Commentary: Fanbase may be unhappy, but TCU playing in Ireland is good for the university
When TCU formally announced on Tuesday that its 2026 football season opener against North Carolina would be moved from Fort Worth to Ireland, it wasn’t met with the reaction you might think.
There was plenty of excitement, especially from the Horned Frogs players. But for many among the fanbase, the news was frustrating because TCU’s losing a marquee home game for a neutral site venue.
It’s not the first time it’s happened. In 2013 TCU had a home-and-home arrangement with LSU. The Horned Frogs’ scheduled home game against the TIgers in 2014 was moved to AT&T Stadium.
The same thing happened with Ohio State in 2018 as the home-and-home became a single showcase game at AT&T Stadium.
TCU officials were aware there could be pushback from its fanbase and considered all options when they were approached about the opportunity to play in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic.
“(Season ticket holders) were one of the major factors that went into the decision,” TCU athletics director Mike Buddie said Tuesday. “It’s highly unusual to have eight home games. Most years, you have seven in a good year, six is a minimum and we had eight, which gave us some flexibility.
“We approached Coach (Sonny) Dykes to discuss the advantages and disadvantages, the advantages far out-weighed the disadvantages.”
The Horned Frogs will still have seven games at Amon G. Carter Stadium in 2026 with Arkansas State, BYU, Utah, Kansas, Kansas State, West Virginia all scheduled to visit Fort Worth.
TCU must still add another home game, likely against a FCS or lower tier FBS opponent, but that won’t completely satisfy a fanbase that was looking forward to hosting coach Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels in a rematch after the two teams meet in Chapel Hill this season on Sept. 1.
Buddie understands the concerns, but opted to take a big picture approach when making the decision with chancellor Victor Boschini, president Daniel Pullin and Dykes.
“We’re certainly sensitive that we’re moving a high profile home game overseas,” Buddie said. “But high profile is what TCU needs. It puts us in the best possible light on a global scale. I would much rather be three or four games on Week 0 than one of a hundred games on Week 1. A lot of eyeballs, a lot of opportunity for people to learn about TCU.”
Buddie makes a fair point that can’t be ignored. How many college football fans were glued to the television watching Georgia Tech and Florida State last season or Nebraska’s matchup with Northwestern in 2022?
After the long summer months, college football fans are desperate for any type of game action, which has made the Aer Lingus Classic an unofficial starting point for the season.
TCU will have the opportunity to be the No. 1 viewing option for many sports fans that day, just like the Horned Frogs will have that opportunity this season as the lone game on Labor Day against North Carolina.
For a program like TCU, national visibility is never a bad thing. You also want your program to develop a reputation for playing in big primetime games and this is one way to send that message not just to recruits, but to any conferences like the Big Ten that TCU has the ambition to play in these types of games.
And to Buddie’s point, unless TCU and North Carolina both have great seasons in 2025, the opener in 2026 would’ve been lost in a sea of college football games.
In Week 1 alone next year, Clemson travels to LSU, Wisconsin and Notre Dame face off in Green Bay, Miami takes on South Carolina and Alabama is even making a rare road trip to a non-SEC opponent in West Virginia.
The Horned Frogs likely would’ve been overshadowed by most of these games, but now TCU will be the first marquee game of the 2026 season on a national scale and not just in Fort Worth.
It’s a frustrating sacrifice for some, but it’s one that could continue the program’s upward trajectory and ultimately that’s the most important thing for TCU.
