Hey sports fans, welcome to The Epoch Times Sports Brief for Friday, Dec. 20. 2024. I’m Bill Thomas, it’s five days till Christmas, we’ve got some exciting stories to share with you right now, and here’s what’s happening in the thrilling world of sports.
A college football upstart tries to knock the halo off a beloved cross-state legend, a pair of surprising challengers aim to spoil the dreams of a couple of big conference bullies, and an SEC powerhouse volunteers for a primetime showdown against a Big Ten brawler.
Also, the NFL goes wild with a pair of grueling Saturday battles, and as we barrel toward the playoffs, three teams are neck-and-neck for the best record in the NFC—we’ll tell you who’s got the inside track to home-field advantage.
Hoosiers Collide With Fighting Irish in South Bend
A few hours from right now at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, the Indiana Hoosiers will bang helmets with the Fighting Irish in the first-ever upper division playoff game to be held in a team’s home stadium, and they couldn’t have picked a more legendary venue to jumpstart the brand new 12-team format.Each team has only lost once, but these programs couldn’t be more different. Rapidly rising Indiana is having the best season in school history, they’ve pulled off an amazing turnaround in just one year, and they rank in the top 10 in both scoring offense and scoring defense.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame ranks in the top five in both scoring offense and scoring defense, and they’d like nothing better than to grind it out against the Hoosier D, which leads the country in rushing defense at just over 70 yards per game.
Notre Dame is definitely going to pound the rock against the Hoosiers, and this grueling slugfest will be won or lost in the trenches. Either way, look for a big game from quarterback Riley Leonard, who’s gotta take advantage of every opportunity if the Fighting Irish hope to win another one for the Gipper and move on to the second round.
On the other sideline, head coach Curt Cignetti better scheme up the best gameplan of his life, or it’s going to be a long, chilly night for the Hoosiers, who are gonna be playing this monumental contest under the watchful gaze of Notre Dame’s biggest fan—and that would be Rudy.
Penn State and Texas Host ACC Challengers
Tomorrow afternoon, the eye-popping SMU Mustangs and their pony express stampede into Happy Valley to take on the Penn State Nittany Lions in front of over 100,000 roaring fans, and it won’t be easy for either of these desperate squads.You may remember that SMU got clobbered by Clemson in the ACC final before charging back at the end. However, since then, head coach Rhett Lashlee rallied the troops, the committee swung their way, and the ponies snuck into the final at-large playoff spot.
Now, with a high-flying offense and a massive chip on their shoulder, they’re saddled up, riding in, and ready to pull off a stunning upset.
Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions were roasted by Oregon in the Big Ten championship, head coach James Franklin always comes up short when the lights are brightest, and they don’t get any brighter than this.
Sports Brief Host Commentary: Driving into the studio last night, the writer of this program, Davey Ross was behind me with his brights on. I don’t like it when your lights are brightest, Davey Ross. Low beams, please. Back to the program.
You should also know that earlier this week, Penn State’s backup quarterback took a hike and headed into the transfer portal, so if Lion quarterback Drew Allar goes down, the pendulum swings immediately over to the Mustangs.
Also tomorrow, the Clemson Tigers head to Austin for a battle with the mighty Texas Longhorns, and so you know, this is the very first time these two legendary programs have met face-to-face on the gridiron.
The only team that beat Texas all year long is Georgia, who pulled it off twice, and the Horns are absolutely overflowing with talent.
Meanwhile, Tiger coach Dabo Swinney has already pocketed a pair of national championships at Clemson, you can never count him out, and there are a number of highly recruited playmakers in his rockin’ good program.
The Horns are rock solid and the Tigers are just lucky to be there—so look for a high-scoring affair, a brutally close game, and the serious possibility of a major upset. It doesn’t make sense to us either, but that’s the way we see it here at the Sports Brief and so you know, your Sports Brief crew is always 39 percent of the time almost close to accurate.
Tennessee Volunteers to Take On Buckeyes
Tomorrow night, two of the very best teams in the entire country go at it when the Tennessee Volunteers invade Columbus to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes at the gigantic Horseshoe in a premier first-round matchup.To beat the Buckeyes, the Vols will have to run the ball, control the clock, and use their powerful defensive line to harass Ohio State quarterback Will Howard into making critical mistakes.
Meanwhile, it was all smooth sailing for the Buckeyes until a few weeks ago, when a mediocre Michigan team blew them out of the water in a shocking upset.
Now, the pressure is enormous, head coach Ryan Day is officially on the hot seat, and if Tennessee knocks ‘em out of the playoffs in this critical SEC-Big Ten showdown, he might need to start packing his bags.
Saturday Showdowns Kick Off NFL Weekend
We start at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, where there’s good news for the Chiefs.Looks like quarterback Patrick Mahomes will shake off that high-ankle sprain in time to lead Kansas City in their pivotal showdown with the Houston Texans.
The Chiefs have lost only once, they’re coasting toward home-field advantage in the playoffs, and they’re gearing up for another strong run at an unprecedented third-straight Super Bowl title.
Meanwhile, the Texans are in first place, they’re closing in on the AFC South crown, and their defense is absolutely ferocious. However, their season so far has been a bit of a disappointment, and if they hope to get things shored up before the playoffs, now’s the time to start—but a holiday trip to Arrowhead is always tough sledding.
The second game on tomorrow’s doubleheader menu features a bare-knuckle brawl between a couple of longtime mortal enemies, the Steelers and the Ravens, and for both teams, the stakes are positively ginormous.
The last time these two rivals faced off, the first-place Steelers pounded out a victory in a good old-fashioned slobberknocker, and if these blue-collar bullies can pull it off again tomorrow in Baltimore, they’ll clinch the rugged AFC North.
However, the unpredictable Ravens are only one game back, and if Lamar Jackson and the birds can somehow hold it together long enough to knock the Steel Curtain all the way home to Pittsburgh, things get a whole lot more interesting.
By the way, these same four teams will all be playing again five days from now on Christmas Day.
Lions, Vikings, and Eagles in 3-Team Race to the Finish
The Detroit Lions have been on top for weeks, but right now, they’re the walking wounded, their defense is in shambles, and they just got blasted by the Buffalo Bills.However, head coach Dan Campbell says that nobody cares, that it’s next man up, and that it’s a golden opportunity for a bunch of young players to show what they’re made of.
This week, they limp into Chicago for a division rematch against the lowly Bears, and they absolutely have to win this one if they want to hang on to their razor-thin lead in the conference.
Meanwhile, the surprising Minnesota Vikings are hot on their heels in the brutal NFC North. They’re led by the resurgent Sam Darnold, who’s playing his way into a huge payday when the season ends, along with the best-receiving tandem in the league. That’s right, you heard correctly—the Sports Brief crew said they’re the best pair of receivers in the entire league.
Sports Brief Commentary: That might not be entirely accurate, but in the spirit of Christmas, we’re trying to be nice and warm and fuzzy and complimentary. Back to the program.
On Sunday, the high-flying Vikes head to the Emerald City to take on the Seattle Seahawks, who are also fighting for a playoff spot and they won’t let anything or anyone get in their way.
You can count on three things in Seattle: it’s going to rain, the coffee will be hot, and the crowd will be louder than an F-16 fighter jet. Also, some guys at the market will toss fish around on TV, Geno Smith will throw a red-zone interception, and somehow, the Hawks are gonna find a way to drop another absolutely crucial contest.
Also on Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles take a short and bumpy bus ride down Interstate 95 for another chance to pummel into submission the second-place Washington Commanders and their rookie sensation Jayden Daniels.
Right now, the battling birds look like the best team in the league, they’re soaring toward the playoffs, and any talk of ruffled feathers in the locker room feels like a distant memory. Meanwhile, the Commanders are just happy to be there—which means we should all keep our eyes peeled for another huge upset.
Now, sadly, it’s time for us to say goodbye, but before we go, the Sports Brief crew has some extra special holiday gifts we’d like to hand out to a few of our favorite athletes.
To basketball legend LeBron James: One last run at the NBA title. The way the Lakers are playing right now, LeBron, you’ve got a better chance of getting ring around the collar than you do of getting another one of those nifty championship rings.
To our favorite problem child and rookie boxer Jake Paul: A ticket to the next Wrestlemania event, where you can learn a thing or two about how to put on a show in the ring and keep your audience engaged.
And last but not least, to baseball player Juan Soto: With your new $765 million contract? We can’t buy you anything you can’t buy for yourself. You get nothing from us!
Now, it really is time for us to head out, but please don’t pout, don’t cry and I’m telling you why … we’ll be back again next week with another edition of the almost award-winning Epoch Times Sports Brief.
If you have any thoughts or comments about this program, we’d love to hear from you, and you can find us at [email protected]—but only if you have glad holiday tidings or generous, gushing, complimentary kudos for the extraordinary, multi-talented Sports Brief crew—all both of us.
For all of us here at The Epoch Times Sports Brief, I’m Bill Thomas.
The Epoch Times Sports Brief program is written each week by the always jolly Davey Ross.
Thank you for making us your one-stop source for a concise, almost-accurate, and engaging rundown of all the sports stories you absolutely need to know about.
Enjoy another great weekend of sports, happy holidays, stay safe, have a superb day today, and don’t forget to keep your eyes on the game. Bye for now.
