SAN ANTONIO -- If there were ever an offseason to make the jump, you’d think this was it. But you might not think like Doug Meacham and Sonny Cumbie do.
North Texas and Texas State were looking for head coaches. UTSA needs one now, too. Texas and Texas A&M were paying top dollar for new offensive coordinators. This was a fine time for either to cash in on their success together at TCU and make a move.
Plus, with Trevone Boykin, Josh Doctson, Aaron Green and nearly the entire offensive line out the door, this offseason might present an opportune moment to consider a new challenge. They were brought in to repair the Horned Frogs’ offense two years ago as co-offensive coordinators, and that unit is all fixed up now.
The coaching carousel silly season certainly isn’t over, but one month in, Meacham and Cumbie have made it clear they’re content to stay put.
Meacham turned down Texas State -- James Madison’s Everett Withers got the job Wednesday night -- and was a finalist for North Texas before withdrawing from the search. He rejected Texas A&M, too. So why is he sticking with Gary Patterson and the Frogs?
“I’m from Metroplex. I grew up in Arlington. Did Punt, Pass & Kick in the Carter when I was a kid,” Meacham said. “I’ve had a unique opportunity. I coached at my alma mater, Oklahoma State. Now I have a chance to come and coach in my hometown. I don’t know many people that have had that opportunity.”
All those hometown roots and ties have made Meacham nice and comfortable in Fort Worth over the past two seasons.
“You drive around the city, a lot of things remind you of when you were young. A lot of people that you went to high school with, family and everything,” he said. “Fort Worth is a great town. It is a great city. A lot of great people, a lot of true Horned Frogs fans. I can’t say enough about it.
“It’s the perfect mixture of size, but it’s not too big. It’s a phenomenal city. TCU is a phenomenal school. Very fortunate to be able to work there.”
Cumbie went through a highly publicized courtship with Texas in December. Charlie Strong had made Cumbie his No. 1 target before the season even ended, and the offer -- reportedly $1 million a year with full control of an offense and play-calling duties -- had to be a little enticing.
For Cumbie, family considerations came first.
“There’s a lot of factors that go into decisions to be made,” he said. “Quality of life. Your family. My wife is due to have a baby boy in February, our second son. I think from a family standpoint, it would have been difficult to ask her to leave Fort Worth and move to another place.”
But it wasn’t just the timing. And Cumbie is happy to elaborate on why he felt no move was the best move.
“Professionally, from a standpoint of quality of life and comfort, Fort Worth and the people of TCU have been unbelievable to our family," he said. "They’ve opened their arms to us, loved us really well. The people at TCU have made it really clear they want us there.
“It had so much more to do with TCU with our decision to stay than it had to do with anything else. I was talking to our guys the other night. We won 12 games last year, [won] the Big 12. This year we won 10 with a chance to win 11. Why not TCU? I believe in Coach Patterson, the foundation of things he’s done here. I believe in our kids. Dallas-Fort Worth, what a great place to recruit to. Our facilities are second to none. They’re not as big, but just as nice.
“Coach Patterson has talked a lot about people make the plays. TCU, the people that are there, they love their players, they love their team. It was an exciting time to think about that. But whenever we got on our way back home from going down there, we knew what we needed to do, wanted to do, are really excited and at peace with the decision.”
Together, Meacham and Cumbie are 23-3 since arriving at TCU with an offense that averages 44.3 points per game (No. 4 in FBS during that span) and ranks No. 2 in total offense and No. 5 in yards per play.
The right jobs will present themselves in due time, but for now, they’re happy to stick together and keep this thing rolling.