The Buddie System - April 2026 Update
4/15/2026 6:29:00 PM | General
TCU Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mike Buddie provides the latest update on all things Horned Frogs
Frog Fans,
Welcome back to a mid-spring edition of The Buddie System. It seems like just yesterday we were kicking off the 2025-26 year, and here we are through March Madness, midway through spring football, with championship events for spring sports just around the corner.
Since the last update, we've unveiled our new Clover Frog mark for our 2026 football opener in Dublin, and the TCU Bookstore has seen tremendous response to that both in-store and online. In fact, if you haven't been over to see their new athletic displays, I would encourage you to pop in next time you're on campus.
Standalone tickets for our 2026 opener in Dublin are also now on sale. Hope to see you in Ireland with us this fall.
March was Madness
When they coined the phrase March Madness, I'm sure they weren't talking – or worried – about the schedules of athletics directors when both teams are playing in their respective NCAA tournaments, but it certainly felt that way for me and Traci!
It was a true full circle moment for us as I spent five years as the athletics director at Furman in Greenville, S.C., where our men began their tournament. While there, our Furman staff led the bid process to bring the NCAA Tournament back to Greenville, so seeing it finally happen was especially rewarding. We were fortunate to be able to catch all four games and enjoy two incredible crowds here in Schollmaier Arena.
We will have more to share soon, but we saw very positive trends in attendance and revenue for both teams this season. Season ticket deposits are already underway, and your support makes a direct impact in our ability to retain our talented rosters and recruit future Horned Frogs. As we have done this offseason for football, we are evaluating all aspects of the in-venue experience at basketball and looking at every way to enhance the experience.
Success on the Hardwood
Sticking with the positive trajectory of basketball, we should recognize the work Jamie Dixon and Mark Campbell did this season with their respective programs.
Men's basketball won 11 Big 12 games, the most in conference play in 28 years, defeated three top-10 teams, and secured its fourth NCAA Tournament bid in the past five seasons. It was the 12th all-time trip to the Big Dance for our men. Coach Dixon, either as a player or a coach, has been a part of six of those trips.
On the women's side, Coach Campbell continues to build elite programs, and the floor has clearly been raised. Another visit to the Elite Eight, a final ranking of No. 6, and an incredibly bright future for the Horned Frogs. The environment in Schollmaier Arena to advance to the Sweet 16 over Washington, on a Sunday at 9 p.m., rivaled any basketball atmosphere I've been a part of, and that's a testament to the efforts of Mark, his staff, our student-athletes, and certainly you, the fans.
This week, Olivia Miles became the highest-drafted basketball player in TCU history when she was selected No. 2 overall by the Minnesota Lynx, and Marta Suarez went to the Golden State Valkyries with the first pick of the second round, No. 16 (by way of trade). TCU Women's Basketball capped the night off with another pick in the third round as Taylor Bigby heard her name called and will head to the Connecticut Sun.
It is clear we have the right leadership at the top of both programs. With your continued support to "Pack the Scholl" in the form of season tickets, Frog Club participation, and NIL partnership, we have made significant year-over-year investments in both rosters to be highly competitive nationally and within the Big 12 next season. We will be aggressive and competitive in building championship-level rosters in both programs.
For Frog Fans with businesses who want to engage our programs with NIL opportunities, we are always actively pursuing new partnerships through our LEAP Agency. They can be reached directly via e-mail at NIL@TCU.edu.
New Additions to Amon G. Carter Stadium
As I've hinted in previous editions of this newsletter, we have two new major projects happening inside Amon G. Carter Stadium this summer in order to elevate the fan experience this fall. First, our lighting system will be completely overhauled with brand new, full-spectrum LED lights. A similar installation in Schollmaier Arena before this season was very well-received. With a full summer to prepare and plan, I'm excited to see a rocking environment against Grambling State on Sept. 12.
The second project is the videoboard in the south endzone. As long-time Frog fans know, that board was originally positioned at the north end of the stadium as our main videoboard and has been a mainstay. However, thanks to our extended partnership with Learfield, we will be overhauling that structure with another brand new, state-of-the-art LED board to match the clarity and quality of the board in the north endzone. The structure will remain, but the screen will now stretch edge-to-edge rather than be framed within it, and the old scoreboard will be fully integrated.
We expect to see materials and installations begin in May, with completion of the projects in late July or early August, in order to give our team time to troubleshoot and test the new applications.
We will also be installing blinds in the suites atop the Legends Club, a welcome addition for those fans during our early to late afternoon kick-offs.
In case you missed it: two schedule updates for this fall have also been announced by the Big 12. Our road trips to Arizona and Texas Tech have been moved to Friday, Nov. 6, and Thursday, Nov. 26 (Thanksgiving Day), respectively, by the league.
Olympic Sports Continue to Thrive
If you have had a chance to walk through the Justin Hall of Fame inside Schollmaier Arena, you'll notice a particular trophy case filled to the brim with NCAA trophies. We owe a significant portion of those trophies to Karen Monez and our rifle program who added yet another trophy to the case last month as they finished as the national runner-up in the NCAA Championships.
At the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, TCU was represented by sprinter Indya Mayberry and heptathlete Yannick Knoblock. Both Indya and Yannick came away with All-American honors.
In the pool, swimmer Nina Vadovicova became the first TCU female swimmer to compete at the NCAA Championships since 2012, and in equestrian, the Frogs advanced to the Big 12 Championships finals and qualified for the NCEA Championships – their national championships – for the 12th consecutive season.
Finally, out on the purple courts, David Roditi continues to produce results as our men's tennis team is currently ranked No. 3 nationally. On the women's side, Lee Taylor Walker's squad is ranked No. 23 nationally and finished the regular season in third, their best Big 12 finish in a decade. Both teams head to Orlando this week with eyes on a championship trophy.
Overall, we head into the spring championship season ranked No. 32 nationally in the Learfield Director's Cup Standings, which would be our highest finish in program history.
Feasibility Studies Launching
In previous updates, I have mentioned that we would be launching feasibility studies to understand the costs associated with large-scale construction projects. We've now officially started that process on two specific projects. Project one, we'll call "Lot 7," as the impacts of this project would have sweeping effects throughout the department.
The Lot 7 project, as the title implies, would create additional indoor practice space in the parking lot (Lot 7) directly adjacent to the Sam Baugh Indoor Practice Facility. As our department continues to grow and our teams find greater success, the need for additional courts and meeting space for basketball and volleyball to practice is necessary. Those moves would create downstream benefits across the entire department.
The second (and often referenced in this newsletter) project is at Charlie and Marie Lupton Stadium. We have a pressing need to enhance Lupton Stadium with new seating options, upgraded concourses, and premium spaces. An entirely new stadium is not within the scope of the study and is not a realistic possibility.
These feasibility studies are only the first step of many to best inform our leadership on the impacts of those projects, so no need to get your shovels and hard hats ready just yet.
Wrapping Up
The future is incredibly bright here at TCU. Point blank.
We are aggressively pursuing all avenues to enhance our above-the-cap NIL activity, which is significant, while meeting the maximum revenue-sharing allotment allowed by the NCAA. Alongside that activity, we are talking about facility enhancements, pursuing the possibilities of new construction, and winning championships, all while retaining and graduating our student-athletes at incredibly high rates. In fact, over the past two seasons, no one in the Big 12 has won more combined games in football, volleyball, men's basketball, and women's basketball than TCU, and only four Power 4 programs nationally have won more.
And finally, we will see our TCU spring graduates go through commencement before the next edition of this newsletter. Congratulations to our soon-to-be TCU graduates, and I look forward to the All-University Commencement here in Carter Stadium on Friday, May 8 at 8:30 p.m.
It's a great time to be a Horned Frog!
-- MB
