5 phenomenal moments from Houston Astros World Series win

Lance McCullers, Jr. shares a moment with wife Kara and daughter Ava. Photo by Steven Devadanam

As the city settles into the warm afterglow of its second World Series title courtesy of the Houston Astros, we look back at some of the best moments of Game 6 on Saturday, November 5. Not surprisingly, some of the most magical memories came from the Astros we joined who also celebrated the first World Series title in 2017: José Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Lance McCullers, Jr.

Team Bregman poses on the mound.Photo by Steven Devadanam

The Bregman Family on-field

When CultureMap reminded third baseman and fan favorite Bregman that he predicted “big things ahead in 2022” — back in January, he grinned big at the mention, especially of his son, Knox. “Man,” he said as he stood on the mound after the game and posed for family photos, “we did it.”

“Moments like this when we win and when things go right, it’s the best thing ever to have him with us and celebrate with him,” his wife Reagan Bregman said about little Knox, whom she cradled on the field. “This is the best year of our lives.”

Reagan also shared the change in her husband since Knox came along. “He is just the most incredible father and it’s really cool to see how motivated he is on the field and at home.”

LMJ’s love for his teammates

McCullers, perhaps the official team spokesman, minced no words when asked to again state the impact of the new Astros. “I don’t think we’re here without those new guys,” he told us. “Some guys weren’t even in the organization, some guys were still in college, other guys like [pitcher Hector] Neris were on other teams. They’re the reason we’re here.”

Altuve’s big grin

Altuve grinned big as he held the trophy.Photo by Steven Devadanam

Hoisting the Commissioner’s Trophy after the win on the big stage, Altuve looked like less like an Astros legend and more like a kid with his first trophy. He knowingly smiled wide when we yelled “vamos!” at him.

Big Papi bear hugs Breggy

We followed Tyler Straub, Bregman's best friend and manager, as he watched Bregman on the Fox Sports post-game show. As Bregman stood behind the hosts, analyst and MLB legend David "Big Papi" Ortiz — who was totally rooting for the 'Stros — walked onto the set and lifted Bregman in a massive bear hug as fans cheered. The slugger-to-slugger moment was a pure, inside-baseball celebration.

Continue on CultureMap to learn about the fifth phenomenal moment.

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Texas hosts Clemson on Dec. 21. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

No. 4 Texas will be competing for a return trip to Atlanta when it plays at home against No. 13 Clemson in the first round of the College Football Playoff.

The winner of the Clemson-Texas first-round game on Dec. 21 will play No. 10 Arizona State in the Jan. 1 Peach Bowl in Atlanta in the CFP quarterfinals.

For Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, who is from Austin, Texas, the game will be a homecoming.

“We recruited him hard," Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Sunday, calling Klubnik “a winner. He will do whatever it takes to put his team in position to be successful.”

Added Sarkisian: “When he made the decision to go to Clemson, honestly I wasn’t surprised. Both his parents went to (Texas) A&M.”

Klubnik applauded the announcement of the game at Texas for Clemson's seventh CFP appearance.

“For him to be going to his first playoff in Austin, Texas, where he grew up, you can’t make that up,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “Pretty cool opportunity for him and his family to go compete against Texas there in Austin.”

Swinney said his only visit to the Texas stadium was to watch Klubnik play in a high school playoff game.

“We’ve never played Texas or played in that stadium,” Swinney said. “... It’s going to be amazing. It’s one of the best venues in college football.”

The Longhorns (11-2) were seeded No. 5 in the CFP following their 22-19 overtime loss to Georgia on Saturday night in the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta.

Sarkisian said his players were “really excited” to see Texas land the No. 5 seed and have the opportunity to play in the Longhorns' first game against Clemson.

Texas safety Andrew Mukuba is a Clemson transfer. Sarkisian said players already were calling the matchup the “Mukuba Bowl.”

Swinney said: “I love Mukuba. I just love his spirit and love his heart. He was a really neat kid.

“I certainly wish he had been able to finish here. He did everything that was asked of him at Clemson. Made a bunch of big plays.”

Clemson (10-3) beat SMU 34-31 in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game Saturday night to land an automatic CFP berth. The Tigers are ranked No. 16 in the CFP but were given the 12th and lowest seed. As the fifth-highest ranked league champion, the Tigers do not get a bye and instead must visit Texas.

Arizona State (11-2) earned a bye by rolling over Iowa State 45-19 in the Big 12 championship game Saturday. The Sun Devils were led by running back Cam Skattebo's 170 rushing yards in their impressive win to cap their first season in the Big 12.

Peach Bowl president Gary Stokan noted the Sun Devils were picked to finish last in the Big 12.

“You proved them all wrong,” Stokan told Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham.

Arizona State players celebrated the announcement of their No. 4 seed.

Dillingham said he hopes the conference championship and berth in the CFP helps him recruit and continue to build the program.

“Hopefully this stage will help get our branding out there, and show people that we can be one of the newer brands in college football," Dillingham said. "Every 10-15 years a new brand shows up, and a new brand becomes a national brand.”No. 4 Texas will be competing for a return trip to Atlanta when it plays at home against No. 13 Clemson in the first round of the College Football Playoff.