Tailgate

Here we go!

Bazooka Bubble Gum Milk Duds Pixie Stix

Anyone have the rotisserie kit for the egg or Joe? About to pull the trigger.

Post the Venmo to get it made...

I’ll take SMU +2 please. Load the truck.

21-0 after last weekend.

I have a friend. (Serious...not me...but I might try). He freezes multiple McRibs every time they come out so he can survive the dry spells. ‘Merica!

Let's just all take a deep breath for a moment.What we've just experienced this week was roughly the equivalent of four Red Banquets rolled into six days. Nothing like it has ever happened in the modern era of the Texas football program, and I say that as someone that has covered this team professionally since 1994 when I worked in the Texas Sports Information Department (yes, John Bianco was my boss). I've seen a lot of things, but I haven't ever seen this.So, let's just woo-sah it out. It's been a long week. We're getting ready to go down quite a road, but we have to start by addressing the biggest elephant I've ever seen in any burnt orange room I've ever metaphorically stepped into.At the end of this incredibly exhausting first six weeks of the football season, which has included one mishap after another related to the playing of The Eyes of Texas after three separate games (including the Sam Stands Alone moment), along with a massive behind-the-scenes impact on fund-raising for the South end-zone project during the middle of a pandemic...You got all that? Woo-sah it out again if you need to.In the backdrop of all of this mess, a massive implication emerged on Thursday through a combination of multiple online media reports, an athletic director's letter to Texas fans and a general rush from various corners of the Orangebloods.com universe to provide cover for Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte following my own report on Wednesday that Del Conte had made mistakes since July that had exasperated the problem.The implication that exists out in the universe right now, which hasn't completely been flushed out, is that Texas head coach Tom Herman has defied Del Conte's very specific, very detailed and very unmistakable directives with regards to what each coach, coaching staff and set of players in each sport across the entire UT athletics globe needed to be doing with regards the playing of The Eyes of Texas following games.The implication is that everything from the last couple of months is Herman's fault, that if he had been following the very clear orders that Del Conte had given everyone else, the mess from the last few months wouldn't have quite existed the way that it has.Perhaps most importantly, the implication is that what happened on Saturday against Oklahoma and all of the fallout from that disaster would never have happened.Those are the implications and they are not small. In fact, a strong case can be made that if Herman's alleged flagrant insubordination has created a sizable portion of the mess, it would register as grounds for immediate dismissal.When I say the implications are serious ... I mean they are that serious. If you thought that I wasn't going to recognize the reporting of a former Orangebloods staff writer, Del Conte's own words and everything that has happened since Wednesday morning ... I'm not sure how well you know me because we are absolutely going to TALK ABOUT ALL OF IT.Basically, I'm going to break this down into three sections.I. What has been reported and directly implied in the last 36 hours.II. Did Orangebloods get it wrong with its reporting?III. Where we go from here.This bad boy might end up being 10,000 words, so let's not waste any more time.No. 1 - The Last 36 hoursIn a premium article at 247sports, former Orangebloods reporter Chip Brown talked to three different head coaches of various sports on the 40 Acres and they went on record to support the communication efforts from Del Conte. Out of respect for the premium work by our former colleague, I'll share only one quote.It's from Eddie Freaking Reese.“The understanding we have is during the playing of the Eyes of Texas, we don’t have to sing or Hookem, but we should be there as a team,” Reese said.Women’s swimming coach Carol Capitani went even further with his comments, but let's just stick with Eddie Reese because ... well ... he's Eddie Reese and I'm not sure I've ever heard a bad word said about the man or his character.It feels like his word is gold, which makes his statement incredibly damning.Now, let's take a look at comments that came from Del Conte in his sometimes regular newsletter on Wednesday afternoon."With that said, I do want to clarify that I have had many conversations with our head coaches outlining my expectations that our teams show appreciation for our University, fans, and supporters by standing together as a unified group for 'The Eyes,' while we work through this issue. However, like all families who see the world through different lenses, we have plenty of work to do on this subject and will continue to do so, but rest assured, our student-athletes love and respect this University very much and are competing their hearts out for it."In Del Conte's own words, he said that he "had many conversations with our head coaches outlining my expectations that our teams show appreciation," but he never outlines that he personally ever told any athletes the same.Remember that little detail because I will return to it.Finally, Austin American-Statesman reporter Brian Davis actually spoke with Del Conte and Texas spokesperson Gary Susswein and apparently Del Conte himself to confirm the following two nuggets.That's it. No further follow-ups the rest of the day on any of it, which feels weird.No. 2 - Did Orangebloods &^%$ up?Here are the main bullet points from my article on Wednesday. Let's just cut to the chase.1. When meeting with Texas athletes prior to the release of the announcement of its Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan, Del Conte did not communicate to the Texas athletes that he spoke with that it would be expected that they remain on the field for The Eyes of Texas. That meeting ended with Texas athletes feeling like they had been given the green light to basically choose whatever action they wanted with regards to action when the song was played.2. I reported that from the end of the meeting in July all the way to the first game against UTEP that "there was minimal conversation" between university officials, the Texas coaching staff and the players.3. That there was a meeting scheduled later in the week to address the current fiasco.4. There were concerns that the lack of action had left new Texas president Jay Hartzell as a target, provided zero public protection for his coaches by speaking openly and transparently on the record and that players might push back strongly if they were forced to participate in the song after being told that they didn't in July.Real quickly - No. 1 is true and indisputable. No. 3 happened. With No. 4, Hartzell suddenly seems out of the fray, the coaches are still sitting ducks to some degree (see Shaka Smart), but none of the players have yet to push back by the new set of guidelines they've been given.So, let's focus on No. 2.Our timeline in the story specifically mentions that the communication was lacking leading up to the very first game. It might seem like semantics but the distinctions of the timeline matter quite a bit when it comes to determining how much responsibility Herman owns in this entire situation.Upon checking with numerous sources, there's an important piece of the story that took place last Thursday, October 8. Following the TCU game the previous Saturday, Del Conte met with at least a small section of the head coaches (we have not confirmed ALL were involved) within the Texas athletics universe to discuss the situation five days later.We were one of the only people that confirmed that this meeting took place before the middle of this weekFull transparency: We found out about this information on Friday morning and were contacted by a senior official at the school who threatened to blame Orangebloods if we reported the information and members of the Texas football team decided to not play against Oklahoma because of it. However, we did continue to vet it, we did confirm that it occurred and it was discussed on the site..Given that the athletic department was making threats to us on Friday morning, it's fair to ask out loud why that note was reported by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, confirmed by Orangebloods and ignored by every other reporter on the Texas football beat last week.However, a key note emerged on Thursday.A source connected to another men's sport told Orangebloods that during the meeting, Del Conte not only told all of the coaches present (including Herman) that not only staff members would be expected to stand for the song, but also all of the players.Ladies and gentlemen, this might very well be the Professor Plum in the Library with the candlestick moment of this entire ordeal. We can get into a further discussion about whether Del Conte had been as direct about his expectations to the coaches prior to this meeting, but if our sourcing is correct, then Del Conte did tell Herman before the Oklahoma game about the expectations.Before Sam was left alone by his teammates. Before the players walked off. Before the entire burnt orange world melted down like The Chernobyl Disaster.The expectations outlined by Del Conte to Herman in that meeting suggested Herman needed to do whatever was needed to prevent what happened in the Cotton Bowl from happening.Following the comments from the trio of head coaches that Brown spoke with, it seems like all three coaches need to answer a few follow up questions about specific details of just how many times in the previous two months such outlines had been given by Del Conte, but the Thursday meeting explains why all three coaches went on the record about having clear instructions.That's big.No. 3 - Now what ...Who the hell knows, if we're being honest?I suppose it partly comes down to whether this stays restricted to the bubble of premium Internet sites or goes beyond that? Will the Statesman ever report on it, especially since it has access to Del Conte, who refused to return my call on Tuesday after he reached out to me on Tuesday morning and we played a game of tag via calls and texts (I have screenshots).Will Bruce Feldman report on it? Andy Staples? Pat Forde? Pete Thamel? Game Day? Urban Meyer on the Fox pre-game show?Do any other reporters in this market cover this story with any thirst?If so, this thing is going to explode before Texas plays football again. If not, perhaps this ends up being some story that myself, Anwar and Chip all made a big roar about, but nothing else occurs.Regardless, we're at a point where Del Conte AND Herman need to answer questions about this situation. and opening statements on Monday from Herman are not enough. At a bare minimum, the OU disaster might have occurred because he was so worried about a team revolt that might lead to players missing the OU game, that he just didn't tell them.Maybe that's not what happened. Again, that's why he needs to answer some questions.Same with Del Conte.If he gave orders throughout the last few weeks and months beyond last Thursday and this week, it's time to give some specifics because if his head football coach has ignored his orders all season ... what the hell?Is Del Conte trying to give Herman so much slack that he has grounds to fire him? If that was the goal, the grounds now seemingly exist, although it still boggles the mind that it took six weeks, four Texas games, three Eyes of Texas fiascos and one Sam Stands moment for this thing to reach some clarity this week with Wednesday's meeting.Take a look at Herman's contract. Folks, it's all there.We're here.Man, Tom Herman 's press conference on Monday has a chance to be something else. Of course, if Herman actually disobeyed his boss to the point that he ignored him for days, weeks and months, why would Del Conte still allow for him to talk at all, given that Herman would have put the entire program in a compromising position?Fellas, it's time for some questions to be answered ... on the record.The moment for full transparency has arrived.

Did this in NYC a few years ago. Doing a virtual refresher this weekend. These guys are good and they nail NY thin crust. https://pizzaschool.com

Yes, the advertising program at The University of Texas was renamed the Stan Richards School of Advertising. Its the #1 ad school in the country. https://advertising.utexas.edu/news/study-ranks-texas-advertising-1-advertising-program-us

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-14/home-depot-motel-6-drop-ad-agency-over-founder-s-racist-remarks A number of consumer companies are cutting ties with advertising agency Richards Group after a report that its founder made a racist remark about a proposed Motel 6 ad campaign. According to Ad Age, Stan Richards, 87, said the suggested ad for the motel was “too Black” and wouldn’t resonate with the chain’s “significant White supremacist constituents.” It took place during an internal meeting at the agency last week, the motel chain said. Glenn Dady, principal and creative director of Richards Group, said in an emailed statement the agency’s “brand has been tarnished.” Dady was named as Stan Richards’s successor late last year. “We understand and regret the pain and concerns of all those who were deeply troubled by the words our founder spoke. He can’t take them back,” he said. “We can only ask for forgiveness and promise to learn and be better.” Ad Age reported that Richards apologized for the remark on an agency-wide Zoom call. Cutting Ties Motel 6 said it was “outraged” by the statements and has cut ties with the agency, effective immediately. “We are a company who embraces diversity of all forms and have a zero tolerance policy for hateful comments of any kind, whether that be within our organization, at third-party vendors or at our properties,” a spokesman for Motel 6 said in an emailed statement. Home Depot Inc., another client, also announced it would drop the agency following the remark. “We do not tolerate discrimination in any form, so we were shocked and saddened when we learned of this incident. We have immediately begun the process of finding a new advertising agency,” Home Depot spokeswoman Sara Gorman said. Orkin Inc., the pest-control company, said it was “actively reviewing” its partnership with Richards Group. “We are disappointed with the news,” a spokesperson said. The quick severing of ties reflects a new reality among U.S. companies: They’re less willing to ignore the casual racism that was long commonplace in corporate America. Sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of the police in May and fueled by months of protests against police brutality, companies that once chose to quietly sit out tough conversations about race are now taking a stance. Even before Floyd’s death, companies were starting to face a reckoning on race in America. In 2018, the chairman of Papa John’s International Inc., John Schnatter, used a racist slur on a conference call with a media agency, prompting his exit from the chain he founded. He later claimed the comment was taken out of context. ‘Powerful People’ Richards’s comments may reflect both a generational disconnect from what’s acceptable in society, as well as an assumption that his power and wealth would insulate him from repercussions, said John Paul Rollert, who teaches business ethics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Richards is both older -- in his 80s -- but also the founder of the company, and that gives him a different frame of reference from other employees. “It’s another example of someone who has so much money that he thinks he can afford not to watch his mouth, and we’re obviously living in a world where the price of such behavior has gone up,” Rollert said. “When everything we say and do is being documented not only by email but also by Zoom, a company has to have pretty much a no-tolerance policy for such offensive language.” It’s more often the case that powerful people make such remarks, Rollert added, because they think they can get away with it and “it’s actually a way of affirming they are the most powerful person in the room -- that they can make a joke that would get anyone else fired. Increasingly, they can’t.”

Esperanza

I am ready to Venmo. Please someone pick one and do it and post pay link here. Several good ones I have seen.

athletic director Chris Del Conte is failing at his job. There is no other way to put it. It is hard to sugarcoat. Impossible to ignore.Oh, Del Conte is good at telling jokes at fundraisers. He has a great sense of humor. If you want to drink and hear a guy tell jokes, Del Conte can provide entertainment that rivals any comedian on open mic night. Heck, Del Conte’s biggest achievement was creating Bevo Blvd., a lively street with food trucks, music and alcohol. Del Conte was responsible for creating concerts after Longhorn home games, prior to the pandemic, of course. Del Conte definitely knows how throw a damn good party.When it comes to making hard decisions about his coaching staff (dating back to TCU), leading an athletic department, or preventing The Eyes of Texas tradition from becoming arguably the most divisive issue between fans and players in school history, Del Conte is doing nothing to justify earning $2.5 million annually until 2027.Del Conte has created this chaos.He has to do a better job of finding solutions.Texas was defeated by Oklahoma, 53-45 (four overtimes), on Saturday. Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley currently has a 4-1 record against Texas’ Tom Herman. Texas could not defeat one of the worst Oklahoma programs in recent memory. We saw Riley bench his starting quarterback, the ultimate surrender decision, and the same guy was reinserted after halftime and led his team to victory.The Longhorns are 2-2, but it took a miracle comeback against Texas Tech to prevent a 1-3 start. Texas recovered the onside kick and pulled off a victory when it had less than a one-percent chance of winning with around three minutes remaining. Nobody can take the win off Texas’ record. However, it helps to remember how fortunate this team is not to be 0-3 in the Big 12 right now.After the game, Herman looked defeated. He reminded me of the President who aged dramatically after four years in office. Herman did not have any answers. He talked about how great practice was last Sunday in an effort to show how close his program is to winning football games like this. The coach did not understand his fan base is more concerned about the product they are witnessing each Saturday.This is the moment when you save a fighter from himself. Herman is not winning the way he or the fan base desires. Recruiting is not going well. Literally, a player quit during the middle of a game this season. Longhorn fans are pissed about his team’s lack of participation in The Eyes of Texas. Herman will not throw in the towel, but I sensed if Del Conte tapped him on the shoulder after Saturday’s game and said they should discuss an exit plan, deep down, Herman might be relieved to get out of this situation. That is just my opinion and nothing I heard from my sources.Herman was originally under contract until 2021, which meant both sides could have happily parted ways after this season.Instead, Del Conte gave Herman a two-year extension in 2019, months after the Sugar Bowl victory. Herman is still slated to make $6.25 million in 2021, and Del Conte added $6.5 million in 2022 and $6.75 million in 2023. This is the equivalent of staying married until the children graduate from high school.By the way, Del Conte also gave running backs coach Stan Drayton and offensive lineman coach Herb Hand raises back in May. Drayton was bumped up from $640,000 to $700,000. Hand’s salary increased from $515,000 to $650,000.Only $19.5 million for Herman’s contract, plus add in a little extra for his assistants?Just ask those big money donors to cut a check, right?You mean the same people who are ticked off about players not participating in The Eyes of Texas? Photo via HookEm.comI received multiple messages from sources this weekend saying the athletic department has lost at least $25 million in pledges in the past two weeks. That number may not be 100 percent accurate, but longtime fans are withholding their financial support.By the way, Del Conte expected several donors to cut checks for the south endzone project in December. The completion of that project is in trouble at this rate.Del Conte should have resolved this issue before the season.In July, Texas President Jay Hartzell rolled out a comprehensive set of proposals to create a more diverse and welcoming campus, including plans to allocate Athletics’ revenue to recruit and support Black students, rename the Robert L. Moore Building, and honor Black trailblazers at UT through new campus symbols. Hartzell said the university would keep “The Eyes of Texas” as the university’s song but would work to own the history of the song while reclaiming and redefining what the song stands for.“The Eyes of Texas, in its current form, will continue to be our alma mater. Aspects of its origin, whether previously widely known or unknown, have created a rift in how the song is understood and celebrated, and that must be fixed,” Hartzell said in a press release. “It is my belief that we can effectively reclaim and redefine what this song stands for by first owning and acknowledging its history in a way that is open and transparent.“Together, we have the power to define what the Eyes of Texas expect of us, what they demand of us, and what standard they hold us to now. The Eyes of Texas should not only unite us, but hold all of us accountable to our institution’s core values. But we first must own the history. Only then can we reimagine its future, and I look forward to partnering with our campus community to do just that.”At that point, the controversy should have been over.The President did his part. Dr. Leonard Moore successfully talked players out of boycotting the season and was no longer involved in any athletic discussions. Longhorn players openly applauded the initiatives. I thought it was a very fair compromise for everyone involved.Del Conte’s task was simple.Inform the players they need to resume participating in the tradition. They did not have to sing the song, but he expected them to stay after games.Simple.Instead, Del Conte never expressed his expectations with student-athletes, which is why there has been chaos. Many cheerleaders did not participate in The Eyes during Texas’ recent home game against TCU. Several band members have said they will not play the song. The football team – black and white players – have skipped the tradition this season. The volleyball team recently stayed on the court but did not acknowledge the song.That administrative failure is on Del Conte.I know some fans are blaming the “woke” generation or “social justice warriors” for what is occurring right now. I get that frustration. Nobody wants to be labeled a racist when those sentiments are not in their heart. Fans view this song as a tradition. They played the song at weddings, parties, and it was a source of school pride. I understand the anger.Yet, I look at how other athletic departments across the country handled the current climate better than Del Conte.Oklahoma State running back Chuba Hubbard threatened to boycott all team activities after a tweet surfaced of coach Mike Gundy wearing a One America News Network T-shirt. I was not convinced Gundy could prevent a player revolt.Yet, they put those issues aside and unified.Oklahoma football players decided not to practice and marched for social and racial justice. That could have ripped apart the team. Instead, there were several productive conversations between players, administrators and coaches.In addition, the athletic department decided to place a “Black Lives Matter” and “Sooners for Humanity” patch on team jerseys this season.Texas?Del Conte told the football staff this week they had to participate in the tradition after games to show respect to their fans. Unfortunately, Del Conte did not have a conversation with players and express his expectations. He definitely has done nothing to publicly express any solutions to the fan base.As a result, Sam Ehlinger and Cameron Dicker were the only players I saw participating in The Eyes after the Oklahoma loss, while everyone else was in the locker room.That was unacceptable.If Del Conte can receive credit for creating a carnival atmosphere, he has to be accountable for this circus.Del Conte should tap Herman on the shoulder this week and express the importance of finishing this season 8-2, or at least 7-3, because Longhorn fans are tired of losing.In addition, Del Conte should sit down with players in every sport and express his expectations. I am not saying Del Conte needs to bang the table in anger. Instead, he has to be the leader Texas needs at this moment.Del Conte has created this chaos.He has to do a better job of finding solutions.

Guys, I need some FlightAware images of Urban on his way, pictures of the banner for the Baylor game...don’t slack on these please.

Flood the inbox. Even a quick note will do. ad@athletics.utexas.edu

I just sent my email. Flood the inbox...I know his Twitter has been blown up since the game. ad@athletics.utexas.edu

Been open in ATX for a while. Not sure how they pulled it off...I know most have food.

Let’s do this Rebs!

Damn...I need more rep FUCK YOU TOM! /co-signed longhorn football players

I went to block mister x and see he’s been banned already. Thank you.

Need more rep

Let’s go Rebels!