Punt Return: Back Where It Began

The date was Jan. 2, 2023, and Ryan Wright (B ’21), a rookie punter for the Minnesota Vikings, was nervously juggling a team meeting and the drama unfolding on his phone. It wasn’t long ago that Wright was booming punts at Yulman Stadium during a four-year run with the Green Wave from 2018-2021.

Now, his Greenies were seconds away from beating the USC Trojans and Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl.

There was just one problem. Wright was supposed to be paying attention to the Vikings’ special teams meeting.

“I had the game on between my legs,” Wright recalled. “I kept looking down and looking up, trying to pay attention at the same time.”

When Tulane’s Alex Bauman caught the winning touchdown with nine seconds remaining, clinching a dramatic end to a remarkable 12-2 season, Wright struggled to contain himself.

“I almost jumped up and ran out of that meeting,” he said. “I was so happy.”

Sneaking glances at a football game during a team meeting wasn’t exactly standard procedure for Wright. By then, the undrafted free agent had beaten out a veteran punter to earn Minnesota’s starting job, and he took the responsibilities of his new career seriously.

“I would usually never do that because I’m in a meeting,” Wright said. “I am trying to pay attention. I’m very focused on what I am doing for my career. But some things you just can’t avoid.”

Tulane — and now, New Orleans — are among them.

More than three years after that Cotton Bowl afternoon, Wright has returned to the city where he spent his formative years as a student-athlete. After four seasons in Minnesota, Wright signed a four-year, $14 million contract with the New Orleans Saints in March 2026, making him the fourth-highest paid punter in the league.

“I enjoyed every minute of my time up in Minnesota, but when I heard the Saints reaching out, I was very excited to come back to a place that kind of made me who I am,” Wright said. “I embraced the culture when I was here at Tulane, and I’m excited to be part of that again.”

Wright at home

Wright is just one of several Green Wave players to find success in the NFL in recent years, an upward trajectory that matches the rise of the university’s football program: In the last four years, Tulane secured two conference championships and the Cotton Bowl victory before earning its first-ever College Football Playoff berth last season.

David Harris, the Ben Weiner Director of Athletics Chair, sees the professional achievements of Wright and other former Green Wave players such as Tyjae Spears (Tennessee Titans), Darnell Mooney (New York Giants) and Dorian Williams (Buffalo Bills) as examples of the lessons the program seeks to instill.

“The players who go on to succeed in their careers afterward remind us of the true value of what we do: hard work, teamwork and leadership,” Harris said. “Their stories motivate us all to aim higher, both on the field and in life.”

Growing up in San Ramon, California, Wright wasn’t planning to become a punter. A multisport athlete, he played quarterback in high school and was a three-star prospect heading into his senior season. He also played baseball as a catcher.

Punting was almost an afterthought, “more of a hobby,” as Wright described it.

That changed when Tulane needed a punter. Then-head coach Willie Fritz reached out to kicking specialist Jamie Kohl, director of Kohl’s Professional Camps, who recommended Wright.

“I loved the school. I loved the coaching staff. I loved the teammates that I met there,” Wright said. “So I committed right on the spot.”

The transition wasn’t seamless, with Wright admitting he was homesick at first.

But as he settled into college life, New Orleans began to feel like home. “I think it made me grow up in a way,” he said.

He remembers living with teammates on Delord Street, just across the fence from Yulman Stadium, and afternoons spent around the backyard pool. “It reminded me how cool it was to finally meet my lifelong friends and what a great city to do that in,” Wright said.

His teammates became close friends, almost like family. Years later, they remain part of his life, and two of those college roommates were groomsmen in his wedding.

Rising to the challenge

Wright’s evolution into starting punter happened nearly as unexpectedly as his arrival at Tulane. The original plan was for him to redshirt in his first year. But during the opening kickoff of a 2018 game at Ohio State, the Green Wave’s starting punter and kickoff specialist was injured.

Suddenly, Wright was punting in one of college football’s most iconic venues — The Horseshoe.

“What a way to be thrown into the fire,” he recalled. “I think going into it, I felt like I deserved to be that punter, but I also had a lot more room to grow. That was kind of when I started taking my technique a lot more seriously instead of just kicking the ball.”

Former teammate Ethan Hudak saw that development up close. Hudak served as Wright’s long snapper for three seasons and today is Tulane Sports Properties’ associate NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) business development manager.

“Ryan’s work ethic and dedication have always set him apart,” Hudak said. “Watching him develop from our days at Tulane to now excelling in the NFL has been incredible.”

Wright also learned by watching teammates who approached football with the seriousness of professionals, including future NFL players Patrick Johnson (Las Vegas Raiders) and Cam Sample (Atlanta Falcons).

“Those guys were just true to their craft,” Wright said. “They worked their butts off every day, and they led the team. They were vocal, and they just wanted to hold that standard high.”

There was another NFL player Wright was watching closely, too — longtime Saints punter Thomas Morstead, who occasionally worked out at Tulane.

“When you ask any punter in the league right now who’s their Mount Rushmore of punters, I think Thomas is included in 99, probably 100% of those lists,” Wright said. “It was really cool just being able to pick his brain all those days that he would come out to Tulane and work out.”

Morstead noted Wright’s dedication to improvement.

“I’ve punted with Ryan quite a few times over the years,” Morstead said. “He’s done what you hope every player will do — he has continued getting better every year.”

Back where it began

By the end of his first season at Tulane, Wright had a new goal — playing in the NFL. He honed his skills over the next three years, finishing his Tulane career with 8,909 punting yards and a 44.5-yard average while earning First Team All-AAC honors in each of his final two seasons.

After graduating from Tulane with a bachelor’s degree in management and marketing and going undrafted in 2022, Wright signed with Minnesota and beat out veteran Jordan Berry for the starting job. Four years later, he is back in New Orleans, returning at a different stage of his life than when he first arrived as a homesick teenager from California.

He is now married and the father of a baby boy. And after years of discovering New Orleans for himself, Wright gets to introduce the city to his own family.

“It’s kind of cool being able to bring my wife here, and I have a son now,” Wright said. “I experienced the city, so now I kind of get to teach them what it is about New Orleans that’s so great and show them all the cool spots, all the historic sites, all the history and food.”

Brennan’s remains Wright’s favorite New Orleans restaurant, and after signing with the Saints, he celebrated there with former Tulane roommates and their families.

His infant son, meanwhile, has already had his own introduction to Dad’s profession, coming out to watch Wright punt at practice.

Wright also hopes his return will give him more opportunities to reconnect with Tulane football. He knows many of the people with the program, including head coach Will Hall, who was Tulane’s offensive coordinator during Wright’s sophomore season, as well as former teammates who have returned in new roles.

And events such as a Saints training camp day held at Yulman in August ensure Wright will never be far from campus.

“Having him back in New Orleans will be a treat, not only for Saints fans but for those who had a chance to see him play in Yulman Stadium,” Hudak said.

For current Tulane players hoping to follow Wright’s path to the pros, the punter’s advice is simple.

“Trust your process,” Wright said. “Go to work every day, do what you need to do, have one goal in mind each day and make sure you accomplish that goal and get better.”

Punting is a craft built on precision, where fundamental mechanics work to ensure the ball lands where expected.

But Wright’s journey is a reminder that not all things are so predictable — and you may still land exactly where you’re meant to.

“If you don’t get drafted, don’t lose hope,” Wright said. “You can still get that undrafted contract. You can still get that rookie minicamp invite. If you show effort and you show what you are capable of — what you know you’re capable of — it’s going to work out.”