FORT WORTH, Texas — According to several people who were present after a TCU practice in October, coach Gary Patterson told his team: "I know what you are trying to do. They're not going to fire me. They're going to fire the assistant coaches.
"I'm untouchable."
For people who are unfamiliar with football, a head coach under stress accusing his players of trying to get him canned is not uncommon.
For people who are unfamiliar with Gary Patterson, such emotional outbursts and accusations are also not uncommon.
For 20 years he's been known to string together crazy sentences that he does not mean. Or sentences that he does mean but is unaware of how they land.
He's been known to "fire" assistant coaches during practices while the next day lobbying for their raises.
It doesn't mean those who are used to the behavior like it. Some could separate the words from the actions and dealt with it better than others.
When TCU administrators and prominent boosters agreed that it was time for the Gary Patterson era to end, they were ready for an outburst or two.
While both parties have publicly said the "final" discussion between Patterson and administrators was calm, how it actually went down was not.
According to people familiar with the conversation on Oct. 31, the head coach was none too pleased and voiced his anger at both TCU chancellor Victor Boschini and athletic director Jeremiah Donati.
At this point, both sides are being pleasant to finalize the buyout.
Neither TCU nor Patterson is going to publicly agitate the other so the two sides can agree to a number.
Because TCU is a private school, the contract settlement will remain confidential. It will be in the several million dollar range, and Patterson won't have to work for the next century or so.
Then there is squabbling over minor details, which includes, yes, who gets the office furniture.
These are two rich people and their lawyers chatting over who keeps the stainless steel 'fridge in the guest house, and who gets the country club membership.
In due time, everyone involved, including Patterson, will relish what they did together rather than bemoan their final days.
For 20 years TCU knew and understood Patterson's personality.
But there are parts of that personality that caused some former assistants and players to vow never to speak to him again. Others understood that's just Gary being Gary.
There is a love/hate element of dealing with Patterson that can take a toll.
When TCU celebrated its win over Baylor on Nov. 6 there was an almost tangible release of nervous energy that had permeated not only the football program but the entire athletic department for more than a month.
Maybe years.
The stress that Patterson carried and so often projected had just become a part of the entire program in way they didn't fully realize until he left the building.
There has been a release in both directions.
Patterson needed a breather from this job, and TCU needed a breather from Patterson.
As is often the case with teams with losing records, there has been some dysfunction among the coaching staff. This is not some harmonious unit.
Two years ago, Patterson hired now interim head coach Jerry Kill to settle some of that, but there are certain dynamics that need a counselor rather than another assistant.
Patterson had for the last few years romanticized stepping away from a job that was his identity, but that also required him to feel like he had to work 48 hours a day.
That internal demand went to his assistants, who were expected to maintain the same work schedule.
And when the on-the-field product suffered, Patterson would jump his staffers beyond the normal temperature, which was already hot, who in turn took it out on the players.
That's a common pattern among a strata of head coaches. Bill Parcells was renowned for this sort of behavior. Parcells could be terrible to his top assistant, Bill Belichick.
Parcells' protege, Tom Coughlin, was known for this, too.
All of the staffers who deal with these sorts of coaches do so for one reason — job security.
But even when it works it's difficult. When it doesn't work, it's miserable.
Patterson was known to be hard on former TCU tight end and long time assistant coach Dan Sharp. Gary took care of Sharp by keeping him on staff since 2001, but there was a price.
Defensive coaches tended to "get it" a bit more than the offensive coaches.
It was not a coincidence Sharp was asked to lead the players out of the tunnel onto the field for the game against Baylor. It was not a coincidence Sharp was given a game ball after the win.
People who have been around the program for a long time have known Sharp put up with a lot.
Gary Patterson's relationship with TCU was complex. He would often tell people he'd make about 10% of the people he was around upset. He would joke that eventually he'd make everyone upset.
He only knew how to do it his way, and TCU allowed him to proceed because the results and the intentions were good.
The execution was sometimes not, which is why when the results no longer accompanied the behavior, both sides needed a break.
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