Vance Breaks Ground on Brownsville Shipyard

Vice President JD Vance grabbed a shovel Wednesday in Brownsville, breaking ground on Saronic Technologies’ $3.2 billion Port Alpha shipyard alongside Gov. Greg Abbott and company CEO Dino Mavrookas.

The Austin company’s 800-acre yard at the Port of Brownsville is projected to create up to 10,000 jobs and $264.5 billion in economic impact. “The seas of the world will be ruled by warships built in the great State of Texas,” Abbott said.

Vance then rallied in Harlingen for Republican House candidate Eric Flores, who is challenging Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez in the 34th District. He called Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico, who is running for Senate, “profoundly unserious.” 

President Trump is scheduled to visit Peterbilt Motors’ truck plant in Denton on Thursday, where the White House said he’ll tout an agenda it credits with more than 1 million private-sector jobs. 

Texas AD Apologizes for Vulgar Celebrations

Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte apologized Tuesday for the vulgar on-field celebrations by two Longhorns during Saturday’s 20-17 win at Tennessee, calling them “embarrassing” to the top-ranked program and the university.

Defensive end Colin Simmons drew an unsportsmanlike conduct flag for mimicking urinating after one of his school-record 5 1/2 sacks. Running back Raleek Brown put a hand to his crotch, brought it to his face, and pretended to pass out after a touchdown.

Coach Steve Sarkisian pulled Simmons for a few plays, then sent him back in. He called the behavior unacceptable on Monday. “The moment you start to demean the opponent, the flags come out,” Sarkisian said.

Simmons apologized after the game, saying he got caught up in the moment. Del Conte wrote that both players owned their mistakes and will grow from them. Texas has an off week before facing Oklahoma on Oct. 10.

Tornado Hits Panhandle as Rain Spreads

A tornado touched down near Amarillo Tuesday night, and sirens blared across the Texas Panhandle as storms rolled through.

The storms knocked out power to more than 1,000 customers in Potter and Randall counties and closed roads across the region. Amarillo firefighters fielded five water-emergency calls overnight, and crews spent Wednesday surveying possible damage near Claude.

The next round hits Thursday, when the remnants of Hurricane Polo are expected to drop 2 to 4 inches of rain across San Antonio and South Central Texas, with higher totals where storms stall. A flood watch runs through 7 p.m. Friday.

Bexar County crews have already set barricades at low-water crossings, and officials emphasize that drivers should never go around them.

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Statewide: A software update at the Department of Public Safety kept more than 178,000 voter registrations from reaching county election offices. The Secretary of State’s office says it’ll process them before the Nov. 3 election. The registration deadline is Oct. 5. (More)

➤ Dallas: Police Chief Daniel Comeaux met with Flock Safety’s CEO to discuss guidelines for the city’s license plate readers. About half of Dallas’ 600-plus cameras went dark after Gov. Greg Abbott ordered state agencies to pause funding Sept. 1. (More)

➤ Lufkin: A former police officer got five years after pleading guilty to 100 counts of misusing official information through Flock camera searches. Texas Rangers found Zachary Klein, 33, had abused multiple police databases, and the state agreed not to pursue stalking charges. (More)

➤ Big Bend: Customs and Border Protection will decide the first week of October whether to shrink its border project through the national park. The agency dropped a 30-foot bollard wall but still plans a road, lights, and vehicle barriers. (More)

➤ Rains County: A justice of the peace was indicted for aggravated perjury, accused of lying under oath at a hearing on his child support payments. Robert Jenkins Franklin is already on probation for shouldering a rifle near a courthouse window. (More)

➤ Allen: All Metals Fabricating says aluminum prices are up 84% since March of last year under U.S. tariffs on Canadian metal. The company is stockpiling material and passing costs to customers. (More)

➤ Richardson: A student journalist is suing University of Texas at Dallas officials over discipline he received due to a disclaimer he attached to a guest column about antisemitism and the Israel-Palestine conflict. The school removed him as editor and put him on deferred suspension. (More)

Enjoy reading The Texas Flyover? Click here to share with your friends and family. ✈️

➤ The Houston Astros’ season ended yesterday with a 7-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox, who completed the Wild Card sweep. After trailing 4-0 in the first, Houston pulled within one before Chicago’s three-run homer in the sixth put the game away. (More)

➤ Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale bet $516,000 on the Astros to win the World Series through the prediction market Kalshi, for what would’ve been a $13 million payout. His Gallery Furniture promotion would’ve refunded customers who spent $4,000 or more if Houston won it all. (More)

➤ Arike Ogunbowale scored a WNBA playoff-record 45 points Wednesday as the Dallas Wings beat the Golden State Valkyries 108-100 in overtime, forcing a deciding Game 3 Friday in San Francisco. Her contested 3-pointer in the final seconds of regulation tied it. (More)

➤ Baylor will reportedly wear helmet stripes for the rest of the season, a change coach Dave Aranda pushed for. The Bears scrapped stripes in a 2019 rebrand. (See Helmet)

➤ The Dallas Cowboys agreed to terms with safety Juanyeh Thomas and cornerback Alex Austin as injuries pile up in the secondary. (See Details)

Yesterday’s Results: MLB | NHL | WNBA | Soccer | NCAA Volleyball

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Skip the guesswork. The Hume Body Pod gives you real fat, muscle, and metabolism numbers in seconds. No gym, no lab, no nonsense. Right now Flyover readers get 50% off with code LOOT50. If you’re serious about getting healthier, this is the tool that actually tracks it.

➤ Firefly Aerospace will fly an AI computing payload for startup Starcloud on its third moon mission in 2028, testing technology that could power a data center in lunar orbit. The Cedar Park company’s Elytra orbiter will stay in orbit for up to five years. (More)

➤ Midland’s job market grew 3.3% over the year ending in August, second-fastest among U.S. metros behind Mankato, Minnesota. Payrolls climbed to 129,800 from 125,700. That growth rate is more than triple the statewide 1.0% and nearly double Odessa’s 1.7%. (More)

➤ Origin Mexico, an Austin-area company known for hand-painted hats from Oaxaca, works with more than 300 artisans across Mexico, up from two when founder Yazmin Castañeda left her corporate job six years ago. (More)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ The IRS loves when you pass down cash to your kids or grandkids. Bank accounts and brokerage statements are reported. Easy to track. Easy to tax. But certain gold coins are classified as non-reportable under IRS rules — no tax forms, no CPAs, nobody notified when you sell. These assets sit outside the banking system. Yet… you can buy them using your retirement account, tax-deferred and penalty-free. The Quiet Wealth Playbook reveals which coins qualify and how to get started.

Flying together with our sponsor

One Test. 710,000+ Genetic Markers.

Instead of relying entirely on trial and error, The Pep Report gives you a more personalized place to start. Your DNA sample is collected with a simple at-home cheek swab, then analyzed to provide insights based on your unique genetics.

If you’re already researching peptides, or simply curious about what your genetics may reveal, this could help you ask better questions before deciding what to try.

The Flyover readers get 10% off automatically. Get your pep report here.

➤ Richardson ISD students get 10 to 30 minutes of passive screen time per class under new district guidelines, one year after Texas banned cell phones in public schools. Coppell, Dallas, and Lockhart ISDs are trimming screen time, too. (More)

➤ An Asian marketplace spanning 30,000 square feet is planned for Leander’s Northline development, with construction starting in 2027 and businesses opening in 2028. Developers cite regional growth tied to employers such as Samsung, which is building a chip plant in nearby Taylor. Fifteen percent of Leander’s population is Asian. (See Plans)

➤ Six Fiesta nights headline the Spurs’ 2026-27 theme night calendar at Frost Bank Center, which also includes Halloween, Hello Kitty, Barbie, and Elf Ugly Sweater nights. Opening night is Oct. 20 against Oklahoma City. (See Schedule)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Statins May Be Helping… and Hurting. Statins are meant to protect your heart — but they can also block something your body desperately needs. CoQ10 fuels every cell, from your brain to your muscles. As you age, or if you take statins, your CoQ10 levels can plummet up to 40% — leaving you tired, foggy, and drained. Click here to discover the right form of CoQ10 you need to support your today. Learn more

The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. 

➤ Two retirement destination rankings crown completely different winners, and one snubs Florida entirely. (See Top 10)

➤ Surgeons at an Ohio hospital are accused of amputating the wrong appendage of a 74-year-old Army veteran. (Hear Details)

➤ Tennessee’s first execution of a woman in more than 200 years was halted about an hour before it began. (Listen Now)

Do you spend more or less time on your phone now than you did two years ago?

1. Way more
2. A bit more
3. About the same
4. A bit less
5. Way less

Yesterday’s Results:

Have you had any flooding near where you live this year?

1. No: 65%
2. Yes: 22%
3. Not yet: 13%

Where in Texas can you visit the world’s largest statue of a squirrel?

Show me the answer