johnson is not saying he is satisfied with the record. He is simply pointing out the progress.



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