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Texas State Football Championship 1984The state of Texas will crown a new slate of high school football champions this week, as the finalists, from the six-man classification all the way up to class 6A, meet in a series of title games at AT&T Stadium, in Arlington. But forty years ago, the only winners in the state championship tilt between Odessa Permian and Beaumont French were chaos and confusion.More than 13,000 fans showed up in Irving that day in December 1984 to watch the class 5A—the University Athletic League’s largest enrollment classification at the time—finale at Texas Stadium. Odessa Permian was a perennial contender for district and state championships in those days, while Beaumont French eked out the football team’s first playoff berth in nine years with a 6–4 regular-season…

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Elite bodyguards in TexasAt six foot six and nearly three hundred pounds, with shoulders that barely fit inside an XXL suit jacket, Travis Miller is a hulking wall of a man. He claims to be a “big teddy bear” with a knack for putting even small children at ease, but there is no doubt that he more often exudes intimidation. This came in handy on the football field: Miller nearly made the NFL and then played in the Arena Football League and overseas. But giving off an air of menace, it just so happens, is an even greater asset in his current line of work. Most would identify Miller as a bodyguard, but within the small fraternity of high-priced chaperones who shepherd the rich and famous around the country,…

The post They Protect Rich and Famous Texans. They Say They’ve Never Been More in Demand.  appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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roar spread imageBorderline BiasI have been a subscriber for many years and love the magazine. What I do not appreciate is the political bias that is obvious when reading some of your articles. “The Border Crisis Won’t Be Solved at the Border” [November 2024] is one of them. There is ridicule of the governor’s trying to protect the border, but there is insufficient explanation of why there was suddenly a need for doing so. I believe that if the previous presidential administration’s policies had been kept, there would not have been a huge increase in the number of immigrants crossing the border illegally. The governor tried to protect Texas and Texans against this, as the federal government apparently had other priorities.There is mention of the costs to…

The post Roar of the Crowd: January 2025 appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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Victoria Trip GuideIf you weren’t already aware that Victoria turns two hundred years old this year, rest assured that the locals will remind you as soon as you set your suitcase down. They’re proud of their history, and understandably so. Located about thirty miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico and just about a two-hour drive from many Texas cities (Austin, Houston, San Antonio, and Corpus Christi), the town is one of the oldest in the state and is the seat of the only county (also named Victoria) that flew all six flags of Texas.Today, that history is evident in a new display at De León Plaza, a public square in the heart of the city. There, you’ll find new statues of the town’s founder, Martin De…

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Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

Texspresso Martini.The younger generations—and possibly singer Sabrina Carpenter—have brought back the espresso martini. There’s no fighting it—stemmed glasses of rich, brown, caffeinated liquid dotted with three coffee beans are everywhere. Instead, we’re innovating it. Our espresso martini—a Texspresso Martini, if you will—has a Southern drawl, with mezcal adding a bit of smoke and pecans contributing richness. With three ingredients, there’s only so much you can change up in this dessert (or brunch) cocktail, but this combination is pretty spectacular. Mezcal has always been an excellent pairing for coffee. As the old saying goes, what grows together goes together, and coffee is harvested in many areas of Mexico that also produce mezcal, including Oaxaca and Guerrero. And when we’re talking Texas, my mind always goes to pecans, one…

The post Gen Z Brought Back the Espresso Martini. We Texified It. appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

2024 was the first full year of Texas Monthly’s makeover. Over the past twelve months, our art team has settled into the redesign that introduced (or reintroduced) new story sections to our readers. With the renovation came the revival of our Working Life column, which highlights Texans with captivating careers (think Casandra Sowards, who sculpts animatronic dinosaurs). We brought back TM Talks, conversations between Texas Monthly staffers and prominent Texans, such as country music star Ronnie Dunn. We revamped Letter From, a series of dispatches from various corners of the state, which took readers along on a Volkswagen road trip through West Texas this March. Our Excursions, Weekender, and Detours columns offer readers the best of the best advice on where to go and what…

The post The Year in Texas, in Photos appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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Robert Earl Keen ChristmasSince its release on the 1994 album Gringo Honeymoon, Robert Earl Keen’s “Merry Christmas From the Family” has become the “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” for those of us whose family get-togethers are less Hallmark and more National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.It’s not just humor, though, that has made the song a holiday—and honky-tonk—tradition. Like Willie Nelson’s “Pretty Paper” or Merle Haggard’s “If We Make It Through December,” the tune has a touch of melancholy that resonates this time of year and a relatability that relieves some of the pressure that comes with picture-perfect holiday expectations. With a cracker-barrel cast of characters who are hilarious but also tenderhearted, the song achieves a wistful nostalgia that feels like flipping through an album of old photos. “People tell me year after…

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Nancy-Reza-co-owner-of-Taqueria-El-Arquito-webNancy Reza smiles a lot, even when talking about the family rift that created Taqueria El Arquito. Her large family is best known for owning 23 locations of Taqueria Taxco (established 2009) across Dallas–Fort Worth. In 2020, though, Reza, several siblings, their parents, and other relatives broke from the family’s chain to open their own operation. “Working with family is complicated,” Reza told me during a conversation at the newest Taqueria El Arquito—one of nine locations—in tony University Park. She didn’t clarify the reason for the split, only hinting at some kind of friction. What Reza did share was pride in her family and her love of her hometown of Taxco, famous for the arches of its aqueduct, built under order of conquistador Hernán Cortes, in…

The post What Is a Taqueria, Really? This Dallas Chain Has the Answer. appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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Patricia Sharpe at her Texas Monthly desk on October 17, 2024.At the end of this year, after fifty years with Texas Monthly, dining critic Patricia Sharpe will be closing her tab and retiring. Pat bid her readers farewell and answered a few final questions about her gustatory adventures in an essay in Texas Monthly‘s December issue, but here, colleagues past and present share their anecdotes about and praise for Pat’s five decades with the magazine.A few weeks ago, Pat and I were waiting to be seated at the host stand of a restaurant in San Antonio, and the young woman asked for the phone number on the reservation. If you’ve read Pat’s wonderful December feature, you know she always makes a reservation under a fake name, but, of course, technology blew her cover long ago.…

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selena illustrationCONCERTSelena Vive: The Music of SelenaMajestic Theatre, San Antonio, January 3–5  The San Antonio Philharmonic will pay tribute to the late Queen of Tejano with a three-night stand featuring a young star of the genre, 21-year-old Isabel Marie Sanchez. A fixture of the tejano scene for more than a decade, Sanchez is no stranger to Selena’s music: She was “discovered” by the icon’s father; covered “Dreaming of You” on her 2017 album, Sígueme; has performed at Fiesta de la Flor, an annual festival for Selena fans; and has been a part of other musical tributes to the singer.EVENTFort Worth Stock Show & RodeoWill Rogers Memorial Center, January 17 to February 8The oldest continuously running event of its type returns for a 129th year with something…

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