Merry Christmas! The NBA is back.

Thursday, Dec. 1
College football (7-10 p.m. ESPN): Who will win the Big East Championship? West Virginia travels to South Florida.

Friday, Dec. 2
College football (7-10 p.m. FOX): The inaugural Pac-12 Championship Game should be a rout for UCLA when they travel to Oregon.

Saturday, Dec. 3
College football (11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. ABC): Houston puts its undefeated season on the line against Southern Miss in the C-USA Championship Game. ... College football (3-6 p.m. CBS): Georgia tries to ruin LSU's undefeated season in the SEC Championship Game.

Sunday, Dec. 4
NFL (7:20-10:30 p.m. NBC): The NFC South-leading New Orleans Saints host the Detroit Lions in a matchup of top teams this season. A few more wins, and the Saints will be playoff bound.

Monday, Dec. 5
NFL (7:30-11 p.m. ESPN): I wonder which primetime game is worse. Is it this game between San Diego and Jacksonville or Thursday's game between Philadelphia and Seattle?

Tuesday, Dec. 6
NHL (6:30-9 p.m. Versus): The Detroit Redwings travel to the St. Louis Blues in the annual matchup of playoff teams.

Wednesday, Dec. 7
College basketball (6-8 p.m. ESPN): NCAA Tournament staples Arizona and Florida meet in an early season clash.

The NFL season is in a five-week sprint to the finish. College basketball is beginning its long road to March and the NBA and NBAPA reached a deal last weekend.

Delta State's full-page ad says they play for championships, and eggs are for breakfast. The Statesmen better not slip up this weekend against North Greenville.

Follow Bryan Flynn at http://www.jfpsports.com, Facebook and @jfpsports.