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The LSU Tigers face the #21 Houston Cougars in the Texas Bowl Saturday at 9:15pm ET. Newly hired Lane Kiffin will not coach the Tigers during the game. That responsibility belongs to Frank Wilson III, who will ironically coach Ole Miss after the game.
LSU vs. Houston will be televised on ESPN and streams live DIRECTV (Free Trial).
What: College Football, Texas Bowl
WHO: LSU Tigers vs. No. 21 Houston Cougars
When: Saturday, December 27, 2025
Where: NRG Stadium, Houston, Texas
Time: 9:15 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Live Streams: DIRECTV (Free Trial), fuboTV (free trial), Sling
Here’s a recent college football story via the Associated Press:
HOUSTON (AP) — Lane Kiffin was announced as LSU’s new coach on Nov. 30, but the Tigers have one more game to complete this season before he steps on the sidelines in 2026.
LSU (7-5) faces Houston (9-3) Saturday night in the Texas Bowl.
After entering the season hoping to contend for a playoff spot, the Tigers started 5-3 and fired coach Brian Kelly.
Interim coach Frank Wilson III, 2-2 since taking over, said he had conversations with Kiffin about his future with LSU after the bowl game, but the focus is on getting him through.
“There’s a 2025 football team that I’m a part of, we’ve been a part of since its inception, since the start of the season that’s got one game left,” Wilson said. “Because of my relationship with coach Kiffin, it allows us to have a smooth transition, the interaction in the building.
Kiffin left his one-loss Ole Miss team to coach at LSU, taking over a program that had won national titles under three of the previous four coaches.
Wilson said he expects the players who finished the regular season to likely be the ones to bowl. He added that quarterback Garrett Nussmeier will not be available.
Nussmeier threw for 1,927 yards and 12 touchdowns on a 67% completion percentage this season, but hasn’t played since Nov. 8 at Alabama due to injury. Michael Van Buren Jr., who has started the last three games, has thrown for 743 yards and five touchdowns this season.
Wilson said they are still working on who will be available Saturday night.
“We’ve got a couple of guys — young guys — that have played in backup roles that have stepped up,” he said. “Some will play. Some may not. . . . We expect the lion’s share of our team to contribute in terms of quantity and quality.”
Weigman returns
Houston linebacker Conner Weigman announced shortly after the regular season ended that he plans to return for his senior season.
Weigman, who transferred to Houston after two seasons at Texas A&M, has thrown for 2,475 yards and 21 touchdowns and rushed for 644 yards and 11 touchdowns while starting every game this season.
“I think Conner had an outstanding season,” Houston coach Willie Fritz said. “We’re excited to have him back. We’re going to run the same system. He’s going to be with a lot of those guys. He knows what they do well.”
No question
With Notre Dame, Kansas State and Iowa State opting not to play in a bowl game despite being eligible, Wilson said he was “not aware that there was any discussion about not competing in the bowl game,” adding that he was never told.
“We wanted to finish what we started,” he said. “Experience for a student-athlete is the pinnacle of what you’re trying to accomplish, and to take that from these young men was something we never really put on the table. It’s something they wanted. It’s (something) we wanted to do as a university to finish the season.”
Playing close to home
Houston could have the home field advantage as it plays at NRG Stadium, about 6 miles from campus. Houston is 6-7 all-time at NRG Stadium, home of the NFL’s Texans, but the Cougars have only played in the Texas Bowl once, a 20-13 loss to TCU in 2007.
“It’s a great opportunity,” Fritz said. “To be able to do that at home in the city of Houston is a huge thing. To be able to play a quality opponent like LSU is a huge thing.”
Fritz helped the Cougars make a big jump in his second year at the school since leaving Tulane after winning just four games last season.
Can I bet on the game?
Yes, you can bet on the game from your phone in New York State, and we’ve rounded up some of the best introductory offers to help you navigate your first bets from BetMGM, FanDuel, DraftKings, Bet365 and others.
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