Geographist

Dicky Maegle Born: September 14, 1934 Sport: Football (All-American, Pro Bowl, All-Pro, College Football Hall of Fame)  Most sports fans align themselves with certain teams, while others pick particular players to cheer.  Personally, I've always been a homer, rooting for my local teams no matter what the sport happens to be.  There have been a few players that have caught my eye over the years, however, that have drawn my interest and caused my to cheer their successes, as long as it didn't interfere with anyone from Houston.  But one thing nearly every sports fan has in common is the excitement over the remarkable play.  The thrill of watching incredible athletes perform at the highest level sometimes results in a moment of amazement, disbelief, or awe that embeds itself in our collective memories, causing us to think (or say), "I've never seen that before!"  This week I wanted to give a nod to one of Houston's universities that has a distinctive sports pa...

DeMeco Ryans Born: July 28, 1984 Sport: Football (All-American, Defensive Rookie of the Year, 2-time Pro Bowl, 2-time All Pro, 21-17 coaching record) This week was bittersweet for Houston sports fans as our beloved Astros missed out on the playoffs for the first time in 8 years, and the Rockets announced starting PG Fred VanVleet will likely miss the entire upcoming season after tearing an ACL, but at least the Houston Texans finally got their first win of the year.  I was going to do a post on someone who had ties to Houston and the team we beat, the former Oilers and current division rival Tennessee Titans, but then I decided that the spotlight should stay on the home team.  After all, why pay attention to the franchise that we just beat down 26-0, our first shutout win since 2010?  So this week seems like a great time to look at the history of the man currently serving as the head coach of the Texans, DeMeco Ryans, and understand why his playing career meant he was suc...

The Undertaker (Mark Calaway) Born: March 24, 1965 Sport: Wrestling (7-time world champion, 7-time world tag team champion, Hall of Fame)  As baseball season winds down to its final week of the regular season and football season continues to progress, I find myself increasingly frustrated with my local teams.  Both the Astros and the Texans have struggled to score in recent days, displaying less "offense" and more "offensive" play with both teams dropping three straight and currently sitting outside of any sort of playoff scenario.  Some of the recent sports TV news has focused on a major wrestling event that happened this weekend, and the persona of a Houston-based star of that sport may end up being the only kind of help my beloved hometown teams will need if they don't improve soon.  With that in mind, I figured that this week we should take a look at the story of The Undertaker, one of the longest-lasting celebrities of professional wrestling, and a proud pr...

Ray Childress Born: October 20, 1962 Sport: Football (2-time All American, 5-time Pro Bowl, 5-time All Pro, College Football Hall of Fame) Both professional and collegiate football are continuing to march through their early season schedules, and already there have been a few marquis matchups that have caught the attention of fans across the country.  This week, in recognition of nearby Texas A&M's victory over Notre Dame, who had been ranked in the top 10, I thought it might be good to look at a player who competed for the Aggies as well as for Houston's NFL team.  Because none of the players from College Station have made a major impact yet for the Texans, we have to go back in time to the previous franchise.  In the mid-80s, a defensive lineman named Ray Childress was drafted by the Houston Oilers and became a staple for the team for over a decade.  Even after his career ended, he stayed local to start a business and remained a recognizable face on TV.  L...

Arian Foster Born: August 24, 1986 Sport: Football (4-time Pro Bowl, 2-time All Pro) Today the Houston Texans officially kicked off their latest season.  Since the first game in the franchise's history (almost exactly 23 years ago, a 19-10 victory over the Dallas Cowboys) there have been a few seasons that have created the sort of success that made the fans cheer a little more, and a handful of players that have combined talent and personality to become true fan favorites.  Houston loves cheering for the underdog, so when an undrafted free agent named Arian Foster emerged as the team's first-string running back the city was ready to rally around him.  His quirky style and unapologetic individualism endeared him all the more with anyone who followed the Texans.  By the end of his career he had etched his name in the record books, so this week let's take a look at the story of Arian Foster.  Houston's Reliant Stadium, home of the Texans Born in Albuquerque, New Me...

Billie Jean King Born: November 22, 1943 Sport: Tennis (782-192 career record, 39 Grand Slam titles - 12 singles, 16 doubles, and 11 mixed doubles, World #1 Player, Hall of Fame) As college football continues to get underway with its first full weekend of action, pro football enjoys its final moment before the season begins next week, and baseball approaches its final month before the playoffs arrive, another sport has taken its place on the usual highlight shows.  In the heart of New York, the best tennis players in the world have gathered to compete in the 2025 US Open, which will have its final events wrapped up by the time next week's post is made.  The venue for one of the sport's four major tournaments, boasting 17 individual courts, is called the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.  While not from Houston, the namesake had a memorable match in the city's most iconic venue with which she will forever be associated.  As a sad coincidence, both King's younge...

Andre Ware Born: July 31, 1968 Sport: Football (All-American, Heisman Trophy, College Football Hall of Fame) The NFL preseason ended this weekend while the college football season kicked off with a partial slate of games.  The city of Houston has been no stranger to producing talent at both levels, and with several universities calling the city home we've had our share of local players to cheer for.  But only one player to play their college career within the city limits has ever brought home the top individual award for performance on the field, and that was Andre Ware.  A local talent who soared to unprecedented heights, Ware made it to the professional ranks as a quarterback after his time in college and then returned to his roots to be a long-time contributor for his hometown team.  This week, we'll learn more about the local legend who is now heard every week by fans across the region. The Astrodome, home of the UH Cougars during Ware's 1989 season As the only c...

Mike Scott Born: April 26, 1955 Sport: Baseball (124-108, 3-time All-Star, 1986 Cy Young) As major league baseball continues its relentless march through the "dog days of summer", the kids of little league have been rapidly working their way towards their championship.  In just one week the Little League World Series will be played in Williamsport, PA, but today the kids get to see some of the stars of their sport perform in the annual Little League Classic, with the New York Mets playing against the Seattle Mariners.  As a 10-12 year old playing the game you love, it's inspiring to see the professionals perform at the highest level, especially when you recognize that many of them started off as little leaguers themselves.  This week we'll look at the story of Mike Scott, a Houston baseball legend who took that very path, learning the sport on a team that his dad coached before rising to the major league ranks to make his mark in the history books. The Astrodome durin...

Gene Elston Born: March 26, 1922 Sport: Baseball - Announcer (2006 Ford C. Frick Award - National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum) Like many sports fans, I follow games and events on numerous media formats.  Although the modern increase in apps, websites, and regional TV networks has increased the ways games are consumed, the radio broadcast has remained a staple of sports coverage for over a century.  Baseball, long known as America's Pastime, has been especially associated with radio as the frequency of games and pace of play allowed for announcers to not only to explain how the action on the field would play out, but also tell stories, explain rules, discuss players, or provide other commentary.  Houston has been no stranger to quality broadcasters over the years, and this week we will learn about Gene Elston, the city's first play-by-play baseball announcer whose voice became synonymous with the team itself.  The Astrodome and nearby Colts Stadium, where Gene El...

Brian Ching Born: May 24, 1978 Sport: Soccer (82 MLS career goals, 6-time All-Star, 2004 MLS Golden Boot, 3-time MLS Cup Champion, 2006 World Cup participant, 2007 Gold Cup champion) The world's most popular sport took a long time to reach Houston at the professional level.  Once it arrived, however, the city that boasted a massive international population (including a plurality of the residents descended from Latin American nations that love "the beautiful game") could proudly boast one of the most talented and recognizable names in the MLS.  From the day the Houston Dynamo relocated from their previous home in San Diego, Brian Ching was the face of the franchise.  He achieved success on the field, but made himself beloved to the city due to his work off the field.  This week we'll dig into the story behind the first professional soccer star in Houston history. The Houston Dynamo moved to their new permanent home near downtown in 2012 Brian Ching was born in Hawaii,...