I can’t believe I am saying this, but Dana Holgorsen is back in the Big 12. It was reported Monday that TCU brought in the former Houston and West Virginia head coach, and Horned Frogs head coach Sonny Dykes later confirmed that report.
In addition to Dana Holgorsen, Sonny Dykes is also bringing in former Hawaii and Arizona State head coach Todd Graham as well. Dykes said the two coaches will serve as analysts and advance scouts. Graham, who was a former defensive coordinator, will work with the offense. Holgorsen, an offensive minded coach, will work with the defense, and each will work trying to find weaknesses they’d attack from their point of view.
“They’re talented people that I have known for more than 20 years, who both have been very successful and have a unique perspective,” Dykes said. “They can help us win.”
Todd Graham is from the Dallas/Fort Worth area and went 106-72 as a head coach at Rice, Tulsa, Pitt, Arizona State, and Hawai’i. He resigned in 2021 after players complained about his demanding coaching style.
Meanwhile, most of us here in the Big 12 country are more familiar with Dana Holgorsen. Dana has worked at four different Big 12 schools ,including Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, West Virginia and Houston. Holgorsen spent the past five years as Houston’s coach, going 31-28 but posted a 4-8 record in Houston’s first season in the Big 12 in 2023.
Holgorsen and Graham aren’t the only former head coaches that Sonny Dykes has brought in this offseason. He added two more former head coaches this offseason, including former Boise State coach Andy Avalos as defensive coordinator and former Nevada coach Ken Wilson as linebackers coach.
After a 13-2 season in 2022, including a national championship game appearance, TCU finished a disappointing 5-7 last year. Bringing in a few former head coaches certainly is not a bad idea. TCU was picked 10th in the preseason media poll, and the Horned Frogs kick off the season Friday, Aug. 30, when they travel to Palo Alto to play Stanford.
