ATX PULSE 8/10/24: Tampering Trial for Fmr. WilCo Sheriff Begins Today // APD Restricts 'Some' Evidence from DA Office // 3 Deadly Crashes in 36 Hours // Even in Tight Budget, ATX Council Push for More $ on Homelessness // Advice for APD Chief Davis

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TOP NEWS

“Tampering trial set to begin for former Williamson County sheriff, attorney,” CBS Austin’s Jahmal Kennedy — “The trial involving former Williamson County Sheriff Robert Chody and former county attorney Jason Nassour is set to begin Monday. The pair is accused of tampering with evidence and conspiracy to tamper with evidence involving the in-custody death of Javier Ambler back in 2019.

“We as an organization just want to see some type of justice for the family,” says Chas Moore with the Austin Justice Coalition.

Moore says it’s been a long process involving trials and lawsuits over the death of Ambler. He says both he and the coalition hope for an outcome favorable for Ambler’s family.

“We just hope that the courts and the jury come to a conclusion that satisfies some of the family needs,” he said.

A recent indictment alleges both Chody and Nassour took steps to conceal footage of Ambler’s death, which happened back in March of 2019. Chody is accused of ordering deputies to turn off their body and vehicle cameras, as well as withholding information from investigators.

Moore says this indictment only further drives a wedge in the trust between the community an law enforcement.

“It's kind of difficult when we tell people that you have to trust the process, you have to just be involved in the process, get involved in the process, and then stuff like this happens,” he said.

The indictment against Chody and Nassour further outlines a contract provision with the documentary series “Live PD” to destroy raw unaired footage within 30 days, along with allowing the crew to take footage from the crime scene the day of Ambler’s fatal arrest.

Criminal defense attorney and former federal prosecutor John Teakell says this indictment could prove important in the eyes of the jury, but it’s on the prosecution to be able to bring forth evidence.

“It sounds like if they had the undisclosed agreement then I guess it's going to depend on how the prosecutor can prove that and what evidence they have to prove that,” he said.

On the flip side, Teakell also adds the defense is “probably going to focus, or at least to a good extent on the same thing, on what evidence is there.”

Two Williamson County deputies, Zach Camden and James Johnson, were acquitted of manslaughter charges in connection to this case back in March.” CBS Austin

“Austin PD says it ‘restricts’ some evidence from DA, defense, possibly violating state law,” Austin American-Statesman’s Skye Seipp — “The Austin Police Department says it regularly "restricts" various pieces of evidence, such as body-worn camera footage, from the Travis County district attorney's office and defense lawyers — a possible violation of state law.

The Police Department "does not believe it has violated any rules of evidence handling" laws, a spokesperson told the American-Statesman. A joint statement from the department and the district attorney's office said police give "thorough access to all evidence" in cases and that changes to "business processes" and "technology" in recent months at their offices "led to complications related to the sharing of evidence" that both offices are working to address.

The revelation came in a tense pretrial hearing Friday afternoon in Travis County's 460th Criminal District Court for a murder trial that was expected to begin Monday. In the hearing, state prosecutors said they had discovered that body-worn camera footage of officers who responded to the scene had not been released to them and therefore wasn't given to defense lawyers.

The evidence in question pertained to the body-worn camera footage of 21 officers who responded to a shooting that killed one person in downtown Austin on March 14, 2021. Police later arrested 25-year-old Adriean Benn and charged him with the murder of Jorian Donte Hardeway. Benn is represented by the Vazquez Law Firm, which maintains that he is innocent.

Travis County Criminal Court Judge Selena Alvarenga pushed the trial's start date to October in light of the development. Alvarenga suppressed the evidence from the state, meaning that prosecutors cannot use evidence from the 21 videos in their arguments.

Alvarenga also ordered the Police Department to stand before the court Wednesday to answer why the evidence was withheld.

"I want to hear from someone from APD about why evidence in a murder trial is restricted," Alvarenga said. "I want to know why any evidence is being restricted. Is that a policy?"

The Police Department acknowledged the restriction of evidence in a series of statements to the American-Statesman, the latter portion of which appeared to backtrack or downplay the department's initial response to the Statesman's questions.

Contrary to what was said in court, the Police Department initially said the district attorney's office did have access to those videos, according to police spokesperson Anna Sabana's written response to emailed questions sent by the Statesman. However, Sabana said the department does restrict videos from prosecutors and defense lawyers, including these 21 videos.

At first, the department said it would provide the Statesman with a time frame of how long the district attorney's office had access to these videos, but it later said, "APD can’t speak to when the (Travis County district attorney) had access to the videos, but our audit trail will show when/if anyone from APD sent the videos to them."

Additionally, Sabana said the Police Department restricts some videos to "protect the integrity of the case." She added that the department has been restricting videos since 2020 when it started using Axon, the company that provides Austin police with their body cameras.

When the department told the newspaper it did give the district attorney's office access to the 21 videos, the Statesman reached out to verify whether that was true.

The publication later received a joint statement from the Police Department and the district attorney's office that attributed the restriction of some evidence to technology changes. The statement also said the relationship between the two entities is "essential to the safety of our community."

When asked if body-worn camera footage is the only evidence "restricted" by the Police Department from prosecutors and defense, Sabana said, "No ... we also restrict case reports as well as lab reports to those with a need to know."

Sabana said evidence is restricted as part of the department's "least access" practice, and restricting these 21 videos fell in line with that practice.

In response to a follow-up question, Sabana said the "least access" practice is "required when handling criminal justice information. ... In laymen’s terms employees are only given access to systems and data that they must have to complete their jobs."

The Statesman also asked questions about the department's potential violation of state law, specifically citing Texas codes related to evidence handling and the requirements of law enforcement agencies. The department said it "does not believe it has violated any rules of evidence handling."

The decision to restrict evidence is usually made by the supervisor of a unit, Sabana said. In the matter of these videos, she said, the "system employees global setting restricts the items."“ AAS ($)

THE BLOTTER

~ “One dead in early morning crash on State Highway 45, Texas DPS investigates,” CBS Austin’s Victoria Garcia – “The Texas Department of Public Safety is investigating after one person died in a single vehicle crash on State Highway 45 Monday morning.

The Travis County Sheriff's Office said they responded to the scene around 2:50 a.m. on State Highway 45 near South Highway 130.

TCSO says only one car was involved in the crash. Texas DPS is leading the investigation.

Around 4: 30 a.m., the Texas Department of Transportation posted on social media saying that all lanes were closed due to the crash.

TCSO says the road should reopen in less than an hour.” CBS Austin

~ “Deadly Sunday on I-35: 3 killed in 2 separate crashes,” via Fox 7 Austin – “It has been a deadly Sunday on I-35 in Austin.

Two people were killed early Sunday morning after they crashed into a construction site on I-35 in South Austin.

The crash happened around 8:30 a.m. August 11 in the northbound lanes, just south of William Cannon Drive. According to ATCEMS, the vehicle crashed into a pillar and caught on fire.

The two people inside were killed.

The crash caused major delays on I-35 in that area and still remains under investigation.

A pedestrian was killed in an early morning crash on I-35 in downtown.

Hours earlier in downtown Austin, a pedestrian was killed on I-35 after being hit by a vehicle.

The crash happened around 2:30 a.m. on August 11 on the southbound side between 3rd and 4th streets.

ATCEMS arrived to find the pedestrian unconscious and tried to revive them. However, the person was pronounced dead at the scene around 3 a.m.

The crash caused traffic delays in the area while police investigated.” Fox 7 Austin

~ “1 detained after firing gun in Red River district: APD,” via Fox 7 Austin – “One person was detained after police say they fired a gun in Austin's busy Red River entertainment district.

Around 2 a.m. on August 11, Austin police got a call about a person who fired shots into the air at the corner of 8th and Red River streets just as bars were letting out.

Police taped off the area as they searched for evidence and investigated what happened.

No injuries were reported.

The suspect was detained at the scene, and it is currently unknown what charges they could face.” Fox 7 Austin

~ “Man charged after stabbing ex-coworker at Austin Whataburger,” KVUE’s Johann Castro – “A 19-year-old man has been charged with a second-degree felony after stabbing a former coworker at a Whataburger in Austin.

According to an affidavit obtained by KVUE, the incident occurred on July 27 at a Whataburger located in the 2800 block of Guadalupe St., near the University of Texas campus.

Police received a call reporting a stabbing at around 6:30 p.m. Officers arrived an located a male suffering from a three-inch deep stab wound in his neck, which caused him to bleed profusely. He was immediately taken to Dell Seton Hospital by Austin-Travis County EMS (ATCEMS).

Police noticed a pool of blood near the restaurant's doors, and subsequently noticed droplets of blood that tracked through the dining area and into the kitchen. A witness to the incident was also covered in blood.

The witness told police that he observed a man continuously shouting expletives from the back of the seating area while he and his wife were placing their order. After ordering, they than sat down and the man continued screaming, seemingly directed at no one.

Eventually, a Whataburger employee, identified as 19-year-old Jamone Grant, walked up to the screaming man and began speaking with him. The man stood up and shouted at the employee, which started a physical altercation.

The witness told police he then attempted to separate the two men, noticing a large knife reminiscent of a hunting knife on the floor. The witness threw the knife across the restaurant to get it out of reach of the two men fighting.

The witness said he then noticed blood everywhere, and pulled the man outside away from Grant.

Police then spoke to the manager of the Whataburger, who confirmed that Grant was employed and the other man was a former employee who still frequently visited the restaurant.” KVUE

~ “Austin Fire Department deploys drone to locate person lost near Barton Springs,” CBS Austin’s Monique Lopez – “The Austin Fire Department is responding to a lost individual, who is not injured, to assist with the location of the lost person.

An AFD drone has been assigned to assist with location of the lost person.

Initial reports indicated the individual lost went missing on a trail nearby the 2200 block of Barton Springs Rd.” CBS Austin

CITY HALL

~ “Amid financial constraints, Austin City Council pushes for more investments in homelessness,” Austin American-Statesman’s Ella McCarthy – “After Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax's proposed budget did not fully fund some existing homeless services nor allocate enough dollars to keep up with new permanent supportive housing units, City Council members are pushing to fill those gaps and expand other existing programs, like rapid rehousing, before approving the final budget this week.

To maintain status-quo operations at the city's Northbridge and Southbridge homeless shelters and have funding for new permanent supportive housing units expected to become available in the coming fiscal year, Mayor Kirk Watson proposed two budget amendments totaling just over $5.4 million that would be automatically included in future budgets.

Other City Council members have additional programs they would like to fund in the homeless service realm. Those include a one-time bump of between $2 million and $4 million to increase the number of people the city can take into rapid rehousing and just under $1 million in ongoing funding to fill "unmet needs" at the Downtown Austin Community Court.

While these proposed amendments would cover immediate gaps in funding identified by the city's staff and expand some programs if approved, the city currently has little extra money available to spend on homelessness and other general fund programs.

This is largely due to a state-imposed property tax cap coupled with the drying up of federal COVID-19 relief dollars, a bulk of which have already been allocated to fund homeless programs and housing projects. Property taxes are the largest revenue driver for the city's general fund, which pays for things like parks, police, firefighters and many ongoing homelessness programs.

As the city continues facing these financial constraints, city leaders are weighing how Austin should spend what money is available to address homelessness and how to shore up new dollars to fully realize the investments needed to address the city's homelessness crisis and beyond in the coming years.

"We're going to have to consider how we approach these budgets on a more multiyear period when you have those caps in place and you don't have the federal funding," Watson said in a Friday interview with the American-Statesman.

Watson's proposed amendments would cover two gaps in the Homeless Strategy Office's budget that were identified by city financial staff during a Tuesday meeting: $2.8 million for bridge shelter operations and $2.6 million for new permanent supportive housing expected to become available in the coming fiscal year. In Austin, fiscal years run from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 of the following year.

The Northbridge and Southbridge shelters — hotels purchased by the city during the pandemic to be protective lodges that were later converted into emergency homeless shelters — doubled their occupancy rates in 2023 to shelter more people.

"The money that is currently being slated for the unmet need is to continue the bridge shelters and continue them operating at double occupancy," Greg McCormack, a staff member of the city's Homeless Strategy Office, said during a work session Tuesday.

As it relates to permanent supportive housing, the city is expecting an increase in the number of available units next fiscal year, which has long been a top goal for many city leaders. Permanent supportive housing programs are not time limited and usually come with different social services like mental health treatment.

Because of that expected increase, more money will be needed for permanent supportive housing services. City financial staff said that unmet need was $2.6 million for fiscal 2025, which Watson's amendment seeks to cover.

Another proposed amendment, coming from District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, seeks to add a one-time boost of between $2 million and $4 million for rapid rehousing. Rapid rehousing programs usually last six to 24 months, during which time rental assistance slowly decreases, with the goal of self-sufficiency.

"What the base budget proposes is to help maintain individuals who are in our rapid rehousing system as it stands today," Fuentes told the Statesman in an interview Thursday. "What my amendment seeks to do is to ensure that throughout the next year, that we continue to provide assistance to new individuals."

Both Fuentes and Watson in their respective interviews with the Statesman said that $10.3 million identified by city staff as additional money in the general fund could be an option to support their amendments.

Watson also said that when the city manager laid out his proposed budget, "he indicated that there was about $4 million of funding that was still available to be utilized."

"You have a council that is deeply committed to" addressing homelessness, Watson said. "I think that those resources that have been identified will be some of the first resources we look to."

Local advocates have repeatedly called for the City Council not to approve the proposed $18.2 million increase to the Austin Police Department budget and allocate some of that money to housing services. Some of the cost drivers for the increase to the police budget are a 4% wage increase to civilian employees, which was proposed for all city employees, as well as insurance increases and increased funding for the "Legacy Liability scheduled payment to the Austin Police Retirement System," according to city budget documents.

There are several other proposed amendments this year coming from City Council members related to homelessness services and other general fund departments. Council members will have to decide this week what to prioritize with the resources they have available.

"We have some tough conversations ahead," Fuentes said.” AAS ($)

GUEST COLUMN BY CLEO PETRICEK, DENNIS FARRIS & MATT MACKOWIAK: ~ “Incoming APD Chief Lisa Davis Can Seize Opportunity by Rebuilding Department,” via Medium – “The hiring of the permanent police chief was our city’s most important hire in the last two decades.

Put simply, our city could not afford for City Manager T.C. Broadnax to get it wrong.

But he got it right.

Lisa Davis is a Navy veteran and has had a distinguished 30-year career in law enforcement, rising through the ranks of the Cincinnati Police Department to Assistant Police Chief. She was a finalist for their permanent Police Chief. Cincinnati’s loss is Austin’s gain.

Davis has a fantastic reputation in Cincinnati, built on a passion for community policing, serving others, and instilling a guardian’s mentality and a warrior’s preparation in her fellow officers. In 30 years, she has never had a serious conduct complaint. In her bid to be APD Chief, she impressed council members across the spectrum, as well as community leaders.

She arrives in Austin at a moment of crisis for APD.

When the defund the police vote was taken in 2020 (passing 11–0), it set off a staffing crisis that has engulfed the entire department and up until now has been irreversible. At the time of that vote, Austin had 1,800 available officers and a mutually agreed upon city budget that would build to an authorized strength of 2,000 officers, roughly two officers per 1,000 residents.

Today we have roughly 1,300 available officers (500 fewer than four years ago) and we may be at 1,200 officers by year’s end.

How has this happened?

It’s a math problem.

APD has lost 15 officers a month on average every single month since the defund vote was taken. And we gain roughly 30–40 officers each year when a cadet class graduates. This means we lose an average of 140 officers a year. Without a bold plan, we will never get ahead of this cascading disaster.

For Chief Davis, we respectfully offer the following advice:

1) Make final passage of a four-year labor agreement your most urgent priority. The certainty that comes with such a contract benefits everyone. The police union seeks guarantees on pay and benefits and the city seeks implementation of the oversight ordinance. Reports indicate they are very close to a final agreement, which will require concurrent passage by both the police union and the City Council. Recruitment is nearly impossible without such a contract.

2) Improve retention and boost recruitment. We must shrink our monthly attrition and boost our annual recruitment. This will not just slow the rate of decline, but turn the staffing crisis around. On retention, leadership can make the difference. Officers want to know that the Police Chief has their backs, will fight for them, and can effectively lead the organization at a difficult time. On recruitment, Austin needs to join the ranks of America’s major cities by allowing concurrent classes, night classes, and more modified classes (shortened to bring police from other jurisdictions into APD). The goal for 2025 should be no net loss in available officers for APD, with a goal of building back our ranks toward 1,800 officers over the next five years.

3) Rebuild the bonds of trust with the community. Policing is built on the social contract that police are there to protect us and that the community trusts that they will. All police departments can improve and APD is no exception. Davis can rely on the proven current leadership team to assess APD’s organizational structure and policies and propose a plan for its future that will unify the Mayor, the City Council, business and community leaders, and APD’s rank and file behind a common vision for APD’s future.

Lisa Davis has the experience, the record, and the passion to lead APD into a new chapter. We know she will rise to this challenge.

We hope our entire city supports her in this endeavor.

Cleo Petricek and Matt Mackowiak are the bipartisan co-founders of Save Austin Now, a nonpartisan organization focused on improving quality of life for all residents. Dennis Farris served at APD for 25 years and is now president of the Austin Police Retired Officers Association, which has 1,150 members, whose motto is “served and protected”.

» Learn more about Save Austin Now PAC here — http://www.saveaustinnow.com.

» Learn more about APROA here — https://aproa.org/.

OTHER NEWS

~ “Unionized restaurant workers at airport authorize strike if new contract not reached,” Austin Business Journal’s Sean Hemmersmeier – “Hundreds of food service and hospitality workers at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport could go on strike this fall if they don’t receive pay raises.

Employees of Delaware North — one of the airport's independent concessionaires that operates restaurants and other businesses at the facility — voted unanimously on Aug. 8 to authorize a strike if a collective bargaining agreement with the New York-based company isn't reached by Oct. 1, according to Unite Here Local 23. The union said it represents over 900 Delaware North employees at ABIA.

The union's main request is a minimum wage of $25 an hour for employees due to the rising cost of living, a 20% increase from $20.80 an hour now. The current minimum wage for city of Austin employees is $20.80 and took effect in 2023, a figure that applies to most city contractors.

In addition to the pay raise, the union also is seeking improved healthcare and retirement benefits, a union spokesperson said. The last collective bargaining agreement between Delaware North and Unite Here Local 23, a national union of food service workers and others, expired July 30.

“Our wages just aren’t keeping up as everything keeps getting more expensive,” said Markeeta Presley, a Delaware North employee, in a statement. “When the (Austin) City Council increased the minimum wage to $20 two years ago it helped, but my work is worth more than just the minimum. I come into work everyday and give more than the minimum. I deserve better, and I’m going to fight to win it.”  

Even though a full time worker paid the Austin minimum wage can make over $43,000 in a year, it isn’t high enough to live comfortably in the city, Presley said. A full time employee making $25 an hour would make $52,000 a year. 

The union said a bargaining session with Delaware North is scheduled for later this month. 

In a statement, Delaware North said it's aiming to work with the union to reach a new deal.

"Delaware North is committed to negotiating in good faith with Unite Here 23 to reach a fair agreement that honors our employees and maintains the high standards of service at (ABIA)," a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "We have additional bargaining sessions scheduled and remain optimistic about finding a collaborative resolution that prioritizes both our employees’ well-being and uninterrupted service.”

Delaware North is one of three major concessions operators at the ABIA, said an airport spokesperson. The other two concession operators at the airport are HMS Host and Paradies Lagardere. 

If the union were to strike, it wouldn’t impact the operations of roads, runways and terminals at the airport, an ABIA spokesperson said.” ABJ ($)

~ “Deadline approaching: City considers recall election for Bastrop mayor,” Community Impact’s Amanda Cutshall – “The clock is ticking for a possible recall election which would let voters decide whether to remove Bastrop Mayor Lyle Nelson from office following accusations against Nelson for his alleged involvement with a Visit Bastrop investigation.

On July 25, a petition with more than 1,600 Bastrop-voter signatures was submitted to the Bastrop City Secretary Ann Franklin, who resigned five days later. According to Section 10.07 of the Bastrop Home Rule Charter, at least 25% of registered voters as of the last municipal election is required to attempt a recall.

Kristin Miles, a representative of the Bastrop County Registrar, said 6,228 voters were registered as of the May 4, 2024, election. This means at least 1,557 signatures were needed. Lyle Nelson’s attorney Bill Aleshire said the petition was organized by Mayor Pro Tem John Kirkland and council member Kevin Plunkett.

Interim City Secretary Irma Parker and Assistant City Secretary Victoria Psencik reviewed the petition. On Aug. 9, Parker posted the Bastrop City Council agenda for the upcoming Aug. 13 meeting. In it, Parker said the petition was rejected due to a lack of affidavits that are required to validate the signatures.

Parker said she will present her findings at the Aug. 13 City Council meeting and notify the petitioners via certified mail that the petition is insufficient. Once the petitioners receive the notification, Parker said they have 10 days to resubmit it.

A financial audit by Haynie & Company found about $70,000 of public funds approved by Susan Smith, Visit Bastrop’s former CEO, lacked proper documentation between 2021-23, according to previous reporting by Community Impact.

An investigation into Nelson’s role in the Visit Bastrop financial misconduct allegations was completed in December 2023 by Sarah Glaser of Lloyd Gosselink Attorneys at Law, a copy of which was obtained by Community Impact.

In it, Glaser looked into the following:

• If Nelon had any knowledge of the misuse of public funds

• If Nelson shared confidential information with Smith

• If Nelson participated in discussions regarding Visit Bastrop where he had an undisclosed conflict of interest

• If Nelson was involved in a romantic relationship with Smith, which led to his concealing the relationship from the public during the election

Per the document submitted to Bastrop City Manager Sylvia Carrillo, Glaser said she found no evidence of Nelson:

• Having knowledge of the misuse of public funds

• Sharing any confidential information with Smith

• Participating in a conflict of interest, noting that the city’s code of ethics does not prohibit a friendship, romantic or sexual relationship with an employee of a city contractor; however, Glaser said in the document that there was discussion of Visit Bastrop’s budget and business operations via text messages between Nelson and Smith in May 2023—one month before he was sworn into office as mayor.

Regarding Nelson’s affair with Smith while acting as Bastrop mayor, Glaser said after questioning Nelson more than once on Dec. 12, he admitted to having the affair while in office—between June 20, when he was sworn in, and Aug. 10. Glaser added that Nelson refused to provide copies of personal phone records.

“The fact that they spent $137,070 of taxpayer money to hire an outside investigator to condemn [Nelson] for having an affair made my jaw drop,” Aleshire said. “[Nelson] has apologized to God, his family and the public for his mistake. An affair is not a matter of government business.”” Community Impact ($)

SPORTS

~ TEXAS FOOTBALL: “Can Alfred Collins fill the big shoes at DT for Longhorns,” Austin American-Statesman’s Thomas Jones — “Since Alfred Jones joined Texas football in 2020 as a gangly, raw-boned defensive tackle from nearby Cedar Creek High School, he’s had an up-close view of how his former teammates at the position have developed into NFL players.

Moro Ojomo began his collegiate career with a redshirt in 2018 and became a seventh-round pick by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023. Keondre Coburn became a 2023 sixth-round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs after five seasons at Texas. T’Vondre Sweat didn’t start a game in his first three of five seasons with the Longhorns but was the Outland Trophy winner and a second-round pick by the Tennessee Titans in 2024. Byron Murphy II started just two games in his first two seasons with the Longhorns before earning All-American honors and a first-round selection from the Seattle Seahawks after last season.

Now a fifth-year senior and a likely starter for the first time alongside Vernon Broughton, is Collins ready to continue that recent trend?

“It’s finally my time so I'm ready to show everybody what I got,” Collins said after a Texas practice in late July. “Sit back and watch; that’s all I’m going to say.”

Collins, a thoughtful, introspective athlete who has earned multiple Academic All-Big honors during his career, doesn’t say much. But he hopes to speak loudly with his play this season — both for a Texas defense trying to replace Murphy and Sweat as well as for his own professional hopes.

 “It’s just locking in and being focused on the craft at hand,” Collins said. “I want to follow in (Murphy and Sweat’s) footsteps. I want to show everybody we could make some noise as well.”

Collins, the son of former Texas women’s basketball player Benita Pollard, has grown from a lanky young athlete who once weighed a future in basketball into a 6-foot-5, 320-pound physical freak. He’s shown off his athleticism — think of a leaping interception against Colorado in the 2020 Alamo Bowl or his interception return for a score in this past spring’s Orange White Game — plenty in the past.

But Collins, who has 87 total tackles and 6½ sacks in 48 career games entering this season, wants more than splash plays. He wants to fill gaps in the run game, occupy blockers, disrupt passing lanes and collapse the pocket; thing that may not show up on highlight reels, but certainly show up on game film.

And they’ll help Texas overcome the loss of Murphy and Sweat, who anchored the nation’s No. 3 run defense last season.

“It's tough to replace those two dudes, but how do you do it? Coach your tail off,” Texas defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski said. “The guys whose opportunity arises, they’ve got to keep working to get better. The two guys who are coming back, Vernon (Broughton) and AC, played a lot of football, and they've gotten better. Very encouraged, and I think our depth’s going to be good. How productive are they going to be compared to what those two guys brought last year? We'll find out.”” AAS ($)

AUSTIN CULTURE

~ DINING: Austin Chronicle’s annual “Best Restaurants in Austin” list voting ends TODAY. Vote here.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

~ LIVE MUSIC: Bluegrass Night: The Bluegrass Outfit (sponsored by Still Whiskey). Radio Coffee & Beer (4204 Menchaca Rd). Show at 7pm. Tix are free but registration is required here.

COOL JOB ALERT

~ GENERAL COUNSEL: University of Texas System (Austin). Salary: Negotiable. Info / apply here.