TCU aims for a Big 12 Championship spot in 2025, building on their strong foundation and leadership from veteran quarterback Josh Hoover.
FRISCO, Texas — For some programs, a 9-4 record and a bowl game victory mark a successful season. While TCU is proud of its New Mexico Bowl win in 2024, the Horned Frogs don’t necessarily believe that this is the standard — but it’s a foundation to build on.
TCU put up strong offensive numbers in the 2024 season, averaging 33.5 points and 426.8 yards per game. Much of that production came under veteran quarterback Josh Hoover, who ranked No. 6 nationally with 313 pass completions. The Rockwall-Heath product returns this fall, and head coach Sonny Dykes believes Hoover has arm talent comparable to some of the NFL’s best.
“He throws the ball as well as any quarterback I’ve coached, and I’ve been fortunate to coach some good ones,” Dykes said of Hoover at Big 12 Media Days in July. “Number one pick overall, Super Bowl MVP, guys like that that have gone on, had a lot of success at the next level. He’s right there in terms of his ability to throw the football.”
Exceptional arm talent is one thing, but Dykes believes Hoover’s best ability comes from the intangible side of things: his unselfishness and leadership.
TCU’s head coach says his quarterback brings out the best in those around him, and the guys on the team love him for it. Dykes added that Hoover has a strong belief in his teammates and the scheme they’ve built heading into the season, recognizing that the defense will be improved, so he won’t have to try and score 40 to 50 points to win a game.
Admittedly, though, Dykes said he doesn’t quite know what his team as a whole will look like on the field this season. Nonetheless, expectations remain high.
“A lot of that’s going to be how do these pieces come together,” Dykes said about the unpredictability of his team’s success in 2025. “I think we’re at the point in our program right now where if we’re not in the Big 12 Championship Game, it’s probably not a successful season. That’s where we want to be. We think we’re a team that year in, year out should be in the Big 12 title hunt.”
Dykes said success this season will come down to staying healthy, handling adversity and helping players reach their potential — all factors that will reveal themselves as the season progresses, so Dykes said they will have to “see how it plays out.”
The Horned Frogs will need to be ready early. They open the season on the road against North Carolina, now led by future Hall of Fame coach Bill Belichick. After that, TCU returns to Fort Worth to face Abilene Christian, followed by a matchup with SMU — a team that reached the College Football Playoff last season.
So, not much time will be allotted for the Horned Frogs to figure things out. On the other side, if they can get through the first few weeks of the season, they will be in a prime position heading into conference play, which they open up on Sept. 27 against defending Big 12 Champions Arizona State.
Time will tell whether or not this TCU team is the real deal. But despite the unknowns and the challenges ahead, Dykes said he feels confident in the character and chemistry of the group he’s leading.
“It’s a fun team to coach,” Dykes said of his 2025 squad. “Just a special group of guys — smart, mature, unselfish, hardworking young people that we can all be proud of.”
TCU’s Full 2025-2026 Regular Season Schedule
Games in bold denote home games. Games with * denote Big 12 game.
- Monday, Sept. 1 | at North Carolina – 6:30 p.m. on ESPN
- Saturday, Sept. 13 | vs. Abilene Christian
- Saturday, Sept. 20 | vs. SMU
- Saturday, Sept. 27 | at Arizona State*
- Saturday, Oct. 4 | vs. Colorado*
- Saturday, Oct. 11 | at Kansas State*
- Saturday, Oct. 18 | vs. Baylor*
- Saturday, Oct. 25 | at West Virginia*
- Saturday, Nov. 8 | vs. Iowa State*
- Saturday, Nov. 15 | at BYU*
- Saturday, Nov. 22 | at Houston*
- Saturday, Nov. 29 | vs. Cincinnati *
TCU said all kickoff times and TV assignments will be announced at a later date.