CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Makhi Hughes had 117 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 27 carries Thursday night to help Tulane beat Charlotte 34-3 and extend its win streak to six consecutive games.
Tulane (7-2, 5-0). which is unbeaten since it lost back-to-back games to then-No. 17 Kansas State and then-No. 15 Oklahoma in September, has won 15 consecutive American Athletic Conference games in the regular season, the longest active conference win streak in the nation.
The Green Wave took 10 minutes, 58 seconds off the clock with their first drive that covered 80 yards in 20 plays before Jacob Barnes kicked a 34-yard field goal that gave Tulane a 3-0 lead with 2 minutes to go in the first quarter. Hughes added a 1-yard touchdown run that capped a 14-play, 76-yard drive and made it 10-0 with 1:45 left in the second.
Stephen Rusnak kicked a 29-yard field goal to get Charlotte (3-6, 2-3) on the scoreboard as time expired in the first half.
Barnes added another 34-yard field goal with 9:36 to go in the third quarter, and Micah Robinson returned an interception 21 yards for a score a little more than a minute later.
The Green Wave chewed up more than 7 minutes with a 13-play, 68-yard drive that culminated when Hughes again scored on a 1-yard run to make it 27-3 with 14:08 to play.
Shaadie Clayton-Johnson's 5-yard touchdown run with 2:22 left capped the scoring.
Tulane has eight non-offensive TDs, six defensive touchdowns, and five pick-6s this season — all of which lead the FBS.
Charlotte had 189 total yards, 12 first downs and its time of possession was just 17:50.
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