The greatest* tradition** in college sports: it’s time for the Hawai’i Bowl.
First: wherever you are, whoever you’re with, and whatever you celebrate — a happy holiday season to you. As we take stock of
the shitshow that was and is and will be 2025, I am grateful that, if even just for a second, you’ve stumbled upon Off Tackle Empire annd come inside to warm your hands on these piping hot takes. Be well, and be safe.
Second: you probably root for a terrible college football team. Sorry about that.
In the interest of “fulfilling my contract” and “keeping the lights on,” here’s an open thread for you for December 24-25. There’s not much in the way of college sports—perhaps I’ve hallucinated that there used to be a Hawai’i basketball tournament around now?—but there is some professional shieldball and squeakyflops on the tube and the streams all day on Christmas.
If you’d like a place to talk about it, here you go.
Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl
California Golden Bears vs. Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors
Wednesday, Dec. 24 | 7pm | ESPN | Hawai’i -1.5 | O/U 51.5
T.C. Ching Stadium (Honolulu, HI)
This line has swung three points to the ‘Bows even after Hawai’i lost star WR Jackson Harris to the transfer portal. As Jesse and I detailed in our way-too-long previews that you didn’t read, there’s lots of homecoming intrigue: Honolulu native Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele quarterbacks the Bears, and former Hawai’i HC Nick Rolovich will serve as interim head coach for Cal as well. On the other side, HC Timmy Chang and QB Micah Alejado will keep running and shooting in the way that, it seems in the modern landscape, only Hawai’i football truly can.
This game is weirdly special to me: by being a grump, I manage to get my wife and the kid(s) off to bed by about 9pm. The second half, then, is just me in the living room, drinking scotch and wrapping up the last of the presents while watching whatever absurdities are happening in Honolulu. Sicko’s Workshop, if you will.
Africa Cup of Nations on Christmas Eve
Cameroon vs. Gabon
2pm | beIN | what — just me?
NBA on Christmas
Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knickerbockers
11am | ABC | NYK -6.5 | O/U 239.5
San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma City Thunder
1:30pm | ABC | OKC -9.5 | O/U 235.5
Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors
4pm | ABC | GSW -8.5 | O/U 227.5
Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Lakers
7pm | ABC | HOU -2.5 | O/U 230.5
Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets
9:30pm | ABC | DEN -3.5 | O/U 239.5
NFL on Christmas
Dallas Cowboys (eliminated) at Washington Commanders (eliminated)
12pm | Netflix | Dallas -8.5 | O/U 50.5
Detroit Lions at Minnesota Vikings (eliminated)
3:30pm | Netflix | Detroit -7.5 | O/U 43.5
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (eliminated)
7:15pm | Amazon Prime | Denver -13.5 | O/U 36.5
This’ll be it from us until Friday, when you’ll get deluged with—I hope, and I wonder what WSR is up to—a preview for both the Northwestern and Minnesota bowl games, followed by an open thread. We can only dream, right? Or perhaps Santa’s got something up his sleeve for me yet.
Wishing you and yours a happy, merry, and college football-filled holiday season.
