Hi there,
I have a friend that was in the same situation. He went to the local passport office in Austin 1 week before his departure date. Three days later he was sent to Houston, turned in all paper work at 10AM and got the passport at 2PM. He then rush to China embassy at 3PM. Went back to Houston again the next day and got the visa. Whew! We were all praying for him. He is in China now.
Hope this helps.