“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” James 1:22 (NKJV)
Coaches are teachers. Their job is to instruct players. Great coaches work hard to prepare their players for competition. They study their opponents, and come up with a game plan to produce the best possible outcome. Great coaches are constantly looking for ways to improve. But for all the hard work and effort great coaches give, it’s meaningless if their athletes don’t respond.
Imagine a coach doing his or her best to teach the team, preparing them for competition and then, once the athletes got in the game, they all decided not to do what they had been taught. The team likely would be unsuccessful.
Sometimes we know what we are supposed to do because we know what God’s Word says. But we just decide not to do it. God wants us to read His Word and listen to Him, but if that’s all we do, then we are forgetting the most important part. It’s in doing what He says that we let the world know that Jesus loves us, died for us, conquered sin and death, and wants a personal relationship with us. Keep listening to God, and make sure you take action as well.
— Lydia Vandenbergh
OneCoach, part of the Sports Spectrum Network, is an international community of coaches and spouses who have been uniquely gifted and called by God. Visit OneCoach.org for more stories and videos.
Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans smiles during an NFL wild-card playoff game, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Durisko)
Defense travels.
That was certainly the case Monday night, as the AFC’s No. 5 seed — the Houston Texans — traveled to Pittsburgh and defeated the No. 4-seeded Steelers in decisive fashion, 30-6, to complete the final piece of the NFL divisional-round playoff puzzle. It was the Texans’ first road playoff win in the franchise’s 24-year history. Previously, they were 0-6.
Leaning on the league’s stingiest defense built by third-year head coach (and former Texans defensive star) DeMeco Ryans, Houston had built a white-hot nine-game winning streak to finish the regular season. It extended the streak to 10 by doing the exact same thing on Monday.
Houston clung to a tight 7-6 lead entering the fourth quarter, and then came alive. Ka’imi Fairbairn hit a 51-yard field goal with 13:07 left. Then on the ensuing Pittsburgh possession, Texans defensive end Will Anderson hit Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who fumbled. Fellow defensive lineman Sheldon Rankins picked up the loose ball and ran it back for a 33-yard touchdown.
The Texans’ defense forced Pittsburgh to punt and the offense then responded with an 11-play, 87-yard drive capped by a 13-yard touchdown run by running back Woody Marks. But it was the defense, again, which put the finishing touches on Houston’s historic victory.
With less than three minutes remaining, Rodgers launched a pass deep downfield that was intercepted by Houston safety Calen Bullock Jr. at the 50 yard-line. Bullock returned it down the left sideline for the Texans’ second defensive touchdown of the game and their final points in the 30-6 win.
It was a dominant defensive performance indeed, but one that was by no means surprising. The Texans boasted the NFL’s No. 1 defense in 2025-26, leading the way with the fewest yards allowed per game (277.2) during the regular season. They also forced the third-most turnovers (29) and allowed the second-fewest points per game (17.4).
“First and foremost for me,” Ryans said to begin his press conference, “I just want to give all praise, honor and glory to our God, who’s been gracious to us, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
“What a game. What a performance by our guys. Guys just continue to let their light shine through how they’re playing.”
On the back of his great defense that shined once again on Monday, Ryans led his team to an incredible mid-season turnaround to reach the playoffs for the third time in his three seasons at the helm. The Texans began this season with three straight losses but finished 12-5, becoming only the fifth team since 1990 to start a season 0-3 and reach the playoffs. Houston is now the first franchise to do it twice, having accomplished the feat in 2018 as well.
Houston’s players and coaches have seemed to rally around the Biblical concept from Matthew 5:16 of letting their light shine as they’ve compiled their impressive winning streak. Ryans expanded a bit about it after a Dec. 27 win against the Los Angeles Chargers.
“The light is shining bright on the Texans, but that light is really reflective of our guys’ belief in the Lord and Savior — our Lord and Savior — Jesus Christ,” he told the media that day. “That’s what’s driven our team, and I’m so proud of our guys and thankful to the Lord for allowing us to allow our lights to shine through Him.
“Just all praise and honor goes to Him.”
Anderson alluded to Matthew 5:16 in the aftermath of Monday’s game.
“First, I gotta give all glory to God,” Anderson told ESPN. “Thank You, Jesus Christ. We have a Scripture saying, ‘Let our light shine before You, God,’ that when people see us play, they glorify Your name. Just a shoutout to Jesus Christ.”
Ryans made it clear from his introductory press conference as head coach that, as he sought to lead his beloved Texans to greatness, he’d never forget to praise God or thank Him for the gift it is to have the opportunity.
“I’m thankful to God that He’s just paved the way for me through everything that I’ve been through in life,” Ryans said in February 2023.
Before the Super Bowl in 2020, when he was a San Francisco 49ers’ defensive assistant, Ryans revealed to Sports Spectrum his deepest motivations as a coach.
“You’ve got to keep the main thing the main thing, and that’s why we’re all here — and that’s by the grace of God,” Ryans said. “Why are we in the position that we’re in? Why are we able to do what we do? That’s by God blessing us with this awesome opportunity to reach back and teach these young men, help these young men, but we have to stay grounded in the Word.
“We can get caught up in our work, a lot of long hours, a lot of long days, but you can’t forget what sustains us, and that’s Jesus Christ.”
Ryans will lead the Texans on the road again in their divisional-round matchup against the No. 2-seeded New England Patriots, hoping for a repeat performance from his defense to earn Houston’s first AFC Championship Game appearance in franchise history. Yet all the while, he will continue to seek to integrate Biblical principles into his coaching, knowing that a win would be in vain if it doesn’t bring glory to Jesus Christ.
Kickoff from Foxborough is set for Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.
THIS IS SPORTS SPECTRUM’S WHAT’S UP PODCAST
WITH ANNABELLE HASSELBECK
On today’s episode of Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up” podcast, we have Alex Loera!
Alex shares about her journey through the highs and lows of pro soccer in the NWSL, memories from her days at Santa Clara, and how she finds joy in the hardest of circumstances.
Arsenal's Eberechi Eze walks of the field following a win over Tottenham, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
Eberechi Eze had an ambitious and specific prayer ahead of his first North London derby on Sunday. The Arsenal attacker asked God for a hat trick, something that hadn’t happened in a game between Arsenal and their local rivals Tottenham since 1978.
Only three players had ever accomplished the feat. But sure enough, Eze became the fourth, scoring his three goals in the span of 36 minutes and leading Arsenal to a 4-1 victory. After the game, he was quick to credit the faith that has helped sustain him throughout his career.
“It’s what I prayed for,” he told NBC Sports. “I prayed for it today, man, a hat trick. And I got it today, so I’m grateful to God. … That was the prayer today: a hat trick. And God gave it to me. That’s faith, man.”
The 27-year-old found the back of the net on both sides of halftime to extend the Premier League leaders’ advantage to 3-0. He added a third in the 76th minute to complete his hat trick and seal the win.
The game carried a special significance for Eze, who grew up an Arsenal fan and was released by the club as a youth player. He found his way to QPR and then Crystal Palace, where he established himself as one of the Premier League’s most creative players.
After scoring the goal that won Palace the FA Cup last season, Eze decided he was ready for a new challenge. He appeared destined to join Tottenham, but Arsenal came in with a late offer before the summer transfer window closed. The opportunity to return to his boyhood club, which was coming off back-to-back second-place finishes, was too good to pass up.
“I can only thank God for the opportunity to be here, to be playing and to be recognized in this type of manner,” he said in an interview with the club website once his move was official. “For me, this is what I wanted to do. [The club] is in me, it’s part of me and I just feel so blessed. That just gives me more energy to keep pushing and keep working.”
Eze has started eight of Arsenal’s 12 Premier League games this season, contributing four goals and two assists. He has also appeared in all four of the team’s Champions League games, and scored for England during the most recent international break.
Following Sunday’s historic performance, Eze took to Instagram to celebrate. His caption was just one word: Jesus.
Now playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world with aspirations of winning a Premier League title, leaning on his faith allows Eze to stay focused on his ultimate purpose.
“I’ve grown up in a Christian household, regularly going to church,” he told The Athletic in 2023. “For me, it’s hugely important, simply because of the peace of mind it gives me. It allows me to regulate myself and put things into perspective.
“Football can get super intense and you can get caught up in it all, but my faith allows me to realign my focus and know there’s something greater and that there’s a deeper purpose as to why I’m in the position I’m in.”
He says his faith in Jesus helps keep him steady amid the highs and lows of life and being a professional athlete.
“I’ve learned in myself that staying rooted in Christ throughout all the different phases is the most important thing because it allows you to see things with the right lens,” he said recently in another interview. “Things will change. Things go up, things go down, you don’t know what’s around the corner, you don’t know how things may look. The one solid rock and foundation is Christ. Having that allows me to deal with whatever circumstance I’m in.”
Arsenal are six points clear at the top of the Premier League table heading into a crucial week. They host German powerhouse Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday (3 p.m. ET) and visit Chelsea on Sunday (11:30 a.m. ET) in a meeting of the Premier League’s top two teams.
THIS IS THE SPORTS SPECTRUM PODCAST WITH MATT FORTE, FEATURING EDDIE GEORGE
Eddie George played nine seasons in the NFL with the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans (1996-2003) and Dallas Cowboys (2004). He was selected 14th overall in the 1996 NFL Draft by the Oilers after a stellar collegiate career at Ohio State, where he won the 1995 Heisman Trophy.
In 2011, George was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, and in 2019 his number 27 was retired by the Titans.
Currently, George is in his first season as the head coach at Bowling Green State University, after spending four years as Tennessee State’s head coach (2021-24).
Today on the podcast, fellow Pro Bowl running backs Matt Forte and Eddie George discuss George’s strong faith in Jesus Christ, rededicating his life to the Lord, why ballet is something that helped him as a running back, and lessons he learned in college at Ohio State.
