ARLINGTON, Texas – The No. 16 Tulane Green Wave (11-2, 7-1 American Athletic Conference) fine-tuned details as gameday for the 87th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic is now only two days away.

The Green Wave went through its usual Thursday routine ahead of the Classic matchup against the No. 10 Southern California Trojans (11-2, 8-1 Pac-12 Conference) Monday in AT&T Stadium.

"I feel good about it," said Tulane Head Coach Willie Fritz about where his team is inside 48 hours to kickoff. "It's been a great week, but obviously the highlight of the week is the ball game. We backed off quite a bit today, and we'll back off a lot tomorrow (intensity wise) and have them fresh and ready to go on Monday."

Statistically, the Tulane defense had five games where it allowed 13 points or less this season. Dorian Williams (115 tackles, two interceptions, 5.0 sacks) and Nick Anderson (108 tackles, 2.0 sacks, 6.0 tackles for loss) have anchored the unit.

"We've done a good job of keeping people in front of us," Fritz said. "We've had very few big plays against us. I think we've played with good leverage, and have done a good job with tackling. Our defensive coaches have changed our schemes each week with subtle adjustments, and our kids have done a good job of picking it up."

The Green Wave will have the additional challenge of slowing down the reigning Heisman Trophy Winner in USC quarterback Caleb Williams.

"He's really, really athletic, first and foremost," said Tulane defensive coordinator / safeties coach Chris Hampton. "He can avoid the rush as good as anyone probably in football, not just college football, but maybe NFL as well. He's got real arm talent. He can throw the ball down the field. He's got great pocket presence. He doesn't get rattled."

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.

This year's Classic is a part of the ESPN bowl lineup for the ninth straight year. Mark Jones and Robert Griffin III are set to the call the action from the booth with Quint Kessenich reporting from the sidelines. ESPN Radio returns as the Classic's national radio partner for the ninth consecutive year with Brad Sham and Dusty Dvoracek in the booth and Taylor McGregor on the sidelines to describe all the action from AT&T Stadium.

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