Jim Harbaugh reacts to Nico Collins' big season, recalls special ...

The Houston Texans have been the biggest surprise of the 2023-24 NFL season.

The unlikely pairing of former Ohio State quarterback CJ Stroud and former Michigan wideout Nico Collins has been a major reason why. Now in his third season in the league, Collins has become one of the NFL’s most exciting wide receivers.

Collins capped his regular season on Saturday by helping the Texans secure a spot in the playoffs on year removed from a three-win season one year ago. A couple of breakout first-round draft choices in Stroud and former Alabama star Will Anderson, and it seems as if Houston could become the next big thing in the AFC in the coming years.

And Nico Collins is at the center of it all.

“It was fun to watch. I think he had nine targets on nine receptions, a ton of yards, a touchdown,” Harbaugh said of his former wideout on Sunday. “It was just great to go back and think about the time when he was in high school, visiting him in school, reporting as a freshman and how hard he worked to put himself in that position.

“It just warms the cockles of the heart and then see him standing at the podium after the game in his letter jacket. I mean, that was really cool.”

He ultimately finished the game against division rival Indianapolis Colts having caught all nine passes that were thrown his way for 75 yards and a touchdown, which ended up being the difference in the final score.

During Collins’ three-year tenure at Michigan from 2017-19, hauled in 78 receptions for 1,388 yards and 13 touchdowns. This season for the Texans, he caught 80 passes for 1,297 yards and eight scores. Before 2023, Collins combined for 927 receiving yards during his first two years in the league.

Meanwhile under center, rookie CJ Stroud is one of the league’s most productive quarterbacks having thrown for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns compared to throwing just five interceptions.

The two have turned in arguably the most successful quarterback-wide receiver duo in the NFL this season. And now, they get to showcase their chemistry in the playoffs — a first for the franchise since 2019.

Harbaugh won’t have his eyes on any more NFL football this weekend, as he is set to coach in the CFP title game against Washington. Before moving on, he sent one last message to his former wideout before the Texans’ playoff game.

“Keep doing you, Nico,” Harbaugh said. “It’s working.”