Saturday’s college football slate features three bowl games. I’ve listed the bowl game viewer guide in the article. There’ll be a single game thread for all three bowl games today, and it will post at noon CT.

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl, ABC, 2:30 p.m. CT

#19 Louisiana “Ragin’ Cajuns” (9-1) vs. UTSA (7-4)

Reasons Why You Should Watch The SERVPRO First Responder Bowl

– Louisiana’s running style under head coach Billy Napier has been among the nation’s most effective over the last few years. UTSA might be relatively new to the bowl world, but this is the third bowl in a row under Napier. His team is going to bring the attitude along with RB Elijah Mitchell and a great backfield.

– UTSA will be fired up to play in this, but Louisiana is going to play disrespected. It beat Fiesta Bowl-bound Iowa State 31-14, and it’s only loss of the season is to unbeaten Coastal Carolina. Nothing against this bowl, but the Ragin’ Cajuns deserved a brighter spotlight against a bigger opponent. Now they have to show why.

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Lending Tree Bowl, ESPN, 2:30 p.m. CT

Western Kentucky (5-6) vs. Georgia State (5-4)

Reasons Why You Should Watch The LendingTree Bowl

– WKU went from having no offense to rolling late in the year, winning its last three games and getting the attack working in the last two to help earn the bowl nod. It might not bring a ton of high-flying O, but it’s a well-coached team under Tyson Helton that pulled out one of the more fun bowl games of last year – a 23-20 win over Western Michigan. The effort will be there.

– If WKU doesn’t bring the offense, Georgia State will. The Panthers – led by dangerous freshman QB Cornelious Brown – are versatile, explosive, and can put up points and yards in bunches. The program has just one bowl win in its young history – a 2017 victory over WKU.

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FBC Mortgage Cure Bowl, ESPN, 6:30 p.m. CT

Liberty (9-1) vs. #12 Coastal Carolina (11-0)

Reasons Why You Should Watch The Cure Bowl

– Be super-ticked if this isn’t among the best bowl games of the entire season. Liberty beat two ACC teams and would’ve made it a third if not for a late blocked kick against NC State. The team is the real deal, and so is a Coastal Carolina team that deserved to finish higher than 12th in the final College Football Playoff poll. Both of these teams were hoping for something bigger than this, but facing each other will be enough of a test.

– The Liberty offense is all but unstoppable when it gets going. Former Auburn quarterback Malik Willis is a total yardage machine, former FCS star Joshua Mack leads a loaded group of backs, and the offense keeps on coming with big play after big play. It’s a fun team with a fun style, but …

– No one is more interesting than a Coastal Carolina team with a great energy, an offense that no one can quite seem to figure out – it’s brilliant at getting the key guys in space on the outside – and a defensive front that’s as active and productive as any in college football.

Nothing but lumps of coal in the stockings of Texans fans, and so it seems we’ve been very naughty this year! But, dashing through the snow (somewhere it’s snowing, right?) it’s Barry’s sleigh bringing us the joy of a special Christmas Day edition of the Heh Report. Merry Christmas everyone!

Week-15-Heh-Report-Colts

So…I just forgot. HOL. We’ll have the regular daily thread tomorrow, it’ll be a special Christmas edition of Barry’s Heh Report. And, we’ll have a Saturday thread as usual. Then, the normal game day threads on Sunday.

As the 2020 NFL season heads into the final two weeks, there are three head-coaching jobs officially open — the Houston Texans, Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons — with more sure to come in the weeks ahead.

There are many intriguing candidates this year, from candidates rising up the offensive and defensive coordinator paths to those from the NCAA ranks to former NFL head coaches looking for their next shot.

Who will get each job? Let’s break down each opening and come to consensus on whom we’d hire for each club. We also added our picks for the jobs with the 1-13 New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars, who are likely to be looking for a new coach soon.

Who should the Lions, Texans and Falcons hire as head coach? We debated and made picks for NFL openings
By Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano, ESPN

Excerpt:

The situation: After starting 0-4, the Texans fired coach and general manager Bill O’Brien. He went 52-48 and won four division titles in seven seasons in Houston. Executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby is handling GM duties on an interim basis, and Texans chairman/CEO Cal McNair said last month that Easterby “will have a significant role in helping shape our future.” The team interviewed former Lions and Colts coach Jim Caldwell on Monday.

Fowler: This job is fascinating, Dan, because you have a top-tier quarterback in Deshaun Watson to drive your franchise. But the overall roster is middle-of-the-road at best. Bill O’Brien traded away the first- and second-round picks in April’s draft. The Texans are set to be $12.9 million over the salary cap, and the presence of VP Jack Easterby clouds the hierarchy. Can a new coach overcome all that?

Graziano: Someone asked me on the radio the other day what’s the best job of those that are open or will be, and my knee-jerk answer was this one because of Watson. There isn’t another job that comes with a QB this good.

But your point about the draft picks is well taken, and they have a lot of work to do to build something up around Watson. While people will connect QB-centric candidates with this job, I almost wonder whether you don’t need one, since Watson is such a known quantity. CEO-type coach here instead of QB-whisperer type. Just a theory.

Fowler: I could see that. You can always get a killer offensive coordinator to structure the offense. Since Watson still has some deficiencies, such as pocket presence, I like a partnership with an offensive head coach who can take him to a new level. The ability is there to become an undisputed top-three quarterback. I have a sneaky suspicion that Eric Bieniemy will at least strongly consider this job, but we’ll see. Which CEO types do you like here?

Graziano: I share your suspicion on Bieniemy for this job, and my experience talking to him leads me to believe he can be that CEO type rather than just a deservedly promoted offensive coordinator. Marvin Lewis wants back in, and he won a lot more games in Cincinnati than most people have. Might be worth a shot to see him at the helm of a different organization. Somebody else with previous NFL head-coaching experience could work, like Leslie Frazier or Raheem Morris or even Jim Harbaugh.

But I keep coming back to Bienemy as the likely choice here, maybe because I keep hearing it everywhere. It’s the kind of rumor you’ve heard so much that you start to wonder.

Fowler: Such a natural tie-in too, with Watson’s connection with Patrick Mahomes, since they’re good friends and draft-mates. As Chiefs OC, Bieniemy has helped Mahomes develop into the game’s premier passer. We’re not saying Watson is Mahomes, but perhaps Bieniemy can guide Watson in a similar way.

The coach we’d hire: Eric Bieniemy, offensive coordinator, Kansas City Chiefs

Two Texans get voted into the Pro Bowl that won’t actually be played. And, the Texans interview a former Colts and Lions HC.

Texans QB Deshaun Watson and LT Laremy Tunsil make 2021 Pro Bowl
By Mark Lane, TexansWire

Excerpt: Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson and left tackle Laremy Tunsil were named to the 2021 Pro Bowl.

For Watson, it is his third Pro Bowl selection. For Tunsil, it his second, all of which he has earned in his two seasons with the Texans.

The Pro Bowl has been altered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of playing an actual game and having live practices, the entire week is going virtual.

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Texans interview former Lions coach Jim Caldwell for head coaching vacancy
By Skyler Carlin, ClutchPoints

Excerpt: On the other hand, the interview with Caldwell happened on Monday, with the Texans able to conduct one since Caldwell isn’t currently employed. Caldwell’s most recent job in the NFL was the assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach of the Miami Dolphins in 2019.

However, before that — and as the Texans might know — Caldwell was one of the best coaches that the Detroit Lions have had in their history. Despite coaching just four seasons with the Lions from 2014-2017, Caldwell posted an impressive 36-30 record in Detroit, which includes two playoff appearances.

Besides being the last coach to lead the Lions to the postseason, Caldwell has the fifth-best winning percentage among coaches in Detroit’s franchise history. While the likes of Eric Bieniemy and Brian Daboll have been rumored as candidates for the Texans, Caldwell will also be considered for the head coaching position.

The fact that the Lions have struggled so much under Matt Patricia, and are now searching for a new coach in their own right, casts Caldwell’s tenure there in a different light. It is therefore not terribly surprising the Texans might consider Caldwell, though Houston fans would most likely prefer Bieniemy as the offensive wizard who can maximize the talents of Deshaun Watson.

Deshaun Watson and Colts DC Matt Eberflus talk after the game. Sarah Barshop of ESPN says two close losses to the Colts (and an OT loss to the Titans) shows the Texans may not require a long-term rebuild.

What were Texans QB Deshaun Watson and Colts DC Matt Eberflus talking about after the game?
By Mark Lane, TexansWire

Excerpt: Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson dropped an interesting note in his postgame presser Sunday afternoon.

After the Indianapolis Colts vanquished the Texans 27-20 at Lucas Oil Stadium, Watson apparently had a conversion with Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus.

What was the subject of their discussion? Just how the Colts defense was able to curtail the Texans’ offense, limiting them to exactly 20 points in both of their contests this season, two weeks apart.

“We play a team that we just played two weeks ago so we have to figure out what they’re doing differently,” Watson said. “They did a lot of different things differently. I talked to their DC afterwards and told him about it and he was like, ‘Yeah, that’s what we had to do. We had to switch up some different things.’

“Because that defense is a bend but don’t break defense. They play a lot of zone coverages and a lot of different things that they do — you know exactly what they’re going to do but today they wanted to try to mix it around and do some different things.”

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Two close losses to Colts show Texans may not need long-term rebuild
By Sarah Barshop, ESPN

Excerpt: While there have been many moments in 2020 when the Houston Texans have looked like they have a long way to go before they are competing for AFC South titles again, going toe-to-toe twice against the Indianapolis Colts, a likely playoff team, shows they may not need a long-term rebuild.

Two weeks after losing the game after Deshaun Watson fumbled a low snap with the chance to take the lead, the Texans again lost to the Colts in a close game, falling 27-20 to drop to 4-10.

But despite the losing record and lack of resources for a quick improvement, the Texans’ performance in the division against two potential playoff teams (one-score losses to the Colts twice and an overtime loss to the Titans in October) shows they could be competing with them again in 2021.

The biggest reason is, of course, Watson, who again played well. He completed 33 of 41passes for 373 yards and two touchdowns. Watson has now thrown a single-season career high 27 touchdowns, which is the second-most passing touchdowns in a single season in franchise history.

The Texans have one more divisional test this season when they host the Tennessee Titans in Week 17, to see where they stand in the AFC South.