Andy Dalton Manning Award Finalist/Tank Carder AFCA All-American

As college football awards and honors continue to be announced, you will notice that TCU is being very well represented. Last week Tejay Johnson was named a finalist for the Thorpe Award, Andy Dalton was named a finalist for the Unitas Award, and Gary Patterson is a finalist for the Eddie Robinson award. Yesterday it was announced that Andy Dalton is also a finalist for the Manning Award, presented to the nation's top quarterback and Tank Carder was named to the American Football Coaches Association All-America team.

Andy Dalton Tabbed a Manning Award Finalist

TCU's Andy Dalton has been announced as a finalist for the Manning Award, presented to the nation's top quarterback.

It's the second straight year Dalton has been a finalist for the Manning Award. He is also a 2010 finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, given to the nation's top senior quarterback.

Dalton is the nation's leader in wins by an active quarterback with 41. He has led TCU to back-to-back undefeated regular seasons and three straight top-10 rankings. The Horned Frogs are third in the BCS standings.

Dalton, who ranks fifth in the nation with a 167.03 pass efficiency rating, has thrown for a TCU single-season record 26 touchdowns with just six interceptions. He is on pace to set a new Horned Frog mark with a career-best 66.2 completion percentage.

Tank Carder Named AFCA All-American

TCU linebacker Tank Carder has been named to the American Football Coaches Association All-America team.

A junior from Sweeny, Texas, Carder is among the TCU leaders with 54 tackles, including 6 1/2 for loss. He has 2 1/2 sacks. Carder is tied for second on the Horned Frogs with five pass breakups while adding an interception and fumble recovery.

Carder is one of the anchors of a Horned Frog defense that leads the nation in total defense (215.4 yards) for a third consecutive season. TCU would become just the third school in NCAA history to lead the nation in total defense in three consecutive years (Toledo, 1969-71; Oklahoma, 1985-87).

TCU Accepts Invitation from Big East

From TCU Media Relations: TCU’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved an invitation to join the Big East Conference in all sports beginning with the 2012-13 academic year.

TCU will become an official member of the Big East July 1, 2012.

Current Big East members in football are Cincinnati, Connecticut, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida, Syracuse and West Virginia. For sports other than football, the Big East also includes DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Notre Dame, Providence, Seton Hall, St. John’s and Villanova.

By joining the Big East Conference, TCU can continue its goal to build an excellent athletics program. The University has continued to develop its athletics program through the opening of new facilities and programs, including:

*Renovations to the west side and north end zone of Amon G. Carter Stadium
*The Jane and John Justin Field House for women's soccer
*The Dutch Meyer Athletic Complex and Abe Martin Academic Enhancement Center
*The Sam Baugh Indoor Practice Facility
*The Ed and Rae Schollmaier Basketball Complex
*The addition of a women¹s equestrian program

The Big East also provides TCU's athletics program television exposure through ESPN, CBS Sports and SportsNet New York (SNY). The Big East Conference has the longest standing continuous relationship of any league with CBS Sports.

In adding TCU and the nation¹s fifth-largest television market, the Big East Conference further strengthens its footprint on the national television scene. Big East markets already contained almost one-fourth of all television households in the United States. Big East institutions currently reside in nine of the nation's top-35 media markets, including New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Tampa, Pittsburgh, Hartford, Cincinnati and Milwaukee.

Joining the Big East will enhance our student-athlete experience and continue raising TCU's visibility on a national level, said TCU chancellor

Victor J. Boschini, Jr. We have many championship winning teams within our athletics program and student-athletes across the board will now enjoy greater recognition. This move also provides an opportunity for TCU to recruit more students in different areas across the country, which will further diversify our student body.

The Board of Trustees, along with TCU's administration, thoroughly examined the invitation and came to the conclusion that joining the Big East is the right move to make at this time, said Luther King, chair of TCU's Board of Trustees. This University has a lot of momentum and joining the Big East will accelerate that momentum.

Headquartered in Providence, R.I., the Big East Conference was formed in 1979. The league has won 28 national championships in six sports with 128 student-athletes capturing individual national titles.

The Big East sponsors all of the sports TCU currently fields in the Mountain West Conference.

We take tremendous pride in having a nationally-prominent athletics program and joining the Big East Conference will allow us to further grow our brand and increase our visibility and exposure, TCU director of intercollegiate athletics Chris Del Conte said. We are most appreciative of our time in the Mountain West Conference. The league helped elevate us across the board. We treasure the relationships we formed and the outstanding leadership provided by Commissioner Craig Thompson.

Having BCS automatic-qualifying status was a priority for our football program and a great reward for the success we¹ve had the last decade under Gary Patterson. Keeping all our sports together was also critical. We are very excited to accomplish both these goals and look forward to our new home in the Big East Conference.

TCU to the Big East

The rumors have been swirling for weeks now, and it looks like we can finally put all the speculation to rest. TCU has been invited to the Big East Conference as an all sports member. The Frogs no doubt will accept the invitation.

NY Daily News:

In a move designed to prop up a weak football conference, The Big East has convinced TCU to leave the Mountain West and join the league as an all sports member, sources told the Daily News early this morning. Commissioner John Marinatto and Associate Commisioner in charge of communications John Paquette both flew to Dallas yesterday for the official announcement at 1 p.m. today.

The Horned Frogs, a small private school located in Ft. Worth, are currently the No. 3 ranked team in the BCS standings and are set to at least play in the Rose Bowl this January after completing a perfect 12-0 record. If either Auburn or Oregon lose this Saturday, there is a strong chance TCU will be in the national championship game Jan. 10 at Glendale, Arizona.

No timetable has been set, but I would expect TCU to join in 2012. This is a great move for the Frogs and they will FINALLY be in a BCS AQ conference.

They’ve done messed up. The BCS finally let us into their little exclusive group, and they won't be able kick us out this time.

Go Frogs!!!

TCU Blows Out New Mexico 66-17- MWC Champions

TCU blew out New Mexico 66-17 Saturday to finish the season 12-0 and clinch its second straight Mountain West Conference Championship and second straight undefeated regular season. TCU’s seniors earned their 43rd victory in the last four years, making them the winningest class in school history. Now all that awaits the Frogs is a Rose Bowl appearance or a birth in the BCS Championship game. Let’s break this one down.

- Andy Dalton had three first-quarter touchdown passes before leaving the game with a minor elbow injury. Dalton has 26 touchdown passes on the season and is now the Mountain West Conference career leader in both total offense (11,678 yards) and plays from scrimmage (1,698). Dalton’s injury was not serious and he will be fine for the bowl game.

- Congrats to Ed Wesley for going over 1,000 yards on the ground this season. Wesley is the first Horned Frog to top 1,000 yards since Robert Merrill in 2003. That is an amazing feet when you realize he basically achieved that mark in 10 games while splitting time with two other running backs.

- How good is this TCU offense? The Horned Frogs set single-season school records for touchdowns (70) and points scored (520). It’s the third straight year the Horned Frogs have established a new mark in both categories.

- I hate that Dalton had to get injured before Casey Pachall got major playing time, but it was nice to see him receive meaningful minutes. Once he settled down, he had a fairly decent game. As for Yogi Gallegos, he should probably remain on the sidelines.

- The Horned Frogs scored in every quarter against New Mexico and have scored in all but one quarter this season.

- Sixteen of TCU’s last 19 victories have been by at least 27 points. Seventeen of the 19 wins are by 17 points or more.

The Frogs will remain #3 in the BCS rankings tomorrow, and don’t listen to what anyone says, if Auburn or Oregon lose next weekend, TCU will be in the BCS Championship Game. If things remain the same, TCU will be in Pasadena for New Years. Not a bad consolation prize, but I haven’t given up hope yet.

It has been another great season and this team took us all on another exciting thrill ride. Being a Frog fan just keeps getting better and better.

I Smell Roses...

Rod Gilmore Stars in Unhappy Gilmore

Boise State Goes Down!!!

(Picture from SportsbyBrooks)

The BCS hopes of Boise State died on Friday night and the smell of roses suddenly filled the Ft. Worth air as the Broncos fell to the Nevada Wolfpack 34-31 in overtime. Boise State had the game in hand until Nevada came roaring back in the second half. Boise kicker Kyle Brotzman missed a 26 yard field goal with 2 seconds left in regulation and another from 29 yards in overtime. The rest is history.

Now all that sits between TCU and the Rose Bowl is New Mexico. The Frogs could be in Pasadena for New Years if they take care of business Saturday afternoon. IF the Horned Frogs blow out the Lobos AND get some help from South Carolina or Oregon State next weekend, they could be in the BCS Championship game January 10th.

As it stand right now, all TCU has to do is beat New Mexico and the worst they can do is the Rose Bowl. This is amazing!

MAKE IT HAPPEN! GO FROGS!!!

MJ/LeBron Commercial

Someone with some video editing skills blended the LeBron James “What should I do” commercial with an old Michael Jordan commercial. Check it out.