The No. 16 Tulane Green Wave capped off the biggest turnaround season in major college football history with an improbable comeback to win the 87th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.
Trailing No. 10 Southern California by 15 points with 4:23 remaining, Tulane scored 16 seconds later and then took advantage of a muffed kickoff and a safety to set up the game-winning score.
Tulane freshman tight end Alex Bauman caught a six-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Michael Pratt with nine seconds left and redshirt junior placekicker Valentino Ambrosio booted the extra point for a 46-45 win.
The victory meant Tulane finished with a 12-2 record (7-1 in the American Athletic Conference) one year after finishing 2-10. The biggest single-season turnaround in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision history, an American Athletic Conference championship, a No. 16 ranking in the College Football Playoff Rankings and the Green Wave's first appearance in a New Year's Six bowl since the 1940 Sugar Bowl.
Tulane junior running back Tyjae Spears was the workhorse for the Green Wave with 205 rushing yards and four touchdowns. He averaged 12.5 yards a carry, but his fumble with 10:46 left led to a USC field goal that put the Trojans ahead 45-30.
USC, led by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams, dominated the time of possession, 40:02 to 19:56. But the Trojans (11-3, 8-1 Pac-12 Conference) could not stop Tulane in the final 4:23. A 59-yard completion from Pratt to senior wide receiver Duece Watts set up Spears' four-yard touchdown run with 4:07 left.
A muffed kickoff return put USC at its own one-yard line. Two plays later, Tulane sophomore defensive lineman Patrick Jenkins crashed through the line to tackle Trojans senior running back Austin Jones for a safety.
Now trailing 45-39, the Green Wave got the ball back at its 34 with 3:13 remaining. Tulane converted a fourth-and-10 with a 24-yard completion from Pratt to Bauman to keep the drive alive. Then Watts caught a 24-yard pass at the USC six-yard line to set up the winning score.
Bauman's touchdown catch with nine seconds left was bobbled and originally ruled incomplete. However, a replay review confirmed the ball never touched the ground. Ambrosio added the all-important extra point to put the Green Wave moments away from celebrating.
The dizzying finish was a far cry from the game's start when USC methodically ran 17 plays to record the longest opening drive in Cotton Bowl Classic history. The Trojans converted three third downs and one fourth down on the drive that covered 75 yards in 9:02.
The drive ended when Williams tossed the first of his five touchdown passes, a Classic record, on a quick screen to sophomore wide receiver Michael Jackson III.
USC's Williams was 37-of-52 passing for 462 yards. He was never sacked and gave the Tulane defense fits with his ability to avoid pressure and find open receivers.
Williams was the 11th Heisman Trophy winner to play in the Cotton Bowl Classic in the season he won the award. Four other Heisman winners played in the Classic in years prior to winning.
The Trojans had enjoyed a turnaround season themselves. After finishing 4-8 the previous season, USC was in line for a CFP berth before stumbling in the Pac-12 Football Championship.
USC followed up the record-setting 17-play drive with a 12-play scoring drive that covered 95 yards. A sprint-out pass from Williams to redshirt senior wide receiver Terrell Bynum put the Trojans up 14-0 with 12:33 left in the second quarter and Tulane had possessed the ball just once.
The Green Wave went to work from there, scoring on a direct snap to Spears and then an 87-yard pass from Pratt to junior wide receiver Jha'Quan Jackson that tied for the longest touchdown pass in Classic history.
USC answered just as quickly with two touchdowns before halftime. Trojans freshman running back Raleek Brown scored on a 39-yard run then junior wide receiver Brenden Rice, caught a two-yard touchdown pass in the back of the end zone for a 28-14 Trojan lead at the half.
Rice had a spectacular day with nine catches for 174 yards and two touchdowns.
Tulane received the second-half kickoff and finished it with a seven-yard touchdown run by Spears. The Green Wave pulled with 28-24 on a 42-yard field goal by Ambrosio, but USC surged ahead to build its 15-point lead deep into the final quarter.
The Green Wave never led until the final seconds but ended their historic turnaround season with an equally dazzling comeback.
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