Texas
No. 14 Texas A&M not underestimating lowly Mississippi State ahead of trip to Starkville
Texas A&M football charges into the second half of the season sporting a 5-1 record and a No. 14 national ranking after winning its last five games. The Aggies look to build upon their 3-0 mark in conference play when they hit the road to face SEC cellar-dweller Mississippi State Saturday at 3:15 p.m.
Starkville, Miss. hasn’t been a kind place to A&M, though, with the Aggies dropping four of their last five games at Davis Wade Stadium. Here are a few takeaways from Monday’s weekly press conference as coach Mike Elko previewed the matchup.
Aggies not taking Bulldogs likely
Mississippi State’s unassuming 1-5 record and 0-3 mark in SEC action may lead one to think that A&M shouldn’t have its hands full on Saturday. However, one doesn’t need to look far back for evidence of what the Bulldogs are capable of. The same team that got blown out by Toledo at home hung tough with No. 5 Georgia on the road this past weekend in a 41-31 defeat.
Elko understands the parity between teams in the conference this season and the weekly potential for upsets, as seen with then-No. 6 Ole Miss’ loss to Kentucky on Sept. 28 and Vanderbilt’s stunning upset of No. 1 Alabama a week later. Beyond the talent of other programs, Elko challenged his team to reflect on its own recent struggles against its SEC foes, pointing to the Aggies’ 42-24 loss in StarkVegas in 2022.
“This group of kids, the last time they went down to Starkville, it wasn’t pretty,” Elko said. “I don’t even know that we need to look at other people. I think we just need to be aware of our own history and understand what it takes to be successful, why we’re doing things to give ourselves a chance to have success and understanding that if we stop for any second, we’re going to put all of that at risk.”
The Bulldogs are battle-tested, though, with top-5 road matchups in their past two games against No. 1 Texas and Georgia. They’ve entered both games with freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren under center, who threw for three touchdowns at Georgia.
“They’re a solid team,” sophomore linebacker Taurean York said. “You’d be a fool to look at their record and think that they were a bad team. They played some stout teams as well. My hat goes off to the true freshman quarterback. … You’ve got to have some guts to be a kid fresh out of high school going against those two top-5 teams, so my hat’s off to him, for sure.”
A&M will have to prepare for the constant din of cowbells ringing when it reaches Davis Wade Stadium, and Elko said the Aggies are preparing for the road atmosphere with speakers blaring at practice. Playing cowbell noise over the speakers is a line he won’t cross, though.
“I swore I would never do that to our guys,” Elko said with a laugh.
A&M seeing buy-in to team culture
Developing a quality on-field product is only part of a head coach’s job when he takes over a program. He’s also expected to install a winning culture in the locker room, a task that Elko has taken upon himself by instilling hard work, effort and discipline. Halfway through the season, he said he’s already seeing the players embrace this mindset and jump in head-first.
“I think the culture in terms of togetherness, trying to do things the right way, trying to do things for each other, I’m extremely proud of our guys and how they’ve taken to that,” Elko said. “I tell them this all the time, when a new coach comes in and he’s talking a different way, kids have a choice. … They can just kind of let it go in one ear and out the other and [say], ‘Yeah, I’m not really interested in this, this is not my thing.’ These kids haven’t done that.
“I think they’ve bought in to everything that we believe a football program should be about. You see that continually show up in how they fight for each other, and that part is really, really cool to see. Really proud of that and I think that plays a huge part of it.
Six games remain on the schedule, though, and Elko realizes the job isn’t finished. Rather, it’s a daily process that he said needs to be brought to the facility throughout the week as the Aggies look to make a push for the College Football Playoff.
“Now, it’s, can we continue to have the right frame of mind?” Elko said. “Can we continue to have that championship mindset? Can we continue to have that growth [and] focus every single day as we go into this back half of the season? That’s a whole other challenge in and of itself, but in terms of the togetherness, I’m really happy with where we are.”
Conner Weigman works his way back under center
Redshirt sophomore QB Conner Weigman didn’t miss a beat when he returned to the field for the first time since Sept. 7 against then-No. 9 Missouri on Oct. 5. Don’t be fooled by the lack of touchdowns next to his name in the box score, as Weigman completed 18 of 22 passes for 276 yards and picked up 33 yards on five rushes in a decisive 41-10 A&M victory.
“If I get backed in a corner, I come out swinging,” Weigman said. “I’m not going to go down without a fight. That’s just how I am, that’s how I was raised. Just being able to come out there, stick to the gameplan coach [Collin] Klein had and just the trust he had in me to go out there and spin the ball around, I mean, we had a good game. It was fun.”
Weigman said his time sidelined from action with an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder allowed him to reevaluate how he approaches the game. Not being on the field for three games didn’t stop him from improving his chemistry with the Aggies’ offense.
“Just sitting there watching film, watching the games from a different point of view,” Weigman said. “Not being behind the center and just taking things in. Watching how some of my guys work, what makes them click, what makes them go and how to get some of my playmakers, get the ball into their hands as quick as possible. I felt like it was a good three weeks.”
Weigman also said he saw his relationship with QB Marcel Reed strengthen after the redshirt freshman was 3-0 in his place as starting quarterback. Weigman said the pair has a sense of reliance on one another with support for their accomplishments.
“That’s my brother, I love him to death,” Weigman said. “Whenever I’m out there, whatever I need done, whether it’s watching a safety or watching the iPad and vice versa, whatever he needs me to help with, I’m right there for him.”
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Texas
NBA Draft 2026: Chicago Bulls draft Texas standout Dailyn Swain at No. 15
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 23: NBA commissioner Adam Silver shakes hands with Dailyn Swain after he is drafted fifteenth overall by the Chicago Bulls during Round One of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2026 in New York City. (Photo b
AUSTIN, Texas – Former Texas standout Dailyn Swain was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the 15th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft on Tuesday night.
What we know:
Swain is a 6-foot-8, 225-pound wing that emerged as one of college basketball’s biggest risers during his lone season with the Longhorns. He transferred to the University of Texas from Xavier University in Ohio. The 20-year-old led Texas in points, rebounds, assists and steals while helping establish himself as a first-round prospect.
By the numbers:
Swain averaged 17.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.8 steals per game during the 2025-26 season. His versatility on both ends of the floor made him one of the nation’s most productive all-around players.
Dailyn Swain #3 of the Texas Longhorns dunks the ball against the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament held at Moda Center on March 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photos v (Getty Images)
Dig deeper:
As an Ohio native, Swain starred at Africentric Early College in Columbus. He entered the 2025-26 college basketball season largely outside first-round draft projections but steadily climbed the draft boards with his strong play.
Known for his physical frame, defensive versatility and playmaking ability, Swain can impact games in a variety of ways. Outside shooting remains an area for development after he shot 31.7% from 3-point range last season, but evaluators still view him as an NBA-ready wing capable of contributing immediately.
What’s next:
Swain becomes the latest Texas player selected in the NBA Draft and joins a Bulls team looking to add size, toughness and versatility on the perimeter.
The Source: Information in this article was provided from live coverage of the 2026 NBA Draft.
Texas
8 convicted of terrorism charges in Texas immigration center shooting sentenced to decades in prison
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A demonstrator who shot and wounded a police officer outside a Texas immigration center last July 4 was sentenced to 100 years in federal prison Tuesday, while other protesters accused of having links to antifa were given multiple decades in federal prison.
Benjamin Song was convicted of attempted murder last March after prosecutors say he opened fire and wounded a police officer at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado.
The seven other protesters sentenced Tuesday received prison terms ranging from 30 to 70 years.
“Our issue with this case has always been this isn’t a bunch of terrorists. This is a bunch of kids and young adults who really have a really big heart and really wanted their voice to be heard,” Philip Hayes, Song’s attorney, said outside the federal courthouse in Fort Worth. “It was never intended that anybody get hurt. It was never intended that any shots would be fired.”
He said his client would appeal the sentencing.
“Song, aside from this day, has had an impeccable life. A former Marine. A good student,” Hayes said. “He had a lot of good qualities that were just ignored. The judge went ahead and gave as much as he could.”
One of the defendants, Daniel Sanchez Estrada, was convicted of corruptly concealing a document and conspiracy to conceal documents. Others pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists rather than take their case to trial.
Prosecutors say the eight are members of antifa, a decentralized anti-fascist organization that has become a target of the Trump administration. They have denied any affiliation and maintain they attended the demonstration to show support for immigrants inside the detention center.
President Donald Trump last fall signed an executive order designating antifa a domestic terrorist organization, even though there is no domestic equivalent to the State Department’s list of foreign terror organizations.
Critics warn the case could have wide-reaching impact on protests given that organizations operating within the U.S. are supposed to be protected by First Amendment free-speech rights.
Short for “anti-fascists,” antifa is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for far-left militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.
Last week, federal prosecutors charged 15 people with impeding the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota. They claimed the demonstrators were members of antifa who conspired against the federal government to block arrests and deportations by setting up blockades around government buildings and throwing chunks of ice at federal vehicles, among other actions.
Marcelo reported from New York.
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Texas
Paxton, Trump adviser’s org win bid to block immigration rule
A federal judge in Texas blocked a Biden administration rule on Monday that allowed immigration judges to indefinitely close a deportation case against immigrants on the same day Texas sued to stop the rule.
The rule, which was adopted in 2024, allowed immigration judges to close a deportation case after hearing arguments from the federal government and the immigrant in deportation proceedings, especially if the person could qualify for a benefit that allows them to stay in the country legally.
But on Monday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of Texas in Wichita Falls to block the rule with U.S. Judge Reed O’Connor, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush.
The lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice was also co-filed by America First Legal Foundation, an organization founded by Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to President Trump who has focused on ways to limit both legal and illegal immigration to the country. America First Legal Foundation also previously filed various lawsuits representing Paxton against the Biden administration’s immigration policies, which helped derail President Biden’s immigration agenda in his lone term.
In this latest complaint, Paxton’s office said in the 43-page lawsuit that the Biden-era rule “effectively grant(s) indefinite amnesty to aliens illegally present in this country.”
Lawsuits usually take several months to years to settle, but in this case O’Connor ruled late on Monday in favor of Texas after the Department of Justice filed its response saying it agreed with Paxton’s office.
Paxton’s office and the DOJ did not respond to immediate requests for comment.
President Trump, in keeping with his campaign promise, has cracked down on immigrants, using many of the federal government’s resources to limit immigration and fast-track deportations, including undocumented people and others who were allowed to be in the U.S. by previous administrations.
O’Connor has been known as conservative leaders’ favorite judge because he has routinely ruled in favor of Paxton, who has strategically filed lawsuits against the Obama and Biden administration.
The fast-paced end to the rule echoes a similar maneuver conducted by the DOJ and Paxton’s office last year, when the federal agency sued Texas over a law allowing undocumented students to qualify for lower tuition rates at public universities. Hours after the suit was filed, Texas also asked Judge O’Connor to find the law unconstitutional, which he did.
After the law was overturned, legal experts said a state working with the federal government so closely for the swift overturning of a state law was unusual and raised questions about collusion.
The quick resolution to the case late on Monday was heavily criticized by immigration law experts.
“This is madness! Deliberate collusion with a federal judge to rapidly erase regulations without any input from affected parties,” said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow with American Immigration Council, a group in Washington, D.C., that advocates for immigrants. “It’s clearly an unlawful act by all, and now litigants will have to seek to intervene in the already-completed lawsuit to overturn his actions.”
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