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By now, everyone knows the well-worn cliché: everything is bigger in Texas. In the case of Red McCombs, however, the cliché is true. When Billy Joe “Red” McCombs, the billionaire former owner of the San Antonio Spurs, passed away recently at age 95, he left behind a legacy bigger than the state that raised him. In fact, considering the tall, barrel-chested man with a booming voice and the credentials to back it up, one might say the gregarious business owner was larger than life itself. McCombs’ impact on San Antonio culture and business spanned decades, even as the revolutionary media company he co-founded, Clear Channel ― the world’s largest radio and billboard company ― did business all over the world before he sold it for around $25 billion. Red grew up in tiny Spur, Texas, an ag town an hour outside of Lubbock. His empire, which included oil, cars, sports franchises, cattle, real estate and philanthropy, began in Corpus Christi with his first car dealership, then moved to San Antonio, the city he’d call home for the next 60-plus years. As children of the Depression, Red, along with his wife of 69 years, Charline, were compassionate pillars of their community. Red understood both how to make a buck and how to share the wealth. These lifelong passions his wife, his city and his love for his fellow human would follow him his entire life. In 1973, the Dallas Chaparrals, then of the American Basketball Association, were looking for new ownership. Red coveted Dallas’ big city status for his beloved San Antonio, believing a pro sports franchise was just what the city needed to attract Fortune 500 businesses and the respect of other large markets. With the help of his trusted business partner, Angelo Drossos, and at the behest of Charline, Red led a consortium of businessmen to purchase the franchise, thereby bringing a family-run, local mindset to the business of basketball. Today, Red’s legacy in basketball speaks for itself. The Spurs are now one of the most celebrated sports franchises in the country, if not the world.

RED WAS A TRUE ICON. IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO OVERSTATE THE IMPACT HE HAD ON THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.

“Red was a true icon,” said Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich in a statement. “It’s impossible to overstate the impact he had on the City of San Antonio. Perhaps his most impressive trait was his commitment to community. Red and Charline impacted tens of thousands of lives, here in San Antonio and across Texas.” Philanthropy drove Red and Charline, from the little things like having Spurs players and their families over for dinner, to much larger endeavors, like the $50 million gift to the University of Texas or the $30 million gift to MD Anderson to create the Red and Charline McCombs Institute for Early Detection of Cancer. While impressive in size, the scope of the McCombs’ philanthropic ventures is vast too. All told, Red and Charline donated over $180 million to philanthropic organizations. As Red’s obituary in the San Antonio Report aptly noted, “For more than 60 years, he used his leadership and wealth to launch ventures and complete deals that transformed San Antonio from South Texas outpost to international destination. He mentored mayors, advised CEOs, groomed an emerging generation of business leaders and influenced a new wave of philanthropists. In true Texas fashion, McCombs became a father of modern San Antonio.” The immensity of his legacy can barely be sketched here. Red himself wrote two autobiographies, and even then, kept writing. If San Antonio minted its own money, it would be Red’s smiling face on the coin. If San Antonio had a Mount Rushmore, it would be Red’s bust watching over the community he loved. But despite reimaging the gem of South Texas in his image, Red was first and foremost a family man, simply “Dad” and “Poppop” to those who loved and knew him most. Red’s life was ultimately a love story, one between the businessman with the big personality and the city he cherished; but more so, between a man and the partner he adored. On December 16, 2019, four days after Charline’s passing, Red tweeted the following: “The best decision I’ve ever made, up and down, from start to finish, was marrying Charline.” Even in his legacy, Red is showing us what we can all hope for.