By DaVince “Dino” Wright
Fort Worth, Texas – Texas Christian University and Head Coach Gary Patterson have split ways. In a meeting on Sunday afternoon, school officials reported that a change was the best thing between the coach and the football team’s future. School officials asked Patterson to finish the season, but he declined. The team will be coached by Jerry Kill on an interim basis for the rest of the season.
Patterson’s legacy at TCU
Coach Patterson started coaching in 1982 at Kansas State, 1983-1984 Tennessee State, 1986 UC Davis, 1987 Cal Lutheran, 1988 Pittsburgh State, 1989-1991 Sonoma State, 1992 Oregon Lightning Bolts (semi pro football), 1992-1994 Utah State, 1995 Navy, 1996-1997 New Mexico State, 1998-2000 TCU Defensive coordinator before coming the head coach at TCO. He spent 20 years at TCU and brought the school into national prominence. In 260 total games at the helm, he finishes with 181 wins 79 loses and 0 ties. Is winning percentage overall is .696. He is 11-6 in bowl games and was ranked as high as 2 in the nation in 2010 winning the Rose Bowl to finish the season at 12-1. The team was ranked nationally 12 times under his leadership. The horned frogs 6 conference championships (1 Conference USA(2002), 4 Mountain West (2005, 2009, 2010, and 2011) and Big 12 championship in 2014. Coach Patterson has won every coaching accolade from AFCA Coach of the year twice to Home Depot Coach of The Year in 2014. In April 2016, the school unveiled a statue of Gary Patterson.
What have you done for me lately?
TCU has struggled over the past two seasons under Coach Patterson and key losses in conference has been the cause for change in Ft. Worth. In the last two years, TCU has a record of 11-11 and 8-10 in conference. In 2019, TCU finished at 5-7 and 3-6 in conference. 2020 the Horned Frogs finished the season at 6-4 overall and 5-4 in conference. The numbers and key losses were the breaking point for the school. At the time of this article, TCU is 3-5 overall and 1-4 conference play. The offense is averaging 31.5 points per game while the defense is giving up 31.5 points to opposition.
Coaching Rumors and Replacements
There is a laundry list of candidates who would love to be in Ft. Worth. I would like to see a former player carrying on the Horned Frog legacy. I think former running back and NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson who’s from Waco, Texas and helped bring TCU to the national stage would be an awesome coach for the team. A coaching search will be the next step for the Horned Frogs in the upcoming months.
