What other way could we have started the Wild Card Round other than a STUMPSET! The Chargers came out flat yesterday and the Texans capitalized! The nightcap was the Ravens advancing against their division rivals! We’ve got 3 more games today so buckle up! Outside of that, we had a Cooper Flagg showcase yesterday where he broke ACC-Freshman records, a coaching change in Atlanta, and a Special Teams Coordinator with JUICEEEE!

The Rundown:

🏈 One Harbaugh advances, one goes home

🏈 Welcome to Miami, Corey Hetherman!

🪣 Cooper Flagg, BUCKET!

👋 Jimmy Lake, out like trout!

Today’s Poll🧠

The results of the post will be revealed tomorrow!

On This Day…

🏈 On this day in 1992, the Jim Kelly-led Buffalo Bills hosted the John Elway-led Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship! It was set to be a high-scoring shootout but it ended with a total of 17 points!

The Bills got the best of the Broncos that day, 10-7, and we now have that matchup again with two more gunslingers! We’ll see what happens!

Today’s Stump Story…

🏈 One Harbaugh Moves On, One Goes Home

What a busy day for the Harbaugh family, how do you think the parents split it? One in Baltimore, one in Houston?

Chargers vs Texans: Honestly, I was a little disappointed in this one. Not because I’m a Texans hater or anything, quite the opposite, I actually love CJ Stroud. I just was really looking forward to seeing Justin Herbert play on a big stage. Unfortunately for me, Justin Herbert played on a big stage, and it did not go well. Herbert threw four interceptions, two of which were returned for Texans touchdowns. Herbert threw three interceptions the whole entire regular season. The only shining star for the Chargers was their rookie WR Ladd McConkey, who had 9 receptions, 197 yards, and a touchdown.

On the other side of the ball was the Houston Texans, the team everyone seemed to have written off and made the underdog going into this one, show up, and show out. CJ Stroud was great, he was accurate and lead the offense well, while Joe Mixon pounded the rock like he always does. It was the defense that really stepped up, holding the Chargers to only 12 points. It was a beautiful day to be a Houston Texans fan.

Ravens vs Steelers: I’m not one to say I saw something coming, because that just feels played out, but I saw this one coming. Pittsburgh was on a downward trajectory in the latter half of the season and the offense was not only inconsistent but down right putrid at times. That was the Pittsburgh offense that came to play yesterday. They managed to play better in the second half, but it was too little too late.

Lamar Jackson was the magician he was, running and throwing his way to a big game. He had 175 yards through the air and another 81 on the ground. The real star was Derrick Henry, who broke the Ravens single game playoff record with 186 yards on the ground, he also added 2 touchdowns. He looked like the Henry of five years ago, running hard and punishing Steelers defenders.

Quick Hitters

🤝 The Miami Hurricanes steal a Golden Gopher! Corey Hetherman, the defensive coordinator at Minnesota, spent one year with the program. Hetherman is a true from-the-bottom guy, starting his career with division three Fitchburg State. It wasn’t until his 15th year of coaching that he accepted his first division one job. Now, he’s a big-time ball coach working at one of the biggest programs in the country.

🏀 The kid can ball, REALLY BALL. Cooper Flagg set a conference freshman single-game scoring record yesterday when he dropped 42 points against Notre Dame. The record was previously held by Olivier Hanlan, who scored 41 points for Boston College in 2013. Flagg is the presumed No. 1 overall pick in this upcoming year’s draft. BALLER!

👋 Falcons have parted ways with first-year defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake. The Falcons hired him last season alongside Raheem Morris from the Los Angeles Rams. Lake was the assistant head coach for the Rams and previously the head coach at the University of Washington. The search for a new defensive playcaller is now on in Atlanta.

Other News:

• 🏈 Rams regroup in Arizona

• ⛳️ Sony Open LEADERBOARD

• 🏒 Ovechkin nears closer to breaking Gretzky’s record

Top Performers:

• 🏈 Derrick Henry (BAL): 186 rushing yards, 2 TDs

• 🏈 Nico Collins (HOU): 122 receiving yards. 1 TD

• 🏀 Cooper Flagg (DUKE): 42 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds

• 🏀 Jaren Jackson Jr. (MEM): 33 points, 8 rebounds

Stump Favorites

🏈 Pickens with a wild soundbite here 😆! Guy’s a problem…

🏀 Cade Cunningham with a 17-assist Triple-Double!

🏈 JUICEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

💯 Full Scoreboards: MLB, Soccer, PGA, NFL, WNBA, NCAAF, NHL

Today’s Slate

*All times are ET*

🏈 NFL Playoffs: Broncos @ Bills (1:00 PM on CBS), Packers @ Eagles (4:30 PM on FOX), Commanders @ Bucs (8:00 PM on NBC)

🏀 NBA: Bucks @ Knicks (3:00 PM), Nuggets @ Mavs (3:00 PM), Pacers @ Cavs (6:00 PM), full schedule

🏀 NCAAW: (5) Texas vs (2) South Carolina (1:00 PM on ESPN), full schedule

🏀 NCAAM: (16) Michigan State vs Northwestern (12:00 PM on FOX), (15) Oregon vs Penn State (4:00 PM on BTN), full schedule

🏒 NHL: Kraken @ Red Wings (3:00 PM on NHL Network), full schedule

⚽️ Soccer: Spanish Super Cup Final: Real Madrid vs Barcelona (2:00 PM on ABC), full schedule

Can’t thank you enough for sticking to the end of this thing we call The Daily Stump. If you know anybody who might want this bit of daily sports news in their life, send them this link, it would go a long way. Appreciate the hell out of you all…

Trees get chopped. Stumps hold strong 💪