TCU won the national championship in
football in both 1935 and 1938. The school's most famous players of the
past were 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, and
Bob Lilly. TCU's most successful head coaches were Matty Bell, L.R.
"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.
Among currently active players, the best-known TCU product is National
Football League (NFL) star LaDainian Tomlinson (NCAA record holder for
rushing yards in a single game and recipient of the Doak Walker Award),
the starting running back for the San Diego Chargers. In 2004, "LT"
signed a six-year, $60-million contract making him the highest paid
running back in NFL history. In 2005, he tied an NFL record for most
consecutive games with a touchdown at 18 straight games.
The Frogs finished the season 11-1 overall and 8-0 in conference to win
the Mountain West Championship. They won their final ten games of the
season, giving them the second-longest active winning streak in the
nation. On New Year's Eve, they defeated Big Twelve member Iowa State,
27-24, in the Houston Bowl. This marked the seventh bowl appearance for
TCU in the last eight years and was their first bowl victory since 2002.
TCU finished the year ranked 9th in the Coaches' Poll, 11th in the AP
Poll.
