Fans, students, and alums piled into TCU’s Schollmaier Arena for the official TCU watch party as the No.3 ranked Horned Frogs took on the No.1 ranked Georgia Bulldogs in the College Football Playoff National Championship game.
There was high energy in a packed arena to start the game as fans anticipated the possibility of the school’s first national championship in football since 1938.
Georgia took an early lead that silenced the crowd for a while, but fans erupted as quarterback Max Duggan completed a 60-yard pass to wide receiver Derius Davis that set up TCU’s first and only score of the game. Duggan ran the ball in for the touchdown a few plays later, and the crowd roared as the Horned Frogs made it a 10-7 game.
That feeling did not last long, as Georgia began to dominate in the second quarter. Duggan threw an interception late in the half, clearing most of the arena. The remaining fans dissipated as Georgia converted the turnover into a touchdown for a 38-7 halftime lead.
“Everybody, with every play, every score was getting wild and rowdy,” remarked Steve, a TCU fan. “A lot of cheers, a lot of emotion, and a lot of sadness here and there, but we’re still here.”
“We were deciding between going to L.A. and doing this,” said TCU fan Dan Meadows. “I’m glad we did this. Obviously, the outcome was a little easier to stomach being here versus being out there.”
The morale in the second half was much the same as Georgia continued to roll over the Horned Frogs. With each score and each commercial break, any remaining fans slowly made their way toward the exits. To its credit, the arena still put on a good show for the fans in attendance and made several efforts to boost morale in the second half.
“They put on a good show, ” Meadows added. “They got the sound right, the screens right, and the crowd was about right.”
“The experience was really strong, but it was purely just a watch party,” said Brooks, a TCU alumnus from the Class of 2019. “So, you’re relying on the fans to carry it, and because of the game, there wasn’t much to get the crowd going when the team wasn’t doing well. But it was a seamless experience and no hassle at all.”
While TCU flopped in the championship game, fans are still looking toward the positive.
“Obviously, disappointing,” Meadows said. “Still proud of them. Glad we’re here. I’d rather get smoked in the national championship than not be there at all.”
“The season was a resounding success,” added Brooks. “The whole city of Fort Worth is extremely supportive of the team. What they did is not going to be seen for a long time, I think. And to get enough respect to put us in the playoff and for us to prove everyone wrong in the Michigan game, you couldn’t have asked for more in a season.”
“You gotta be really happy for what it’s going to do for the university, gaining popularity and student interest.”
