Dennis Franchione, whose college football coaching career included stops at Alabama, Texas A&M and TCU, died Oct. 6 in Austin following a battle with cancer. He was 75.
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Family members confirmed his death to Mac Engel of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Franchione coached some of the sport's biggest programs, but his three seasons at TCU helped change the direction of a school coming off a 1-10 finish.
In his first season in 1998, the Horned Frogs went 7-5 and upset USC in the Sun Bowl.
"I can pick three or four games, but that was maybe the biggest win of my career," Franchione told the Star-Telegram in 2018.
With LaDainian Tomlinson emerging as a national star, TCU continued its climb. The Horned Frogs finished the 2000 season 10-2 and earned their first final AP ranking since 1959.
Franchione left for Alabama, where he went 10-3 in his second season before accepting the Texas A&M job.
His five seasons with the Aggies ended in 2007, with a victory over rival Texas in his final game. He later returned to Texas State and retired after the 2015 season.
At TCU, defensive coordinator Gary Patterson succeeded him and built a nationally prominent program.
Franchione's departure had frustrated some TCU fans, but he returned for a spring game in 2022 as coach Sonny Dykes' guest. According to Engel, Franchione later considered his years in Fort Worth the best of his coaching career.
