TCU Horned Frogs

Infobox college athletics
name = TCU Horned Frogs

university = Texas Christian University
conference = MWC | division = Division I
director = Dr. Daniel Morrison
city = Fort Worth
state = Texas
stateabb = TX
teams = 18
stadium = Amon G. Carter Stadium
arena = Daniel-Meyer Coliseum
mascot = Super Frog
nickname = Horned Frogs
fightsong = TCU Fight
rivals = SMU Mustangs, Baylor Bearscolor1 = purple
color2 = White
hex1 = 660099
hex2 = FFFFFF
pageurl = http://www.gofrogs.com/
pagename = Go Frogs

Texas Christian University features 18 varsity sports teams. The school's mascot is the Horned Frog and its women's athletics teams are referred to often as the Lady Frogs. They participate in the NCAA's Division I and in the Div I-Bowl Sub-Division for football competing in the Mountain West Conference. The University's current athletic director is Dr. Daniel Morrison.

Varsity sports

Texas Christian University began its athletic life as an independent program with a six-year (1914-1920) stint in the Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association before eventually joining its longtime home, the Southwest Conference (SWC), in 1923. TCU remained a member of the SWC until it disbanded after the 1994-1995 academic year because of Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Baylor defecting to the Big 8 Conference to form the Big 12 Conference.The Horned Frogs, without a conference to call home after 72 years, joined the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), along with SMU and Rice. TCU called the WAC home from 1996 through 2000. In 2001, TCU joined Conference USA (C-USA) and remained there through 2004. TCU joined its current home of the Mountain West Conference (MWC) in 2005.

Football

The revival of TCU football began under the watch of Dennis Franchione when TCU defeated the Trojans of USC in the 1998 Sun Bowl. From 1939, the year after TCU’s last national championship, to 1997, TCU’s record was 318-380-24. [ [http://football.stassen.com/cgi-bin/records/calc-wp.pl?start=1939&end=2005&rpct=30&min=5&se=on&c1a=on&by=Win+Pct I-A Winning Percentage 1939-2005 ] ] In those 67 years, TCU won 6 Southwest Conference titles and attended 11 bowl games winning only one of those games. Since the 1998 season, TCU has won 4 conference titles, two in the Western Athletic Conference (1999 & 2000), one in Conference USA (2002), and one in the Mountain West Conference (2005). Since 1998, TCU has amassed a record of 79-30. In four of the last five years, the Horned Frogs have won at least 10 games in a season, and won 11 games in three of the last four. During this period TCU has won games against Louisville, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Utah and BYU. From 1998 to 2006, TCU has attended 8 bowl games, winning five of them. The record of TCU in bowl games as of 2006 is 9-13-1. [ [http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/mountainwest/texas_christian/bowl_history.php Texas Christian Bowl History ] ] TCU also claims two national championships from 1935 and 1938. [ [http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/champ_results.php?selector=Williamson%20System Complete List of Williamson National Champions from CFB Database] ] [NCAA Division I-A national football championship]

TCU has 36 1st team All-Americans, listed at TCU Horned Frogs football. The school's most famous past players include Rags Matthews, Sammy Baugh, Davey O'Brien (a Heisman Trophy winner, and namesake of the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award), Johnny Vaught (later one of the most celebrated coaches of the University of Mississippi), Ki Aldrich, Darrell Lester, Jim Swink, Sonny Gibbs, Bob Lilly, Kenneth Davis, and 2006-07 NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson. TCU's most successful head coaches include Matty Bell, L.D. "Dutch" Meyer, Abe Martin, Dennis Franchione, and current coach Gary Patterson. Matthews, Baugh, O'Brien, Aldrich, Lester, Swink, Lilly, and Dutch Meyer are all members of the College Football Hall of Fame. Baugh and Lilly are also members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The TCU Football team plays its games in Amon G. Carter Stadium. The stadium opened in 1930 and holds 44,008. [Amon G. Carter Stadium]

Baseball

TCU has fielded a baseball team since 1896, before the school found its home in Fort Worth, TX. The Horned Frog baseball team began playing baseball in the Southwest Conference when it became a member of the conference in 1923Wikipedia Southwest Conference Page] . That year they finished the year with a 13-11 overall record and a 2-10 conference record. [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-basebl/auto_pdf/06-mg-07.pdf TCU Baseball 2006 Media Guide] TCU Baseball, p. 99] In 1933 Dutch Meyer, also the coach of the football team, led TCU to its first SWC title with a 9-1 record. During the rest of their time in the SWC, the Frogs would win 6 more regular-season SWC baseball titles. Their next conference championship would come while members of Conference USA in 2004 and 2005. [ [http://conferenceusa.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/053004aaa.html 2004 C-USA Final Tournament Press Release] ] [ [http://conferenceusa.cstv.com/ot/03-04-championship-results.html C-USA 2003-2004 Championship and Tournament Scoreboard] ] [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/c-usa/sports/m-basebl/auto_pdf/05-final-release.pdf 2005 C-USA Season Review Press Release] ] [ [http://conferenceusa.cstv.com/ot/04-05-championship-results.html C-USA 2004-2005 Championship and Tournament Scoreboard] ] 2006 saw the Horned Frogs in a new conference, the Mountain West Conference. The Frogs went 17-5 in their first year in the MWC and never left first place. They also only had to play 3 games in the conference tournament to win the MWC Tournament Title to complement the regular season title. [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/mwc/sports/m-basebl/auto_pdf/frelease06.pdf 2006 MWC Final Standings] ] [http://themwc.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/recaps/052706aae.html 2006 MWC Tournament Title Press Release] ]

TCU has made six appearances in the NCAA Baseball Tournament: 1956, 1994, 2004, 2005, 2006 & 2007. [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-basebl/auto_pdf/06-mg-07.pdf TCU Baseball 2006 Media Guide] TCU Baseball p.90-91, 99] TCU has 23 All-Americans, 6 Freshman All-Americans, 3 players of the year awards, and 2 pitchers of the year not to mention countless All-Conference selections.The TCU Baseball Team makes its home in Lupton Stadium. It is located on the campus of TCU, and it holds 3,500 patrons.

Men's Basketball

TCU Men's Basketball has played since the 1908-1909 season. That first year they entered the Waco City League and left with a record of 2-3, losing to the Baylor teams and defeating the Waco High teams.

The Horned Frogs played basketball in the Southwest Conference from the 1923-24 seasons until the breakup of the conference after the 1995-96 season. During their time in the SWC they won 10 conference titles (1931, 1934, 1951*, 1952, 1953, 1959, 1968, 1971, 1986*, 1987; * denotes shared title). [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/TCU_MBB_TCUhistory.pdf 2005-06 TCU Men's Basketball Media Guide] p. 70] Buster Brannon owns the most wins as a coach in TCU Men's Basketball history with a career that spanned 20 years he earned a record of 205-259, a 104-144 record in SWC play, won 4 conference titles and earned three trips to the NCAA Basketball Tournament in 1952, 1953 and 1959. [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/TCU_MBB_TCUhistory.pdf 2005-06 TCU Men's Basketball Media Guide] p.100] The TCU Men's Basketball Team would only win one more conference championship after the breakup of the Southwest Conference. During the 1997-98 season under Coach Billy Tubbs, the team went 27-6 and 14-0 in WAC play. The team earned a trip to the Midwest Regional played in Oklahoma City, OK. They would lose in the first round to Florida State. TCU never won a title during their time in Conference USA and have not won a conference title in their current conference, the Mountain West Conference.TCU's other NCAA tournament appearances occurred in 1968, 1971 and 1987. [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/TCU_MBB_TCUhistory.pdf 2005-06 TCU Men's Basketball Media Guide] p. 113-114] Along with NCAA Tournament appearances, TCU appeared in the National Invitational Tournament six times -- 1983, 1986, 1992, 1997,
1999 and
2005. They advanced to the quarterfinal round three times -- 1983, 1999 and 2005, but have never earned a birth to play in the semifinal round in Madison Square Garden [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/TCU_MBB_TCUhistory.pdf 2005-06 TCU Men's Basketball Media Guide] p115-117] .

The TCU Men's Basketball Team was coached from 2002 to 2007 by Neil Dougherty. He was fired in March, 2008, after TCU limped through yet another season with a losing record. Jim Christian, formerly with Kent State, was hired shortly after Dougherty was fired.

The TCU Men's Basketball Team plays their home games in Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on the campus of TCU.

Women's Basketball

The Lady Frogs sported their first women's basketball team in the 1977-78 season, in which TCU boasted a 5-18 record. The Lady Frogs improved significantly in the following year, going 19-8. Current coach Jeff Mittie has been the coach of the team since the 1999-00 season. During the 2000-01 season, the Lady Frogs won their first regular season and conference championship at the WAC Tournament. The Lady Frogs would match that accomplishment the very next season their first season in Conference USA during the 2001-2002 season. They then proceeded to win the C-USA tournament in 2002-03 and 2004-05. Of the four years the Lady Frogs were in C-USA, they would win the conference title 4 out of 5 years. [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/w-baskbl/auto_pdf/05-06_wbbmg_history.pdf 2005-06 TCU Women's Media Guide] p. 136]

TCU has also reached the Women's NCAA Tournament for an outstanding six consecutive years, stretching back to the 2000-01 season. Each year, the Lady Frogs have won their first game of the tournament and lost the second game, except for a first-round loss to Oregon in 2005.

The Lady Frogs also share Daniel-Meyer Coliseum with the men's team, playing under the roof there for the entire history of the program.

Women's Volleyball

The TCU Women's Volleyball Team is coached by Prentice Lewis who joined the team in February 2002. In 2002, the volleyball team accomplished the 3rd best record to date at 12-18. [http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/w-volley/mtt/lewis_prentice00.html Gofrogs.com Prentice Lewis Bio] ] The next year, 2003, the Horned Frogs recorded their best record to date at 20-11 and made it to the second round of the C-USA tournament, a first for a TCU Volleyball team. 2005 the Horned Frog Volleyball team saw their first year in the Mountain West Conference. The team finished the season 16-18 and were seeded 8th in the conference tournament. They defeated the #9 seed, Air Force, in the play-in match 3-1. The Frogs then fell to the top seeded BYU 3-0 in the quarterfinals round. 2006 the Frogs recorded a 17-15 record and were the sixth seed in the MWC tournament. They would eventually lose to Colorado State University 3-1. The 2006 season would mark the Horned Frogs third winning season in four years. [ [http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/w-volley/recaps/112306aaa.html TCU Women's Volleyball Press Release] "Frogs Season Comes to an End"]

The Women's Volleyball Team plays their home games in the Student Recreation Center on the campus of TCU.

Men's & Women's Cross Country

The Men's and Women's TCU Harriers Cross Country teams compete in the Mountain West Conference. For purposes of qualifying for the NCAA Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships, the TCU Harriers compete in the South Central Regional while the rest of the conference competes in the Rocky Mountain Regional.From 2003-2005 the TCU Harriers sent a runner to the NCAA Men's or Women's Cross Country Championships.The TCU Harriers Cross Country team is coached by [http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/c-track/mtt/heins_eric00.html Eric Heins] .

Women's Equestrian

In December 2005 it was announced that starting in the 2006-2007 academic year women's equestrian would become a varsity sport sponsored by TCU. The NCAA designated equestrian as an emerging sport in 1998, and there are currently 23 intercollegiate programs in NCAA Division I and II. Programs in the region include Baylor, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, SMU, Stephen F. Austin, Texas A&M and West Texas A&M. Intercollegiate equestrian programs support an average of 70 student-athletes.

Golf

Men's Golf

The TCU Men’s Golf team is led by 20-year Head Coach Bill Montigel. During his tenure, Coach Montigel guided the Men’s Golf Team to five consecutive conference titles from 2001-2005 between the Horned Frog’s time in the WAC and MWC. Since 1990, the Horned Frogs have qualified as a team to the NCAA South Central Regional every year. In ten of those years, the team moved on to the NCAA Championships. One of the most notable TCU Men’s Golf Alumnus is J. J. Henry who was a member of the United States team during the 2006 Ryder Cup. The TCU golf team practices at the Colonial Golf & Country Club.

Women's Golf

In 1983, the TCU Women's Golf team accounted for the school's lone national championship outside of football. Currently the women's golf team is led by Head Coach Angie Ravaioli-Larkin. The Horned Frogs have at least four former players now playing professionally: Susan Horton, Angela Stanford, Brooke Tull and D'Rae Ward. TCU practices at the Colonial Country Club.

Women's Rifle

All-Americans

Source: [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/c-swim/auto_pdf/06-07-mg-3.pdf 2006-07 TCU Swimming Media Guide] p. 48]

Men's Swimming All-American's

^**collegite record; NCAA meet record [ [http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/c-track/auto_pdf/history.pdf TCU Track & Field History] p. 3]

Tennis

The TCU Tennis teams play their home matches at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center [http://gofrogs.cstv.com/facilities/tcu-facil-tennis.html] , rated the #1 facility in the nation by Tennis Magazine.

Men's Tennis

The TCU Men's Tennis team is coached by Dave Borelli. Before he became coach of the men's team, Coach Borelli coached the TCU Women's Tennis team four years before. [ [http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/m-tennis/mtt/borelli_dave00.html Player Bio:Dave Borelli] ] They are the 2005-2006 Mountain West Conference Tournament Champions. [http://themwc.cstv.com/champ/0506champ.html 2005-06 MWC List of Champions] ]

Women's Tennis

The TCU Women's Tennis team is coached by Jefferson Hammond. They are the 2005-2006 Mountain West Conference regular season and tournament champions.

Traditions

Horned Frog Mascot

The Horned Frog first appeared in 1897 on the cover of the first AddRan yearbook. By 1915, the mascot made its way onto the first TCU seal. During the post-WWII years, the Horned Frog Mascot was embraced in costume, on stationery, class rings and the band's bass drum. In 1979 the mascot was renamed from "Addy the All-American Frog" to "Super Frog". [ [http://www.magazine.tcu.edu/articles/2001-03-CV3.asp TCU Magazine] "Frog of Ages" Fall 2001.]

TCU has capitalized on its mascot by marketing a bumper sticker (in a role reversal of where a frog, once kissed, turns into a prince) stating "My Princess Turned into a Frog".

Alma Mater

Academic Verse:
Hail all hail, TCU
Memories Sweet, Comrades True
Light of Faith, Follow Through
Praise to Thee, TCU

Athletic Verse:
Hail all hail, Glory bright
Purple Frogs, Honor White
Victory, Spirits True
Praise to Thee, TCU

Fight Song

Verse:
We'll raise a song, both loud and long
To cheer our team to victory
For TCU, so tried and true,
We pledge eternal loyalty.
Rah, Rah, TCU!
Rah, Rah, TCU!
Fight on boys, fight, with all your might
Roll up the scores for TCU
Hail white and purple flag whose heroes never lag,
Horned Frog, we are all for you!
Chant:
F-R-O-G-S F-I-G-H-T
Purple, White, Horned Frogs Fight
Victory, Victory, Right, Right, Right
Rah, Rah TCU! Rah, Rah, TCU
F-R-O-G-S F-I-G-H-T
Go, Go, Horned Frogs Go
TCU Frogs Fight

Cheers

Rif Ram:
Riff, Ram, Bah Zoo
Lickety, Lickety, Zoo, Zoo
Who, Wah, Wah, Who
Give 'em Hell, TCU

NCAA National Championships

External links

* [http://www.gofrogs.com/ Official TCU athletics site]
* [http://www.killerfrogs.com/ Killer Frogs] - TCU Fan Site and home to the most popular public TCU Forum/Board.
* [http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/06-m-footbl-guide.html 2006 Football Media Guide]
* [http://www.fansonly.com/photos/schools/tcu/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/weekly-release.pdf Weekly Football Media Release]

References