TCU football had lofty goals for 2021, but Gary Patterson and the Frogs fell short
Expectations were high for the 2021 TCU football team.
The Horned Frogs were expected to contend for a Big 12 championship. Coach Gary Patterson compared the team’s chemistry to that of his 2010 Rose Bowl-winning roster.
But the Frogs have fallen well short of any expectations, the latest being a 31-12 loss at Kansas State on Saturday. TCU struggled in every aspect, including the emotionally as two of its players were ejected for throwing punches. The loss extended the losing streak to three games and they sit at 3-5 overall and 1-4 in conference play this year.
Still, despite the underwhelming season, it came as a stunner when Patterson and the school agreed to mutually part ways on Sunday. Going back to last week, there were rumblings that the school was ready to move on from the man who built the program into what it is today, but it felt like any decision wouldn’t be made until after the season.
After all, Patterson is the man who built TCU football and was the chief architect behind all of the successes the program has been able to achieve. A midseason departure just didn’t feel right for a coach of that stature.
Still, despite a career record of 181-79 and an 11-6 mark in bowl games, Patterson’s record since the start of the 2018 season is 21-22 overall and has dipped below the .500 mark.
TCU wanted Patterson to coach the rest of the season and then move into a non-coaching role in 2022. Of course Patterson wasn’t going to accept being a lame-duck coach and he’s talked much of the season about being motivated to continue his coaching career.
But there were hints that a potential divorce could be looming as far back as the start of last offseason. Patterson, 61, wanted a contract extension beyond his current deal that ran through the 2024 season, but TCU declined to extend him, sources said.
Coming off a season in which revenue took a substantial hit amid the coronavirus pandemic, the school wasn’t in position to make a financial move of that magnitude. Patterson is among the highest-paid coaches in the country and that would have been a significant financial commitment.
TCU brass felt optimistic about Patterson and the program, especially closing the 2020 season by winning five of the final six games. But they simply weren’t willing to extend him.
That mindset might’ve changed if the Frogs played up to expectations this season. But they didn’t, and so that’s why Patterson is out.
This story was originally published November 1, 2021 at 10:45 AM.
