Mattress Mac's Money Might Make More Music

I mentioned the other day in my post about the firing of UNT head football coach Darrell Dickey that one of the university's premier supporters of athletics (I had to retype that so it didn't say "athletic supporters," heh), Jim "Mattress Mac" McIngvale, was quite upset with the firing, especially since it came on the heels of Dickey's recent heart attack. McIngvale had donated $1 million to the athletic department for a practice facility, which was expected to be named after him, but he said after Dickey's firing that he might not make any more donations to athletics.

Now it turns out that Mac has upped the ante even more: He's insisting that the practice field should now be named after Dickey instead of after himself, and if the department doesn't do so, he'll ask for his donation be redirected to the One O'Clock Lab Band. ( I can see it now: "For our last tune, here's 'Machito,' made possible by Mattress Mac.")

I don't just teach them music; I also show them how to keep Bowser at bay: I made a cameo appearance at a high school football game last Friday night because the seniors were being honored at both schools. While I was there, a group of my students played an arrangement of the Super Mario Bros. music, and it was quite entertaining. I joked that someone should have videotaped it and posted it on YouTube; well, someone already did.

(While you're there, check out this guy playing the Mario music on classical guitar.)