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TCU will have a new league and a new stadium this fall.

It will also have a new record for season ticket sales.

The Horned Frogs announced Wednesday that they had sold out of an allotted 30,000 season tickets, shattering the school record of 22,500 sold for the 2011 season.

The new Amon G. Carter Stadium will seat about 45,000.

TCU set the old mark on the heels of a Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin, but rejoining old Southwest Conference rivals has the Horned Frogs fan base fired up.

"We are incredibly proud of the Horned Frog Nation," TCU athletic director Chris Del Conte said in a statement. "With the momentum in our program under (head coach) Gary Patterson, the new Amon G. Carter Stadium set to open this fall and the excitement throughout TCU, Fort Worth and the entire Metroplex with our Big 12 membership, this is an incredible time to be a Horned Frog."

There's no doubt about that. Good times in Fort Worth these days.

I've been inspired by the boys at the Big Ten Blog, and this should be a fun walk-through each week in the new-look Big 12 next season. I'll pick one game a week during the season that I'd attend if it were entirely up to me. I don't make the call, and things change as games are played, of course. I'll include road nonconference games, too.

• Week 1: West Virginia vs. Marshall
• Week 2: Kansas State vs. Miami
• Week 3: Texas at Ole Miss
• Week 4: Kansas State at Oklahoma
• Week 5: Texas at Oklahoma State
• Week 6: West Virginia at Texas
• Week 7: Oklahoma vs. Texas at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas
• Week 8: Kansas State at West Virginia
• Week 9: Notre Dame at Oklahoma
• Week 10: Oklahoma State at Kansas State
• Week 11: Kansas State at TCU
• Week 12: Oklahoma at West Virginia
• Week 13: Oklahoma State at Oklahoma

Here's the Week 14 slate in the Big 12:

• Oklahoma State at Baylor
• Kansas at West Virginia
• Texas at Kansas State
• Oklahoma at TCU

My pick: Oklahoma at TCU

Really, really tough call here. I may do some research between now and then and try to be two places at once. Ultimately, this one will come down to what the Big 12 standings look like at season's end.

I could easily see Kansas State and Texas both a) play for a game with serious Big 12 title implications and b) play the Big 12 game with the fewest pass attempts since, uh, a long time ago.

For now, though, I'll go with two teams with two of the best offenses in the Big 12 and close my Big 12 regular season with another visit to newcomer TCU.

The Sooners' linebackers are solid, but face a tough task in Matthew Tucker, Ed Wesley and Waymon James, the best trio of running backs in the Big 12, who all topped 700 yards and 100 carries in 2011. Quite the platoon, no doubt.

Oklahoma could have a lot on the line in this one, and one final game away from home for senior Landry Jones, who's improved away from Owen Field tremendously throughout his career. TCU's defense wasn't outstanding in 2011, but Gary Patterson's staked a claim as a defensive coach, and this could be a game that gives the Horned Frogs a chance to prove themselves and perhaps earn a Big 12 title on the final weekend of the season.

It'd be quite the dream scenario for the boys in purple. Oklahoma's been by far the best Big 12 program in the history of the league. Now, the Sooners come to town with the Big 12 title on the line?

What an atmosphere that would be in brand-new Amon G. Carter Stadium. I know the Horned Frogs will be dreaming about that one all season if the wins start rolling in.

Could TCU win a Big 12 title in its first season in the league? Could Oklahoma wrap up its eighth since 2000? I can't wait to find out.

Earlier this week, the Sporting News ranked the Big 12 coaches from top to bottom, but later on, it released its rankings of the nation's coaches from top to bottom.

How'd the Big 12 stack up?

Better than the rest of the competition.

Alabama's Nick Saban topped the list -- argue with that at your own risk and UMass' Charley Molnar brought up the bottom.

Where do the Big 12 boys rank?

• No. 5: Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
• No. 7: Gary Patterson, TCU
• No. 10: Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
• No. 11: Bill Snyder, Kansas State
• No. 16: Mack Brown, Texas
• No. 40: Charlie Weis, Kansas
• No. 41: Art Briles, Baylor
• No. 44: Dana Holgorsen, West Virginia
• No. 48: Paul Rhoads, Iowa State
• No. 50: Tommy Tuberville, Texas Tech

That's everybody well above the top half of the line.

From the Sporting News:

• The Big 12 coaches have by far the best average ranking: 27.2, which crushes the second-best SEC’s average ranking of 43.3. Next in line: the Pac-12 (43.8), ACC (45.6) and Big Ten (46.8).
• In our top 25 are five coaches apiece from the SEC and Big 12, four apiece from the Big Ten and Pac-12, and two apiece from the ACC and Mountain West.

What do you think?

For me, Stoops is where he needs to be. I might bump Patterson down a few spots, and Snyder up a few, just outside the top five. If someone can explain to me exactly how Weis should be above Briles, I'm all ears.

Briles has built a legitimate program in a place where it looked impossible. Weis' history as a head coach is taking a place where it should be impossible to lose, and eventually declining it until he was fired. Briles should be near the top 25.

I'd definitely move Paul Rhoads up about 10 spots, too. You could probably move Mack Brown down a couple spots, based on the hiccup in Texas' run lately. It's still to early to get a great feel for where Holgorsen should be.

What would you change?

Sent from one of my four iPads? This guy sounds amazing.

• How do the Big 12 coaches rank by age? You might be surprised, writes Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman.
• According to tax documents, TCU coach Gary Patterson will enter the Big 12 making more than every coach but Mack Brown, Bob Stoops and Mike Gundy, reports Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
• A Texas receiver and a TCU offensive lineman make CBS Sports' Bruce Feldman's annual "Freaks" list.
• One awful fall made Darrin Moore's 2011 season take a turn for the worse. Don Williams of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal tracks the Texas Tech receiver's road back.
• Looking around the Big 12, West Virginia will enter in better condition than most programs, writes Mike Casazza of the Charleston Daily Mail.
• Heisman winner RG3 has decided to try and copyright "RG3," "RGIII" and the catchphrase from his Heisman speech, "Unbelievably Believable." He's also made his own company, Thr3escompany, LLC.
• Matt Tait of the Lawrence Journal-World breaks down the wholesale changes on KU's roster this offseason.
• West Virginia is officially looking into how to monetize its Tier 3 media rights, which the Big 12 allows.
• Oklahoma's welcoming a transfer from Fresno State.
• Will West Virginia AD Oliver Luck leave for Stanford? He's not officially saying no, writes Mitch Vingle of the Charleston Gazette.
• Kansas legislature is honoring K-State coach Bill Snyder today.
• Texas A&M AD Bill Byrne and president R. Bowen Loftin disagree on Byrne's role in A&M's decision to move from the Big 12 to the SEC.
• A panel at Athlon discusses the big question at Oklahoma State: Is a Big 12 title possible with a true freshman quarterback?
• Paul Myerberg of PreSnap Read explains how you should judge Year 1 of the Weis Era at Kansas.
• One of the nation's top receivers is likely to receive an offer from Texas this weekend.

2011 overall record: 11-2
2011 conference record: 7-0
Returning starters: offense: 6; defense: 7; kicker/punter: 0

Top returners
QB Casey Pachall, RB Waymon James, DL Stansly Maponga, RB Ed Wesley, RB Matthew Tucker, WR Josh Boyce, LB Kenny Cain, DB Jason Verrett

Key losses
LB Tank Carder, LB Tanner Brock, S Tekerrein Cuba, S Johnny Fobbs, WR Antoine Hicks, S Devin Johnson

2011 statistical leaders (*returners)

Rushing: Waymon James* (875 yards)
Passing: Casey Pachall* (2,921 yards)
Receiving: Josh Boyce* (998 yards)
Tackles: Kenny Cain*(72)
Sacks: Stansly Maponga* (9)
Interceptions: Tank Carder, Kris Gardner, Greg McCoy (2, none return)

Spring answers

1. Filling a hole at linebacker: TCU was ready to lose Tank Carder, but the loss of Tanner Brock was unexpected. Thus, TCU entered spring with big questions at linebacker. Danny Heiss and Joel Hasley have stepped in to help fortify a position with a lot to prove in 2012. TCU has a feel for who its guys will be, but are those guys good enough?

2. Beware of the TCU receivers: TCU already felt good about Josh Boyce and Skye Dawson after 2011, but sophomore Brandon Carter is bigger and better this spring. LaDarius Brown may join the fold as a big factor, though. It's not impossible for him to become one of the team's best targets. Casey Pachall has to love adding a 6-foot-4, 220-pounder to his targets, and freshman Kolby Listenbee proved he can contribute right away after enrolling early this spring. He'll play.

3. A change in identity: There's no doubt TCU has big questions on defense, especially at linebacker and in the secondary. But offensively? The Horned Frogs have to shore up the offensive line, but its skill-position players are as deep and as talented as any in the Big 12. It's not often that offense has to carry the load for a Gary Patterson team, but it looks like that'll be the case this year.

Fall questions

1. How will TCU handle the jump? Complain about the question all you want, Frogs. It's not that anyone's beating it into the ground, it's that TCU hasn't had a chance to answer it. Fact: The Big 12 will be much more difficult than the Mountain West Conference. TCU brings back a good amount of talent that's built to have success in the Big 12 immediately. Can they do it, though? I'm betting yes, that TCU will flirt with double-digit wins.

2. Will the secondary, especially the safeties, improve? TCU's rise under Gary Patterson has been marked by suffocating defense, but TCU slid to a finish outside the national top 30 in total defense last season after leading the nation in total defense in 2009 and 2010. The loss to Baylor personified those struggles more than any game all season. Patterson wasn't happy with his secondary this spring, either. The bad news: There are lots of Baylors in the Big 12. The good news: Safeties coach Chad Glasgow is back after serving as defensive coordinator at Texas Tech for one season.

3. Can TCU handle gut-punching defensive losses? The Horned Frogs suffered the biggest off-field scandal in the Big 12 this offseason when four players were arrested in a campus drug sting. That's a problem of its own off the field, but on the field, TCU still has to replace 2011 big contributors in Tanner Brock, Devin Johnson and D.J. Yendrey. How much will those losses hurt in the fall?

Thanks for all the questions this week. Here's where you can reach me.

El Guapo in Washington, D.C. wrote: Ubb-a-Dub: You have a crack stats team roughly the size of Rhode Island at the Worldwide Leader. Riddle them this: when was the last time neither OU, nor Texas had a first round draft pick? Surely it's got to at least date back to the Fresh Prince days, yah?

David Ubben: Wrong, sir. And I just looked this one up myself. The last time it happened was allllll the way back in ... 2008. Texas' Limas Sweed and Oklahoma's Curtis Lofton both went in the second round. The next season, Oklahoma played for the national championship. The year after that, Texas played Alabama for the 'ship.

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J. Woody in Fort Worth wrote: "TCU had a rough 2011 season" ... really Ubbs? "Under coach Gary Patterson, the Horned Frogs led the nation in total defense in 2008, 2009 and 2010."I guess 2011 was a down year after three straight #1 seasons ... BTW Ubbs ... TCU ain't ever going to win any popular pole anywhere based on enrollment, grads or popularity. Big schools rule the voter pool.

DU: Now come on, how can any TCU fan deny the defense was a disappointment last season? Sure, inexperience played into it, but TCU fell all the way to 32nd nationally. That's not very good, especially when you consider where TCU ranks among its conference brethren. Boise State was probably more talented than TCU last year, but outside of the Broncos, TCU is head and shoulders above the rest of its league in talent. When you set the bar for defense as high as TCU has these past few years, how is dropping to 32nd anything but a rough year?

We saw that up close when it gave up 50 to Baylor, but the defense gave up 40 to SMU in another loss, but beat Boise State on the smurf turf in its best performance of the year.

I get TCU's not going to win the best defense poll, but you'd be surprised. If you prove you're the rightful winner of one of those deals, people will vote for you, regardless of affiliation.

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Andrew in Colorado wrote: People love to complain about recruit rankings but in the latest mock draft 17 outta 32 first round picks were either 4 or 5 star recruits coming out of high school. 4 and 5 star recruits only make up 5% of the incoming class at college but make up better than 50% of the eventual best of the best. It is always very easy to find a random 2 star kid who did great and find a random 5 star kid who was a bust but on average 4 and 5 star recruits are literally 100 times more likely to succeed.

DU: I'm with you on this one, Andrew. Recruiting rankings aren't the be all, end all. You can offer examples of two stars turned superstars and five stars turned flops all day, but the trends are clear across the board. The better you recruit, the better team you are, unless you have an incompetent coaching staff or didn't evaluate prospects well and have players who don't fit what you do.

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Klocke in Athens, Ga., wrote: David, have you got a preseason prediction for this year's big Cyclone upset?

DU: I mean, it has to be one of the new guys, doesn't it? They're unaware of Paul Rhoads' magic. Last year, he did it twice, too. Here's betting Iowa State takes down an unsuspecting TCU or West Virginia squad to keep their bowl hopes alive. The Cyclones close the season on Thanksgiving weekend in Ames against West Virginia, but travel to TCU for their second conference game on Oct. 6.

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David in Austin wrote: Since the University of Texas has led the Big 12ish in total defense 4 years in a row, why then don't the Longhorns have a nickname for their D yet? In that same time span we saw the resurrection of Nebraska's Blackshirts and A&M's Wrecking "Crew" (Von Miller). I'm the opposite of creative but with Manny Diaz's constant blitzes can we at least call it the Stampede Defense?

DU: Ha, I'd like to see the Longhorns come up with something. We've already coined the backfield the "Texas Taupe Attack" (Brown + Gray), but here's betting the Longhorns just stick with the "Texas defense." The Longhorns have staked a pretty solid claim as the nation's DBU, though. That'll be especially true next year with Quandre Diggs and Carrington Byndom holding down the corner spots and Kenny Vaccaro roaming around generally wreaking havoc. Texas could easily grab three of the four first-team All-Big 12 spots in the secondary.

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Jared Leggett in Morgantown, W.Va., wrote: Just thought you would like to know that it was indeed snowing in Morgantown this morning. Friday it was in the mid-80s. In the fall, it will be like this too. Thank you for your coverage of Morgantown and WVU in the last month or so - much less biased than many reporters have churned out before. Can't wait for Football season.LET'S GO!- Jared Leggett WVU c/o 2015

DU: Please remember this the first time I rip the Mountaineers the first time they do an A&M impression and blow a game they should have easily had. It's never personal. I don't play favorites in this league. I dole out praise when it's deserved. I dole out criticism when it's deserved.

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Sky Froehlich in Norfolk, Neb. wrote: Dear West Virginia,Beat Texas and we'll be best buds forever.Sincerely, Nebraska

DU: I'm not sure 1,000 Texas losses to West Virginia will erase the memory of that one, Sky. An unbelievable, unforgettable day at Memorial Stadium for sure.

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Chuck Tyrell in Bemidji, Minn., wrote: Dave I enjoy your comments. Just a thought about KU, I think they maybe better than most folks think. They have had a big change in structure, conditioning and expectations. Also much better coaching, plus alot of good transfers and juco talent that fits major areas of need. My two cents worth prediction is 6-6 with a bowl game. (7-6) It will be interesting...and suprising.. Chuck

DU: I'm starting to buy in a little bit to the Jayhawks, Chuck. Not as a bowl team at all, but I'm starting to think this could be a 4-5 win team that scares a few people. The big talent upgrade at quarterback will make KU look a lot better right away. Weis surprised me by lauding his receivers this week. They must have not been able to shine with Jordan Webb at QB last year, or have some talented guys I didn't see last year. That surprised me.

We'll see. The Big 12 is much too deep in the top 6-7 teams to allow KU to win consistently at the start of the Weis era, but he's building in the right direction. It's got to be encouraging for the Jayhawks faithful who've endured some tough times the past few years and not much to be encouraged by.

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I like iowa teams in Iowa wrote: Wait Wait Wait Wait Wait.... Iowa doesn't have a good reputation for football culture? Let me take a moment to put on my Iowa University hat, and dispute that. Have you perhaps heard of Hayden Fry? You mention Snyder served under him, why don't you crawl out from under your rock and look up just how MANY coaches were developed under Hayden Fry. Not to mention, with no pro team in state, Iowa college football is the KING sport in the state. Add a heisman winner to that, a one Nile Kinnick, maybe you've heard about him? War hero, died in service, noted for one of the great acceptance speeches of the heisman's history. Football Culture is one of the few things us Iowa folk can hang our hat on. I want an actual blogpost retraction of that comment. Because it's complete BS

DU: Hey, I'm not talking about historical accomplishments or coaching trees. I'm talking purely cultural. Iowa's isn't bad, but do you really believe it compares to some of the great ones around the nation? Are the multimillion-dollar, 10-20,000-seat high school stadiums all over the place? Do people really obsess over the game? I'd say Texas and Oklahoma's football "culture" are markedly better than Iowa's. It's not to say Iowa's is poor, just that it doesn't compare with the best nationally.

So, if you're looking for a retraction, you're out of luck, sir.

A dutch baby and a pepperoni roll in the same week. My taste buds are exhausted.

• TCU is still dealing with the fallout of offseason drug arrests, but coach Gary Patterson is the man to bring the Frogs through it, writes Cedric Golden of the Austin American-Statesman.
• Oklahoma State's Joseph Randle is more important than ever. Gina Mizell of The Oklahoman explains why. OSU's running backs coach also assesses his backs.
• Texas receiver Bryant Jackson broke his foot and requires surgery, but will be ready for fall camp.
• Oklahoma will be changing up its scoring system in Saturday's spring game.
• Stewart Mandel of SI.com takes a look at Oklahoma State's chances to keep winning in the Big 12 with new faces in the offense.
• You won't find Bob Stoops on a motorcycle any time soon.
• Andrew Buie is finally healthy and ready to make an impact at West Virginia, writes Mike Casazza of the Charleston Daily Mail.
• Iowa State's 2012 schedule poster is pretty awesome. Fair warning: not recommended for OSU faithful.
• Joshua Kinder of the Manhattan Mercury looks at K-State's momentum from 2011 and if it will carry into the fall.
• Here are five big recruiting battles that shaped Texas' roster in 2012.
• Bob Hertzel of the Times West Virginian tells you about Karl Joseph, the Mountaineers' new big-hitting freshman safety.
• Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star tells you more about Toben Opurum's career of transition at KU. Meanwhile, will Brandon Bourbon heal up in time to win the starting running back job?

Bobby Petrino is out at Arkansas and the Hogs need a new man.

Colleague Travis Haney broke down a few of the possibilities and two Big 12 coaches cracked the list. You'll need ESPN Insider to see them all, but here's what he had to say about the Big 12 candidates:

Gary Patterson, TCU:

Many have wondered what sort of job it would take to get Patterson to leave TCU, where he makes a very comfortable living (reportedly between $2-3 million) and wins a bunch of football games.

Why not now and why not Arkansas? TCU is embroiled in an uncomfortable drug scandal, which could force Patterson to suspend or lose several players this fall and affect recruiting in the near future. Additionally, while the move to the Big 12 is certainly a boost for the school, it makes winning all the more difficult for Patterson.

My take: Hard for me to see this one. It's not the right time for Patterson to leave. He's the chief reason TCU is in the Big 12 (consider the difficulty of doing that, by the way), but after a decade-plus of hard work, why leave now, right when he has TCU on the doorstep of becoming a true elite team? I don't buy it.

Paul Rhoads, Iowa State:

Like Patterson, Rhoads has a defensive background. Perhaps that doesn't matter a great deal in the long run, but Long would be wise to find someone, if he can, to lead the loaded, offensive-minded 2012 team. If the Razorbacks go the interim route this season and open things up to a full search this winter, then both Patterson and Rhoads could become leading candidates.

My take: I'm not sure Arkansas could sell the Rhoads hire after Petrino. You won't find a coach liked by more people in the profession and by those who cover the sport. Even if Arkansas did want him, I'm not sure it's the right job for Rhoads. He just signed a 10-year, $20-million contract extension. It's not impossible, but it's hard for me to see Arkansas getting so far down on their list that Patterson and Rhoads get offers and choose to leave.

You know, they don't tell you this until after you've paid for medical school, but being a doctor is exactly like the game "Operation."

• Very cool from Texas Tech: The Red Raiders are packing up and heading to the metroplex to aid tornado victims.
• Oklahoma's Landry Jones is shedding weight for his wedding, and it's paying off on the field, too, writes Stewart Mandel of SI.com.
• Mickey Furfari of the West Virginia Register-Herald offers an update on Geno Smith's growth as a quarterback.
• Sporting News breaks down the nation's top quarterbacks in the 2013 class. Baylor and Kansas already have commits from two of them. Texas has the third from the Big 12.
• Former Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden is at The Masters this week, but he'll be watching the NFL draft from home.
• TCU's only experienced linebacker needs some help, and coach Gary Patterson isn't very pleased with the team's all-conference lineman.
• Oklahoma State just took a big financial loss, but the plans for the athletic village remain intact, especially the indoor facility, which will open next winter. Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World explains.
• Its new offensive opponents will play much faster, and West Virginia knows it needs more defensive depth to handle the Big 12 transition.
• Don Williams of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal catches up with the newest Red Raider, Dallas cornerback Will Barrow, who might be the favorite for the MVP of my recruiting All-Name team next winter.
• Former Sooners star Adrian Peterson gave his alma mater a $1 million gift. Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman tells you what it means.
• West Virginia's defense is ahead of where it was this time last year, writes Josh Sickles of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
• Returning punts is no easy task. Here's a look at the reasons why.
• Kansas defensive coordinator Dave Campo says he's treating this spring like a tryout for his defense.

Anyone want to go to JJ's for some after dinner omelets?

• Texas Tech coach Tommy Tuberville filed to dismiss the complaint against him in the case involving him and former business partner John David Stroud and Stroud’s business entities. The argument lists nine reasons why it should be dismissed.
• How did TCU coach Gary Patterson spend his spring break? By boning up on his Big 12 game film, writes Brent Shirley of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
• Neal Brown provided some insight into the rehab for Texas Tech running backs Eric Stephens and DeAndre Washington with Don Williams of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal.
• Matt Crossman of Sporting News profiles Justin Blackmon after a day out on the golf course. Here's Blackmon on his favorite moment at OSU and why he stayed in Stillwater to train for the draft.
• Iowa State center Tom Farniok's first season on the field was an eye-opener. Andrew Logue of the Des Moines Register tells you how.
• Oklahoma's stadium may be getting an upgrade soon.
• Kansas opened spring practice on Tuesday, and Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star has the first look at what to expect from the Jayhawks.
• The change in head man is fairly obvious. Matt Tait of the Lawrence Journal-World tells you how.
• West Virginia's new quarterback is adjusting to the speed of the college game.
• The Fiesta Bowl has elected a new chairman of the board of directors.
• R.J. Young of The Oklahoman has a Q&A with Oklahoma punter Tress Way.

Here's what you missed over the weekend if you were busy paying attention to nothing but basketball the past few days.

Patterson offers Horned Frogs a spring break warning

TCU is without four defensive players this spring after the quartet was arrested in a campus drug sting, but the Horned Frogs are off this week for spring break.

Patterson offered a warning for his players as they left campus for their time off.

From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

"We drug-tested last month and we’ll probably drug-test again when they get back," Patterson said. "People do stupid things like playing beach volleyball and turning their ankle, breaking their leg jumping in three-foot pools."

Patterson said many of his players plan on just going home and taking it easy.

"A lot of our kids can’t afford to go to one of those places," he said, referring to the usual spring break destinations like Padre Island or a beach in Florida. "So they’ll go home, get a chance to see their buddies. They need a break. They’ve been going hard since January. We’ve been pushing them pretty hard."

Constant testing is a good move. Making sure his players -- and the public -- know he's doing it is an even better move. TCU's run a squeaky-clean program under Patterson, but the latest incident was a big black eye.

Rebuilding the trust from those outside the program has to happen in baby steps. This qualifies as a good one.

Jayhawks haul in another high-profile transfer

It's about time we start calling Kansas "Notre Dame South," no?

Tight end Mike Ragone will transfer from Notre Dame to Kansas, according to the Sporting News. He's completed his undergraduate work in South Bend and will be eligible to play for KU in 2012, trying to replace departed tight end Tim Biere.

Ragone's missed much of the past two seasons with knee injuries, but came to Notre Dame as the nation's No. 2 tight end and No. 55 overall prospect in the 2007 class.

He had 11 career catches at Notre Dame. If he hauls in any balls this year, he'll almost certainly do it from a familiar face, former Notre Dame quarterback Dayne Crist, who followed his former coach, Charlie Weis, to KU.

FORT WORTH, Texas — Inside TCU's team meeting room, an all-white triangle awaits some new colors come fall.

Well, one new color if the 2012 season goes TCU's way.

At the bottom sits the small things like keeping teammates accountable. Maybe its a rep in practice or on the bench press. He wants chemistry and a family atmosphere, as well as a good attitude.

Do that, and you've established the bottom rung of Gary Patterson's famed pyramid. The white base earns a full purple coat.

Above it comes a call to prepare in game weeks, a demand for mental toughness and a tradition of physical play that TCU has built its program upon.

Players sign the outside to show a promise of commitment to what the pyramid imposes.

This year, though, things are a little different.

The names of TCU's nonconference opponents — Grambling, SMU and Virginia — sit below a demand for the Horned Frogs to "Leave No Doubt."

Around Fort Worth, Patterson's Pyramid is a well-known commodity. Across the Big 12, though, get to know it well. You might not see it in person, but TCU's opponents will see its results. And in the past, they've been excellent.

If TCU suffers a loss, the purple triangle gets an ugly white block in the middle.

At the top sits a call: Go to a BCS bowl game and win.

TCU accomplished that in the 2010 season. Above that, though, sits one final goal: "#1 National Champions."

TCU strung together a 13-0 season in 2010 after beating Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, but was denied a chance to play for the title by the BCS.

After returning home, Patterson couldn't rob his team of what it had achieved. It did everything it could.

Patterson colored in the top triangle to cheers and framed the all-purple pyramid, hanging it outside his office in the football facility.

In conference play, though, there's a new list of teams — certainly one that's welcomed. It's tougher. TCU's slogan for 2012 — it's hanging above the pyramid in purple print — is "Make It Personal."

Protecting home turf in conference play takes up the next level of the pyramid with a list of each opponent who will suit up at a rebuilt Amon G. Carter Stadium.

Teams that win big do it on the road. Conference road games take up the higher block on the pyramid.

Simple postseason goals — get to a bowl game, win and earn a top-25 postseason ranking — make up the block before the biggest goals.

The time to achieve those will come in September. For now, TCU is working on the building blocks while the pyramid remains white.

"We’ve got a long ways to go to get where we want to get to. The only way we’re going to get there is hard work, keep our nose down, understand we play one game at a time, just like we always have on the pyramid," Patterson said.

"But the top and the bottom have never changed."

TCU's means to reach the top, though?

Thanks to a new league home, they're more than they've ever been for Patterson.

FORT WORTH, Texas -- I'd been to TCU before, covering both baseball and basketball at different times over the past few years.

However, I've never covered or attended a football game at TCU or really gotten a good look at the stadium and facilities. That changed on Tuesday, when I made my first football-specific visit to campus and got a tour from team spokesman Mark Cohen.

So, what was the verdict?

Here's a few thoughts:

• First things first: How does TCU stack up? Quite well. Texas and Oklahoma are the gold standards in the Big 12, and other than the lack of an indoor facility (which is admittedly a pretty big deal), Texas Tech and Oklahoma State are right there with them. Facilities aren't all about the bottom-line attendance number in your stadium. TCU isn't on the level of those four teams, but the Horned Frogs won't enter the Big 12 with any huge needs in football. They're right on with the rest of the league in facilities, if not better in some areas. The Horned Frogs will open a brand-new locker room in late July or August, and though I doubt it'll be on the level of Oklahoma State, Oklahoma or Texas, it's sure to be a solid addition.
• The indoor facility is large and high-quality, just as good as what Oklahoma has, and better than Texas' bubble alongside I-35. The first Big 12 logo on campus actually went up in TCU's indoor facility, which like many others, has the program's bowl games, award winners and All-Americans honored on the walls of the facility.
• Doubt the quality of the indoor facility? Well, it seemed to be OK for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who used it to prepare for (and lose, but never mind that) Super Bowl XLV in February 2011. TCU actually went out of its way to paint the end zones on the outdoor practice fields like the Steelers' home end zones, but then the infamous ice storm happened and coated the campus white. The Steelers never got to see the paint job.
• TCU also has a new 20,000-square-foot weight room that can fit multiple teams. Former players come back often to use it, too. In fact, on Tuesday, former TCU LB Tank Carder was getting a workout in with some former teammates in preparation for the draft.
• The new stadium won't be big -- capacity is set for 45,000 -- but it should be one of the nicest in the league when it's finished. Easily in the top third. The same group that designed Cowboys Stadium designed the $164 million upgrades to Amon G. Carter Stadium, which has 20 rows ringing the lower bowl before giving way to six $15 million suites on the west side that are just 20 rows up. Nobody else in the Big 12 has anything like that. On the east side, the first 20 rows will be all students from goal line to goal line, similar to what you'd see at Cameron Indoor Stadium. That'll pay off, and the stadium is mostly bowled in now, which should make it quite a bit louder. You can see an interactive design mockup of what it'll look like on TCU's website. (Give it a bit to load.)
• This whole Big 12 thing isn't just a one-way deal. The Big 12 needed TCU, and TCU wanted the Big 12 badly, but the league picks up another big positive. I'll let TCU coach Gary Patterson explain, and I'd second everything he said. "In a lot of ways, TCU is the best destination in the Big 12. Austin is pretty good, very crowded on the freeways but you’ve got a chance to come here on a Wednesday if you’re from Iowa State, and go to a Ranger game early in the season, go to the Galleria, play two days of golf, go out to eat, go to the Stockyards, go downtown, then watch the TCU game and watch the Cowboys on Sunday. Then people want to come back. It’s a slam dunk for Fort Worth and TCU."
• Patterson also added that like the Super Bowl, it's up to Fort Worth to hold up its end of the bargain for incoming Big 12 fans. "We’ve got to do our part on and off the field as a university and as a city, but just like preparing for the Super Bowl, we should be preparing for the Big 12. And I think we are. The city is preparing. TCU is preparing and my job is to prepare the football team, and that’s what we’re trying to do right now."
• TCU had recruits in town this week, and as has become a recent custom, all the TVs in the facility were playing the 2011 Rose Bowl on repeat, when TCU upset Wisconsin. Nice touch, Frogs.
• In the wake of the Declan Sullivan tragedy at Notre Dame, TCU installed four permanent practice video towers on its practice fields. There's a lot of interest in this around the Big 12, but not everybody's gotten around to installing them.
• Look for TCU to unveil some new flashy uniforms from Nike in the coming months. The company has big plans for the Frogs, who already had a special helmet for the Rose Bowl and have worn Pro Combat unis in the past.

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Early in Tuesday's practice under an overcast sky, a fitting anthem blared.

"You know where you are?" screeched Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose. "You're in the jungle, baby."

Nevermind that the song's next line prophesied death for the newcomer. TCU is officially preparing to enter the Big 12.

Welcome to the jungle, indeed. Hope you brought a machete.

Preparations start now in the spring for Gary Patterson's Horned Frogs. As TCU transitions into an AQ conference, it must tackle the No. 1 criticism of any non-AQ team: depth.

"Twos and threes win championships. Everybody loses ones," Patterson said. "How do your twos and threes play?"

He's already undergoing his third conference move as he prepares for his 13th season as TCU head coach. The program moved from the WAC to Conference USA after Patterson's first season and from C-USA to the Mountain West in 2005.

Patterson already has every Big 12 game from 2011 for viewing on his home laptop.

"Instead of watching 'CSI: Miami,' I’m watching Oklahoma State," Patterson said. "That’s what you have to do. There’s a lot of preparation. It’s not like we’ve been playing these teams 7-8 years and you know what they do. You’ve got to start preparing right now."

The same is true on the recruiting trail, where TCU cracked the national top 25 with its latest class. The Horned Frogs could see those dividends multiply with its new home in one of college football's best conferences, where former Southwest Conference rivals Baylor, Texas Tech and Texas reside along with new foes Oklahoma and Oklahoma State from the former Big 8.

"We’ve always recruited to play in the Big 12, because we knew if we could recruit to play in the Big 12, we could have a chance to win in the Mountain West," Patterson said. "So, the only big difference is now we’re recruiting kids and people can’t say, 'Well, you’re not going to go to TCU because you’re not in the Big 12.' Well, now we are in the Big 12."

TCU looks ready to grow, and if prospects in the Metroplex don't want to come along? Well ...

"We're like the girl next door. If they're not careful in the Metroplex, pretty soon they are going to go three hours down the road," Patterson said. "They are going to grow up and we are going to grow up and be beautiful and they are going to wish they would have went out with us because somebody else is taking them to the prom."

Yeah, but it's not all boutonnieres and roses (or Rose Bowls). Those recruiting inroads come with a price: a schedule that's likely to feature five preseason top-20 teams.

TCU can have its new stadium, undergoing a $164 million upgrade, including six $15 million suites 20 rows from the field (it will seat 45,000 when it's finished before the 2012 season). It can have its new locker room with pristine wood lining each player's space along with a cushy seat to park after long practices.

That doesn't change the obvious truth.

"All that doesn’t make any difference if you don’t win," Patterson said. "So my goal is to grow up the best football team I can and win.

"That’s what we’re doing right now."

We'll find out in the fall if Patterson is succeeding, but he's got the pieces. His Horned Frogs return an all-conference quarterback in Casey Pachall and his top three targets, along with an outlandish three 700-yard rushers from last year's team.

The big job this spring is patching together a defense that took a step back in 2011. It fell on its face when three starters were arrested in a campus drug sting and have been consequently "separated" from the team until the legal process plays out.

"The thing I like best about this team is they competed hard but they still like each other," Patterson said. "But for two hours, you’ve gotta hate each other. You’ve gotta learn."

His team is learning, but the fall tests will be much more difficult.

Will TCU pass or fail?

The discussion comes up every year, especially in years like 2008, 2009 and 2011 when the Big 12 mounts a serious threat at toppling the SEC's run of national title wins.

So what separates the two leagues? TCU coach Gary Patterson was asked the question this weekend. He's a Big 12 newcomer, and his answer confirms what you've probably heard before, but from one more source.

"There are a lot of good players every where else. If you look at the NFL per capita, Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi they put out more NFL players than anywhere else in the country," Patterson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "It's the body types in the regions of the United States that make a difference, too. You are going to find the skill players, but what we don't have as much in this state is the size of bodies of offensive and defensive linemen that the southeast part of the United States has. It's the gene pool."

I agree with Patterson. In the high-stakes games we've seen in the past few years, beefy linemen like Nick Fairley at Auburn and Marcell Dareus at Alabama have proved too much for spread offenses like Oregon and Texas.

But for those across the Big 12, Patterson's latter comments should be cause for concern.

Texas brought Bo Davis from Alabama to coach the team's defensive tackles and Stacy Searels to coach the offensive line. This year, both Davis and Searels will have junior-college transfers to coach.

Traditionally, the more mature-bodied talents show up on campus ready to contribute and have been staples of championship SEC defenses.

Texas' Brandon Moore has been described by teammates as "unstoppable" this offseason. Apparently, word has gotten out.

"Alabama is playing with 350-pound guys. Like the guy who just transferred to Texas; he's 6-7, 340. They ain't had 6-7, 340 guy forever that can run like he does," Patterson said. "(The state of Texas) has skill players. It doesn't matter whether it's 1-A or 5-A, they can all run. I'm not knocking what we do here at all. It's just a different body type."

Patterson's right, but could Texas be the first step in a changing game? Moore and offensive lineman Donald Hawkins are just the first.

Will they be the last? If either has a big impact, you better believe there's no way others won't follow suit, and we could see a whole lot of Big 12 teams gunning for those highly recruited jucos in the South.