After an off season of hype surrounding North Carolina's ability to hire Bill Belichick to his first college head coaching job after a run with the New England Patriots in the NFL that was nothing short of legendary, TCU and the Horned Frogs showed fans of college football they were criminally overlooked following their 48-14 drubbing of the Tar Heels.
Not only had UNC never given up that many points in a home opener, the 48-points were the most points Bill Belichick had ever given up as a head coach.
At the conclusion of the game, Sonny Dykes shared that his guys felt the disrespect heading into the matchup, as 99% of the chatter about the matchup was aimed at Belichick and UNC.
Coming off a nine-win season in 2024, the Horned Frogs certainly deserved a bigger slice of the national conversation heading into that week one matchup, and after seeing what they did with their new facility, it's astonishing they didn't get more attention.
Utilizing the same technology that brings snow to the Swiss Alps when the snow there is sparse, TCU imported some talent from Italy to add college football's first "snow room" to the $50 million Simpson Family Restoration Center.
With a sauna for athletes as well, the combination of the heat and cold made for a perfect situation to add glass door etchings that read "FIGHT 'EM TIL HELL FREEZES OVER" on the sauna, with "THEN FIGHT 'EM ON THE ICE" above a Nike emblem on the snow room.
The cave-inspired snow room has a standing, consistent temperature of 12 degrees Farenheit that can be used for both recover, develop mental toughness in the elements, and also as a method to help players assimilate to late season games on the road places like West Virginia and BYU later this season.
The program points to the unique addition to the facility being aimed at providing "recovery innovation that accelerates healing, reduces inflammation and gives all TCU athletes a competitive edge unmatched in college sports."
The new facility also includes areas for red light therapy, purple hydotherapy pools and some hydro massage and relaxation pods, as well as a host of other unique recovery tools.
Speaking about the health and well-being of players being part of the culture of TCU football, Dykes shared, "With the addition of the Simpson Family Restoration Center, we are able to provide our team with a world-class facility to restore their bodies and minds off the field so they can be at their best on the field."
TCU is back in action this weekend when they welcome FCS Abilene Christian to Fort Worth with kickoff set for 8pm EST.