DALLAS – The Tulane Green Wave took a break from its preparations for the 87th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Thursday afternoon to visit patients and their families at Children's Health Dallas. 

The visit began with a welcoming from Children's Health President and Chief Executive Officer, Chris Durovich, followed by Cotton Bowl Athletic Association Chair Dave Brown. 

"I want to thank Coach Fritz and his team and everyone associated with the Tulane program for taking their time to be with us today," Brown said. "This is very important to us. This is one of the things we can do that really make a difference during their visit."

Tulane's head coach Willie Fritz was the last to take the podium and presented honorary captain and Children's patient Kasen Crawford with a custom 87th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic Tulane jersey. 

After the presentation, the players spent some time with patients, playing an assortment of games, while coloring and signing autographs. Fritz was thankful for the opportunity for him and his team to meet the patients and hear their stories. 

"We've done a lot of neat things since we've been here, and this has been the highlight of the week," Fritz said. "I'm so fortunate that I've got great young men who love to come and visit with the kids. We're just very excited about this opportunity to come out and get to meet a lot of new people. It's been fun."

Tulane safety Lummie Young IV enjoyed spending time with the children and sharing positive energy.  

"Being here is very heartwarming," Young said. "To be able to give back and put a smile on a lot of these kids faces is an honor. It's a blessing to be able to make their day and be a part of something really special. It's a great feeling to know that we have the power to make their day better just by giving our time." 

Offensive lineman Josh Remetich said being with the kids meant a lot to the team. 

"It means a lot to our team to be able to give back to the Dallas community," Remetich expressed. "We enjoy being able to brighten up their day. They have a big impact on us and we're grateful for the opportunity. It truly means a lot to see everybody with smiles on their face."

Brown also discussed the Cotton Bowl Foundation's efforts from this year's North Texas Giving Day to raise funds to buy Hero Wagons for children's hospitals in the community, with the support of Radio Flyer and the Starlight Children's Foundation. Wagons are used to reduce anxiety of patients being transported from treatments and operations. 

Each patient received a Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic goodie bag filled with items representing the big game. The bag included an 87th Classic t-shirt and poster provided by the CBAA, along with inflatable blimps provided by Goodyear. 

The 87th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic is Monday, Jan. 2 at Noon CT on ESPN and ESPN Radio. Kickoff is slated for 12:10 p.m.

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