Remembering Nelson Mandela

“He no longer belongs to us. He belongs to the ages.” 

— U.S. President Barack Obama, speaking on the death of Nelson Mandela on Thursday

The first casualty in the governor’s race

“Even though I have worked hard to get our message out across the state the past six months, unfortunately we are nowhere near where we need to be financially and organizationally to win this race. And, the primary is only three months away. I can no longer in good conscience ask friends and fellow conservatives to continue to help me when there appears to be no realistic path to victory.” 

— Republican candidate for governor Tom Pauken announcing his dropping out from the governor’s race Thursday

The least-important and highest-paid public employee in Texas

“It’s about these kids and it’s about this team. I’m very unimportant and I absolutely have not mentioned [the question of job security].” 

— UT football head coach Mack Brown, who makes $5.3 million per year, at a press conference on Wednesday.

Define “UFO”

“I’m not saying it’s a UFO, but I sure don’t know what it is.” 

— An unidentified El Paso resident reporting a sighting to Texas UFO Sightings on Nov. 26, according to the Houston Chronicle on Wednesday.

“We’re not searching for aliens or looking for UFOs.” 

— MIT astrophysicist Sara Seager, requesting funding for the search for extraterrestrial life from the U.S. House Committee on Science, Space and Technology on Wednesday.

Concussions

“No one tackles like they did in the ’70s. They don’t tackle anymore. They just hit. If you take face masks off, they won’t hit anymore.” 

— Athletic trainer Kenneth Locker, arguing that better helmets may actually increase the risk of concussions in Thursday’s Daily Texan.