Blog

William Faulkner & Austin College

While digging for some boring billing documents last weekend, I came across this 1988 letter to me from Dr. Carol Daeley. Dr. Daeley, a former Austin College Professor of English, mentioned a number of potential classes I might take that fall as a freshman. She also said that if I “have questions about anything before

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Austin College & the 1969 Moon Landing

In honor of NASA’s announcement yesterday of the crew which will return to the moon, here’s a photo of Neil Armstrong training for the original moon landing in Sherman, TX not far from Austin College. Neil was in Grayson County for parachute training on May 27, 1968. Three weeks earlier, a lunar module testing malfunction

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Coach Gayno Shelton & the Bowie Jackrabbits

No school dominated Texas basketball like Bowie High School in the 1950s. During that decade, the Bowie Jackrabbits won four Texas High School crowns and reached the title game in Austin twice more. The centerpiece of those great Bowie teams was 6’11” Temple Tucker (uncle of Austin College Kangaroo Margaret McMahen!), who later earned All-American

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Barney, Baby Bop & Austin College

Today’s big news brings us the return of Barney the Purple Dinosaur, the PBS children’s character born in 1992 who raised a generation of Millennial Roos. Barney received blowback from older Generation X Roos like me, probably due in part to the demands of parenting. Still, that’s not nice. Oddly enough though, I’m sympathetic to

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The Gonzaga family of Jerry Bishop

Gonzaga faces TCU Sunday evening for a trip to the Sweet Sixteen in the 2023 NCAA Tournament. In the long history of Gonzaga basketball, the Zags have only defeated TCU once. Well, heck. Austin College has done that. Gonzaga’s consensus All-American Drew Timme is attempting to lead his squad to an elusive first national championship

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Jordan Family Courts Dedication at AC

The highlight of my AC tennis career was, ironically, a “loss.” It was 1989-90, former Roo Coach Bill Snyder’s first year at Kansas State. AC was hosting conference leading Tarleton State at the old Russell Tennis courts. I was AC’s Line #1 and had not lost all year. But I knew who Tarleton’s #1 was

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