The Gary Patterson era is over at TCU.
The university and its veteran football coach agreed to part ways on Sunday, a day after the Horned Frogs had a demoralizing 31-12 loss at Kansas State.
Jerry Kill, who has served as a special assistant to Patterson for the last two seasons, will serve as the interim coach the final four games of the regular season.
Athletic director Jeremiah Donati will conduct a national search for Patterson’s replacement. SMU’s Sonny Dykes would appear to be the early front-runner for the job.
Whoever the next coach is will be following a legendary coaching figure regarded as one of the top defensive minds of his generation.
Patterson built TCU’s football program into what it is today in his 21 seasons as head coach. He went 181-79 in his career and the Horned Frogs finished ranked in the top 10 six times.
“The story of Gary Patterson and the rise in the fortunes of the TCU football program over the last 20 years is clearly one of the most remarkable in the history of college football,” Donati said in a statement. “We are grateful to Gary and Kelsey Patterson and appreciate everything they have meant to TCU and the Fort Worth community. Under his leadership, TCU has become a nationally recognized brand name in football and in collegiate athletics.
“Chancellor [Victor] Boschini and I met with Coach Patterson today and mutually agreed that the time has come for a new voice and leadership in our football program. We asked him to continue on as our head coach for the remainder of the season, and take on a different role in 2022, but he believed it was in the team’s and TCU’s best interests to begin the transition immediately.
“We respect Coach Patterson’s perspective and will move forward in that direction. I’ve asked Jerry Kill to serve as interim head coach, and he has accepted the role for the remainder of the season. Coach Patterson will assist TCU in the transition to take place.”
In a statement to the Star-Telegram, Boschini said: “It is the end of an era and I will always be grateful to Gary for the countless things he did to put TCU football on the map. He was a tireless worker for ‘all things TCU.’”
Patterson’s highlight came in the 2010 season when TCU went 13-0, won the Rose Bowl and was ranked No. 2 in the country. That helped land the Frogs in the Big 12 and they went on to win a Big 12 championship in 2014 and finished No. 3 in the country.
TCU followed the 2014 season with an 11-3 season and No. 7 ranking in 2015. The Frogs finished in the top 10 in the country again in 2017.
But TCU has fallen since the 2018 season. The Frogs have gone 21-22 overall and 13-19 in Big 12 play since 2018. Only Texas Tech and Kansas have worse records among Big 12 teams in that time span.
Patterson, 61, was signed through the 2024 season. TCU owes an $18 million buyout for Patterson and his staff.
Patterson expressed an interest in continuing to coach as late as Saturday but his job security had come into question with disappointing losses of late. The Frogs have lost three straight games by multiple scores.
Kill, meanwhile, is the only coach on staff with Power Five head coaching experience. Kill spent five seasons as Minnesota’s head coach from 2011-15.
TCU (3-5, 1-4 Big 12) hosts Baylor (7-1, 3-0) on Saturday. Kickoff has been set for 2:30 p.m. at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
