Back ‘home’ in SWC territory, TCU continues to settle old scores

When TCU won in Lubbock last weekend, not only did it provide the most memorable play of the season, there was a footnote — the Horned Frogs secured back-to-back wins against Texas Tech for the first time in more than 30 years.

It had been awhile.

Last year, when the Horned Frogs defeated Texas, it was for the second time in three years.

Last time that happened?

1965 and 1967.

Yes, a while.

Now, as TCU prepares to host the Longhorns on Saturday, there is a chance for a three-wins-in-four-years stretch against Texas. The Frogs haven’t done that since 1958, ’59 and ’61.

It will take a rare Longhorns loss in Amon G. Carter Stadium. There have been only nine, and TCU’s 23-14 victory in 1992, sealed by Tony Rand’s interception return for a touchdown, is the only one in almost 60 years.

Yet TCU is a two-touchdown favorite for the 11 a.m. kickoff.

“This is not the same universe I grew up in,” said Chuck Mooney, who played for the Horned Frogs from 1987-90. “I grew up in the world where everybody just kind of expected TCU to put up a good fight but come up a bit short.”

This new universe has TCU putting up more than a good fight. TCU is beating its former Southwest Conference rivals and beating them by record scores. Last year, the Horned Frogs scored their most points ever against Tech and Texas, which did not go unnoticed by former players.

“It’s been very healing,” Mooney said and laughed.

“It’s amazing how things have changed,” said Larry Brogdon (1969). “Texas was so dominant during the period of time when I was here.”

Revenge? Getting even? No one is saying that. But for some former players, there is a satisfying sense of coming home and proving to the old SWC they should have never been left out in the cold when four SWC schools joined with the Big Eight to form the Big 12.

“To me, it’s not about getting back at them,” said Bubba Thornton (1967-68), a former TCU track coach who retired as Texas men’s track and field coach in 2013. “It’s about being part of something new. I think TCU has had an incredible journey, going conference to conference, and now they are here, in the Big 12. They’re part of it, and they’re a significant part of it. It’s just an exciting time. This isn’t about the past, it’s about the future.”

Funny thing about the future. It brings a chance to play another old Southwest Conference rival. The Frogs haven’t seen the Arkansas Razorbacks since 1991, when they bolted for the SEC. At one point in the series, Arkansas won 22 straight against TCU.

“Arkansas was very tough when we were playing,” said Harold Muckleroy (1971-72). “In ’71, we were up halfway through the third quarter, and they caught fire and ended up beating us. It was ’81 and ’84 when we finally turned the corner and beat them. But those two teams, beating Texas and Arkansas was the top priority when I was playing.”

The effort drove players to tears.

“I can remember when I was playing — seniors, when we got done with their last Texas game, they just sat in the locker room and bawled. Because they had never beaten them,” said TCU radio analyst John Denton (1981-84). “It was a big deal.”

It’s still a big deal.

“If you’re sitting in a cubicle in downtown Fort Worth, chances are the guy on the other side of the wall went to Texas Tech, and the guy on the other wall went to Baylor, and the guy next to him went to Texas,” Mooney said. “There’s that proximity and that history and that heritage and the things that we grew up with. There is nothing more satisfying than beating one of the former bullies down the block.”

There’s one more old SWC rival out there that the modern-day Frogs have not gotten a shot at.

“My memories are always of this gauntlet we had to run in November of Tech, Texas and Texas A&M,” Denton said. “If you look back at the old schedules in the ’70s and ’80s, for some reason, TCU always got Tech, Texas and A&M for three weeks in a row. So it was like this state-school gauntlet for TCU.”

TCU has lost 24 straight to A&M. But there are no Aggies on the schedule in sight for years and years.

“That’s the only one of the old November grind that’s missing now,” Denton said.

He paused.

“Maybe in the playoff or something.”

This story was originally published October 1, 2015 at 2:12 PM with the headline "Back ‘home’ in SWC territory, TCU continues to settle old scores."