Texas
Mysterious group targeting Gov. Greg Abbott reserves $6 million in TV ads ahead of November election
Join The Transient, our day by day publication that retains readers in control on probably the most important Texas information.
A shadowy new group has bought at the very least $6 million in TV advertisements forward of the November election and is airing an advert that targets Gov. Greg Abbott as he runs for reelection.
The minute-long ad from Coulda Been Worse LLC, which began airing Friday, rattles off an inventory of main calamitous occasions which have occurred on Abbott’s watch, just like the Uvalde college taking pictures and 2021 power-grid collapse. Because the narrator speaks, an image slowly zooms out to indicate Abbott’s face.
“Any considered one of these — a horrible disgrace for Texas,” the narrator says on the finish. “All of those — a horrific signal one thing large is very, terribly flawed.”
The spot ends with a clip of Abbott saying after the Uvalde bloodbath that it “may have been worse,” more and more a rallying cry of Abbott’s critics. Abbott made the remark whereas praising the regulation enforcement response to the taking pictures, which has since been been extensively criticized for taking nicely over an hour to confront the shooter. Abbott later stated he was “misled” when he made the remark.
The promoting represents a big escalation as Abbott fights for a 3rd time period in opposition to Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke. Abbott has led O’Rourke by mid-single digits in polls all through the summer time.
Abbott has additionally outpaced O’Rourke on the airwaves. Abbott has been airing TV advertisements for over three weeks, whereas O’Rourke didn’t begin his first sustained statewide TV purchase till Friday.
The information of Coulda Been Worse LLC’s plans obtained out Thursday when AdImpact, a media-tracking agency, tweeted that the group was scooping up airtime statewide. It finally reserved $6.1 million on broadcast and cable TV from Friday by way of Oct. 9, in keeping with AdImpact.
The title — Coulda Been Worse — signaled that it will be an anti-Abbott effort, however in any other case, few particulars had been recognized about it — which remained the case Friday.
A gaggle by the identical title was registered as an LLC late final month in Delaware, in keeping with information there. Its registered agent is Company Service Firm in Wilmington.
As an LLC, the group wouldn’t must disclose its donors as political motion committees often must do in state races. It’s uncommon however not exceptional — U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo and different Democratic incumbents elsewhere have benefited from TV advertisements by an LLC, Higher Jobs Collectively.
In promoting orders filed with the Federal Communications Fee, Coulda Been Worse LLC lists an Arlington, Virginia, handle. It identifies Michael Waters as its govt director and Connecticut-based Icon Worldwide as its media purchaser. Nether responded to messages in search of extra info Thursday.
Abbott’s marketing campaign rapidly raised questions in regards to the group.
“How soiled can Beto’s rip-off darkish cash teams be if they will not give on to him?” Abbott strategist Dave Carney tweeted. “Will not shield him for accountability.”
Requested in regards to the group after a marketing campaign cease Thursday in Lockhart, O’Rourke stated he didn’t “know who that is.” He stated the group, in addition to any others prefer it, ought to disclose their donors even when they aren’t required to by regulation.
“Republicans, Democrats, individuals throughout the state of Texas, need to make it possible for we all know who’s in search of to affect the outcomes of elections,” O’Rourke stated.
The complete program is now LIVE for the 2022 Texas Tribune Competition, taking place Sept. 22-24 in Austin. Discover the schedule of 100+ mind-expanding conversations coming to TribFest, together with the within monitor on the 2022 elections and the 2023 legislative session, the state of public and better ed at this stage within the pandemic, why Texas suburbs are booming, why broadband entry issues, the legacy of slavery, what actually occurred in Uvalde and a lot extra. See this system.
Texas
Former Colorado defensive end Dayon Hayes transfers to Texas A&M
Former Colorado Buffaloes defensive end Dayon Hayes is set to continue his collegiate career at Texas A&M after transferring following a season-ending injury. Hayes, a 6-foot-3, 265-pound defender, began his journey at Pitt, where he played from 2020 to 2023, accumulating 13 sacks and 80 tackles over four seasons.
At Pitt, Hayes showcased his potential in his sophomore and junior years, logging around 500 combined snaps and producing 30 pressures. His breakout came in 2023 when he amassed 44 pressures and a 13% pass rush win rate, ranking 12th in the ACC. Hayes also demonstrated solid run defense, posting an average tackle depth of 1.6 yards and recording 10.5 stops for loss. His ability to set the edge and prevent runners from escaping outside made him a critical piece of Pitt’s defense.
Following his success at Pitt, Hayes transferred to Colorado as a highly sought-after addition to Deion Sanders’ revamped Buffaloes roster. He made an immediate impact, registering two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss in Colorado’s first three games. However, his promising start was cut short by a knee injury in the fourth game, sidelining him for the rest of the season.
Deion Sanders says he won’t attend the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay
Despite the setback, Hayes’ strong early performance likely earned him a medical redshirt, granting him another year of eligibility. With his final collegiate season on the horizon, Hayes opted to join Texas A&M, bringing his pass-rushing skills to the SEC. The Aggies, coming off an eight-win season, are set to face USC in the Las Vegas Bowl. Hayes’ ability to pressure quarterbacks and defend the run should bolster Texas A&M’s defensive front, adding experience and depth to their edge rotation for the 2024 season.
Texas
D-FW can claim Texas’ best high school football team in an otherwise down year for Dallas
ARLINGTON — North Crowley showed out on Saturday in its dazzling 50-21 victory over Austin Westlake in the 6A Division I state title game, winning the program’s second state championship and putting Fort Worth high school football on the map in front of 36,120 fans at AT&T Stadium.
Until North Crowley took the field at 7:30 p.m., there was a possibility the Dallas-Fort Worth area might boast only one state champion in 2024. Celina routed Kilgore 55-21 in the 4A Division I state championship to capture the program’s ninth state title and its first under coach Bill Elliott.
But North Texas teams came up short in the next three title games, the region’s worst showing at state since 2021, when South Oak Cliff became the first Dallas ISD school to win a recognized state championship since 1958, but Denton Guyer and Duncanville fell in the 6A state championship games.
Two-time state champion South Oak Cliff missed a last-second field goal, falling 38-35 to third-year program Richmond Randle in the 5A Division II state title game Friday night. It was SOC’s second straight loss in the state championship game.
“The future is still bright,” South Oak Cliff coach Jason Todd said. “We just gotta find out what’s going to get us over this hump.”
Smithson Valley, from the San Antonio area, topped Highland Park 32-20 as the six-time state champion faded in the second half of the 5A Division I state title game Saturday afternoon.
In the second game of the day, eight-time state champion Southlake Carroll extended its title drought to 13 years with a 24-17 loss to Austin Vandegrift in the 6A Division II game.
“It’ll happen one day. I’m excited about what the future holds,” said Carroll coach Riley Dodge, who fell to 0-2 in state title games as a coach.
The Dallas area claimed three football state champions in 2023 with Anna winning the 4A Division I state title and Duncanville and DeSoto sweeping the 6A Division I and II state championships, respectively. The southern Dallas County schools also swept the 6A state championships in 2022, when South Oak Cliff won its second straight 5A Division II state title.
But this year, the rest of Texas didn’t let the Dallas area, a high school football mecca, run the table. Teams from each of the state’s major metros — Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio —- won a title in each division of the UIL’s two highest classifications.
Even before this week’s state championship games, 2024 seemed to mark a changing of the guard. Neither Duncanville, DeSoto nor Houston-area power Galena Park North Shore made it to AT&T Stadium this year. Nor did 12-time UIL state champion Aledo, the juggernaut west of Fort Worth that had won the last two 5A Division I state championships.
But North Crowley did, after knocking off both DeSoto and Duncanville this season. North Texas might not have dominated the competition as it has in recent years, but for a third straight season, the king of 6A reigns in Dallas-Fort Worth.
“When you get to this point, there’s only one team that’s standing that’s hoisting the trophy. And fortunately for us, this year it’s us and we just happen to be from 817,” North Crowley coach Ray Gates said. “We’re elated to be able to bring that type of recognition back to our community, just to let people know that when you talk about this area, when you talk about Metroplex football, you can’t forget about us.”
On Twitter/X: @t_myah
Find more high school sports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
Sign up for our FREE HS newsletter.
Texas
Saving Hope Rescue receives $1,000 donation as part of CBS News Texas 11 Days of Giving
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
-
Politics1 week ago
Canadian premier threatens to cut off energy imports to US if Trump imposes tariff on country
-
Technology1 week ago
OpenAI cofounder Ilya Sutskever says the way AI is built is about to change
-
Politics1 week ago
U.S. Supreme Court will decide if oil industry may sue to block California's zero-emissions goal
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta asks the US government to block OpenAI’s switch to a for-profit
-
Business1 week ago
Freddie Freeman's World Series walk-off grand slam baseball sells at auction for $1.56 million
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta’s Instagram boss: who posted something matters more in the AI age
-
News1 week ago
East’s wintry mix could make travel dicey. And yes, that was a tornado in Calif.
-
Technology2 days ago
Google’s counteroffer to the government trying to break it up is unbundling Android apps