08.28.2025_Defender-e-FULL

TSU vs PV 40th Labor Day Classic divides houses across Houston

Volume 94, issue 45 August 28, 2025

NEWS

PROFILE

ANNETTE RAMIREZ

JOSEPH BOUDREAUX

The Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector is working toward reform.

The Houston chef is making waves with his new East End Burger business.

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DN To the POINT

(L-R) U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (RGA) speak during the hearing on “Unfair Play: Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.” Credit: Getty Images

Message from the Reporter Rep. Jasmine Crockett versus Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene

to impossible standards. At least Serena is transparent.

That said, it’s on us, not Serena, to make informed decisions. These drugs aren’t for everyone, and they’re not cheap. If you’re not a celebrity, you must weigh what fits your budget, your health and your doctor’s advice.

We live in an age of information overload.

Instead of shaming Serena, we should thank her for starting a real conversation about health, honesty and the many different paths to self-care.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Tex.) had to call out Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) again because she claimed Crockett doesn’t understand “the Black struggle” because she’s educated and went to private school.

Greene’s comment was simply ignorant and clout-chasing behavior. It pushes the tired stereotype that being Black means being poor or uneducated, as if success cancels out struggle.

Laura Onyeneho I side with Crockett here because, like her, I’m an educated Black woman. My parents worked hard to make sure we had opportunities they didn’t have. That doesn’t AI judges Black women’s hair? erase their sacrifices or the realities of racism. Our community New research shows that artificial intelligence isn’t neutral has always struggled to break barriers for the next generation. when it comes to Black women. In a study by Dr. Janice Gassam History shows us why that is the case in this country.

Asare, AI tools ranked Black women with braids as looking less Crockett’s response was “I’m Black & educated! Many of intelligent than the same women with straight hair. AI even you are just the opposite & prove my point about your hate failed to recognize that the images, featuring the same face EVERY SINGLE DAY.” Blackness is not defined by suffering and the same shirt, were of the same person simply because but by resilience, brilliance and perseverance. Greene has the hairstyle changed. No such negative stereotypes appeared repeatedly clashed with Crockett and other women of color in when the same test was run with white women.

Congress, and Crockett is always quick with the comebacks.

This is proof that racism doesn’t disappear in technology. It At this point, when they go low, you’ve got to match their gets coded into it. If hiring systems and workplace tools use AI energy and meet them in Hell. that judges Black women based on hairstyles, real opportunities could be blocked before a resume is read.

Serena Williams and her weight loss journey We’ve already seen how Black women face discrimination When Serena Williams revealed she used the weight loss at work for choosing natural styles, locs or braids. Now, AI drug GLP-1 to drop 31 pounds, people rushed to criticize is adding another layer of bias. We can’t trust technology to her. Some accused her of taking “the easy way out.” This solve racism; it reflects the same prejudices already in society. reminded me of how people criticized Oprah for her weight Black people and allies need to keep pushing for protections loss journey. This is Serena Williams, the greatest tennis like the CROWN Act and call out bias wherever it shows up, player of all time, a mother of two and someone who has even in machines. given her body to her sport for decades. If she decides to use medication to support her health, that’s her choice.

ON THE WEB Weight loss isn’t simple. Even with the strictest workouts • More African proverbs to guide our 2025 walk. and diets, results don’t always come. Serena’s being open and • Living while grieving: Navigating life after loss. honest about her journey is refreshing. Too many celebrities • Houston professionals build pipeline for Black women hide their methods while the public compares themselves in medicine.

August 28, 2025 |

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DN News Town hall addresses drugs, violence

By Laura Onyeneho

LJ Young remembers the exact moment the criminal justice system changed her life.

She was a straight-A student, a mother and in the throes of postpartum depression when an emotional outburst led to a domestic incident. She turned herself in, accepted responsibility and expected to complete community service.

Instead, she was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, jailed for four months in Harris County and placed on probation for what would stretch into 14 years due to the high cost of court-ordered restitution.

“I wasn’t going to let it break me,” Young said. “I did what I had to do. I worked, went back to school, and studied mental health. But I never forgot what that experience taught me about the system.”

Today, she finds herself back in that system, this time as the mother of a son incarcerated in a private prison. He was diagnosed with conduct disorder in second grade and Young spent years fighting for services that never came. As he got older, time and options ran out. He was swept into the streets and arrested. Now, Young says, he’s been warehoused in a facility hours away, his mental health worsening while medical and emotional needs go unmet.

“He was already vulnerable. He had a chemical imbalance. He made mistakes. And now he’s sitting in a cell where they don’t even respond

Parents, educators and students participated in a community town hall discussion about the silent link between drugs and violence. Credit: Deric Muhammed/ via Facebook

to medical requests,” she said. “I haven’t heard from him in days. And nobody has answers.”

Young’s story captures the complex, layered reality behind Houston’s youth violence crisis, a cycle shaped by poverty, untreated mental illness, substance abuse and systemic neglect.

And she’s not alone.

“These kids aren’t monsters,” she said.

“They’re broken. They’re desperate. And we’ve given them no way out.”

Community speaks out Young was one of several community

members who recently spoke at Dying for Attention: Our Youth in Crisis, a town hall hosted by activist Deric Muhammad at the Kashmere Multi-Service Center.

The goal was to confront the often-ignored connection between youth drug use and violent crime and uplift the voices of those closest to the issue.

“We’ve seen an exorbitant amount of violence this summer,” said Muhammad. “And too often, when you dig into the details, the perpetrator was under the influence of drugs.”

Violence among youth is linked to other

adolescent issues like homelessness, substance abuse, obesity, academic failure and mental health, requiring increased public health awareness and interventions. Texas Juvenile Justice Department reports a 108% increase in homicide charges and 44% increase in gun cases from 2019 to 2024, with 8,686 probationers and less than 1% sentenced to state facilities.

“If we keep ignoring drug abuse in our communities, we’ll keep burying our kids,” Muhammad said. “The violence isn’t random. It’s fueled by trauma, addiction and desperation.”

Muhammad structured the panel at the event to reflect “generational disconnection.”

He seated youth leaders and older mentors on opposite sides of the stage to spark honest dialogue and healing.

“We’re too often locked in a battle for generational supremacy,” he said. “But if we sit down and listen to these kids, they’ll tell us how to help them.”

One of those voices belonged to Romellow Robins, a peer mentor with Destined for Empowerment, a local program serving formerly incarcerated or system-impacted youth.

“I was the black sheep. I got locked up. And people I thought were my family all disappeared,” Robins told the Defender. “Only my mama picked up the phone.”

LEARN MORE ABOUT LOCAL RESOURCES FOR THE YOUTH

Texas moves forward in redistricting

By Tannistha Sinha

Two of the nation’s oldest civil rights organizations are taking Texas to court. The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s newly approved congressional maps, arguing they deliberately weaken the voting power of Black and Latino communities.

“The One Big Beautiful Map has passed the Senate and is on its way to my desk, where it will be swiftly signed into law,” Abbott said. “I promised we would get this done, and delivered on that promise. I thank Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick for leading the passage in the Senate of a bill that ensures our maps reflect Texans’ Voting preferences.”

Republicans framed the map as legal, compact and designed to solidify their advantage, while Democrats condemned it as an aggressive gerrymander that dilutes the voting power of communities of color.

What happened on the Senate floor?

The map cleared the Senate on a party-line vote, 18-11, just after midnight, following hours of wrangling on the floor. A planned filibuster (a prolonged speech that delays progress in a legislative assembly) by Sen. Carol Alvarado,

State Sen. Borris Miles (D-TX) spoke during a Senate Special Committee on Congressional Redistricting public testimony hearing in Austin, Texas.

Credit: Getty Images

D-Houston, never materialized, as GOP leaders used a procedural move to cut off debate, citing a fundraising email tied to the filibuster.

Protesters in the gallery shouted as the vote came to a close.

“They [Republican lawmakers] created an excuse to shut it down,” Alvarado said. “If I was the issue, there were a few other senators ready and willing to step in and filibuster, but that was shut down as well. What we have seen in this redistricting process has been maneuvers

and mechanisms to shut down people’s voices.

This new map that we were voting on today had some very significant changes, especially in Houston, in my East End community.”

Republicans argue the mid-cycle redraw is both lawful and justified by hardball politics elsewhere.

“Before I considered this map, I asked that it be reviewed by counsel, in which I had a high level of confidence, to make sure that it was legal in all regards,” said Sen. Phil King,

R-Weatherford. “I was assured that it was, and that of course, included all aspects of compliance with the Voting Rights Act…The purpose was to draw a map that was legal under all applicable law that performed better for Republicans and that created or improved compactness in some districts.”

Democrats counter that the plan is a textbook “pack and crack.”

State Sen. Borris Miles argued that Houston’s Black population, about 35% of Texas’ Black residents, warrants more, not fewer opportunity districts. He said the map “packs” Congressional District 18 and “disintegrates” District 9, effectively reducing Black opportunity seats in Houston (and statewide) from two to one.

“You have the audacity to act as if you’ve done us a favor,” Miles said. “The population [of Black voters] has grown, but you’ve gone backwards with this map…Everyone in this chamber knows that Black folks in Texas overwhelmingly vote democratic. That’s not a secret to anyone. When you weaken democracy, you take the congressional seats away from the people they belong to and hand them over as property. It [the map] is a slap in the face of Black voters, Hispanic voters and every voter who calls Texas home.”

4 | August 28, 2025 |

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DN News HARRIS COUNTY LEADER SERIES

Annette Ramirez Works toward reform as Tax Assessor-Collector

By Tannistha Sinha

As the Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar, Annette Ramirez approaches her role with a philosophy rooted in a childhood shaped by public service.

A property tax attorney with more than two decades of experience in school finance, Ramirez brings technical expertise and community engagement to an office that touches more residents than perhaps any other local government department.

She credits her upbringing in a family committed to giving back, particularly her mother, a public school teacher for over 30 years.

She completed a Bachelor’s degree in Maritime Administration from Texas A&M University at Galveston and a J.D. (Juris Doctor) from the South Texas College of Law. After college, Ramirez began her career working in logistics and operations for oil and gas tankers and then as a property tax attorney in the legal department for Aldine ISD for over 20 years. Now, as an empty nester, she sees her new position as an opportunity to

VOLUME 94, NUMBER 45 - AUGUST 28, 2025 The Defender newspaper is published by the Houston Defender News- paper Inc. and audited by Alliance for Audited Media (AAM). Only digital subscriptions are available at: www.defendernetwork.com/subscribe No paper subscriptions available. All materials covered by 2025 copyright. No materials herein may be reproduced without the written permission of the Publisher.

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extend that service to all of Harris County.

“If you’re only gonna have one interaction with government a year, it’s likely gonna be our office,” Ramirez told the Defender. “Between property tax, vehicle registrations and transfers of title and voter registration, you’re likely going to interact with our office. I need to make sure that that’s a good interaction.”

Priorities Since taking office in January 2025, Ramirez has focused on evaluating every aspect of the department’s operations. She inherited an office that, she says, had suffered from “a real lack of investment” for over a decade, resulting in outdated technology, long wait times and high staff turnover.

Her immediate goals include reducing customer wait times from over two hours to 20–30 minutes, modernizing technology to improve both customer service and internal efficiency and stabilizing the workforce through training and retention to improve service quality.

Ramirez has also secured early investments from the Harris County Commissioners Court to help implement these changes, from upgrading branch internet connections to replacing outdated equipment.

Drawing on her property tax expertise, the office will soon launch “My Harris County Tax,” a prepayment plan designed to help residents budget for their annual property tax bills.

Beginning in 2026, taxpayers can make monthly payments toward their estimated bill instead of facing a lump sum in January.

The program will also feature user accounts on the county’s website, allowing residents to set up payment alerts via text or email. Ramirez hopes the plan will reduce delinquencies and help residents keep their homes.

Boosting voter registration and engagement Harris County’s Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar office also manages one of the largest voter rolls in the country. Ramirez is rebuilding outreach efforts previously run by Harris County’s now-defunct Elections Administrator’s office. That includes training Volunteer

Between property tax, vehicle registrations and transfers of title and voter registration, you’re likely going to interact with our office. I need to make sure that that’s a good interaction.”

ANNETTE RAMIREZ

Deputy Registrars (VDRs) and pairing them with voter registration events at schools, universities and community centers, she explained.

Strengthening partnerships with organizations like the League of Women Voters, civic and faith-based groups and local elected officials to expand the office’s reach into underrepresented areas, Ramirez is also focusing on digital communication. The office has launched a newsletter, increased social media activity and is exploring more ways to connect with residents online.

“We’re increasing the use of those different digital media forms to make sure people know what the tax office can do for them,” she said.

For Ramirez, success will be measured in concrete improvements: shorter wait times, reduced backlogs, more registered voters and stronger community partnerships. But it’s also about building trust. With a blend of legal expertise and operational focus, Ramirez is trying to reshape an office that powers Harris County through its $10.5 billion in annual revenue.

“I just got here, but I’m gonna go back to creating an office that the people of Harris County trust,” Ramirez said. “I want to leave this office running like a well-oiled machine with improved technology…to be able to adjust when we need to, but most importantly, to provide the best in class service to people of Harris County, ‘cause they deserve their government to run well.”

Publisher | CEO Sonceria Messiah-Jiles

Content Manager Terrance Harris

Strategic Alllance Clyde Jiles

Associate Editor Aswad Walker

Managing Editor ReShonda Tate

Culture/Lifestyle Reporter Laura Onyeneho

Special Assignments Reporter Tannistha Sinha Sports Terrance Harris Jimmie Aggison Video Editor Bryan Erdy

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DN InFocus

Prairie View A&M vs. Texas Southern

40th Labor Day Classic divides houses across Houston

B

By Terrance Harris

efore brothers Douglas and Bert Simmons can sit down good, the Prairie View and Texas Southern cracks start coming.

You know, Texas Southern doesn’t have admission standards.

The girls were always prettier at Prairie View.

The entire time I was at Prairie View, I don’t know if we ever lost to TSU. The entire time I was at TSU, we never lost to Prairie View.

Going to Prairie View for you was like going to the city, coming from Hemphill.

It’s a whole lot of family ties. It’s a lot of good times.

Recently, as far as football is concerned, they’ve had the ups on us, but we always take it back when we smash them in basketball.”

BERT SIMMONS

It’s the typical all-in-fun banter between two brothers who love each other immensely but still enjoy taking jabs at each other’s alma maters. A biology major, Douglas graduated from Prairie View A&M University in 1964.

Bert matriculated at Texas Southern University from 1975 to 79 before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in economics.

They are 14 ½ years apart, more than 10 years separate their time on the respective campuses. Several decades have passed since either one was an undergraduate on Prairie View and Texas Southern’s campuses, but you wouldn’t know it by the amount of pride the brothers still have in their respective schools.

They are family and Simmons’ first, but they still rep their schools hard.

The Prairie View and Texas Southern lines are drawn in permanent ink in the Simmons family. As the Tigers and Panthers prepare to renew their rivalry in the Aug. 30 college football season-opening Labor Day Classic for the 40th year, the sides are as defined as ever.

“I want Prairie View to win,” proclaims Douglas, 83. “I will brag about it, too. If we win by one point or they fumble the ball into the end zone going in, as long as they win, I’m going to brag about it.”

The rivalry on the field might have been as intriguing as the back-and-forth among alumni, mainly because the series has long been defined by long winning and losing streaks on both sides. When Prairie View ran afoul of the NCAA in the 1980s, they were reduced to non-scholarship status and, as a result, lost 14 straight games in the rivalry from 1989 to 2003. The Panthers also notoriously lost 80 straight during that stretch.

In Cris Dishman’s first year at the helm last season, the Tigers ended a nine-game losing streak in the Labor Day Classic with a dominant 27-9 win. TSU owns a 21-18 edge since the Labor Day Classic kicked off in 1985 and has a 45-34-1 edge during the 80 rivalry games played.

“During my time, it’s always been onesided, either TSU is on a long winning streak or Prairie View,” Bert said. “So now, I’m looking forward to the game this year because there is a lot of hype coming from the Prairie View side, and that’s just the way that coach is. Our coach is real laid back.

“I think it’s going to be an extremely competitive game and hopefully at the end of the game, TSU will come out victorious. We’ll see.”

That’s just how this rivalry goes.

These two Historically Black Colleges are 51.3 miles apart, and only an hour and eight-minute drive separates them. However, as far as their rabid alumni bases are concerned, these two institutions are across the world from each other. That sense of separation and superiority crosses family lines, friendship ties and even high school teammate bonds.

Just mentioning Prairie View to a TSU alumnus instinctively brings barb and vice versa.

“When I went to college, Prairie View was more difficult to get in than TSU,” said Douglas, a retired dentist in the area. “TSU was open enrollment until the guy came over from UH, John Rudley.”

But over the years, the lines have become a little blurred. It hasn’t been uncommon for a Prairie View undergraduate to travel to Texas Southern to receive an advanced degree.

While it has been rare for student-athletes to move from one school to another, several instances have occurred of professors, administrators and even coaches seamlessly moving from one rival campus to the other.

Texas Southern Sports Information Director Ryan McGinty and his wife, Deborah, are perfect examples of how the lines of this rivalry can easily become blurred. They both received their undergraduate degrees at Prairie View, but after working there, Ryan has worked for TSU for several years. Deborah, meanwhile, received her doctorate from TSU

It wasn’t a competition because Prairie View beat them all of the time.

Prairie View had the best football teams during the 60s. History tells you that. When we came down and lost to TSU, people went into mourning.”

DOUGLAS SIMMONS

after earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Prairie View.

Deborah likes to remind Ryan, “You are Prairie View made, but you are TSU paid.”

But over the years, the rivalry has also seen former Prairie View A&M athletic director and graduate Charles McClelland jump to Texas Southern, along with current baseball coach Michael Robertson, who began his Division I coaching career at Prairie View

and won a couple of SWAC Championships with the Panthers before shifting to TSU. Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Cynthia Cooper-Dyke started her collegiate coaching career at Prairie View before moving to TSU. It’s also gone in the other direction, with Prairie View first-year football coach Tremaine Jackson playing defensive tackle for the Tigers from 2002-2003 and then serving as defensive assistant coach at TSU from 2009-2011. But don’t expect Jackson to be all sentimental on the sidelines at Shell Energy Stadium when he is staring across the field at his former school for the right to take home the Durley-Nicks Trophy.

“It means absolutely nothing to me, being honest,” Jackson said. “That school fired me in 2011. They fired our staff, which I was on the staff. They fired me. I never got a chance to get into the new stadium. They chose to make a change, and they fired me. My family was affected just like everybody else’s.

“I’ve never sat here and said, I played there, and it will be so special. That’s another football team across town that we’ve got to go play and get ready for. I certainly relish the rivalry because we love rivalry games, and anytime we can play for trophies, we certainly want to win the trophy. But I don’t care that that’s Texas Southern. It was good while I was there. It ain’t good no more to me. We are just going to do what we’ve got to do on that day.”

Jackson does acknowledge that the ties to either school can be blurry, even in his circle.

“In my family, you either went to Prairie View A&M or you went to Texas Southern. It was just that simple,” said Jackson, who began his college playing career at Louisiana-Monroe before transferring to TSU. “Even if you went somewhere else first, you transferred back to one of those schools. My daughter (Harmony) is a prime example of that. She was at UH and now she has transferred here.

She is no different than a lot of people in my family. I chose to go to the other place as a player.

“It’s most definitely a special deal, especially being the 40th year.”

Still, some, like Douglas, just can’t understand why anyone would pick TSU over Prairie View.

Douglas is still surprised Bert decided to go to TSU over Prairie View, which had become a family tradition. As Douglas recalls it, when he enrolled at Prairie View in 1960, he had 15 cousins in his freshman class, and at a recent family reunion, they counted 83 relatives who were PV grads.

“It was odd, because actually everybody in my family has gone to Prairie View,” said Douglas, who once worked as a part-time dentist at TSU. “My mother went to Prairie View, my daddy actually went to Prairie View for a day or two. All my mother’s brothers went to Prairie View, my daddy’s oldest brother went to Prairie View, my aunt who lived here in Houston went to Prairie View, my uncle who owned a barbershop went to Prairie View. Everybody in East Texas went to Prairie View. Prairie View was the place to go – if you could get in.”

But Bert, who owns a State Farm Insurance Agency in Pearland, wanted something different and in a bigger city than Nacogdoches, where he grew up. Houston and Texas Southern seemed perfect.

“Both of my brothers had gone to HBCUs and were extremely successful,” said Bert, whose son, Lance, played baseball at TSU. “And sometimes you want to be a little trailblazer. I guess I got a little bit of that in me.

“I wanted to create my own name, be my own person. So, following my brothers to Prairie View was going to put a lot of pressure on me. That would have been a hard thing to live up to.”

See the video of the brothers’ banter.

Bert Simmons and Douglas Simmons enjoy exchanging friendly barbs at each other’s alma mater, but it’s all in fun. Credit: Aswad Walker/Houston Defender.

Brothers Bert (left) and Douglas Simmons (right) share an unbreakable bond and love for each other, but they draw a line when it comes to the Texas Southern-Prairie View rivalry. Credit: Aswad Walker/Houston Defender.

8 | August 28, 2025 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Feature New Black-owned hotspots

By Laura Onyeneho

In the last couple of years, Houston has welcomed an exciting wave of Blackowned businesses that are reimagining what’s possible in food, beauty, wellness and hospitality.

Here are five of Houston’s newest Blackowned businesses. Check them out then head over to DefenderNetwork.com to read all about them.

Day and Night Almeda

5101 Almeda Rd. (713) 497-5061 dayandnightalmeda.com

Eternal Salon & Med Spa

1102 Delano St., Ste C (346) 636-8988, eternalbeautysalon.com

Peachez HTX

2553 Southmore Blvd.

(713) 969-0601, peachezhtx.com

Wanderstay Boutique Hotel 520 Sampson St. (281) 214-2661 wanderstayboutiquehotel.com

Pressed Roots HTX

5000 Westheimer Rd. (281) 607-2724, pressedroots.com

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The purpose of the Gulf Freeway PEL Study is to explore transportation alternatives to address the growing safety, mobility, multimodal, and infrastructure needs along the corridor due to the projected population and employment growth in the Houston metropolitan area. The study corridor has been identified as a 14-mile stretch of I-45 South from I-69 / US 59 in Downtown Houston to BW 8 South. No changes will be made to the existing roadway at this time.

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DN Health

A DEFENDER AND KELSEY-SEYBOLD CLINIC ALLIANCE

National Immunization Awareness Month

By YOLANDA AJALA, MD

August is National Immunization Awareness Month, the perfect time to plan ahead for essential vaccines that may help prevent serious illness, keep you healthy, and reduce the spread of infections in your community.

Why Vaccines Are Essential Vaccines are critical for adults, and of course for children, particularly those managing chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension. Staying current on vaccinations can reduce the risk of complications that lead to severe illness or hospitalization.

For the Black community, immunizations are especially important. According to the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Black Americans experience higher rates of flu-related complications.

Chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension, which are more prevalent in the Black community according to the CDC, also increase the risks of severe outcomes from COVID-19. Staying up to date on vaccines helps reduce these risks and support overall health.

Plan Ahead for Seasonal Vaccines • Flu Vaccines: Flu shots are typically available in Greater Houston starting in September. The CDC recommends getting vaccinated by the end of October to prepare for peak flu season.

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10 | August 28, 2025 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Sports

Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud tells kids who aspire to be where he is to keep grinding and putting in the extra work to be great. Credit: Getty Images

HOUSTON TEXANS

Deliver wise words to next generation mission, remember your why, continue to grow. And whatever you think you need to work on, continue to work on that.

Don’t get comfortable and continue to have a growth mindset.”

By Jodie B. Jiles

With a 23-year-old Pro Bowl quarterback in C.J. Stroud, who was recently named TIME Magazine’s Most Influential List, and a rising first-team All-Pro wide receiver Nico Collins, the Houston Texans have some wisdom to pass to the next generation going into the 2025-26 season.

Also, the Texans’ addition of veteran running back Nick Chubb and wide receiver Christian Kirk adds a pop to the roster this season. The Texans’ new addition of experienced left tackle Cam Robinson should also help strengthen a young offensive line.

The Defender spoke with the Houston Texans veterans and emerging young leaders to discuss advice they would like to give to young athletes who want to someday walk in their shoes.

C.J. STROUD

Pro Bowl Quarterback “I would say you don’t get to this position without grinding. For the guys who are trying to get to the positions, like high school, college, whatever, work ethic is key.

You have to put in the work, put in the time. That’s huge. For the guys already in the league, I think they’ve done that. They

NICK CHUBB

Nico Collins

Nick Chubb

wouldn’t be here if they didn’t. For the guys who are in the league, confidence. I was talking to our broadcast team, and they were like, ‘What are the two things you wish you didn’t hear coming into the league?’

The two things I explained were how hard it’s going to be. I don’t believe in putting my own convictions on people. I think it’s like a scare tactic to make you want to play harder or work harder, but I think the guys in positions to be starting quarterbacks or backups, whatever the case may be, they naturally work hard, they put in the work. If you don’t, you kind of get weeded out. So, I don’t agree with everybody saying how hard it is. Yes, it’s hard. Every level is hard. You go from high school to college, it’s hard. You go from college to the NFL, it’s hard. That’s kind of a prerequisite and you know that

Christian Kirk

Cam Robinson

coming into it. The second thing was interceptions. It’s part of the game. Of course, you don’t want to throw interceptions. It’s not something where you’re like, ‘I’m just going to throw it up.’ But you know, it’s part of the game. The great quarterbacks know how to throw an interception and move on, know how to get a completion after and get your rhythm back. Those are the things that I would say to them. I love what this league is bringing. There’s a bunch of young guys that I think will be really good. I’m excited to compete against them this year.”

NICO COLLINS

All-Pro Wide Receiver “Just take it one day at a time. Build it brick by brick. You can’t get everything you want at once. Remember your

Running Back “Just continue to work hard. Every challenge, every day you got to go get it, no matter how you feel. There is no excuse.”

CHRISTIAN KIRK

Wide Receiver “Stay consistent to your approach, lean into the support that is around you and just be present every single day. Don’t look too far ahead and just keep the end goal in mind.”

CAM ROBINSON

Left Tackle “I always tell young guys to take it one day at a time. Take it one play at a time.

One series at a time. One week at a time.

One year at a time because you never know how far you’ll go when you have that kind of mindset.”

August 28, 2025 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

| 11

DN Sports

Chase Sanders Overcomes a fake offer to earn the real one

By Jimmie Aggison

What started as a cruel joke could’ve derailed Chase Sanders’ football dreams for good.

The 6-foot-5 Cy-Fair High School senior wide receiver was the target of a fake scholarship prank, an experience that left him humiliated, doubting himself and facing a senior season with minimal offers. But instead of folding, Sanders responded the only way he knew how, with production, persistence and pride.

Now, he’s committed to Texas Southern University to play in front of his hometown crowd, proving that heart, not hype, is what really counts.

Like many high school athletes, a phone call from a college coach offering a scholarship opportunity is a major boost of confidence. On November 28, 2024, Sanders received what he thought was a call from what he believed to be the University of Incarnate Word.

“I was in the car with my brother going to a friend’s house when I received the call,” said Sanders. “Everything seemed real, I was excited as I told my brother, friends and family.”

On the phone, Sanders and the person on the other end set up what Sanders believed to be a visit, an opportunity to see the facilities and meet the coaching staff.

“Shortly after, my family and I drove down to the college and talked to coaches, but something didn’t feel right,” said Sanders. “They spoke with me, but the coach whom I thought I was talking to on the phone seemed not to know who I was; he even asked my name, which had me confused.”

Sanders spent about an hour speaking with the coach he thought had called him.

But after leaving the campus, he received a text from that same coach.

“The text read, ‘Who offered you from our staff?’” said Sanders. “I told him the name I received from the phone call earlier and that’s when he informed me that the particular coach didn’t make the phone call and my offer was fake. My heart dropped.”

What would have been Sanders’ first offer quickly turned into confusion, anger and embarrassment.

“It left me in tears seeing all my friends have multiple offers and me not having any.

I received what I thought was going to be my first one and then it turned out to be a prank,” said Sanders. “I felt extremely embarrassed because only my family and I knew it was fake, while everyone else

Cy Fair High School senior Chase Sanders is looking to have a big year after his commitment to Texas Southern University. Credit: Jimmie Aggison/Defender

ABOUT CHASE SANDERS Class: 2026 Twitter: @Chase_Sanders07 Position: Wide receiver Height & weight: 6-feet-5, 190 pounds Favorite artist: Lil Baby Status: Committed to Texas Southern University Favorite subjects: Aquatic science Shout-outs: God, Galvanis Mbu and Cy Fair

thought it was real. They congratulated me on a social media post I made, but I quietly deleted the post after learning it wasn’t true.”

“You could tell he was disappointed and a little shocked that what had happened was true,” said Cy-Fair High School receivers coach Tad Hammel. “However, he didn’t let on about it and went on about his business.”

Sanders’ calm demeanor didn’t show what he felt inside. But after the incident, he began to question the sport he’d played

since he was four years old.

“What happened to Chase isn’t uncommon; it happens more than one can count when athletes and families don’t know what to look for,” said recruiting analyst Stephon Johnson, owner of Coast2Coast Athletics.

“Athletes should always be cautious of offers that don’t pass through their head coach first or from someone they can’t verify.

Unconventional sources of communication, like text and emails, should also raise red flags as a real offer won’t come solely through a text or email message.”

With no offers on the table and his senior season approaching, Sanders’ parents and brothers encouraged him. Sanders focused on improving his route running, explosiveness off the line and blocking technique with his trainer, Galvanis Mbu. “I stayed silent during the process and kept working because I was hearing that I had a lot of potential,” said Sanders. “From that day forward, my mindset when I stepped on the field was to punish any man who stood in my way due to being underrated throughout my high-school years.”

As a junior, Sanders totaled 491 yards on 35 catches, an average of 14.03 yards per reception, with five touchdowns. He

believed he had the skills to contribute on both sides of the ball but lacked the opportunity to fully display his talent. That came with pressure.

“I felt the pressure, but being the underdog and having noted 3-star athletes on the team with me, I had to come with it if I wanted to be in the same conversation,” said Sanders.

Hammel recognized Sanders’ potential early.

“First practice he had with us, you could tell by his movement and his fluidity for a receiver that tall,” said Hammel. “Chase is very shifty for someone that is 6-foot-5 and with the ball in his hands, he makes plays and he doesn’t go down easy. He runs good routes and is always working to better his footwork and hands. He has a great attitude and is a very good teammate.”

While other schools may not have taken the bait, Texas Southern University believed Sanders was the perfect fit and the feeling was mutual.

“TSU is the right place for me because it’s close to home. Head Coach Cris Dishman and the coaching staff seemed really genuine and I believe I’ll be able to get playing time as a freshman,” said Sanders.

12 | August 28, 2025 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Profile

Chef Joseph Boudreaux Opens East End burger shop

By Laura Onyeneho

After five years of hosting sold-out pop-up events, Houston Chef Joseph Boudreaux opens his brick-and-mortar location called Boo’s Burgers in the East End. “I’m a kid from Houston. I love my city and I hope I’m being a proper reflection of it,” says Boudreaux, standing inside his newly opened restaurant on Navigation Boulevard.

Born and raised on the East Side with family roots in Louisiana, Boudreaux is intentional about keeping his business close to home. “Montrose, the Heights, they have enough restaurants. I wanted to be somewhere where people look like me.

Black and Brown people. A neighborhood steeped in culture. A place where I could make an impact.”

Boo’s Burgers started like many great things do, out of necessity and vision. After earning his degree in entrepreneurship from the University of Houston, Boudreaux was working in corporate banking. But a layoff in 2018 forced him to pivot.

“It wasn’t rewarding,” he says. “I liked the money but felt most fulfilled interacting with people.”

That led him to coffee.

“I was a barista for about three or four years. Then I started a cafe with one of my good friends called Tipping Point Coffee,” he says. They used the space to build community, activate culture and eventually launch Boo’s. “We started doing food pop-ups. I had it in my mind that I really wanted to do a burger spot. Something nostalgic, based on the old-school burger stands I grew up going to.”

His food philosophy is simple. He wants to create a solid burger that everyone can enjoy. He’s proud of Boo’s OG Smashburger, a quarter-pounder made with meat ground in-house, housemade pickles and sauce, thinly shaved onions and a challah bun from local bakery Cake & Bacon.

“That was the hill I decided to die on,” he said. “We grind our own meat. It’s all from scratch.”

For vegetarians, there’s the Shroom Sammie, crispy oyster mushroom clusters topped with mustard greens, cabbage slaw and garlic aioli.

“I put so much time into the OG, it just felt disingenuous to hand my non-meat-eating friends an Impossible patty,” Boudreaux says. “We want to execute at a high level.”

The space itself is a tribute to Boudreaux’s journey. Designed by Garnish Design, the interior blends retro diner energy with deep personal touches.

“These are my grandparents,” he says, pointing to the wall. “The spots I looked up to were those old-school joints with the celebrity picture wall. This is our version.

But these are my people.”

Houston photographer and creative collaborator Josh West, who began working with Boudreaux in preparation for the physical location, says Boo’s is much more than a burger joint.

“Joe’s intention has always been clear. This

Located at 2510 Navigation Blvd on The Esplanade, Boo’s signature OG Burger gives longtime fans and newcomers a permanent spot to enjoy. This cult favorite helped define the brand. Credit: Jimmie Aggison

isn’t a me thing, it’s a we thing. He’s not just trying to make money slinging burgers. He’s showing people what real work, care and

Boudreaux is a self-taught Creole kid from Houston who learned to cook from his family. Credit: Michael Anthony

community investment look like,” West says.

“You can see it in how he sources his food, brings folks in and tells his story. That grand opening? People lined up before the doors opened and kept coming in waves all day.”

Boo’s is still small, but its impact is growing.

“We’re small, but mighty. Quality over volume. We want people to come in, get a burger, fries and a drink for under $20,” he says. “That’s what being accessible looks like to me. If someone wants to come two, three times a week, they should be able to.”

Transitioning from pop-up to full-scale restaurant came with challenges.

“Staffing was a big one,” he says. “When we were just popping up, it was based on my energy. Friends would come work the register, help assemble burgers. Now I’ve got a full staff. People’s livelihoods depend on me.”

Finding the right space was another uphill battle. He told real estate agents that he needed a thousand square feet. They kept offering him 5,000. But Bourdeaux knew what he wanted. The current space was a burger stand before he arrived. He is now making it a home.

And when asked what advice he has for other Black and Brown entrepreneurs looking to build something for the community, Boudreaux offers three powerful lessons: “First, community is about what you can give, not what you can get. A lot of people talk about what the community can do for them. But it’s about listening, providing something real.”

“Second, fear has no place in this work.

Entrepreneurship is hard. But anytime there’s fear, I say step into it.”

“And third, execute. Be passionate. Hold yourself above any standard anyone else would hold you to.”

Joseph Boudreaux is doing exactly that.

One burger at a time.