Bag of Randomness
Monday, October 12, 2026

Oh man, what a horrible three days if you happen to be both a Cowboys and a Longhorns fan. On Friday, I said all the makings of a rivalry upset were there, and that was certainly the case. Previously, I said that Texas was a soft number one, and that couldn’t be more true. I cheer for the team, but I do my best to live in reality.

McMurry University has a very unique-looking field.

This has to be the most incredible play in football this year.

Talk about precise work.

Considering how the NFL has changed the game to favor the passing game, it’s amazing the single-game passing record still stands after 75 years, and was set by a backup quarterback, no less.

This unbelievable NFL record was set 75 years ago and somehow still stands – Norm Van Brocklin threw for 554 yards on September 28, 1951

The current administration wants to kill electric vehicles, but there seems to be a demand.

I’ve always wondered how ants handled rain.

This man has been fact-checking President Trump for ten years. If Trump ever throws out a number or says an unnamed person refers to him as “sir,” it’s a lie.

Love this man, and I’ve read more of his books than any other author.

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Monday, October 12, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Friday, October, 9, 2026

Well, if Trump is looking for a way to fire up his base, I suppose a livestream death execution is one way to do it.

Speaking of the death penalty, and I’m not even advocating for or aginst it, but I’m trying to imagine what it’s like living the majority of your life with a death sentence hanging over you. Then, the moment comes. I imagine the night before would be horrid. Then, being strapped down on a table, saying your goodbyes, and finally accepting your fate. The emotional turmoil of thinking these are the last seconds of your life, only to wake up outside of prison walls and ultimately contemplating if you’d be forced to go through that again.

Oh, happy Friday, folks!

There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that the Cowboys were going to play awful last night. When everyone is overwhelmingly picking them to blow out a winless team with an undrafted quarterback, it just had the makings of an underperformance. Heck, the game looked like a live stream of an execution of America’s Team.

Despite the outcome last night, it was interesting watching Deak Presco

Likewise, the Longhorns should win tomorrow, but all the makings of a rivalry upset are there. I’ve seen it too many times being on the other side of a rivalry.

Speaking of which, even though this was Vince Young’s first play in the Red River Rivalry, the Longhorns still lost.

Somewhat related, and in some ways more impressive, was Arch Manning’s first play against the Aggies, a 15-yard rushing touchdown on a fourth-and-two. It’s the making of a legend.

Oldie, but a goodie. And, not AI generated.

I’ll be honest, I was totally unfamiliar with the term “receivership.”

Vanderbilt Divinity School is under receivership. No one seems to know why

(RNS) — One of the nation’s most prestigious divinity schools has been placed in receivership, leading to speculation that the school might close or change drastically.

“After careful consideration, including an independent review, we have placed our Divinity School in receivership as a mechanism for renewal,” a spokesperson for Vanderbilt University told RNS in an email. “Over the next two years we will work to position the school for long-term success, investment and growth.”

Details about the receivership have been hard to come by. There has been no public announcement and little comment from the university’s leadership outside of news reports, leading to speculation among alumni that the school would close.

Link

I feel so sorry that most of the nation also has to suffer Texas political ads by the GOP.

Why Ken Paxton, and his wife, were all over your TV on NFL Sunday

Why? In short, it’s actually cheaper to pay for an ad the whole country will see rather than advertising just to Texans.

The cost to air a single 30-second spot in the big four Texas markets (Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and Austin) during Cowboys-Texans was more than *$2M*

I forgot this was the same game that Payton made that beautiful goal-line leap into the end zone with his feet tucked to his chest.

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Friday, October, 9, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Monday, October 5, 2026

I remember playing Tecmo Bowl against one of my brother’s friends late one evening. He made a flippant comment when I decided to go for it on fourth down that has stuck with me ever since: “Landry would have punted.” For the last 40 years, I’ve looked for opportunities to say it. It never applied better than yesterday, when Dallas head coach Brian Schottenheimer chose to kick a field goal late in the first half. The field goal fell short, giving the Texans great field position and allowing them to score before the half.

It’s tough watching Pam Oliver do sideline reporting. Her speech is severely impacted, and my heart goes out to her. As for her condition, the only information I can find online is that she suffers from serious migraines. I’m no doctor, but it seems like it’s gotta be something more than just migraines.

That juke was so good he broke the other guy’s ankles.

Dakota Johnson hosted SNL and turned 37 at midnight. According to this Buzzfeed writer,

In 52 years of SNL history, three celebs started hosting on their actual birthday: Rob Lowe, Calista Flockhart, and Peyton Manning, while another four hosted on their birthday after midnight: Ellen Burstyn, Chevy Chase, Ashton Kutcher, and now Dakota

CBS and Tony Romo have parted ways. His job went to JJ Watt. I thought this was an underrated tweet.

The story behind the tradition:

 

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Monday, October 5, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Friday, October 2, 2026

It feels good to be employed. Today will be two full weeks. It’s challenging, and it’s making me push myself. That’s a good thing, but it’s also scary as hell. It can be hard to prove yourself, especially when your work deals with abstract and subjective stuff.

For the last two weeks, my trivia team has been trying a new venue in a nice area of Trophy Club. During the first week, the restroom sinks didn’t work. Their solution, provide hand sanitizer. Granted, it’s better than nothing, but I didn’t like it. But hey, maybe it was an off night.

One week later, their restroom sinks still didn’t have running water. How the heck can a restaurant in a nice area not have functioning restroom sinks? No hand sanitizer this time, but you’ll love their workaround.

Back in June, I requested my father’s military records from the National Archives. On Wednesday, they finally arrived in the mail. The records of his 28 combined years in the Navy and then the Army measure a bit under three-and-a-half inches.

I couldn’t wait to go through them. But what’s this, The X-Files?!

Speaking of X-Files-type stuff, this story absolutely fascinates me, as I admire this jet like no other.

Keep in mind that bird first flew in 1964. That’s over 60 years ago. There’s no telling what top-secret aircraft look and perform like now.

The big aviation news this week was the FlyDubai flight in which the copilot stabbed the pilot and tried to take down the jet. The plumber who leveled the plane to keep it from crashing gets flights for life, right? Didn’t a pair of off-duty pilots who were passengers land it? They also get something, right? Something better than standby?

On Twitter, Bob Sturm posted these photos from his recent trip to Grapevine Mills Mall after seeing a family rent three of them. It sadly reminded me of Pixar’s WALL-E. The future appears to be a mixture of that and Idiocracy.

I wonder if they have any discretionary income.

Pentagon launches Office of Religious Affairs, will report directly to Hegseth

A slate of Democrats are running for Congress leaning on their Christian bona fides. Republicans are trying to portray them as wolves in sheep’s clothing.

For those keeping track: next Congress likely will have three Democratic pastors:

* Warnock
* Emanuel Cleaver (long-time incumbent)
* Haynes (first-time congressman)

Four other pastors/seminarians are in close races:

* James Talarico
* Sarah Trone Garriott
* Lindsay James
* Adam Hamilton

Exclusive: Texas public schools could lose $227M from voucher exodus, estimate shows

Rural Texas school districts are poised to lose millions of dollars in funding this year after thousands of students reported using vouchers to leave for private or home schools, according to a new analysis of state data.

Across the state, at least 28,200 public school students took a voucher, an estimated loss of at least $227 million in state funding for their public districts.

Large urban-area school districts have seen the most students leave. But the effect could be felt more acutely among hundreds of smaller school districts, where losing a handful of students can have a dramatic effect on the budget.

There’s even an interactive map. Here’s my hometown.

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Friday, October 2, 2026