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    Jim Nantz's Case Keenum Love

    Jim Nantz annoys Phil Simms with his Case Keenum love: Behind the scenes in the CBS Sports TV booth

    Chris Baldwin
    Oct 24, 2013 | 3:01 pm

    Phil Simms heard about the University of Houston quarterback week after week after week. Jim Nantz just wouldn't let it go.

     

    This was during the 2011 college football season when Case Keenum took advantage of a sixth year of eligibility to shatter the NCAA record book. Simms received enthusiastic weekly updates on Keenum from Nantz — whether he wanted to or not.

     

    "I'd tell him how Case was 38 of 45," Nantz laughs.

     

    "No, it was more like 48 of 53 every week," Simms breaks in, noting Keenum's often obscenely good numbers with the Cougars. "So I ask Jim, 'How tall is this Keenum?' And he's like, '6-4, 6-5.' I don't think so."

     

    "I was just trying to pump up the hometown guy a little bit," Nantz says.

     
     

      It almost sounds like Nantz is getting Simms to come around on Keenum. This is what happens when your belief is absolute. 

     
     

    Keenum, of course, actually measures in at around 6-feet. His lack of "quarterback height" helped guarantee that every NFL team would stubbornly, stupidly pass on him in the 2012 Draft. Now that Keenum's made an NFL start — with Simms and Nantz calling the game for CBS in Kansas City — no one's really focusing on how tall the Houston Texans' new quarterback stands. Not with Keenum completing six passes of more than 25 yards and nearly leading the 2-5 Texans to a road upset of the NFL's only undefeated team.

     

    "He plays like he's 6-5," Nantz says.

     

    This earns another eye roll from Simms. When you're part of a broadcast team, you spend a lot of time together. The former New York Giants quarterback and the TV pro's pro travel to the city of their Sunday game assignment on Friday and work in close quarters for much of the next three days. That includes plenty of Saturday production meetings that are often taken over by college football happenings.

     

    And specifically, Nantz's University of Houston love.

     

    The 54-year-old Nantz is as proud of a UH graduate as you'll ever find. Simms has spent years hearing about the Cougars. That became more than apparent during CultureMap's visit to the CBS broadcast booth in Kansas City.

     

    "Did you tell him how crazy you got during the BYU game?" Simms asks, referencing Houston's 47-46 loss to Brigham Young University last Saturday, one that had Nantz twisting in his seat.

     

    Nantz calls it "fortuitous" that he happened to call Keenum's first NFL game. Simms might use another word. After years of hearing about Keenum — and somewhat scoffing — there the quarterback was walking into a production meeting with CBS's No. 1 NFL TV team.

     

    "How impressive was he?" Nantz asks Simms of the meeting, which saw a relaxed Keenum easily command the attention of grizzled TV vets — producers and production people who've seen it all.

     

    "You could tell he'd done it before in college," Simms shoots back. "It's not his first rodeo. He comes across as confident though. I'll give you that."

     

     

      Nantz calls it "fortuitous" that he happened to call Keenum's first NFL game. Simms might use another word. 

     
     

    It almost sounds like Nantz is getting Simms to come around on Keenum. This is what happens when your belief is absolute. And the evidence follows. Before Keenum threw his first pass in the NFL, Nantz saw him as a legitimate option. Like many UH devotees who actually watched Keenum play in college, Nantz knew the quarterback was anything but a smaller conference myth — which is largely the tack a resolutely doubting Houston media took.

     

    "Case Keenum is a leader," Nantz says. "If you spend any kind of time around him, it doesn't take long to see that.

     

    "Other players want to play with a guy like that."

     

    Jim Nantz has been preaching about Case Keenum for years, annoying Phil Simms all the way. Only now, his TV partner almost sounds like he's seeing the light. The traditional 6-foot-3 quarterback tall Simms nearly gives it up for the short guy.

     

    "Case is more impressive than I probably thought he would be," Simms says.

     

    Give Jim Nantz — and Keenum — a few more weeks. Who knows? Phil Simms may even be visiting the University of Houston in his next Bayou City visit.

    Case Keenum has been on Jim Nantz's radar for more than a little while.

    Case Keenum run Texans
      
    Photo by Michelle Watson CultureMapSnap
    Case Keenum has been on Jim Nantz's radar for more than a little while.
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    O'Brien Talks Tough

    Tough new sheriff: Bill O'Brien sounds like the anti Kubiak, vows to be hard on Texans players

    Chris Baldwin
    Jan 3, 2014 | 1:43 pm
    Tough new sheriff: Bill O'Brien sounds like the anti Kubiak, vows to be hard on Texans players
    Photo by Rob Carr Getty Images
    Bill O'Brien admits he missed the NFL.

    Bill O'Brien certainly hasn't walked timidly into his new job as the head coach/franchise savior of the Houston Texans.

     

    With large posters of J.J. Watt and Andre Johnson flanking him on either side of an elaborate press conference stage, O'Brien didn't pay homage as much as he demanded a new standard.

     

    "To me it's about accountability," O'Brien said. "It's about demanding. It's about putting together a fast, physical football team."

     

    In other words, Mr. Nice Guy went out the window with former Texans coach Gary Kubiak. O'Brien mentioned "accountability" and "demanding" several times in his introductory press conference Friday afternoon at Reliant Stadium. And you can bet the chorus sounded like sweet music to Texans owner Bob McNair.

     

    CultureMap was the first news outlet anywhere to report that O'Brien was the Texans' top choice to be the team's new coach way back on Dec. 18. This was a McNair driven pick from the beginning and it is the 44-year-old O'Brien's toughness that drew the owner to the former Penn State coach and Bill Belichick assistant.

     
     

    "To me it's about accountability. It's about demanding."

     
     

    And McNair himself certainly talked tough on introduction day.

     

    "I'm ready to kick 2013 the hell out the door," McNair said. "Not acceptable. Not what we're going to do in the future."

     

    McNair went on to talk about O'Brien having shown he's willing to make the hard decisions — something he clearly felt was lacking as the Texans spiraled from Super Bowl schemers into a 2-14 death march in 2013.

     

    "Some coaches who have been players still think of themselves as players rather than the head of an organization," McNair said. "And have trouble making difficult decisions."

     

    Kubiak, of course, played quarterback for the Denver Broncos. As for an inability to make tough calls? Just look at how long Kubiak stuck with a flat-lined Matt Schaub and how he kept trying to go back to Schaub even after the Case Keenum call was made.

     

    O'Brien noted that "there are a lot of good football players on this team." He also declined to take any pressure off himself and describe this makeover of a team with the worst record in the NFL as a rebuilding job.

     

    "There are a lot of pieces in place here," he said. "It's all about hard work . . . Quick turnaround, rebuilding are labels. I'm not into all that."

     

     Tom Brady Tough?

     

    All in all, it's an impressive opening performance for a first-time NFL head coach. O'Brien knows how to command the stage. Texans general manager Rick Smith talked about the new coach's "charisma."

     

    O'Brien even makes sure to work in the obligatory Texas joke about the cowboy life.

     

    "Right after this, I'm going to go out and buy my first pair of cowboy boots," he said.

     

    It's already becoming clear there will be one cowboy in charge of these Texans. One who happens to be a hard-nosed Northeast guy who's probably still most famous for getting into a sideline screaming match with New England Patriots golden boy quarterback Tom Brady.

     

     

      "I'm ready to kick 2013 the hell out the door." 

     
     

    O'Brien downplayed the incident, but it's clearly helped burnish his taskmaster image.

     

    "You know it's a competitive sports," O'Brien said. "Tom Brady's a great friend. These things happen. The thing that people don't understand is that 30 seconds after it was over, we were sitting together and going over pictures (of game action)."

     

    The Texans players are clearly intrigued by O'Brien. Veteran center Chris Myers sat amongst the press at the stadium and listened to the new head man.

     

    There will be a lot more change coming to the stadium. Smith hinted at as much when he noted how the Texans needed a coach who can guide young players.

     

    It's hard to imagine O'Brien tip toeing around that change. He plans to meet with all the remaining Texans coaches Saturday (as with any head coaching change, it's unlikely many of the current assistants will be kept by O'Brien). He'll tackle the quarterback question later, though it's clear Keenum is still in the picture.

     

    Almost every new NFL head coach sounds good on introduction day. Especially when the team brings out a marching band for the occasion. But O'Brien sounds tough and no nonsense.

     

    Just what Bob McNair wanted. This is his call. His makeover. His tough guy.

    Bill O'Brien will not call the Houston Texans a rebuilding team.

    Bill O'Brien presser
      
    Photo by Scott Halleran Getty Images
    Bill O'Brien will not call the Houston Texans a rebuilding team.
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