When D CEO assigned me to write a profile of Comstock Resources CEO Jay Allison, a theme quickly emerged: few people understand risk like he does—except perhaps his lead investor, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. The challenge was to capture how their shared appetite for high-stakes decision-making has shaped not just a company, but an entire natural-gas play in East Texas.
There lies the Western Haynesville, a vast stretch of land that sits atop a notably rich natural gas formation—a discovery that could shape U.S. energy supply for decades. It’s where Allison and his team have quietly assembled roughly 525,000 acres—an enormous position by industry standards, especially for a “new” play. The formation sits close to the Gulf Coast LNG corridor and the growing cluster of AI-powered data centers between Dallas and Houston—making it one of the most strategically located natural gas assets in the country.
I spoke with Jones in August while he was in Oxnard, California, where the Cowboys were holding training camp. He described the spectacular views overlooking the Pacific Ocean and talked briefly about the team, then the conversation shifted to his other love: Comstock Resources. Jones has more than 50 years of investing in energy; this time, another contrarian move, feels different.
This isn’t wildcatting like the days of yore, where many millions might go down the hole. The true heartbeat of the business, Jones said, stems from the culture Allison has built. The bond between the two of them has been forged more deeply in their pursuit of this last great play, driven by instinct and a shared appreciation of the numbers—well logs, seismic reports, geologic data, and managing all-in costs better than most.
Jones, who is well known for his genius marketing moves, and Allison share a flair for timing, too. Allison didn’t reveal what he had put together in the Western Haynesville until the strategy was fully baked—and every piece of the puzzle was in place. The big moment came this past February:
“We made sure that 100 percent of our team held no distorted view of reality—reality is truth,” Allison said. “There’s an old cowboy saying, ‘If the horse is dead, dismount.’ Well, our Western Haynesville horse looks to be very much alive and potentially a Triple Crown winner—even a Secretariat in the making.”
In a world driven by speed, knowing when not to reveal your hand can sometimes be the boldest move of all.
At Comstock’s Frisco headquarters in July, Allison spread out a series of maps before me that tracked five years of quiet land deals that built his Western Haynesville position. The precision was unmistakable; each move had been part of a geologic chessboard only he could see. That’s when I realized the massive scale of what he and Jones were attempting—a huge, long-term bet on America’s natural-gas future that offered 25 trillion cubic feet of upside, if all goes well.
I had to speak with Jones. Our conversation quickly centered on risk. “There’s always a period of time you can look back and say: When was it you had to go? And you didn’t quite know how fast the current was, or you didn’t quite have it all buttoned down, but you had to go,” he told me.
Observed like an alchemist, Jones mentioned the glassy black cores he has contemplated, which indicate the wealth of the rock now and ahead. He pointed out that he bought the Cowboys in 1989 when others weren’t able or willing to do so.
“If I had waited until I had a better feel, a better understanding where the economy was,” Jones said, “all I would have gotten were fumes from the train as it was a mile down the track as I reached up to the caboose—gone. That’s very analogous to Comstock.”
He concluded: “Passion completes the call.”
An equally engrossing part of reporting this story was observing the power of the bond that has formed between Jones and Allison. Synergy, respect and vision sharing guided the sequences of deals, in stepwise fashion—including their own newfound midstream destiny with Quantum Capital.
Both men describe the same events almost word for word, evidence of the trust between them. Jones calls Allison a risk-taker, but in a cool, calculated fashion, supported by the numbers. Allison says Jones, a master of timing, is someone who senses the turn of the current long before others feel it. Watching the two of them work, you sense how geology and gut, data and daring, can coexist.
Risk taking—whether in energy, sports, or any other industry—requires a conviction that’s grounded in reality. Allison’s version of leadership combines humility with calculation; Jones’ adds urgency and belief. Together, they show how timing, trust, and transparency can turn even the hardest rock into opportunity—and how two unique leaders, aligned in instinct and discipline, came together to shape what could be one of America’s last great energy plays.
Jennifer Warren, founder of Concept Elemental, is an award-winning journalist who has been at the forefront of significant developments in energy and resources, infrastructure, and technology.
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Jennifer Warren
Jennifer Warren