Orlando, Fl. — Not to be lost in the shuffle of Tulane’s first bowl victory in 16 years, was a notable individual milestone for Darius Bradwell. The junior running back became one of just 8 players in Green Wave history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season.
“Tulane has a history of great backs and I’m putting myself in that category,” Bradwell said. “I’m just blessed to do that and I’m just blessed that I have a great offensive line that supported me and had faith in me all year.”
Bradwell came into the AutoNation Cure Bowl just 16 yards shy of reaching 1,000, and got there in the first quarter of the game. Not only that, but he ended-up having a career day in the win. In addition to scoring two touchdowns, his 150 yards on 35 carries were both career highs and program bowl records as well. The performance earned him game MVP honors and put him at 1,134 yards rushing on the season.
“That’s a heck of an accomplishment at the college level, particularly in a league like this,” said Tulane Head Coach Willie Fritz. “The American’s an excellent conference, a lot of good defenses. You think it’s an individual accomplishment but it’s a team accomplishment with the offensive line, the tight ends, the other running backs, the quarterbacks so that’s great for our team.”
Bradwell was also leading the team in touchdowns, with 9 coming into the game. The two he added in the season finale kept him atop that list, finishing with 11 touchdowns on the season.
