Alex Bauman woke up the morning of Jan. 2, 2023 knowing it was a day of opportunity. The lightly-recruited true freshman spent the majority of the 2022 campaign as Tulane’s third-string tight end. Despite a lack of significant playing time, he was a member of a special run for the program.
Bauman corralled five receptions all season, including one in the American Conference title game victory over UCF, receiving that opportunity due to the injury of starting tight end Tyrick James. Upending UCF in the championship
set the stage for Tulane’s biggest game in program history — battling Heisman winner Caleb Williams and USC in the 2022 Cotton Bowl.
With James still sidelined due to injury, Bauman understood that underneath the grand steel arches, the blinding spotlights, and larger than life 1.2 million pound video board of AT&T Stadium, he would have to meet the moment.
The true freshman snagged a 16-yard pass during a Tulane third quarter touchdown drive, but unfortunately for the tight end, his potential breakout game seemed destined for a bitter ending. USC kicked a field goal with 4:30 remaining to manufacture a sizable 45-30 lead on the Green Wave, likely denying the American Conference champions from an upset bid.
However, a series of bizarre events including a 23-second touchdown drive and a safety forced by the Tulane defense suddenly handed the ball back to the Green Wave, trailing 45-39 with roughly three minutes remaining. Head coach Willie Fritz elected to run the “turbo package” throughout this monumental series, trusting Bauman as the lone tight end on the field.
“I was gonna run the 11 personnel, Alex was gonna run the 12 personnel with me, and then Alex would go in for third down passing downs,” former Tulane tight end Will Wallace recalled of the gameplan. “Anything that would happen where we’d need some last-minute quick touchdown or go 2-minute drill, when you’re number is called you have to be ready. And Alex’s number was called. And he was ready. That’s the type of guy he is. He prepares well.”
On the first of two fourth downs the Green Wave encountered on the possession, Bauman provided the sideline block quarterback Michael Pratt needed to move the sticks and extend the game. Then on the second fourth down, Pratt fired a strike to Bauman down the seam for a 24-yard gain, positioning Tulane 30 yards from the end zone with 25 ticks left in the clock’s lifespan.
“It just starts with the hard work and trust with the coaches, throughout that time Tyrick was out,” Bauman said. “They trusted me to get the job done, and when my opportunity came up, I made a play. And it happened to be on the biggest stage in Tulane’s greatest win. All glory to God, without Him none of this would be possible.”
Two plays later, it was 2nd and goal from the USC 6-yard line and Bauman sprinted straight toward the end zone, hooking inside at the last second. Pratt delivered a low laser to the tight end, who attempted to make a diving touchdown grab. The umpire emphatically signaled an incompletion, but Bauman frustratingly disagreed, repeatedly shaking the football with two hands before passing to the ref — certain that he caught it.
“It was like ‘woah, woah, woah, woah, are you sure that’s incomplete?’” Wallace recalled watching from the sideline. “We had the same reaction as the fans. We all were kind of pretty hesitant, like could we get a second look at that?”
As soon as the video replay adorned the iconic 160 x 72 foot video board at AT&T Stadium, the entire Tulane contingent let out a vociferous roar of applause. All 55,329 spectators clearly saw that Bauman cleanly secured the pigskin, preventing it from contacting the artificial turf.
“That was surreal,” Bauman said. “I pretty much blacked out. I totally blacked out. It was an absolutely surreal moment. Excited beyond measure, and just grateful for the opportunity.”
After receiving confirmation from the video board, Bauman triumphantly threw his hands to the sky, well aware he was responsible for the most iconic touchdown in Tulane history. The call was overturned, and the Green Wave subsequently sunk the all-important extra point to secure a 46-45 advantage and then stymied USC’s last-ditch attempt at a lateral circus play. Tulane completed an incomprehensible comeback, as teams were previously 1-1,692 in the past five seasons when trailing by 15+ points in the final five minutes.
The moment was so surreal it actually got his brother Kevin ejected from AT&T Stadium.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever reacted to a football play like that ever in my life, and I don’t know if I ever will act that way again,” said Kevin, an active Notre Dame tight end at the time who played from 2020-24. “I’m overcome with this emotion. I was so proud of him I was in tears. It was just an incredible moment for me as an older brother to see him have that success after everything he’s been through.”
It was Kevin’s first time watching Alex play at the collegiate level, and he decided to celebrate the unforgettable moment by meeting his brother on the field. Even two months post ACL surgery, Kevin felt invincible, navigating his way through the stadium, running and jumping through a myriad of obstacles on the way. He eventually traversed as far as the suite level roughly 10-feet away from the field, dapping up Alex and giving him a hug. However, an entourage of security disrupted the moment and escorted Kevin, as well as his friend Mike, out of the venue.
“We got escorted out by like 10 police officers and security for two kids who were 21 years old,” Kevin said. “It was ridiculous. We got back in the stadium, made eye contact with a couple of security guards, and they start chasing after us again. (Alex) was leaving the field anyway, so it worked out, but it was crazy. It was ridiculous to think I got kicked out for trying to go see my brother after everything that just happened.”
Kevin eventually met Alex outside the stadium during the postgame family visitations.
“I told him, ‘Dude, do you have any idea what you just did?’” Kevin recalled. “He was crying. It was just a crazy moment, one I’ll never forget.”
Fast-forward three years later and Alex Bauman once again found himself inside the architectural behemoth of AT&T Stadium. The video board where he watched the replay of his touchdown respawned old memories. The end zone turf pellets that splashed on his left elbow when he made the diving grab resurfaced on the bottom of his cleats. It was Bauman’s sanctuary — the place where he first made a name for himself, a name forever etched in Tulane history. He even performed a similar pregame ritual, praying near one of the goalposts.
“It was déjà vu all over again,” Bauman said when he arrived in Arlington for his second Cotton Bowl. “From the first time we stepped into the Gaylord (hotel), because we stayed there with Tulane as well — the whole setup, the players’ lounge — everything was déjá vu, and the presence of the Cotton Bowl just felt right.”
There was one notable difference. This time, Bauman donned a different shade of green, complemented with a hue of orange. The tight end transferred to Miami (FL) prior to the 2025 season, electing to conclude his college career as a Hurricane. Bauman’s team qualified for the Cotton Bowl, drawing a date with No. 2 Ohio State after upsetting Texas A&M in the first round of the College Football Playoff — a contest where he recorded two receptions as Miami’s starting tight end.
Fortunately, Kevin and his friend Mike were welcome back at the venue as well, sitting with the Bauman family to cheer on the Hurricanes.
“There was a lot of anticipation, knowing what happened here the first time,” Kevin said. “Everyone was excited, and it was a great time.”
While Alex Bauman wasn’t targeted once as a receiver in his return to the Cotton Bowl, his impact was clear beyond the box score. On Miami’s most critical drive of the game, up 17-14 with roughly six minutes remaining, Bauman set the tone for the entire series. The tight end delivered a devastating block on Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles to pave a pathway for a 19-yard pickup by running back Mark Fletcher. From that point on, Miami won the remainder of the drive through its blocking in the trenches, matriculating down the field until CharMar Brown punched in a 5-yard punisher with 55 seconds remaining — effectively sealing the Hurricanes’ spot in the semifinals.
“I just help the team out wherever I can, whether it be the hero for Tulane or blocking in the trenches,” Bauman said. “I just love playing football, and coach put me in the position to help make plays. Whether that be catching the ball, running, blocking, I’ll proudly do all of it.”
The Cotton Bowl unfolded differently from an individual standpoint, but the result was the same. Bauman’s team once again entered Arlington, TX as underdogs and exited with a win that stunned the spectators at AT&T Stadium. But the concept of prevailing as an underdog is ingrained in Bauman, an under-recruited tight end who worked his way up the depth chart and delivered when his number was finally called.
“I wouldn’t want it any other way, when you have that underdog mentality,” Bauman said after Miami defeated Ohio State. “We also went into this game knowing we were alphas. We had that underdog mentality, but we knew that if we played at our best, nobody in the country can beat us.”
There’s still more work to be done, as Bauman prepares to battle Ole Miss in the Fiesta Bowl semifinal. But the tight end secured a legacy as a two-time Cotton Bowl champion, serving as a key contributor to two programs’ iconic victories in the same venue.
“I think it’s pretty incredible when you look at a true freshman coming in and making a game-winning catch, first collegiate touchdown against the Heisman Trophy winner and USC,” Kevin said. “He’s built his legacy. The Cotton Bowl should be doing him a couple more favors in his involvement in the bowl. I knew how much it meant for him to be back there this year. To him it meant a great deal. He was excited about it. Now that it’s done and they won, it means even that much more to him.”
