he accepted a football scholarship from tulane university. he became a starter at defensive tackle as a sophomore, posting 57 tackles (6 for loss) and 3 sacks. the next year, he started 9 games at defensive tackle, posting 42 tackles (5 for loss) and 4 sacks. as a senior he started 10 games, registering 40 tackles (3 for loss) and one sack, while playing left defensive end and defensive tackle.