Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz has been blamed for yet another sporting loss after he showed up to support the Texas Longhorns on New Year’s Day.
The Washington Huskies beat the Longhorns 37 to 31 in their Sugar Bowl showdown on Monday, advancing to the national championship game next week.
The victory for the Huskies – and defeat for the Longhorns – left some fans putting the blame on Mr Cruz’s appearance at the game.
Some fans also blamed Mr Cruz this fall when he attended a game that the Houston Astros lost in the American League Championship Series, HuffPost noted.
Similarly, Mr Cruz was blamed for jinxing the Houston Rockets back in 2018 when he attended the game that saw them booted from that year’s NBA playoffs.
The previous year, in 2017, Mr Cruz took a selfie at a Texas Tech game which fans argued was badly timed and led to their loss in the NCAA finals.
The senator has previously lashed out at the idea that his support at games is a curse for sports teams – slamming Rolling Stone magazine as “lying hacks” after they published a piece about fans asking him not to attend an Astros game.
“Lying hacks @RollingStone: For 7 years, Catherine & I have attended nearly EVERY Astros home playoff game. If they’re going to blame me for our recent home losses, pls also credit us for TWO World Series Championships & SEVEN consecutive ALCS’s—we were there cheering Stros on!” he wrote on 23 October.
But following the Texas Longhorns’ loss on Monday, the theory once again made the rounds online.
An X account for the college football subreddit noted in the early hours of Tuesday that “Sports bettors are now 15-2 since 2017 when betting the money line against teams Ted Cruz shows up to support in person. They would have profited $2,344 if they placed a $100 bet on each game”.
Rolling Stone politics reporter Nikki Ramirez added: “It’s time for UT to ban Ted Cruz from all games.”
“The all-time greatest jinx in sports, Ted Cruz ladies and gentlemen,” the account Aggie Sports 365 also chimed in.
Writer Daniel Ramirez tweeted: “Hear us out. Do not allow Ted Cruz to claim he is a fan of your team. No matter what.”
“If you want to win, don’t let him in,” he added.
“When you see Ted Cruz at your game, wearing your colors, YOU KNOW...” the account Flaming Hot Takes wrote.
“We all could make a killing live betting sports places Ted Cruz shows up,” Brian Floyd said.
Lawyer Mark Yzaguirre tweeted during the game that “Ted Cruz is at the Sugar Bowl and is rooting for the University of Texas. This jinx is a much bigger threat to the Longhorns than Washington’s defensive line”.
