Sorry if repost, I searched and didn't find a thread.

My basic understanding is that listing agents will no longer be able to advertise splits with buyer's agents. Or is it illegal to share those commissions now? Will commission rates go down overall, with sellers paying less than 3% to listing agents only, down from standard 6% overall?

Additionally my understanding is the settlement is a result of artificially held 6% fees that have been deemed excessive, where other countries are much less. Is that correct?

Really curious if any realtors have convictions or thoughts on how you will represent buyers? Fee based, hourly, etc?

Basically how do you think this whole process will look one year from today differently?

The Texas Revolution reached the depths of the very dark days in March of 1836. When we last left Gen Sam Houston, he was in Gonzales and learned of the fall of the Alamo and the slaughter of all Texican defenders. He gives the order for all Texicans to leave their homes, to head East escaping the Mexican Army under Santa Anna while burning everything in their path, this is known as the Runaway Scrape. The path the Texicans took as they fled largely followed the route of modern-day I-10. The order to flee and to burn everything was not popular though from a military standpoint, extremely prudent. Militarily it would stretch even further Santa Anna’s supply lines and harass his troops with small ambushes (more about one of those later)

Sadly, this is not the worst of the Revolution.


Massacre at Goliad.

South of Gonzalas near the Texas Coast and south of Gonzales, was the Presidio La Bahia, also called Fort Defiance in Goliad. Here under the command of Col James Fannin, there were stationed approximately 450 soldiers and militia. As one point, Col Fannin had attempted to reinforce the Alamo but when one of the wagons towing an artillery piece broke down, he returned to the walls of the Presidio.

James Fannin was a West Point graduate, so he had one of the stronger resumes in the Texas Army. However, he seemed very indecisive in his decision-making, and it would lead to disastrous results. That was coupled with Fannin overrating the skills of his men while seriously underrating the Mexican troops under Gen Jose Urrea approaching from the Southeast. Gen Sam Houston ordered the Presidio abandoned and for Fannin to march Northeast to join with the rest of the Texan Army. Col Fannin delayed until finally on the morning of the 19th of March at 9 AM he set off only at one point to stop and graze his oxen pulling the wagons and equipment.

Gen Urrea had landed in Matamoras late in 1835 and with his troops, began a march up the Texas coast. He enjoyed success against the Texicans he faced at Refugio and San Patricio before turning Northwest to the garrison at the Presidio La Bahia. Learning of Fannin’s attempt to retreat and join with Gen Sam Houston, Gen Urrea set out after Fannin. He would catch up with them on the prairie at Coleto on the afternoon of the 19th and into the 20th. Gen Urrea’s 80 calvary was able to stop the retreat of Fannin in an open prairie before he reached a tree line. Col Fannin formed a “moving square”, a tactical defensive formation. On the left flank were the Mobile Grays, formed by James Bonham from Mobile Alabama. The front of the formation was the Alabama Red Rovers, also of Alabama and known for their red uniforms, were formed by Dr Jack Shackelford who had answered the call to come to Texas and fight for independence in late 1835.

Gen Urrea had brought his artillery up and to bear. The Texicans, seriously outgunned, and taking losses voted to surrender as they were out of both food and water.

From there, they were marched back to Goliad where their fort became their prison. The Texicans fully expected to be released within weeks and returned to the United States. Gen Urrea sent word to Santa Anna imploring him to pardon the Texicans at Goliad. He left part of his forces to guard the Texicans at Goliad and proceeded to try to secure the town of Victoria.

On the morning of Palm Sunday, 27 March 1836, the 425-455 Texicans were broken into 3 columns and marched away from the Presidio along 3 separate roads having been told they were collecting firewood. There was a column of Mexican soldiers on one side of each road. After marching away, the Texicans were ordered to half then turn away from the Mexican soldiers where they were promptly shot in the back. Those who were not killed right away were clubbed or bayoneted to death. Approximately 40 men were in the chapel unable to walk, they would be killed in their beds.

Thanks to the efforts of Francita Alavez, known as the Angel of Goliad, approximately 20 men including Dr Shackleford were spared to act as medical personnel, interpreters, and laborers. Additionally, 75 men of the Nashville Battalion were spared and marched to Matamoras with the intent to send them back to New Orleans. Some faked their deaths or found some other way to get away.

Col Fannin had been forced to watch his men killed then he was tied to a chair and shot. The bodies of those killed were denied proper burial, stacked like cordwood and burned as a show of disrespect, denied a Christian burial.

This is the low point of the Road to Independence and some very dark times. It would be almost another month of the Runaway Scrape before the Texans would turn and fight Santa Anna.

The map depicts the routes of the Runaway Scrape, Gen Santa Anna’s pursuit and Gen Urra’s path up the Texas Coast.






Battle of San Felipe de Austin

The town of San Felipe de Austin was Stephen F Austin’s capital in Texas and the hub of Texican commerce and culture in the years before the revolution. It sat on the west bank of the Brazos River, less than a mile north of what would later become Interstate 10 near present-day Sealy Texas. At this point of the Brazos, small steamships could make their way inland for the trading of goods. William Travis would also conduct legal business in the town. It served as the site of many meetings of delegates who debated the future of Texas.



The Runaway Scrape was not popular with many and Gen Sam Houston was struggling to maintain control of his small but growing army. On March 29th the residents of San Felipe were ordered to grab what they could and join the scrape. The town was to be burned to deny its use by the Mexican Army. One of the more vocal critics of not standing to fight was Mosley Baker. An interesting man who had served as Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives before coming to Texas with his wife and family. He was part of the Consultation in 1835 as well as participating in the Battle of Gonzales and the Grass Fight as part of the Siege of Bexar.


On the 1st of March, 1836, Mosley was elected Captain of Company D of the 1st regiment of the Texas Volunteers, about 30 men. One of those 30 or so was my great-grandfather (X2), James Talbot Ross, son of James Jeffers Ross who was one of the Old 300. This small battle holds deep family meaning. On March 29th, with Houston continuing East, Mosely and his men would burn San Felipe de Austin to the ground then set up defensive positions on the East bank after also burning all available barges to cross the swollen with rain Brazos River.

Shortly thereafter, Capt Baker and his men took Santa Anna’s lead unit under fire and the army was forced to deploy. This cost Santa Anna more time and served to harass his army. Discretion being the better part of valor, when Santa Anna was finally able to bring up his artillery, Capt Baker and his men set off to rejoin Houston’s Army which they would do on the 14th of April. He and Company D were part of the Battle of San Jacinto. Baker would be elected to Texas’ 1st Congress after the war and then to the 3rd and 6th Congress, the 6th Congress as a US Congressman. He would also lead the Texas Militia in the Indian Wars and die of Yellow Fever in 1848.


The town of San Felipe was never rebuilt after the war, no one seems to know why. It is very close to current Sealy Texas and about 1 mile north of I 10. They have begun to restore some of the town and the museum there while small is very nice. You can walk the streets and see where Stephen F Austin’s office was. Well worth an hour or two side trip.


How did we get here?


In the early 1800s, America was largely an agricultural nation. For the majority of Americans, the best path to creating wealth was farming and ranching. Outside of Arkansas and Louisiana, America stopped at the Mississippi River.


Before 1824, Spain controlled Mexico. The govt realized the Comanche Indians were causing havoc with their raids and cattle rustling of the major Mexican cattle ranches in northern Mexico, south of the Rio Grande.

Attempts to get Mexican citizens to relocate to Texas had been met with tepid responses. This left 1st the Spanish rulers then the Mexicans with these huge tracts of land North of the Rio Grande which needed to be developed.

Moses Austin and his son, Stephen F Austin approached the Mexican government with a plan to re-settle Texas with emigrants from the United States as well as European settlers.

The Spanish and then later the Mexican governments realized using Americans as a buffer and a human shield against the Comanches was a far better idea than trying to station troops in Texas which was not a desired posting. Further, it would begin the process of developing the land from Indian dominated Wild West to a source of trade.

In 1824, Mexico was able to defeat the Spanish and take control of their own country.

Copying the US Constitution, Mexico created the Constitution of 1824 outlining the rights of her citizens. The supporters of the Constitution are referred to as Federalists. The Mexican Constitution of 1824 and the rights it afforded Mexican citizens were at the very core of the Texas Revolution.

Unhappy with “peasant rule”, powerful people called the Centrists backed Santa Anna who won the Presidency in 1832. He is known as the “hero” of the Mexican Revolution and refers to himself as the Napolean of the West.

In 1834, Santa Anna rescinded the Constitution of 1824 which led to rebellion in many Mexican states. This included Santa Anna’s home state of Vera Cruz as well as the state of Zacetecas. These rebellions were brutally put down by his Army.

The revocation of the Constitution of 1824 also means that all the lands granted to Texicans in the past have been revoked in addition to all rights being stripped away. All the work the Texicans and Tejanos had put into their lands was now lost.

• 2 Oct 1835 Come and Take It, Battle of Gonzales, the Lexington of the Texas Revolution. 18 Gonzales citizens held off a very lightly armed contingent of 100 Mexican lancers who were trying to reclaim a small cannot, given to the residents to help fight off Indian attacks.
• 3 Nov-Consultation begins
• 5 Dec Under Ben Milam and Frank Johnson, the Battle of Bexar begins. Texicans lay Siege to the Alamo and San Antonio hoping to drive the Mexican Army under Gen Cos (Santa Anna’s brother-in-law) out of the state.
• 
  
• 12 Dec, Mexicans at San Antonio were defeated. Texicans allow General Cos, to leave, sparing his troop's lives (over 1000) with the promise not to return and fight the Texicans. General Cos is not a man of his word.

1836

• 19 January, James Bowie and James Bonham returned to the Alamo with 30 men.
• 
  
• 1 February Elections for delegates to an Independence Convention held across Texas.
• 
  
• 3 February William Barrett Travis arrives at the Alamo with 30 men
• 
  
• 8 February Davey Crockett arrives at the Alamo with a dozen Tennessee Volunteers
• 
  
• 16 February Santa Anna and his army of approximately 2000-3000 cross the Rio Grande
• 
  
• 23 February The siege of the Alamo officially begins with the shelling of the Mission. The blood red, no quarter-given flag is raised over San Antonio
• 
  
• 24 February Travis pens his Victory or Death letter
• 
  
• 25 February Fannin attempts a relief mission with 100 troops from Goliad but when a wagon breaks, he turns back
• 
  
• 1 March On the same day the Independence Convention opens in Washington-on-the-Brazos, between 32-60 men of the Gonzales Mounted Volunteers arrive at the Alamo.
• 
  
• 2 March Texas Declares Independence.
• 
  
• 6 March in the pre-dawn hours, the Mexican army advances on 3 sides of the Alamo and the fight begins. It does not last long as the last 6 surviving defenders are executed. Susanna Dickenson and her daughter are spared along with a couple of slaves and other civilians. Dickenson is given a message to take to Gen Sam Houston.
• 
  
• 11 March Under the “Houston Oak” at Gonzales, Gen Sam Houston gives the order to begin the Runaway Scrape. Along the way he orders a scorched earth policy, starting with the burning of Gonzales to deny food and refuge to Santa Anna and his Army. While a wise move militarily as it stretched Santa Anna’s supply line heavily, it was very unpopular with the Texicans who wanted to stand and fight not run away.

Author’s Note:

As both a 6th and 7th Generation Texan, this work is a passion project of mine. I have used multiple sources and at times those sources disagree on dates and other details. We hope you enjoy the work and your understanding of Texas grows. One of my goals is to share some of the lesser-known stories about both events and people important in Texas history. In this case the story of JC Neill. You will learn about many including my Great Great Grandfather James Talbert Ross who fought at both San Felipe de Austin and San Jacinto. We are still trying to confirm that on my Grandmother’s side, Daniel Bird, my other great-great-grandfather also participated in the Revolution. Records indicate he was at San Jacinto as well. Talbot Ross’ father was one of the Old 300, James Jeffers Ross who settled north of Columbus and helped found the town of Fayetteville, the county seat of Fayette County. His name is on the town plaque by the Courthouse and there is a Texas Historical Marker for his land, known as Ross Prairie. Till I saw it, always thought these were family fish stories. He would be murdered in 1834 but was a Col in the War of 1812 under Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans. Prior to his death, he was listed in records as a Captain of the Texas Militia, this record can be seen at the very well-done museum at San Felipe, less than half a mile off I-10. Well worth a stop near the town of Sealy.

Another reason I have started this work is the recent attempts by revisionist historians to paint a far different and inaccurate picture of the Texas Revolution. Texas was not “stolen” from Mexico. This wasn’t about slavery but instead, a Revolution provoked by the tyrannical Santa Anna’s attempts at governmental overreach.

We have Barnes and Shaka going for Elite 8 appearances tomorrow. I find myself hoping both make it.

I like following our former head coaches and like most of them and root for them, even most of the assistants, with a few exceptions (Shawn Watson).

The only coaches I hoped fail after they left here were Mackovic and Strong. I've gotten over my hatred of Strong, so if he ever gets a head coaching job, I'd probably be indifferent to rooting for him. I still can't stand Mackovic, although he's an old now and likely won't coach again.

Google being Google.

Login to view embedded media

Now that’s something you don’t see everyday.

Right now, I would be a moron to sell my house unless I had to move for a job.

Login to view embedded media

oh boy..tough week for the mouth breathers

Login to view embedded media
cant wait for the responses from the "enlightened" class

for sure, the smiley face emoticon will be on overtime

#stoogery
#mouthagape
#OMB

and if you were paying attention , and we all know you were not
here's 1.900 ( and growing) real scientists including Noble Laureates asserting the long running scam concocted by the Democrats

"Just a Bit Outside" is brought to you by:

YOU!

Now is your chance to sponsor the column. Our previous sponsor paid for more than three months of sponsorship fees in the first two weeks of signing up. That can be you! Contact Orangebloods' new sales lead, Cody Clearman (codyclearman@orangebloods.com) if you want that kind of successful promotion for your business. Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity!

===========================================================================



Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers has decided this year – he’s going to take things just a little slower.

“I feel like I've been rushing my entire life,” Ewers told reporters after practice Wednesday. “So just take a year, slow down and not rush things.”

When I heard Ewers say that, I pictured him sitting on a porch overlooking a gorgeous hill country sunset with a lemonade in hand.

I don’t know if Ewers is a lemonade drinker – but that’s not really what he was talking about anyway. No, Ewers was reflecting on his decision to stick around Austin for one more year before moving on to the NFL. For him, the slower journey to the league made more sense.

“The main thing for me was just getting more experience,” Ewers said. “I had some people put together a pretty good chart on, obviously the more you play, and the more experience you have, the better you end up playing and in succeeding in the NFL. I just wanted to put myself in a better spot to be able to succeed at a high level once I, you know, hopefully get there.”

If you look at the NFL’s top 100 list (as voted by the players themselves), there are four quarterbacks in the top 10. Patrick Mahomes was number one, obviously. He was followed by Jalen Hurts at #3, Joe Burrow at #6 and Josh Allen at #8.

Of the four, three had at least 30 games experience and roughly 1,000 passing attempts in college.


Obviously, Allen is the outlier here and while he is easily one of the best players in the NFL, there were plenty of question marks about him coming out of college, especially after he had a less-than-stellar senior season at Wyoming. It should also be noted that if you included Allen’s junior college stats in the equation, he would go over both the 30 starts barrier and the 1,000 pass attempts.

Why did I include pass attempts? It’s pretty simple ... those are the number of times a quarterback has dropped back and had to make a decision in a live game day environment. It’s reps, pure and simple. And with reps comes experience. With experience comes the ability to master the craft.

Quinn Ewers has had 22 starts and put the ball up 690 times.

The only thing that could stop Ewers from getting to 30+ starts and more than 1,000 pass attempts is if he sustains an injury.

I wrote last week about how much work he has put in the weight room during winter conditioning in an attempt to stay healthy for a full season this year. Ewers acknowledged Wednesday that he still has more work to do.

“I think I was just a few pounds too light last year,” Ewers said. “I probably played every game around 200 pounds. I’m 205 now, trying to get up to 210 right now - and it has to be good weight, it can’t be that mullet weight I had back when I was 220.”

Ewers took a massive step forward from his first season (the 220-pound mullet weight season) to his second season. He’ll need to take another big step forward in his development this season. Or, to stick to the theme of the column, the game will need to slow down for him. If the short glimpses of spring practices are any indication, Ewers is on track to fulfill his dream.

@Alex Dunlap filed this report from Wednesday’s practice.


Going slow is not exactly in Ewers’ nature.

“I skipped my senior year (of high school) that went by fast,” Ewers said. “I was at Ohio State for a semester so that all went by fast also. So I just want to take my time throughout the whole process and enjoy being here, just being present, not looking too far forward.”

That Ewers had the wherewithal to pump the brakes on pursuing an NFL career shows a level of maturity that is promising for his future development. Not that it’s easy.

“It's hard because this is what you dream of,” Ewers said. “Since I was a kid, I always wanted to play in the NFL and succeed at a high level in the NFL. To get to that point I think it was just better for me to just stay another year.”

The decision was better for Ewers and it was better for Texas.

But did that mullet really weigh that much?

ARE THE LONGHORNS REALLY THE VILLAINS IN PORTLAND?



The Texas Longhorns women’s basketball team faces Gonzaga Friday night in a Sweet 16 matchup. The fact that the Horns are the 1 seed is a testament and reward for their 30-4 regular season run.

But while the Horns have to board a plane for the more than four-hour flight to Portland, Gonzaga could drive in almost the same amount of time to get there from their hometown of Spokane, Washington.

“It seems to be my luck. All of my one seeds have to go play somebody else on their home floor,” said Texas head coach Vic Schaefer. “It kind of defeats the purpose a little bit, to be quite honest.”

The NCAA settled on a format that sends half the field to Albany, New York and the other half of the field to Portland, Oregon.

The result is that Gonzaga could have a bit of a homecourt advantage over Texas despite the fact that the Zags are a 4 seed and the Horns are a 1 seed.

“I do think it needs to be evaluated because you’re punishing teams that are supposed to be rewarded,” Schaefer said. “Gosh, shock me and put something in the Midwest where everybody comes to the middle instead of everybody going left and everybody going right.”

But whether he’s turning left or right, Schaefer says his team will be ready to go.

“At the end of the day, I’ll take this team anywhere. We’ll play anybody, anywhere,” said Schaefer. And he added that having a bunch of angry fans yelling at them will only get his team even more riled up.

“They like playing the villain,” said Schaefer. “You ask Aaliyah Moore, she loves playing the villain. I do too. So we’ll go out there and be ready for whatever happens.”

Moore chuckled when told what her coach said about her being the villain – but she didn’t disagree.

“I put us up against anybody any day,” said Moore. “We’ll be the villain, that’s perfectly fine.”

And freshman star guard Madison Booker sounded like she’s ready as well.

“It’s cool to be around other people that are screaming at you, that don’t like you,” Booker said. “It’s a cool experience.”

THE NASTY SIDE OF LIFE

Schaefer’s willingness to get rowdy with fans comes with a limit. He addressed the situation that Utah faced last week as they were preparing to play Gonzaga in the second round of the tournament.

Login to view embedded media
The Utah players (who were forced to stay more than a half hour away from Spokane in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho) were walking to dinner when a vehicle pulled up alongside them and the driver began yelling racial insults at them.

After dinner, they left and the same vehicle, with more people inside it now, pulled up again and there were more racial epithets yelled at the players and staff.

"As can be imagined, many students, staff and other members of the traveling party were deeply disturbed and fearful after the incidents, in what should be a safe and enjoyable experience," Utah officials said in a statement. "Out of concern for their well-being and safety, we worked with Gonzaga and the NCAA to move to alternate accommodations in Spokane."

Schaefer said he and his staff have discussed how to protect the Texas players from a similar situation this weekend.

“We’ll try to protect our kids as much as we can, whatever that looks like, whether it’s not walking to a restaurant or something like that,” Schaefer said. “There’s idiots all over the world. I’m disheartened really for the coach at Utah, I know her. That’s supposed to be a great experience and obviously they didn’t have a great experience and that’s disheartening.”

Schaefer said he didn’t know who was to blame for the incident, but he seemed to imply that the NCAA could have done better than to move the Utah team out to Idaho instead of finding accommodations closer to the tournament site in Spokane.

“When there’s a place that has a reputation for that, why would you subject the opportunity to have something like that happen,” asked Schaefer. “I think we can do a better job, I think we have better options.

“We as adults, we as parents, we as coaches, administrators, our job is to protect these people, these young kids. That’s our job. That’s my number one job every day. I say this in recruiting all of the time. I do not want to have to make a phone call at three or four in the morning because that is not a good call. And you know what, I’ve never had to make it (knocks on wood). But that’s because I know more than probably my kids want me to know about their business. That’s my job. My job is to protect them. I think all of us, in this scenario, we need to make sure that if this is about the student-athlete experience, we need to provide them with a good experience.”

TRANSFER PORTAL MADNESS



If there is an upside to Texas losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament, it’s that it gives head coach Rodney Terry more time to focus on rebuilding his roster in the transfer portal (which is now open).

Unfortunately for Schaefer, it means juggling the portal while also preparing for the Sweet 16 and (hopefully) the Elite Eight.

“It’s hard for me right now, I can tell you,” Schaefer said. “We meet every morning and talk about it. I want to know what the update is, but it’s really difficult.”

Fortunately for Vic, he had someone nearby who went through a similar situation earlier this year and had a word or two of advice for him – Texas football head coach Steve Sarkisian.

“He was getting ready for a national championship semifinal and having to recruit at the same time out of the portal and it’s hard,” Schaefer said.

Schaefer, like many football coaches who were dealing with bowl preps and the portal at the same time, would like to see the NCAA change the timing of the portal window until after the season.

“I don’t know if they think that’s leveling the playing field or whatever, but it’s certainly not the same for everybody,” said Schaefer. “At the end of the day, right now, for a team like us, I’m sure for 15 other teams, it’s a little bit of a challenge.”

Schaefer didn’t just talk to Sark about juggling the preparations and the portal – he sounded like Sark too when he was talking about what he’s looking for when evaluating potential new Longhorns.

“We do our homework,” Schaefer said. “Some coaches don’t care, I do. I’m not taking a kid that’s all about their stats. They might be really good players, but if they care more about their stats than they do winning, I’m not even calling them. There are kids like that in the portal now, today, right now as I stand here. There are people that think we need to be calling so-and-so. I’m not calling ‘em. When I can call three or four people and they all give me the same answer, I wish them good luck. I’m just not doing it. Because I don’t have that here. The kids that I have here, I need to get more kids like them.”

That should be good news for Horns fans because not only is Texas a one seed in the NCAA tournament, but they are returning many of the players that are starting on the team – including the aforementioned Madison Booker.

And if you ask Aaliyah Moore, that should scare everyone else.

“She (Booker) is a pro,” Moore said. “Not many kids can do what Maddy can do, she’s different. Being around her every day and she’s only a freshman. It’s insane.

“She has so much more to learn and grow from but when she does get it and that light bulb clicks, she’ll be unstoppable. She’s already unstoppable but when she reaches that level, it’s over for everyone.”

TWEETS OF INTEREST:

As if Texas’ baseball season wasn’t bad enough … we got news late Tuesday night that we might have seen the last of Tanner Witt.

Login to view embedded media
Witt has, sadly, struggled to come back from Tommy John surgery. The fact that he may not pitch again for the Longhorns is truly tragic. That guy bleeds burnt orange.

It is also a blow to a team that has been … shall we say … erratic?

Just when it looked like things might finally be coming together after winning five of their last six games, the Longhorns had a stunning loss to Texas A&M Corpus Christi Tuesday night.

The sky isn’t falling. The Horns are still a respectable 15-10 on the season. But, let’s be honest, respectable is not the standard.

Look, I’m not going to sit here and call for head coach David Pierce’s head. Frankly, that would be ridiculous at this point in the season. Let’s see how the rest of the year plays out before breaking out the pitchforks and torches. But I do have serious doubts that we’re going to see this team turn around and start to consistently play at a high level.

Texas will, in all likelihood, make the NCAA tournament and play in a regional. But as of now, it isn’t looking good for them to be one of the 16 teams selected to host a regional – and that makes it much less likely that they would then move on to play in the super regionals.

Is merely making a regional good enough?

If I’m being honest, I’m not sure it’s bad enough for Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte to give Pierce the pink slip. But Del Conte really needs to ask himself, does he really want a program that is floundering and has more question marks than answers as it moves into the SEC? There will be a lot of interest in UT sports next year playing in the new conference. It will be a great time to raise money from excited boosters. There is an opportunity cost for not making a change this summer, if you think that change is going to need to be made eventually.

##############################

Texas women’s swimming and diving wound up with a second-place finish in the national championships last weekend.

Login to view embedded media
UT still has work to do but it is in position to recapture the Director’s Cup trophy as the most successful athletic program in the NCAA.

Login to view embedded media
##############################

Login to view embedded media
The NFL draft is just about three weeks away and ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller put out a seven-round mock draft Wednesday. In general, I find mock drafts like this to be incredibly silly. It is nearly impossible to correctly predict what will happen in the first round, let alone all seven rounds. But if Miller is even close to correct, then it will be a good draft for the Texas Longhorns.

I’ve pulled all of the UT players selections out to save you a little time.

ROUND 1
15. Indianapolis Colts: Byron Murphy II
28. Buffalo Bills: Adonai Mitchell
32. Kansas City Chiefs: Xavier Worthy

ROUND 2
54. Cleveland Browns: T’Vondre Sweat
56. Dallas Cowboys: Jonathon Brooks

ROUND 3
69. Los Angeles Chargers: Ja’Tavion Sanders
81. Seattle Seahawks: Jaylan Ford
84. Pittsburgh Steelers: Christian Jones

ROUND 7
240. Carolina Panthers: Jordan Whittington

Is going tomorrow?? I am going with my son my first opening day ever. He got tickets from one of his clients. (he's a personal trainer at the Houstonian) Way excited.

54-46 UNC end 1H. Harrison Ingram us a guy I always wish we had gotten. And @GQ03 has mentioned Bama’s Rylen Griffen for years now

I doubt right wing media is sharing his testimony so I'll share it here. In 2018 or so, Lev Parnas and Rudy Giuliani traveled to Ukraine to look for dirt on Joe Biden. He testified yesterday that they found no evidence from any legitimate sources.

I wonder how Republicans will smear and tarnish his reputation now like they've done with Cassidy Hutchinson and others who have turned on Trump and Co.

Pro-Palestinian protesters clash with NYPD outside ritzy Biden fundraiser


Chicago Democrat National Convention should be delicious.

The Bad: Was kind of a shitty and partisan thing to do.
The Good: Republicans are finally learning from the Democrats how the political game is played.

Excellent move.

Five-star safety Jonah Williams dropped a group of 12 finalists back in November, but the picture could be getting a bit more clear for the Galveston Ball standout.

Williams told Orangebloods.com that he’s planning to cut his list to five or six schools, possibly by the end of March, and he already has four official visits locked in. Those trips – to Oregon, USC, LSU and Ohio State – could give us a sneak peek as to which programs are in good standing.

Absent from that list are three schools expected to be contenders – Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Texas. Williams says he’s not intent on leaving the state, just like he’s not locked in to stay close to home. He’s simply willing to go anywhere in the country that provides him the best opportunity.

“I’m just willing to open my mind, start new things, start new beginnings,” Williams said. “That’s why I’m not really all in to staying in Texas.”

Though he doesn’t have an official visit set to Texas, Williams will be in Austin on April 6 to watch a Longhorn spring practice.

“Texas fits in my top schools. I really like Texas,” Williams said. “I really like the coaching staff. Coach (Blake) Gideon, he’s always staying in contact. I’m just (going on the visit) to build stronger relationships with the coaches.”

At one point, Texas was recruiting the 6-3, 200-pound Williams as a linebacker. The Longhorns are now recruiting him at his preferred position, safety.

“At first they were trying to move me to linebacker, but when coach Choate left (Gideon) was like ‘I’m going to try to keep you in my room as long as possible,’” Williams said. “Coach Gideon is a great coach. I feel like he can build me up to go to the next level.”

Though he’s keeping an open mind to all the schools on his list, especially those he’ll be visiting this spring and summer, Williams notes that two schools really have his attention.

“I really like Oregon and OU. They’re a big part of my recruitment right now,” Williams said.

Also a star on the baseball field, Williams hopes to play both sports in college. Programs like USC, Oregon, Texas and Oklahoma are recruiting him for both sports.

“It’s very important. God-willing, I’ll be able to play both at whatever school I choose to commit to,” Williams said. “Baseball is a very big part of where I’ll be committing.”

Williams is the No. 13-ranked player in the country by Rivals.com and is the No. 4-ranked player in the state of Texas. He’s the nation’s top-ranked safety prospect.

Login to view embedded media

Going for the first time with family. Any recs on where to hit up with kids 9-13? I’d blast food pics if I knew how. Sorry

Was watching some old Johnny Carson & David Letterman the other day. First of all, no can touch Johnny Carson...guy is the gold standard of Late Night Talk. David Letterman...2nd best.

Now...current late night talk show hosts...
Does anyone watch late night talk anymore?

Most just seem so terribly bad. Stephen Colbert is supposedly the #1 guy now. Really? Really? He's awful in my book.

Seth Meyers...terrible

Jimmy Kimmel...I feel like he could be great but his over the top hate for Trump is just too much. I mean Kimmel used to host the fvcking man show which was greatness but he's completely done a 180 now.

Jimmy Fallon...not super polished & is goofy as fvck, but he stays most away from politics & likes to have a good time. I actually like him better than Conan O'Brian

John Oliver?...fvck no.

Anyone still watching Late Night talk?

Who you like?

Just a week ago, I asked 20 questions about this spring. Although it's only been a week, we've already learned some answers to the questions. Not all of them, but definitely some of them.

Let's go through them.

What is the running back pecking order after CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue?

True freshman Christian Clark is already getting run with the second-team offense and thrived in the role on Saturday. Jerrick Gibson is behind him and the other backs on campus can likely be safely listed as behind the two freshmen.

What will the pecking order at wide receiver look like beyond Cook and Bond?

Deandre Moore has been the No. 1 guy in the slot in every practice, while Bond has been rotating between the first- and second-team He'll be more than okay. In the meantime, the apparent importance of Moore to the offense right now is like a flashing neon billboard.

Just how good are Cam Williams and Trevor Goosby?

Pretty damn good. Goosby continues to turn heads in the best ways. At worst, the Longhorns might go into this season feeling like they have three tackles they can play and count on.

Are any of the offensive linemen from the Class of 2023 (outside of Goosby) going to push for a spot on the two-deep?

Andre Cojoe is getting a lot of work as the second-team right tackle.

Is Ethan Burke going to get reps at Jack?

You betcha. He's emerging as the most important defensive lineman on the team.

Is there more to Justice Finkley and J'Mond Tapp going into their third season?

Maybe, Finkley looks like he's got a little more juice in terms of explosiveness and Tapp’s body is leaner. Stay tuned.

Is Jahdae Barron going to play outside of the slot?

Slot.

Which of the true freshmen are ready to play right away?

Christian Clark, Ryan Wingo, Aaron Butler, Alex January, Colin Simmons, Zina Umeozulu, Kobe Black, Xavier Filsaime and Wardell Mack are smart bets at this point.

No. 2 - More spring football stuff ...

* It is no surprise to me that Christian Clark is making waves in camp. He was always undervalued as a prospect (I personally rated him as a super blue-chip) and I thought it was obvious on his film. He doesn't have good feet ... he has GREAT feet.

* As a guy that owns a lot of Ryan Niblett stock, it looks like I didn't buy enough DeAndre Moore stock. We should have known something was up when they gave him jersey number "Zero".

* Kobe Black is already opening eyes. E-x-c-e-l-l-e-n-t.

* Just offer Indiana defensive tackle Philip Blidi. He makes the team immediately better upon arrival. We're talking about a guy with an 82-inch wingspan, 10-inch hands and athleticism that ensures that he hasn't come close to maxing out as a player.

* Sydir Mitchell getting passes by Alex January three practices into camp is not a good sign for Mitchell. He's an out-of-state kid that is slightly slipping on the depth chart when he needs to be rising.

* Former Wake Forest transfer Gavin Holmes has to be asking some questions about his role this season. This is a guy that wants to show off his skills to NFL scouts and he's probably closer to the third team than the first team.

* Can we just admit that together as a collective that Michael Taaffe is a plus-player. He might not be a second-day NFL guy, which is the minimum level you're hoping for, but he's a good player.

* It's never getting better than right now for Savion Red and that's not a good thing if you're him.

* If the coaches could find more room, I'd give serious consideration to finding one more linebacker depth piece.

* Forgive me Zina Umeozulu, I should have rated you higher.

* So far, so good for Trey Moore. I find that to be seriously encouraging.

* For all of the athleticism that Jaray Bledsoe brings to the table, we all have to remember that he's making the adjustment from playing at Marlin High School. It's probably going to require a little more patience.

No. 3 - Rodney Terry's first season is over and it was ... ok?

In the end, the Texas basketball season ended about where it probably should have.

Short of the Sweet 16. Short of any measure of success that will be remembered in future years. For most of the season, the Longhorns have been in scramble mode as they resided somewhere on the Tournament bubble with a conference record that hovered around .500.

In no real shape, form or fashion was the 2023-24 season a real success. Of course, it wasn't an out-and-out failure, either. The team made the Tournament and won a game before bowing out against a better outfit coached by the best Texas basketball coach in the program's history, who is no longer in Austin because he had seven consecutive seasons that looked just like the one Terry put together.



Ironic, huh?

In reality, all you need to know about how successful this season was is this:

a. Terry wouldn't have gotten the head job last year if these had been the results with last year's Chris Beard-built team.

b. Terry will eventually lose his job if he doesn't produce more.

There's no real time to worry about what did or didn't happen with this season because the Portal is open and the building of next year's team must take place right now. The biggest area of concern with the hire of Terry was that he had zero real experience of building an ultra-successful team as a head coach. Being able to put this concern to bed will be the thing that defines his career in Austin.

At the very least, Dylan Disu, Max Abmas and Brock Cunningham are gone. Who knows what will happen with sophomore Dillon Mitchell, whose development fell off a cliff in such a way that he better resembles Humpty Dumpty than a future lottery pick. Outside of junior Chendall Weaver, senior yo-yo guard Tyrese Hunter and super senior Kadin Shedrick, there's not much returning from this year's team that instills much confidence for the future. Those three, along with super freshman Tre Johnson feel like the foundation of next year's team.

Boosting that foundation with high-level transfer pieces from the Portal is paramount. If Terry can pull it off, the program has a chance to take a step forward. Without it, a season similar to this one could be in the cards.

It's all on Terry. This is what the job asks for. A year ago, he did enough to make this team pretty good, but rarely was it better than that. More is expected at Texas.

Just ask Barnes.

No. - 4 - A few more Texas Hoops scattershots ...

* With the season on the line, Terry seemed to have determined months ago that he was going to have Abmas come off a screen to shoot a three, no matter the circumstances. No matter how poorly Abmas was shooting (he was giving the ball up to Brock Cunningham at times in the second half). No matter how well-covered it was. No matter how off-balance the shot was. No matter how difficult of a shot it might be. That was Rodney Terry's "season-on-the-line" move.

* I really enjoyed Abmas for most of the season, but it feels like he was exposed for his flaws in the final games of the season, especially against Tennessee. He'll finish his career as a great college player, but the reasons for him still being a college player in 2024 were revealed in “tough-to-accept" ways. He's an easy guy to root for (and boy was I), but he blinked when Texas couldn't afford him to do so.

* Tip of the cap to former Orangebloods athlete Dylan Disu. It sucks that his college career ended with a subpar night, but he turned himself into one of the best players in the Big 12 this year.

* I think you'd love to have Chendall Weaver coming off the bench next year as one of the best 6th men in the SEC. He comes across to me like one of those guys that does well watching the game unfold for a few minutes before coming in and once he comes in, he changes the entire mood on the court with his relentlessness.

* How in the hell did Weaver's 3-point percentage fall from 40.2% as a freshman at UTA on 2.6 attempts per night to 23.7% this season on 1.1 attempts per game?

* At the beginning of February, Dillon Mitchell was sitting on 7 double-doubles on the season. In his final 11 games of the season, he had none. Hell, he had double-digit rebounds in only one of his final 11 games. Double-digits in points only in 3 of his final 10 games. His game just doesn't seem to have developed at all and he's simply not a plus-player at the highest college levels as this season concludes.

* The move from Iowa State just hasn't worked out like Tyrese Hunter thought that it would.

No. 5 – Too much for Bama to handle...

It never felt like Texas was really under any threat from Alabama on Sunday afternoon because the Tide couldn't seize control of UT's kryptonite, which is the three--point shot. When Texas struggles in games, it's usually because the other team is bombing away from downtown, while the Longhorns only nibble on the shots from outside.

The Tide tried to create double-penetration that led to wide-open outside shots in the corner, but they simply couldn't make them. You aren't likely going to beat Texas without a big advantage in outside shooting.

Meanwhile, the Longhorns have to shoot better in the next round another night, making only 40% from the field and 20% from downtown will prove to be its undoing, if there is an undoing.

No. 6 - One step backward, two steps forward...

The more you watch the Texas Baseball team, the more it feels like you're watching the Texas men's basketball team.

It's definitely not the greatest team in the world and it has limitations. But, the team has guts.

After dropping the series opener to Baylor on Friday in extra innings, largely because they couldn't get enough runs across home plate with multiple bases loaded, no out situations, the Longhorns came out and dominated to the tune of a combined 21-3 scoreline over the final two games.

Whatever Texas is or isn't, the Longhorns are only a game back in the loss column in the Big 12 standings behind Kansas State coming out of the weekend. It feels like a four-team league with KSU (5-1), Texas (4-2), Oklahoma (7-2) and West Virginia (4-2). Every game that Texas has against those three teams is in front of it.

Texas has won 5 of its last 6 games. With a road trip to Manhattan scheduled for next week, I'm willing to withhold judgments to see if this team can keep taking steps forward.

Don't judge me.

No. 7 - Here come the okies ...



As you can see, the Texas softball team has it cooking. Ranked second in the nation, we're talking about one of the nation's very best.

Yet, the next two weekends are going to define this season entering the post-season.

Up first, the Longhorns travel to Stillwater next weekend to take on No. 4 Oklahoma State in a three-game set. Following that little trial of tribulations, the Longhorns host No. 1 Oklahoma in a three-game set

Buckle up, Longhorns. The season begins in earnest in four days.

No. 8 – BUY or SELL …

stevo888 said:

B/S both Rodney Terry and David Pierce will be coaching at Texas next year.

Click to expand...

(Buy) Terry isn't going anywhere, so this ultimately comes down to whether we think Piece is going to do enough to keep his job. It's probably a limb to climb out on, but I'll say he keeps his job for another season.

HOOKEM VET said:

B/S: Next year the DBs will be an upgrade but it’s due more to the players in place vs. the coaches changing specific strategies or adjustments and implementing to adapt to evolving trends/tactics in the sport. If sell - how confident are you in the coaches effectiveness?

Click to expand...

(Buy) There's been a talent upgrade. It matters. A lot.

Ipse said:

B/S: If several freshmen start and/or are heavy rotation guys—e.g. Wingo starts at Z, January is one of the 2s at DT, Clark gets significant carries, Black supplants Holmes—that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Click to expand...

(Buy) I don't know what anyone is going to start, but upgrading the two-deep with young bad-ass talent is always a win.

Live_To_Hunt said:

B/S: With all the buzz around the freshman RBs so far one of them will get over 20% snap participation this year, on offense?

Click to expand...

(Sell) Unless there's an injury, I don't think 20% will happen.

Fish-Horn said:

B/S-CDC asks you for advice on RT and you suggest….letting him go NOW!

Click to expand...

(Sell) You can't give the guy a season and bail on him.

LuvLeos said:

B/S: Heat seeking missile, Michael Taffee, pulls a Bill Bates and starts a game at safety.

Click to expand...

(Buy) Yeah, if you set the over/under at 0.5, I'll take the over.

qwanseeker said:

At least 4 transfers out in the Spring window.
At least 2 transfers in.

Click to expand...

(Buy) That seems about right, but the out number will be more like 6.

BCASTANEDA05 said:

B/S: Johntay will have a bigger year than Bond

B/S: Derek Williams at safety will have a bigger year than Malik Muhammad at Corner

B/S: if I set the line at 1.5 on Offensive lineman entering the portal post-spring, you take the more

B/S: Once Arch Manning takes over suddenly his boy Will Randle will come out of nowhere due to their relationship and previous playing experience together

Click to expand...

(Quadruple sell) Cook could end up having a bigger year than Bond and the same is true about Williams vs. Muhammad, but I favor the other two at the moment. I think we might still be a year away from a large number of OL leaving. As for Randle, I just don't really see it.

Texas_Cubs_Fan said:

The Rick Barnes years are as good as it will ever get for Texas Basketball.

Click to expand...

(Buy) Only hope and bias would tell you otherwise right now.

ARD438 said:

B/S - the 2024 WRs/TE collectively will out perform the 2023 WRs/TE but mainly to do improvement of Quinn

Click to expand...

(Buy) I think the Texas passing game will get better due to the steps taken by Ewers, who still has plenty of room for growth coming into the year.

No. 9 – Scattershooting all over the place …

... Haters be damned, good for Shaka Smart making the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2013. Now he's just a win over an 11-seed (NC State) away from the Elite 8.

... KU fans are starting to turn on Bill Self, who has missed the Sweet 16 in 4 of the last 5 seasons.

... Iowa State better bring its A-game in the next round because Illinois is not to be toyed with.

... What could the Washington Post have on Kim Mulkey that is worse than the stuff we've already seen with our own eyes? Shocker! She's a horrible person.

... 32 days until the NF Draft...

... I did not have Lincoln Riley taking Kirby Smart's cornbread in the state of Georgia in recruiting on my Bingo card.
Login to view embedded media
... This is a multi-quarter suspension in UT's new league, right?
Login to view embedded media
... Austin FC is dootie.

... The Houston Dynamo stealing all three points at the death was the highlight of the MLS weekend.
Login to view embedded media
No. 10 - Top 10: Movie Fights ...

I don't want to say that I went into the new Road House (available on Amazon) remake with high hopes, but I went in with some hope. Push come to shove (no pun intended), I'd say that the remake lives up to a very small amount of hope.

Will it ever make us forget the original ... even for half a second? God, no. Conor McGregor made sure of that. The only thing that would have made his performance redeemable is if he had thrown Kim Mulkey through a table. Alas, she's not in the movie, which feels like a missed opportunity.

Still, I came away from the movie inspired to do this week's Top 10, which focuses on fights in movies.

Here are the rules: No guns. No boxing rings or MMA octagons or Tournaments. No Superheros. No wars. Everything else goes.

Let's get ready to rumble... it's tiiiiiiiime.

Honorable mention: Nada vs. Frank Armitage (They Live), Riggs vs. Joshua (Lethal Weapon), Dutch vs. The Predator (Predator), Brad Pitt vs. Elwin “Chopper” David (Snatch), John McClane vs. Karl (Die Hard), News Anchors vs News Anchors (Anchorman), The Bride vs. Elle Driver (Kill Bill: Volume 2) and Lee vs. O'Hara (Enter the Dragon)

10. The Bride vs The Crazy 88 (Kill Bill Volume I)

I feel like this one might be underrated, but it's the second best fight of the Kill Bill series, although I understand why some would have it ranked first.

Login to view embedded media
9. Jason Bourne vs, Desh the Hitman (The Bourne Ultimatum)

The best of the Jason Bourne throw-downs. Don't bring a knife to a magazine fight.

Login to view embedded media
8. Daniel Larusso vs. Chozen (The Karate Kid II)

Yes, Daniel vs. Johnny could have easily have been on the list, but it felt a little too much like the boxing/MMA competitions I was trying to avoid. Instead, "This not tournament, this for real," Mr. Miyagi says as Daniel prepares to enter combat for his life.

Login to view embedded media
7. Indiana Jones vs. Nazi mechanic (Raiders of the Lost Arc)

It has to be somewhere on the list, right? Indy kicked him, bit him and threw sand in his face. It was a "by any means needed" affair.

Login to view embedded media
6. Maximus vs. Tigris Of Gaul (Gladiator)

This could have easily have made the top 5. Easily.

Login to view embedded media
5. The Bride vs. Gogo Yubari (Kill Bill: Volume 1)

Gogo had The Bride on the ropes as close as anyone... while wearing a school girl outfit.

Login to view embedded media
4. Obi-Wan Kenobi/Qui-Gon Jinn vs. Darth Maul (Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace)

The best fight sequence in any of the Star Wars movies.

Login to view embedded media
3. Dalton vs. Jimmy (Road House)

"I used to (****) guys like you in prison" is fantastic trash talk to throw out there exactly 57 seconds before your throat gets ripped out.

Login to view embedded media
2. Bruce Leroy vs. Sho'Nuff (The Last Dragon)

I can't tell you how many times I've referenced this sight and the "glow." I won't hear a single negative word about it.

Login to view embedded media
1. Philo Beddoe vs. Jack Wilson (Any Which Way You Can)

These two fought for so long that they took a halftime break to share a beer together. Hell, the fight is so long that I can't even find a clip on Youtube that covers the whole thing.

Login to view embedded media

He'll be in his fifties when he gets out. Assuming it's going to be minimum security and I'm sure he's got money stashed away that nobody could find.

I think they were shooting for 30-40 years, which would have been better. Max I believe was over 100 years.

https://www.nbcnews.com/business/bu...ars-prison-orchestrating-ftx-fraud-rcna145286

Sad deal for Moore and another player from Michigan's Natty Championship team that will not be on the field against Texas on September 7.

He has been a three-year starter for Michigan, and was named a third-team All-Big Ten selection by league coaches during the 2023 season.

The pies are fantastic. Especially the sweet potato and the key lime. They deliver in a lot of Houston areas for free. Really good folks as well. Thought I would help them out by posting here.

https://www.greenlionnaturalfoods.com/

Just said on the Rangers vs Cubs broadcast. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Baffling that he is still in office.