Geographist

Justin Verlander Born: February 20, 1983 Sport: Baseball (266-159 record, Rookie of the Year, MVP, 3-time Cy Young, 3 no-hitters, 10-time All-Star) The 2026 Major League Baseball season ended today, and our local nine made the city proud by claiming the AL West title once again.  Every season there are many players who play their final professional games, whether planned or not.  If you're any kind of sports fan you're probably well aware that one of the greatest pitchers of all time called it a career yesterday, with Justin Verlander tossing his last game in Detroit where it all started.  And although it's pretty much a guarantee that he'll enter the Hall of Fame in a Tigers hat as soon as he becomes eligible in five years, he reached the pinnacle of team success as a member of the Houston Astros.  So while we all continue to tear up re-watching the emotional video of his daughter taking him out of his last game, let's review the story of one of the best to ever to...

Elvin Bethea Born: March 1, 1946 Sport: Football (3-time All American, 8-time Pro Bowl, 2-time All Pro, Hall of Fame) Although the Houston Texans are currently the team that local football fans cheer for in our area, we all remember the original NFL team to call the Bayou City home.  And while Bud Adams may have taken the team and all the franchise history with him when he left town, we still have a relationship with the former players that lit up the Astrodome that Tennessee will never be able to claim.  One of the all-time greats who played every one of his 16 seasons for the Oilers was Elvin Bethea, and even though he set records for the franchise that still stand he was nevertheless surprised when he finally got the call to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  As football season continues to move forward, let's take this week to focus on one of the early stars who helped Houston "Luv Ya Blue". Elvin Bethea called the Astrodome home for 16 seasons The story ...

Leroy Burrell Born: February 21, 1967 Sport: Track and Field (12 world records, 3-time individual NCAA Champion, 9-time All-American, Olympic medalist: 1 Gold, coached 19 NCAA Champions, Hall of Fame) It hasn't been a fun sports weekend for me with the Astros dropping all three games against the top team in the AL, the Texans losing their season opener in a heartbreaker, and my alma mater Texas State dropping their second game to a rival from just down the road.  With all of this misery, I didn't feel much like rewarding the local teams with much recognition, so we're going to go a bit of a different route this week.  Although it isn't track season, one decorated athlete and coach recently announced that he's heading back to the Lone Star State this coming year.  Leroy Burrell has a long history representing Houston on the largest stages that his sport has to offer, and has a trophy case to back up his claims of success.  He certainly merits inclusion in our list of...

Jack Pardee Born: April 19, 1936 Sport: Football (All-American, Pro Bowl, All Pro, 87-77 NFL coaching record, 22-11-1 NCAA coaching record, 23-13 USFL coaching record, 10-8 CFL coaching record, 14-6 WFL coaching record, Hall of Fame) Happy Labor Day!  We're right in between the kickoff to college football and professional football, with the first real NCAA games last week and tonight representing the end of the first full slate of action, and the first NFL game taking place on Wednesday before an otherwise normal schedule next weekend.  I thought this might be a good time to turn the spotlight on a man who played and coached at both levels, and actually turned the trick of having a winning record in every league where he coached.  After a collegiate playing career that landed him in the hall of fame and a successful pro career that spanned 16 seasons, Jack Pardee became the first and only man to coach NCAA, NFL, CFL, WFL, and USFL teams, including three separate squads he...