they point to a crowd of 100,000, light up lockers, facilities in regards to academics that blow us away, they point to the number of nfl players which is more than tcu, and a national title from 2008 trumps a bowl game and it isn't even freaking close.
they freaking don't hide from the outside world. the simple fact tcu doens't even have an open spring game because of gary's paranoia is scheissing embarrassing. that should be a chance to invite every high school coach in the state to come down and talk, visit, see the facilities because you would be amazed by the number of high school coaches who don't know what tcu has to offer.
additionally, they are surrounded by people blowing the ut horn non stop and i can tell you in the houston area even at their worst there was more conversation about texas in the media than tcu.
TCU will never, ever, get the same Media tongue bath that UT does. Ever. It is a simple matter of ratings: There are more of them. The latest missive from the TCU Alumni Assoc. has the number of living TCU alumni at 90,000. UT squirts out that many every two years. In terms of people staying tuned through the commercials after the tease, we are literally nobody in comparison. This carries over into the National arena as well, with the programming emphasis on Name Brand programs guaranteed to bring with them a sizable number of eyeballs and clicks. You know this just as well as I.
As an aside, being a long-suffering viewer of Houston local programming, I have often joked that TCU may as well be located on the far side of the Moon given the paucity of coverage featuring our purple-clad warriors. Someone not paying too much attention would get the strong impression that there are only two programs in the great state of Texas: UT and A&M. I am sure this carries over to the rest of the local media in the State as well, with small exceptions given for proximity...
With this strong headwind, it is a wonder to me that TCU has done as well as they have over the last few years recruiting-wise. Sadly, a lot of the kids recruited haven't worked out for one reason or another, and we cannot afford to be shorthanded given tuition costs and the resulting lack of walk-ons. I can remember GMFP saying numerous times that "It isn't the ones you don't get that kill you, it's the ones who you
do get that don't work out." The last two years have been brutal in terms of injuries and players leaving. I see from this thread that we have 29 spots available this signing season,
slightly over a third of the 85 scholarship limit. This class will be a huge determiner of future success. A Baby Boom, as it were. Patterson and his recruiters have a chance to fill a lot of holes and shore up the weak spots, while developing a good core of players who will anchor the next half-decade. He cannot afford to have a lot of "ones that don't work out" in this bunch.
Gary Patterson the Coach, simply based on what I have seen in a few instances of him among his peers, is a guy that commands absolute respect. That deal last year during the Playoff was magnificent, with those other coaches literally hanging on his every word. Totally unscripted. It just happened. My only knowledge of his interactions with High School coaches is the local long-time coach (retired in June) who was a Briles devotee didn't much like him. But that was based on who his mentor was, and not anything else. The local coffee-shop geezers, who are bewilderingly knowledgeable about all this somehow, are very much fans of Patterson and wish that more of the local kids would head up to Fort Worth. Those anecdotes aside, he is the longest tenured Head Coach in the BIGXII and has been stomping the recruiting trail in this State a long time. He has had the chance to get to know all the H.S. Coaches along the way, and to the best of my scarce knowledge, has treated them and the kids they coached right. While you are correct that Gary is an introvert, and it has been interesting to watch him build up the public persona we see at Alumni events and fundraisers, it is fun to see the inner Gary pop out from time to time. I like to think he has a number of H.S. guys he can be himself with, and not be the careful, measured guy we see behind a microphone.
What is the point of this rambling essay? This: We're not the Big State School, and we never will be. This is a disadvantage at times, and an advantage in some others. Will we always get the Big Star? Nope. We rarely will. Will we get somebody close? Yep. Will those guys always work out? Nope. We have had a run of truly ghastly bad luck lately. Like all streaks, it will turn around. Hopefully sooner rather than later. I believe the Head Coach knows what he's doing, and keeps his cards very, very close to the vest. Like you, I think the lack of a Spring Game is silly. I think it would serve to mislead opponents more than clue them in on things if played right, and give the fans a nice showcase to enjoy on a lovely Spring day.