What's missing from TCU's team that went to the National Championship 2 years ago?

Just two seasons ago, the TCU Horned Frogs were arguably one of the best teams in the country as they passed by the Michigan Wolverines in the semifinals and faced the Georgia Bulldogs in the National Championship game.

Nowadays, head coach Sonny Dykes' Horned Frogs are a far cry from the once-dominant TCU squad that finished its season with just two losses on its record.

So, what has happened to the Horned Frogs football team? What has caused such a rapiddownfall of a program that made its way to the natty only two years ago?

No more Max Duggan

It's tough to replace a starting quarterback, much less the leadership role that QB Max Duggan played for the Horned Frogs in 2022.

Duggan overcame life-changing injuries, surgeries, and health scares just to re-earn his spot as the starting quarterback for TCU and had a dream season during his final year for the Horned Frogs. He completed 237 pass attempts nearly 3,700 yards through the air and scored 41 total touchdowns, nine of them taking place on the ground from the dual-threat quarterback.

The hole that was left behind by Duggan has yet to be filled and head coach Dykes is struggling to find a replacement anywhere near his caliber.

Sonny Dykes isn't that good of a coach

Dykes' career record as ahead coach is 92-74, nothing to write home about and his record certainly wasn't all that when he first took the TCU job when it was 71-63. While at TCU, Dykes has gone just 21-11 and the Horned Frogs are currently getting clobbered by the 1-4 Houston Cougars.

Sure, Dykes had pretty decent success at Louisiana Tech and SMU but that was before the Mustangs were part of a Power Conference. The only other job he's held at the Power Conf. level was at Cal where he led the Golden Bears to just 19 wins and an abysmal 30 losses.

Dykes has a winning percentage of barely over 55 percent, and if you take away TCU's National Championship run, his overall record falls to a disappointing 79-71 overall.

There are new assistants in town

Dykes revamped his staff after the Horned Frogs struggled in the 2023 season, just one year removed from the National Championship, and finished in 5-7 overall.

TCU's defensive coordinator, Andy Avalos, was Boise State's head coach before coming to Fort Worth. Ken Wilson, the Horned Frogs' linebackers coach was previously the Nevada Wolfpack head coach.

Dykes also added Dana Holgorsen, former Houston coach, and Todd Graham, former Arizona State and Hawai'i coach, to his staff during the 2024 offseason. While adding all of the experience to a football staff should be good, there may be too many cooks in the kitchen, not to mention the adjustment period that any team needs when there's a new sheriff in town.

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