Why former Houston coach Dana Holgorsen became a consultant at TCU

TCU head coach Sonny Dykes made waves last week when he hired two former head coaches to the become analysts for the Horned Frogs’ football program.

One of those coaches is former Houston and West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen. Known for his offensive prowess and personality at the podium, Holgorsen’s arrival in Fort Worth is a reunion for he and Dykes after they spent some of their early coaching years at Texas Tech under Mike Leach.

“I really appreciate Sonny, I’ve known Sonny for 24 years,” Holgorsen said to the media Thursday. “We think a lot alike. I’ve had a good relationship with him for over two and a half decades. It’s thrilling for me to be here, I’ve been away from it for eight months. It’s good to be back looking at football, studying football, watching football.”

Holgorsen’s tenure in Houston was rocky, including highs like a 12-2 season in 2021, but also featured lows like two 4-8 seasons including 2023, which led to him being fired by the Cougars. The fact that Holgorsen was on the hot seat after going 12-2 and 8-5 in the two seasons prior is a good indicator of the administrative challenges Holgorsen had to endure.

Now his role is much more simple and it’s easy to see how relaxed Holgorsen is at practice. He’s usually leaning on a field goal post, with a cup of coffee and a small grin on his face as if there’s been a massive weight lifted from his shoulders.

“It’s kind of fun hanging out with you guys when you aren’t trying to get me fired,” Holgorsen said jokingly to the media on Wednesday. “It’s a lot less stressful, I’m not even going to pretend to dictate what the future is going to be, I’m just interested in trying to help TCU this fall and kind of see how I feel.

“But it’s less stressful now. I’m in better shape, I feel better. It’s a stressful job, 13 years as the head guy, a coordinator for five years, it’s been good for me to take a deep breath, I’m not going to lie to you. It’s been good for me and good for my family.”

Holgorsen was let go by Houston at the end of the November, but he always knew he wanted to spend the next season coaching in some capacity. His buyout clause also dictated that he needed to seek employment.

So where would Holgorsen turn to? Getting another head coaching job would be tough and was he really ready to dive right back into being an offensive coordinator?

Holgorsen used the spring practice to think about his next move and ultimately landed up on TCU being his landing spot.

“I took many trips, I went to eight to 10 different universities,” Holgorsen said. “I kind of got a feel of what was out there and this is where I would feel like I would be the most happy and also the most helpful. I’ll be able to learn from Andy (Avalos) and just be around good people.”

Ultimately the relationships with TCU wound up being the difference. Not only do Holgorsen and Dykes go way back, Dykes’ current chief of staff Ryan Dorchester was also Holgorsen’s general manager at Houston for five seasons.

Those bonds and TCU’s potential in the Big 12 all played major factors in Holgorsen setting his sights on the Horned Frogs.

“In my opinion you’re looking at one of the premiere teams in the Big 12,” Holgorsen said. “With the players, the resources, the schemes, facilities with the fan support. I’ve seen it up close and personal and TCU’s got a chance. They’re gonna have a chance every year.”

Dykes is hopeful that Holgorsen’s presence on the staff along with fellow new analyst Todd Graham will bolster TCU’s chances to return a bowl game and maybe more for 2024.

“Both of those guys have had distinguished careers,” Dykes said. “They’re both kind of creative out of the box thinkers. I like to talk to people to have a different frame of mind and a different viewpoint. Those guys are incredibly valuable, just their experience, they’ve run programs and have been very successful.”

The key to Holgorsen’s success has always been his offensive prowess and Dykes was creative in finding ways to use it. Holgorsen will work with the defense and provide insight on offensive schemes and personnel as the season grows closer.

Coaches like Avalos and linebackers coach Ken Wilson will have Holgorsen there as a resource to deliver a different perspective from one of the top offensive minds in college football.

“My role is to listen to how they work defensively,” Holgorsen said. “You know they’re going to have some questions on what the offense is doing here, what’s the offense doing there... and if asked I will give my opinion to the coaches, which has been fun, informative and educational for me.

“Once this season gets closer it’s gonna be about me studying offenses to help our defensive staff get prepared to be able to defend these offenses. That’s why I’m here, to help anyway I can.”

It could be tough for some to go from being the CEO of a program to just being a consultant, but not for Holgorsen who seems to be taking the opportunity to reset in stride.

He can be around football without all the added pressures of leadership like dealing with the transfer portal, NIL and the variety of new duties that fall on head coaches now.

And with Holgorsen not having any game day responsibilities he’ll be able to do something on Saturdays for the first time in over three decades.

“I’m gonna tailgate,” Holgorsen said with a smile.