History could be on TCU’s side after two losing seasons in row

FORT WORTH, Texas—For only the third time since Gary Patterson became TCU’s head coach, the Horned Frogs are coming off a losing season.

They immediately rebounded from those first two sub-.500 records with conference titles the following years.

Can they do that again in 2017?

“I think he believes we’re capable of that,” linebacker Ty Summers said, referring to the TCU coach who is going into his 17th season.

While the Frogs finished 6-7 last season, they twice lost in double overtime during the regular season. There was also a 52-46 home loss to Big 12 champion Oklahoma after scoring 22 consecutive points in the fourth quarter. Patterson, TCU’s winningest coach with a 149-54 record, figures his team could have won nine games.

“I feel like he was actually pretty positive for the most part,” Summers said. “Not positive in like it’s OK, but positive in a way that all we can do is go up from here, and knowing that history is we’ve come back. Especially what happened in 2014.”

The Frogs won a share of the Big 12 title in 2014, only their third season in the league, after going 4-8 in 2013 with four losses by a combined 11 points. They clinched the Mountain West Conference title in 2005, a year after going 5-6 in their final year in Conference USA.

TCU returns all but one offensive starter (tackle Aviante Collins) from last season, including senior quarterback Kenny Hill and Kyle Hicks, the team leader in rushing (1,042 yards, 12 touchdowns) and receptions (47).

Among the seven returning starters on defense are their three top tacklers. Travin Howard (130) and Summers (121), the starting linebackers in TCU’s 4-2-5 defense, were 1-2 in the Big 12.

“I tell everybody that the good news is we have everybody back, and the bad news is we were 6-6

(in the regular season), we got everybody back,” Patterson said. “Really like the team. I like the kids.”