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We all know that Santa Claus is a football fan. How else can he stay so jolly while gearing-up for a one-night trip around the world in both freezing and blazing hot temperatures next week?
This man definitely has the Dad bod of a jolly old soul who watches a lot of football games during the fall. Too many cookies and hot chocolate can do that.
“Ho, ho…oh, drat! That scale must be wrong again. Time to start my diet all over again come January, right?”
This Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Santa’s Workshop will hand us a glorious assortment of pre-Christmas football games to watch as the elves keep one eye on their flat screen TV’s while they work.
The football games help alleviate the stress which Santa and his crew are feeling ahead of next Wednesday night’s big deliveries.
“Roll Tide or Boomer, Sooner? They play Friday night!
Will Ole Miss miss Kiffin as Tulane puts up a fight?
Sunday’s Jaguars at Broncos – the best game of the day?
Or Steelers visit Motown – which team comes to play?”
It’s a holiday weekend football celebration!
College football on Friday night and all day on Saturday. NFL games are plentiful, too, on both Saturday and Sunday.
If your Christmas shopping isn’t done, you’ve still got Monday and Tuesday, right?
Let’s preview this wonderful slate of football games coming this weekend (all times CST)
Friday 12/19
10 AM – ESPN – It’s the early bird special!
Myrtle Beach Bowl – Conference USA champ Kennesaw State (10-3) vs. Mid-American champion Western Michigan (9-4)
Put your bowl of Cheerios down and get started watching some college football! This bowl game is played on the campus of nearby Coastal Carolina. A partly cloudy day with 64 warm degrees will greet fans watching these two mid-major conference champions.
1:30PM – ESPN – Gasparilla Bowl – Memphis (8-4) vs. N. Carolina State (7-5)
This fairly even match-up makes for a great spot to take your Friday afternoon siesta. The NC State Wolfpack knocked-off top ACC teams like Virginia and Wake Forest this year. Memphis (which saw head coach Ryan Silverfield leave for Arkansas three weeks ago) will try to break a three game losing streak in Tampa on a warm 78-degree afternoon.
7PM – ABC and ESPN – College Football Playoff Game 1 – Alabama (10-3) at Oklahoma (10-2)
What a terrific Friday nightcap! The Sooners beat Bama 23-21 in Tuscaloosa on November 15.
This is the “Something to prove” game. Alabama’s quarterback Ty Simpson faded off the Heisman radar late in the year with several inconsistent efforts. The agent for Bama head coach Kalen DeBoer has been fielding and deflecting calls from the University of Michigan about their head coaching job vacancy.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s offense ranks #77 in scoring and must produce more points on Friday to take some pressure off the Sooners’ vaunted sixth-ranked scoring defense.
Gusty winds of up to 30 miles per hour will come sweeping down the plains in Norman, Oklahoma this Friday night. Kickoff temperatures will be in the upper 40’s to greet these two SEC competitors.
Saturday – 12/20 – The greatest day of football of the year!
There will be three College Football Playoff first round games, two FBS semifinal games, and two NFL games played on Saturday. Are you ready for some football?
11AM – ABC and ESPN – College Football Playoff Game 2 – Miami (FL) (10-2) at Texas A&M (11-1)
This is the first ever playoff game for the Texas Aggies.
Yell practice on Friday night in College Station, Texas might be be heard as far away as downtown Houston! Miami comes in as a 4-point underdog. The Hurricanes’ experienced quarterback Carson Beck has been involved in playoff games in three seasons at Georgia prior to coming to Miami this year.
The Aggies are at home. They are quite hungry to win their first playoff game, too.
The mighty 12th man (the A&M fans) will unleash a wall of sound at Miami for the entire game. Sunshine and 75 degrees await these two teams in College Station Saturday.
2:30PM – TNT – College Football Playoff Game 3 – Tulane (11-2) at Ole Miss (11-1)
Keep your remote control nearby – just in case this game gets ugly early. The Rebels trounced Tulane 45-10 earlier this year, so oddsmakers established Ole Miss as a 17-point home favorite in this game. Ole Miss is without offensive guru head coach Lane Kiffin (who left for LSU). Defensive coordinator Pete Golding was tapped as the team’s new top man in Oxford.
Tulane’s best hope is to get off to a good start and maintain pressure on the home favorite down the stretch. Sunshine and 60 degree weather will prevail Saturday afternoon in northern Mississippi.
3PM – ABC – FCS Semifinal Game 1 – Montana (13-1) at Montana State (12-2)
This is a rematch from a very exciting regular season finale won by Montana State 31-28 on the University of Montana’s home field. The still angry Grizzlies will lumber to Bozeman on Saturday seeking to even the score and advance into the national championship game in Nashville on January 5.
The Montana Grizzlies’ high powered offense has generated more than 40 points in their 13 victories this season.
Montana State, though, specializes in defense. The Bobcats are #6 nationally and allow a little more than 17 points per game. Ticket prices for this semifinal playoff game are through the roof with resellers grabbing $650 apiece this week. Sunshine and Montana-like temperatures of 30 degrees at kickoff await these two longtime foes Saturday afternoon.
6:30PM – ESPN2 – FCS Semifinal Game 2 – Illinois State (11-4) at Villanova (12-2)
These two overachievers are now just one game away from playing for a national championship. Quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse has been on fire over the past month for Illinois State. The Redbirds went on the road to knock-off #1 overall seed North Dakota State two weeks ago and downed #8 seed UC-Davis in California last weekend. They are loose and playing like a team of destiny.
The Wildcats from Villanova are the #12 FCS seed. They fell behind 14-0 in last week’s game at #4 seed Tarleton State. Villanova’s defense stiffened, and the offense roared back to score a 26-21 victory to advance into the semifinal round game at home against Illinois State. A clear, cold night is ahead for these two teams in Philadelphia with temperatures falling into the mid-30’s.
6:30PM – TNT – College Football Playoffs Game 4 – James Madison (12-1) at Oregon (11-1)
It’s the Dukes against the Ducks!
The upstart James Madison Dukes from the Sunbelt Conference will travel 2,800 miles west to take on the Oregon Ducks.
JMU’s defense is ranked #10 nationally and allows a miserly 16 points per game.
Oregon’s high flying offense is #9 in the FBS group and generates more than 38 points per game. Quarterback Dante Moore produced 24 touchdown passes this season versus six interceptions.
It is expected to be perfect weather – for ducks – on Saturday night with rain expected and chilly temperatures in low 40’s.
NFL – The chase for the playoffs continues Saturday and Sunday
Saturday – 4PM on FOX – Philadelphia Eagles (9-5) at Washington Commanders (4-10)
The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles can clinch a playoff spot Saturday with a win. Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels will not play after re-injuring his non-throwing elbow last week.
Saturday – 7:20PM on FOX – Green Bay Packers (9-5) at Chicago Bears (10-4)
The Pack needs to win to have any chance to capture the NFC North title. No one (except some die-hard Bears fans) expected Chicago to be 10-4 and leading this division. A win by Chicago at home Saturday night (and a Detroit loss on Sunday) would lock-up a playoff spot for da’ Bears.
Sunday – 12 Noon – FOX – Los Angeles Chargers (10-4) at Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1)
If Philadelphia should lose at Washington Saturday, Dallas retains a 1% chance of making the playoffs. They will have to defeat a Chargers team which is on the brink of clinching a return to the AFC playoffs for the second straight year.
Sunday – 3:05PM – FOX – Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4) at Denver Broncos (12-2)
Both of these teams have surprised the so-called experts this fall. Jacksonville leads Houston by one game and Indianapolis by two. A win would solidify the Jaguars’ chances to make the playoffs. Denver is trying to lock-up the AFC’s #1 seed along with home field advantage through the playoffs as the Broncos ride an 11-game winning streak.
Sunday – 3:30PM – CBS – Pittsburgh Steelers (8-6) at Detroit (8-6)
Can the Steelers offense score enough points to compete against the pinball machine offense of the Detroit Lions? A loss by the Lions on Sunday would put them at risk of missing the playoffs for the first time in three years.
Sunday – 7:20PM – NBC – New England Patriots (11-3) at Baltimore Ravens (7-7)
The Ravens are fighting to stay alive in the AFC North as they battle the Pittsburgh Steelers for the division title. New England is a surprising 6-0 on the road this year. The no-name Patriots are fighting to stay one-game ahead of Buffalo in the AFC East.