When Houston Texans Chair and CEO Cal McNair was accidentally left hanging by star quarterback C.J. Stroud on national television, the internet quickly latched onto the moment. Rather than treating it as something to manage or correct, McNair chose to join the conversation – responding in real time with a fan-first, culturally fluent video that extended the moment and became one of the most impactful social posts in Texans history, generating over 23 million video views across owned channels and spreading organically through national sports and culture accounts. Cal McNair recognized the missed Sunday Night Football high-five before the moment hardened into a narrative. By recreating the moment, he participated directly – without over-engineering the response.
This approach worked because it was earned. Over time, Cal’s own social presence has consistently shown up as culturally relevant and genuine – creating credibility before moments like this ever occur. That trust was built through actions such as becoming the first NFL owner to host a Reddit AMA and engaging fans in real time around moments like uniform leaks. Because of that history, when ownership stepped into this moment, it didn’t register as a stunt. It felt authentic – and fans responded accordingly.
With that clarity, Cal McNair proactively reached out to the Texans social and digital team, signaling clear intent rather than reactive approval. After exploring multiple ideas, the team aligned quickly around a single narrative with a clear payoff.
The execution was intentionally restrained. Keeping his hand raised throughout the day was absurd but played straight. The humor emerged from the situation rather than from performance. One creative rule guided the entire execution: no one else could give him the coveted high five.
That discipline turned the meme into a story. There’s a beginning (the national TV clip), a middle (Cal’s quest around the team’s facility, still waiting), and a satisfying payoff at the end (C.J. Stroud completing the long-awaited high-five). By extending the moment instead of correcting it, the narrative shifted from potential ridicule to celebration. Instead of “LOL he got left hanging,” the new narrative became “Look how fun and unified this team is, starting from the top.”
This wasn’t self-deprecation. It was self-assurance. The response signaled confidence, comfort with the moment, and trust in the audience.
This was never about controlling a narrative – it was about meeting fans where they already were and trusting them to carry it forward. Because of that choice, the moment traveled organically and the narrative shifted because we gave fans a better version of the moment to share.
STRATEGY: A self-aware, real-time storytelling strategy built around participation, restraint, and earned credibility – extending a viral moment by joining fan culture rather than managing it.
EXECUTION: A compressed, leadership-driven sprint where ownership, social, digital, and public relations aligned quickly around a clear creative rule – enabling speed without sacrificing judgment. From identifying the moment to publish, the response came together in just over 24 hours.
The response delivered outsized organic performance by traveling well beyond the Texans’ owned audience. The simplicity of the premise and restraint of the execution made the content easy to understand, easy to share, and easy to amplify – often outperforming the team’s original posts when reposted by third parties.
Breakout Reach and Discovery:
High-Quality Engagement:
Earned Amplification and Cultural Pickup:
Overall Impact:
$1.06M+ in total brand value, including:
