Tulane says quarterback Michael Pratt is fine for Ole Miss matchup

Tulane didn’t elaborate on Michael Pratt’s health during its media availability on Tuesday but said the junior quarterback will play against Ole Miss this weekend.

The No. 20 Rebels and No. 24 Green Wave meet at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Yulman Stadium on Tulane’s campus. The game is a sellout and will be televised on ESPN2.

“He’s fine,” Tulane coach Willie Fritz said about Pratt before shifting to the news that starting linebacker Corey Platt will miss the game and likely much longer than that after suffering an injury during the Wave’s win over South Alabama. He had 15 tackles before exiting with 1:41 left in the third quarter.

The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Pratt's left leg was rolled on half through the fourth quarter of the opener, and he limped the rest of the game, dismissing the injury as a cramp in the postgame. He wasn’t available for Tulane’s media session on Tuesday.

Tulane’s backup quarterback is redshirt sophomore Kai Horton. He played in four games last season and started one game in 2021. In 2022, he came in for Pratt and went 11-for-21 for 132 yards and three touchdowns in a come-from-behind win over Houston.

Pratt was 14-for-15 for 294 yards and four touchdowns in the 37-17 win over South Alabama. He rushed 11 times for 39 yards, as well. The one incompletion was an intermediate throw over the middle that was dropped. He was 4-for-4 on passes traveling more than 20 yards, totaling 175 yards and three scores on those throws.

"It's making good decisions,” Fritz said about the expectation for Pratt on Saturday. “That's always the key. There's so much on the quarterback. We've got to do a good job putting a game plan together. You want it to be complex but not too complex, and luckily he's a smart guy.”

Last season, Pratt, on passes traveling more than 20 yards, was 19-for-44 for 623 yards, eight touchdowns and no interceptions. One of the incompletions was a drop.

For the year, overall, Pratt completed 62 percent of his passes for 2,684 yards (223 yards per game) with 25 touchdowns and five interceptions.

In Tulane’s first game without running back Tyjae Spears, who is now a Tennessee Titan, the Wave rushed for 142 yards on 38 carries against South Alabama.

Two running backs got at least eight carries. Makhi Hughes rushed eight times for 41 yards, and Louis Shedro rushed nine times for 27 yards. Pratt was the second-leading rusher.