TCU adds Golden Eagles to 2020 football slate
FORT WORTH, Texas – Once upon a time – 1983 and 1984, to be exact – TCU head coach Gary Patterson once roamed the Tucker Stadium sidelines as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech under the direction of head coach Gary Darnell on a staff that was loaded with coaches that made great names for themselves in the college game. On Sept. 12, nearly 10 years to the day the two teams last met, TCU will host the Golden Eagles, opening the Horned Frogs’ 2020 campaign and reuniting Patterson with one of his earliest stops in his illustrious coaching career. The game is TCU’s plus-one on their schedule after the Big 12 Conference shifted to a conference-plus-one slate for the 2020 season in response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects. The game is Tech’s second FBS matchup for the season with a trip to Southern Miss on the following weekend. The games replace the Big 10 matchup against Minnesota that was wiped out when the league went conference-only in schedule, before postponing all fall sports earlier this week.
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
FORT WORTH, Texas – Once upon a time – 1983 and 1984, to be exact – TCU head coach Gary Patterson once roamed the Tucker Stadium sidelines as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech under the direction of head coach Gary Darnell on a staff that was loaded with coaches that made great names for themselves in the college game.
On Sept. 12, nearly 10 years to the day the two teams last met, TCU will host the Golden Eagles, opening the Horned Frogs' 2020 campaign and reuniting Patterson with one of his earliest stops in his illustrious coaching career.
The game is TCU's plus-one on their schedule after the Big 12 Conference shifted to a conference-plus-one slate for the 2020 season in response to the COVID-19 pandemic's effects. The game is Tech's second FBS matchup for the season with a trip to Southern Miss on the following weekend. The games replace the Big 10 matchup against Minnesota that was wiped out when the league went conference-only in schedule, before postponing all fall sports earlier this week.
As the situation with the 2020 season continues to develop, the schedule is subject to change.
Tech is 0-1 against TCU, dating back to that Sept. 11, 2010, meeting, back when the Horned Frogs were still a member of the Mountain West Conference. TCU was also ranked No. 4 in the country at the time of that contest, tied with the 2012 Oregon team Tech faced for the highest-ranked opponent in program history.
Now a member of the Big 12, the game marks Tech's third Big 12 foe in the Football Bowl Subdivision era, facing Kansas State in 2009 and Iowa State in 2002.
Playing in 90-year-old Amon G. Carter Stadium, the Horned Frogs have seen the facility renovated in 2012 and even more seating added with a recent expansion, pushing the capacity past its previous high of 46,000.
Past football standouts at TCU include Sammy Baugh and LaDainian Tomlinson, with 211 players in the program drafted to pro football teams.
Last season, TCU finished 5-7 overall, with a 3-6 mark in the Big 12, its league wins coming over Kansas, Texas and Texas Tech. The Horned Frogs return leading passer Max Duggan, a rising sophomore, who threw for 2,077 yards and 15 touchdowns, while also rushing for 555 yards and six more scores. Junior Taye Barber is his top returning receiver, finishing second on the squad with 372 yards on 29 catches.
TCU also lost its top scorer in kicker Jonathan Song, who recorded a team-high 108 points last season as he was 23-for-24 on field goals and 39-for-29 on PATs.
Defensively, the Horned Frogs return their top defensive player in senior linebacker Garret Wallow, who recorded 125 tackles, with 18 for-loss and 3.5 sacks for 25 yards. He also had a 12-yard interception return, a pass breakup and two QB hurries. Sophomore safety Ar'Darius Washington also picked off five passes and junior safety Trevon Moehrig intercepted four out of the team's total of 16 picks.
Patterson, since his days in Cookeville, has built up an impressive resume with 22 national coach of the year honors and is the second-longest tenured head coach in the country. He stands as TCU's all-time winningest coach with a 172-70 record and has the fourth highest winning percentage (.711) among active FBS coaches with a minimum of 10 years.
While coaching at Tech from 1983-84, he also earned his master's degree in educational administration in 1984.
Season tickets for Golden Eagle football are still on sale. Call (931) 372-3940 or visit TTUsports.com to order.
