Tulane will have a new quarterback in the fall, but his targets will be the exact same as last year.

Every catch, every yard and every touchdown Tulane's wide receivers made in 2012 was a dress rehearsal for 2013. All of them return, plus redshirt freshmen Devon Breaux and Kedrick Banks will have a chance to make the big plays in games they exhibited on the scout team last fall.

"We're going to be a great group," senior Ryan Grant said Friday after Tulane's second spring practice. "We have so much depth. These younger guys are getting familiar with the plays. We are going to have a great spring and a great season."

Grant was Exhibit A in Tulane's production explosion at the position. He led Conference USA with a 1,149 yards on 76 catches last year. That yardage total ranked third in Green Wave history behind Mark Zeno's 1,206 in 1987 and P.J. Franklin's 1,174 in 1998. Another 1,000-yard season would move him into the top five for career yards at Tulane.

This, from a guy who drew plenty of constructive criticism from the new coaches in the spring and entered the season with plenty of questions after a sports hernia injury shelved him for all but the opener in 2011.

"I had a great time out there," he said. "Every game I tried to prove myself to the coaches and everybody around the world who was watching me. I knew that if I could get one full year being healthy under my belt that I would have a great season.

Grant does not consider himself a finished product, mentioning breaking tackles and making the first guy miss as his key goals for 2013. Still, it is hard to envision him improving much on his breakout junior year. Despite not having terrific speed, he does everything well.



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