What a historic collapse by such a historic program, wow!
With only 4:03 remaining in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, the USC Trojans had a 45-30 cushion over the Tulane Green Wave, but a massive breakdown from the Trojans allowed the Green Wave to pull off an incredible 46-45 victory.
The final nail in the coffin came for USC when Michael Pratt threw a six-yard touchdown pass to Alex Bauman with only nine seconds left on the clock, which tied the game up 45 all. When Tulane hit the extra point, that scored the win for the Green Wave to give them the Cotton Bowl championship in epic style.
Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams was amazing in the game, tallying a Cotton Bowl-record five touchdowns to give USC a strong two-possession lead with only 4:30 left, but it wasn’t enough to give the boys from Los Angeles the win. It would have been the Trojans’ first bowl win in six seasons, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Just 23 seconds after Williams had USC feeling outright glory, Tulane running back Tyjae Spears landed his fourth touchdown. Afterwards, the Trojans got themselves stuck at their own 1-yard line after a fumbled kickoff, which led to a safety and two points for the Green Wave. When Tulane got the ball back from a free kick, the Green Wave went 66 yards down the field to score the game-winning touchdown, branding them as Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic Champions.
Tulane just completed the biggest turnaround in FBS history:
2-10 in 2021 ➡️ 12-2 in 2022
And the Green Wave topped it off with a comeback win against USC in the Cotton Bowl 🌊
(📹: @JoeJHoyt)pic.twitter.com/MZOh7p1s8p
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) January 2, 2023
How on earth did this happen?
I just don’t get it. You’re the iconic USC Trojans with your offense absolutely on point, they were absolutely explosive. But on the defensive side of the ball, the Tulane Green Wave were getting around everything that was thrown at them, it was actually quite impressive to watch.
And even more insane: How the hell do you blow a 15-point lead with literally just four minutes to go? Against Tulane?! (RELATED: REPORT: Denver Broncos Contact Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh For Head Coaching Gig)
Oh my God, the cringe is so bad if you’re a USC fan right now.
Don’t get me wrong, good for Tulane. It’s always cool as hell when a powerhouse program gets upset by a small school, but damn, I personally can’t help but to feel for the University of Southern California being a fan of the Los Angeles brand. Awesome for Tulane, but it sucks for the Trojans. Rough, just rough.
Man, you gotta love bowl season.