In one of our final installments of our annual football preview series, we take a closer look at each of the coaches who will be on the sidelines and in the press box for the TCU Horned Frogs during the 2025 season, which will be the program’s fourth under head coach Sonny Dykes. Since taking over the program, Dykes has amassed a 27-13 record, with 13 wins resulting from the 2022-23 season. Dykes, who owns a 98-76 record over four stops at LA Tech, California, SMU and TCU, signed a contract extension
with TCU in December 2022 that will reportedly tie him to the university through the 2028 season. While the Horned Frogs disappointed in 2023, posting a 5-7 record and failing to make a bowl game, TCU rebounded in 2024, finishing 9-4 with a New Mexico Bowl win.
Flanking Dykes on offense and defense will be third-year offensive coordinator Kendal Briles and second-year defensive coordinator Andy Avalos. Briles, who also serves as quarterbacks coach and the associate head coach, has guided an offense that saw quarterback Josh Hoover amass 3,929 passing yards, a new single-season team record, during the 2024 campaign. In 2023, Briles’s first year with the program, TCU ranked sixth out of 14 Big 12 schools in scoring (31.3 points per game), fourth in total yards per game (466.7) and second in passing yards per game (312.2). TCU’s offense remained one of the best in the Big 12 last season, ranking third in points per game (33.5), fifth in total yards per game (426.8) and second in passing yards per game (312.9).
Rushing offense has been a struggle since Briles took over, however. Despite Emani Bailey running for over 1,200 yards in 2023, TCU ranked 10th in the conference in rushing yards per game (154.5) and eighth in yards per carry (4.6). After Bailey departed for the NFL, TCU took a significant step back running the football last year, ranking 13th in rushing yards per game (113.9) and 14th in rushing yards per carry (3.7). The Horned Frogs should remain strong in the passing game, but an improved running game will be paramount for a balanced attack.
Defensively, TCU fared well against the pass in Avalos’s first season, finishing third in the Big 12 in passing yards allowed per game (185.2), fourth in opposing completion percentage (57.6) and second in passing touchdowns allowed (12). Stopping the run, an issue that has plagued the Horned Frogs since 2023, continued to be an issue, as TCU surrendered 160.5 rushing yards per game (10th best in the Big 12) and 21 rushing touchdowns (fifth-most in the Big 12). One area the defense did improve from 2023 was the pass rush, as TCU generated 26 sacks, fourth-most in the conference, during the 2024 season. The Horned Frogs also forced nine fumbles, fifth-best in the conference. Creating more turnovers, particularly interceptions, will be key for the defense this season.
Mark Tommerdahl returns for his fourth season at TCU. Since his arrival, Tommerdahl, who began as special teams coordinator and now serves as special assistant to the head coach, has overseen All-Big 12 players in both the kicking (Griffin Kell) and punting (Jordy Sandy) areas. TCU has also seen two wide receivers, Derius Davis and J.P. Richardson, earn All-Big 12 honors as return men during Tommerdahl’s tenure in Fort Worth. Punter Ethan Craw and kicker Kyle Lemmermann, both highly-touted recruits, are expected to play big roles in 2025.
TCU’s offensive position coaches including offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator A.J. Ricker (fourth season), running backs coach Jimmy Smith (second season), wide receivers coach and assistant head coach Malcolm Kelly (seventh season) and tight ends coach Mitch Kirsch (first season). Defensive position coaches include defensive line coach JaMarkus McFarland (fourth season), linebackers coach Ken Wilson (second season), safeties/nickels coach and passing game coordinator Tre Watson (first season) and cornerbacks coach Julius Brown (second season). The most notable departures from the 2024 coaching staff are former inside wide receivers coach Doug Meacham (Oklahoma State) and former cornerbacks coach Carlton Buckels (LA Tech).
