Students streamed on to the field from the end zone stands to celebrate Tulane’s emotional 34-27 win against Duke and Darian Mensah on Saturday night.

Their energy during the game was even more significant.

Coach Jon Sumrall and his players lauded the seventh sellout crowd in Yulman Stadium’s 12-year history for its role in the Blue Devils’ jittery, mistake-filled performance. In particular, back-to-back false-start penalties on a field goal attempt led to a missed 44-yard kick as the Green Wave took quick control in the first quarter.

“The student section was freaking awesome,” Sumrall said. “It was loud and it affected the game. Their two false-start penalties was the crowd. That wasn’t us. Thank you to everybody that came. Man we need that environment all the time.”

It was a stark

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