CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Texas Tech senior linebacker Jacob Rodriguez has won the Bronko Nagurski Award given annually to the nation’s top college defensive player.

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Rodriguez received the award at a banquet Monday night at the Charlotte Convention Center.

Rodriguez, known for his dark mustache that is now copied by Texas Tech football fans, has 114 tackles this season, along with four interceptions, seven forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one sack for the Red Raiders, who boast the nation’s fifth-best defense.

Texas Tech (12-1) won the Big 12 championship and will make its first appearance in the Orange Bowl on New Year’s Day. The Red Raiders, who allow just 254.4 yards per game on defense, were tabbed as the No. 4 seed in the final College Football Playoff rankings and have a bye week.

They will play the winner of No. 5 Oregon/No. 12 James Madison in the quarterfinals.

Behind a stifling defense led by Rodriguez, the Red Raiders won 12 games by 20-plus points this season, including a 34-7 victory over previously No. 11 BYU in the Big 12 championship game on Saturday. They join the 2018 Alabama team as the only programs in the Associated Press era to accomplish that feat.

After a regular season win over BYU in November in which Rodriguez had 14 tackles and two takeaways in a 29-7 victory, he struck the Heisman Trophy pose.

Kansas City Chiefs three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who played at Texas Tech and was at the game during a bye week, later posted on social media: “Get him to New York! @HeismanTrophy.”

“My guys, they wanted me to hit it. Just a rush of adrenaline,” Rodriguez later said of his pose.

The other finalists for the award were Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, Texas A&M defensive end Cashius Howell and Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore.

Rodriguez joins some elite company.

Previous Bronko Nagurski Award winners include Will Anderson Jr. (2021), Chase Young (2019), Bradley Chubb (2017), Aaron Donald (2013), Luke Kuechly (2011), Ndamukong Suh (2009), Brian Orakpo (2008), Derrick Johnson (2004), Terrell Suggs (2002), Dan Morgan (2000), Charles Woodson (1997) and Warren Sapp (1994).

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AUSTIN – Political hopefuls from across Texas start their races for the 2026 election season in earnest on Monday, as the window for filing their candidacies for public office draws to a close.

Up for grabs in the March primaries and November general election next year are 150 seats in the Texas House and 16 in the state Senate, as well as one U.S. Senate seat and all 38 U.S. Congressional districts.

The primaries, run by the Republican and Democrat parties, will be held March 3, 2026. Early voting opens Tuesday, Feb. 17. The general election is Nov. 3.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott will be defending his position for a fourth term and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is running for re-election in what would be his fifth term. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, completing his fourth six-year term in Washington, faces a heavy attack for his post from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a fellow Republican, and a few high-profile Democrats.

Notably, U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett is expected to announce today she will run for Cornyn’s Senate seat. Her expected entry into the race prompted Colin Allred, who ran for Senate in 2024 against incumbent Ted Cruz, to withdraw from the Senate contest and set his sights on the House instead. State Rep. James Talarico remains Crockett’s strongest foe in the upcoming primary.

Paxton’s exit from the AGs office leaves a field of candidates vying for his post, along with four other statewide officials, four members of the Texas Supreme Court, three members of the Criminal Court of Appeals, and eight members of the Texas Board of Education.

The Congressional races will be influenced by a newly drawn district map after the Texas Legislature redrew the lines this summer to send additional Republicans to Washington to support President Donald Trump. Democrat districts in Dallas, Houston and South Texas were redrawn to shift to Republican, a plan that has touched off court battles but has so far held up under legal scrutiny.

The new map gathers Republican voters into districts that will help their candidates, but the statewide offices — all of which have been controlled by the GOP for more than 20 years – are still vulnerable to the demographic and political shifts that have hinted at a more blue Texas in recent cycles.

Paxton, who was impeached by the GOP-dominated Texas House in 2023 but acquitted of the charges in a trial by the Texas Senate, has drawn criticism from the left over the years for his involvement in scandals that included felony indictment for securities fraud. He has escaped the legal tangles but remains a favorite target for Democrats who say he embodies the very political corruption his controlling party has vowed to abolish.

“Republican leadership has abused the power, neglected the operations, and left unfulfilled the

obligations of the Attorney General’s Office,” said state Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, who is running for the post. “They have maliciously and recklessly used it as a right-wing headline machine, taking their orders from D.C. power mongers and megadonor ideologues.”

Rather than distance themselves from Paxton, Republican candidates for his office are leaning on their willingness to support public safety, although the AG’s office doesn’t do criminal prosecutions.

“You want someone who is going to defend your freedom, who’s going to defend your rights, but will also aggressively prosecute and go after those who want to harm you, your families or your communities,” said state Sen. Joan Huffman, a Houston Republican and former prosecutor vying for the spot.

Texas A&M took on SMU in the Hoop Hype XL on a neutral-site court Sunday night, where it was a Quad 1 opportunity to add to their resumes.

But Jaron Pierre Jr. kept the Mustangs alive with 35 points as the Aggies’ defense struggled, giving up 36 paint points and 26 free throws made in 93-80 overtime loss in Arlington.

With the loss, A&M moved to 7-3 and has to rest up for the second half of the non-conference schedule before meeting league opponents. 

Texas A&M’s Halftime Rally Not Enough

The Aggies trailed 41-27 at halftime but the rally wasn’t enough in the overtime loss.

It was an excellent start for A&M, and then SMU gave a great answer to start the first period. A&M jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead courtesy of guard Marcus Hill, forward Rashaun Agee, and guard Jacari Lane, who forced SMU’s coach, Andy Enfield, to call its first timeout of the first period. 

After discussion with his team, Mustangs forward Corey Washington scored seven of the first 16 points, helping spark their own 7-0 run to put the game up and take the lead. Then the Aggies never saw the lead again for the rest of the first period, as the defense completely dominated, setting the pace for the entire game. 

For SMU, their big playmakers heated up in a hurry when the Aggies’ best players were constantly being substituted in and out, trying to break the cold spell. Pierre found his groove, igniting the time that no one on coach Bucky McMillan’s team could buy a shot where it didn’t make a field goal in the last 8:17 when it went to the locker room, and evaluated what was going wrong after the zone defense wasn’t appearing to be effective. 

One of the big fellas for the Mustangs who kindled the team’s success was Samet Yigitoglu, who jogged to the locker room at intermission, leading the team with 11 points. As for the Aggies, Hill was the leader for his team when no one could make a shot from three-point land. Going to the break, A&M shot for one of its worst first periods with a field goal percentage of 27.3.

After one of the most sloppy performances to start, the Maroon and White woke up after making 1 of its last 16 field goals. Indiana transfer forward Mackenzie Mgbako and Hill got their team to score five straight points before the Mustangs came riding back with an answer from Pierre, knocking down six of the following eight points. 

Trimming at the deficit worked perfectly for the Ags after forward Federiko Federiko had a massive slam to wake up the crowd in attendance, which caused an eruption before Rylan Griffen and Pop Isaacs got the score within six. The 15-point lead faded to three after an Agee free throw and a Federiko dunk. Buckets got exchanged between both rosters before SMU extended the lead back to nine after A&M didn’t make a field goal in over three minutes. 

After a 69-60 lead for the Mustangs, the Aggies got within five before a Pierre layup when two back-to-back threes by Griffen and Mgbako got the game within one. A 5-0 run got it to 77-73, but SMU forced a turnover with 36 seconds left before tying it to go to overtime. 

Pierre carried his teammates to the finish line after doing it himself, where he scored seven straight points as the A&M defense wore down. Making free throws at the charity stripe was what made SMU the better team. Even with Hill’s 25-point day, A&M loses out on another resume-building chance.