ARLINGTON, Texas –  Tulane junior running back Tyjae Spears earned the J. Curtis Sanford Trophy as the Offensive Most Valuable Player in the 87th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. Spears' outstanding performance lifted No. 16 Tulane over No. 10 USC in a New Year's classic in the 14th Classic played at AT&T Stadium.

Spears finished the game with a Cotton Bowl Classic record four rushing touchdowns and 205 rushing yards, the second-most in a New Year's Six bowl game.

The Ponchatoula, La, native highlighted a Tulane offense that amassed 539 yards of total offense. The Green Wave leaned heavily on their ground game, handing the ball off 34 times for 305 yards. Spears credited the offensive line for his record-setting outing.

"It wasn't all me. This offensive line is the hardest working group on the team," Spears said. "I'm just blessed to be here."

The Green Wave trailed 45-30 with four minutes and thirty seconds remaining, but they were able to complete the comeback, thanks in part, to their success on fourth down.

"I told them; however, it looks like we're going to get it done, whatever it took. We never lost faith." Spears said. "Even on the fourth-down plays, I was telling everyone 'We've got to get this, whatever it takes.' We carried that mindset and it worked out for us."

Spears' performance closed out a junior season that included 1,376 rushing yards and 17 total touchdowns. The win in the 87th edition of the Cotton Bowl Classic gave the Green Wave its 12th win of the season, tying the Tulane program record.

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