Texas
On Behalf of Texas Ag, Sen. Cruz Secures Extension of Drought Warning Sensors | U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Texas farmers and ranchers will still have access to early warning signs of potential droughts due to the efforts of U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).
The federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) had planned to retire soil moisture sensors in Texas relied upon by the state’s agricultural community to spot potential droughts. However, NOAA has delayed any action on the sensors after an inquiry from Sen. Cruz, who sent an oversight letter to NOAA about its initial decision and upcoming plans.
In November 2023, NOAA notified soil data users that it would begin in 2023 to retire 113 sensors across the country. NOAA claimed the program was being phased out due to a funding shortfall despite the network’s menial cost of about $904,000 per year to maintain, a small fraction of NOAA’s overall budget. Last year, Sen. Cruz raised concerns about some of NOAA’s non-core budget priorities, such as $9.1 million for “woke” grants focused on “environmental justice and equity [and] to support a more robust and diverse domestic seafood sector.”
As Sen. Cruz writes to NOAA Administrator Richard Spinrad,
“I write to express my concern regarding the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) recent steps to decommission 113 soil moisture sensors. Soil moisture measurements are essential for agricultural monitoring and accurate forecasts of drought and other hazards like flooding and wildfire. It is my understanding that after my office contacted NOAA expressing concern about this decommissioning, NOAA delayed taking action through this fiscal year. However, since the decommissioning is still under consideration, I strongly encourage to commit to keeping these soil moisture sensors in service.
“More than 248,000 farms and ranches in Texas rely on these forecasts to manage crops and livestock. Decommissioning these sensors would hurt farmers not just in Texas, but across the entire United States, especially in states that rely exclusively on NOAA’s network, such as Louisiana, Florida, Virginia, Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.
“The 2018 reauthorization of the National Integrated Drought Information System required NOAA to develop a strategy for monitoring the nation’s soil moisture. The resulting Strategy for the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Networkspecifically calls for ‘a strategic and coordinated increase of in situ moisture monitoring stations across the United States.’ NOAA’s short-sighted proposal to decommission these sensors does the exact opposite.”
Sen. Cruz’s letter asks:
- how the decommissioning proposal was informed by the Strategy for the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network
- what the status of the strategy implementation is
- how stakeholder input was incorporated
- what the impacts of this implementation might be on weather and drought forecasting, and
- what funding is required to use and maintain these sensors annually.
As the letter states, NOAA’s decommissioning proposal would have a deeply detrimental effect on Texas farmers and ranchers. In support of Sen. Cruz’s letter, Russell Boening, President of the Texas Farm Bureau said:
“NOAA’s soil moisture sensors provide data that helps Texas farmers and ranchers prepare for and respond to drought.Agricultural producers need NOAA to provide better drought predictions by maintaining and improving the networks that collect this essential data. We thank Sen. Cruz for listening to Texas Farm Bureau’s concerns and for his leadership on this vital issue.”
Read the full text of this letter HERE.
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AUSTIN — Former Texas Longhorns quarterback Maalik Murphy is back on the open market once again.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Monday that Murphy will be transferring from Duke after spending just one season in Durham. Murphy has led Duke to a 9-3 record this season, but won’t be playing in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl against the Ole Miss Rebels. The Blue Devils will have a chance to secure the program’s first 10-win season since 2013.
Murphy transferred from Texas this past offseason after spending two years in Austin. During his time as a Longhorn, he went 40 of 71 passing for 477 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions across seven appearances and two starts.He left the team to enter the transfer portal before Texas played in the College Football Playoff Semifinal against Washington in January. The rise of Arch Manning and the return of Quinn Ewers created a difficult situation for Murphy, who wanted a starting job elsewhere.
Despite his early departure, Murphy was crucial for Texas’ run to the CFP. When Ewers exited due to injury in the win over Houston last season, Murphy entered the fold and steadied the offense en route to a 28-21 victory. He started the next two games against BYU and Kansas State, both homes win for the Longhorns that propelled them to a Big 12 title and CFP berth.
During his only season with Duke, Murphy went 254 of 421 passing for 2,933 yards, 26 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He added two touchdowns with his legs.
When looking at their three losses, Murphy had the Blue Devils were a few plays away from being the ACC Championship and CFP conversation this year. Duke lost to SMU in a 28-27 overtime heartbreaker a few weeks after a tough 24-14 loss to Georgia Tech. Murphy then led Duke to a 28-17 lead on the road over then-No. 5 Miami before the Hurricanes stormed back for a 53-31 win.
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Here are five things to know about Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers before they head to Austin to take on the Longhorns in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
When: Saturday, Dec. 21 at 3 p.m.
Where: DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin
TV: TNT Streaming: MAX
1. How they got here
There are 12 teams in the College Football Playoff. The Tigers are team No. 12.
Clemson snuck into the Playoff with a 10-3 record despite losing the final game of its regular season to South Carolina. A 7-1 record in ACC play was enough to get the Tigers to the conference championship, though, and in a must-win game against SMU they nailed a last-second field goal to clinch the 12th and final spot in the 12-team bracket.
Clemson’s title game win was an all-time classic, the Tigers having led by 17 entering the fourth quarter before allowing the Mustangs to tie it with 16 seconds left. Clemson responded with a 41-yard kickoff return then a 17-yard pass before hitting the frantic game-winning field goal.
2. Clinging to a dynasty
Dabo Swinney has been the face of Clemson football for well over a decade now, and his program still appears to be clinging to the remnants of the Clemson dynasty Swinney had set up in the mid-2010s.
From 2015-2020 Clemson lost just seven games under Swinney, winning two national championships and finishing a perfect 15-0 in 2018. The Tigers have had down years in 2021 and 2023 but won the ACC in both 2022 and this season, 2024.
3. Welcome home, QB1
Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik is a true junior who has spent all three years with the Tigers, though he’s originally from Austin and won the 2021 6A state championship with powerhouse Austin Westlake.
Klubnik’s opponent in that state title game? The Quinn Ewers-led Dragons of Southlake Carroll. Westlake rolled to a 52-34 win.
4. Key to victory?
It might be on the ground for the Longhorns.
Clemson has struggled to stop the run in 2024, its defense finishing 14th out of 17 ACC teams in rushing yards allowed. The Tigers are giving up 150.5 yards on the ground per game.
They were run all over in their three losses this season, including in the 34-3 thwacking by Georgia in the Tigers’ opening game. The Bulldogs ran for 169 yards. Louisville ran for 210, and South Carolina a staggering 267.
Meanwhile running back Quintrevion Wisner has been surging in the Longhorns’ backfield, averaging 131.6 yards over his last three games. Jaydon Blue has also had a strong season for Texas. The two could be leaned on heavily for the Horns vs. Clemson.
5. No one like Dabo
The Clemson head coach is unlike any other in college football.
He’s one of the game’s biggest characters, along with being very open about his devout Christianity. He said of his Tigers in 2022: “We built this program on NIL. … It’s probably different from what you’re thinking, though. We built this program in God’s name, image and likeness.”
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The Texas A&M Aggies already lost one of their best defenders to the NCAA Transfer Portal on Monday, when Shemar Stewart declared his intentions to enter the 2025 NFL Draft.
Now, an even more critical member of the front seven has done the same.
Per an announcement from his X account, Aggies edge rusher Nic Scourton has elected to enter the draft, becoming the 18th player to leave the program since the end of the regular season.
“Howdy! I would like to thank Texas A&M and Purdue, the coaching staffs, and my teammates for a great college experience. It has been an honor, and I will be forever grateful. To my family and mentors, I truly appreciate the love, support, and guidance you have provided me on my journey. I know that I would not be in this position without y’all. I’m excited to experience this next chapter together. With that being said, after much thought and consideration, I have decided to enter the 2025 NFL Draft.”
Scourton came to College Station after after two seasons with the Purdue Boilermakers and immediately became the Aggies’ top defensive lineman. In fact, this season in Aggieland, Scourton had 37 total tackles, 14 tackles for loss and five sacks to his name, leading the team in each of the latter two stats.
He has since earned recognition for his impact on the team, being named a semifinalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which is given to the nation’s most outstanding defensive player. Scourton was also named a finalist for the Lott Impact Trophy and a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award.
In his final season with the Boilermakers, Scourton finished with 15.5 tackles for loss and totaled 10 sacks, earning second-team All-Big Ten honors.
Scourton is projected to be a first round pick in the draft this spring.
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