For the Horned Frogs, the momentum building to their first appearance in a Bowl Championship Series bowl game was years in the making. Now that head coach Gary Patterson and the athletes behind all the national attention given to TCU during the past couple months are on their way to a BCS bowl, the team has given students something to be proud of.

In return for everything the Frogs have done, the fans, alumni and students should support them regardless of what their next season may bring. Even this season the team had some problems filling Amon Carter Stadium. One would hope that the last two home games this season, which set new attendance records, are a sign of things to come.

Patterson has made it a point to ensure that the team shares its victories with fans and its hometown of Fort Worth, considering all the business revenue that’s going into TCU because of merchandise sales and local businesses advertising at the games.

All the attention may be for TCU’s football program, which has been transformed during Patterson’s run as head coach, but the university’s profile as a whole has also been raised. This means TCU looks more attractive to potential students as well as football recruits.

Regardless of which BCS bowl game the team is invited to and what place it ranks in the polls at the end of the year, the team is still No. 1 in every Frog fan’s heart.

Multimedia editor Chance Welch for the editorial board.