TCU's California foothold: A look at the largest out-of-state student population

There’s no denying TCU has a California connection.

For over a decade the Golden State has been second only to Texas when it comes to campus representation.

TCU has more Californians than any college — public or private — in Texas.

Nationally, only three other private institutions outside of California have more Californians, said TCU Director of Admission Heath Einstein.

The influx started in 2011, the same year that TCU won the Rose Bowl.

Known on campus as “the Rose Bowl effect," the nationally televised game boosted TCU's enrollment and its profile. On Monday, the Frogs return to California as the first Texas team to compete in the College Football Playoff National Championship.

The Rose Bowl “put TCU in front of a lot of people who hadn’t heard of it before, and this year we’ve already started experiencing that,” Chancellor Victor Boschini said during October’s student town hall. “I can tell you this just by the number of requests I’ve gotten in my office.”

Longtime play-by-play announcer Brian Estridge remembers when the Frogs struggled to fill the stands. He said when he joined TCU in 1998, the goal was to sell at least 1,200 tickets.

“Nowadays with 30,000 to 35,000 tickets selling each week that would be easy,” Estridge said.

“Now you can go to an airport and people will shout ‘Go Frogs!’ or at least recognize the logo.”

"The Place to Go"

TCU players celebrate their Rose Bowl win in Pasadena, California. TCU defeated Wisconsin 21-19. (Photo AP News)

“This is for the little guys everywhere,”
Brent Musburger, after TCU defeated Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl.

“What a win for a small school in Fort Worth, Texas," then-ESPN announcer Brent Musburger told viewers as the Frogs celebrated the 21-19 win over the University of Wisconsin. “If you’re looking for a school to go to with a good football team that’s the place to go.”

In the fall of 2010, 14,079 hopefuls applied to be Frogs — just over half were accepted, according to TCU Institutional Research.

The next year 19,168 — a 36% increase — students applied. Californians were well represented in the pile.

Once acceptance letters went out TCU’s California population rose 67% from 363 to 535 students.

Since then, that number has more than doubled. This fall, 1,608 Californians were enrolled.

Dusty Baker, a sports broadcaster in San Luis Obispo, California, was in the early wave.

“I was one of the people that fell in love immediately once TCU won the Rose Bowl,” said Baker, who graduated in 2017.

TCU head coach Gary Patterson celebrates with linebacker Tank Carder, defensive MVP, after winning the Rose Bowl NCAA college football game over Wisconsin, Saturday, Jan. 1, 2011, in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo AP Photo / Mark J. Terrill)

Out-of-state student populations

(students per year from each state)

Caroline Klapp, class of '16, and Dusty Baker, class of '17, filming on Sept. 15, 2016. Baker was one of the original cast members of TCU 360's sports broadcast show 'Unscripted'. (Photo submitted by Dusty Baker)

Announcing crew for the 2011 Rose Bowl. (Photo Submitted by Brian Estridge)

“I fell in love with the storyline, I fell in love with what the school had to offer, and to me, it had everything I could ask for.”
Dusty Baker ('17)

The influx meant students like Baker didn’t feel isolated in Texas.

“When I got on campus there was a ton, and I mean a ton of Californians,” Baker said. “It was almost like walking into home again.”

A Strategic Choice

The Mary Wright Admission Center. ( Photo Heesoo Yang)

Once it was clear that TCU was attractive to California students, the office of admission developed a recruitment plan, said Einstein.

“We made a strategic choice to recruit more heavily in California by hiring two regionally based admission officers in California,” he said. “By having a year-round presence in high schools, at college fairs, and active in the college counseling community, TCU has become a brand name on the West Coast.”

Einstein said TCU offers more than football, including “an incredibly friendly campus and mild Texas winter.

"Beyond that, we provide students with an easily accessible ‘away’ experience," Einstein said. "It’s a short plane ride to a region serviced by two airports.”

“California is a reliable market that is important as we construct a class each year.”
Director of Admission Heath Einstein

Luke Morand, a freelance news writer in Foothill Ranch, California, said he has fond memories of flying home for holiday breaks and catching up with friends while waiting at the gate.

“I had some people I knew from high school and some people I had in the classes, but we would all always be at the same gate," Morand said. "It was always nice to have someone to look forward to when going to see your family.”

Program coordinator for NBC Sports Bay Area and California Alexa Hines, class of ‘20, said that TCU was popular at her high school, Santa Margarita Catholic, in Orange County.

“A lot of older kids went to TCU," Hines said. "I had a close friend go there, so I figured they had what I was looking for.”

“My mom says as soon as I got on campus I turned around and said, ‘This is it!’ and [my parents] looked at me and said, ‘Really Texas?’ ”
Alexa Hines ('20)

In July 2016, a group of first year students from Orange County went to a going away party hosted by the students' parents. (Courtesy of Alexa Hines)
In July 2016, a group of first year students from Orange County went to a going away party hosted by the students' parents. (Courtesy of Alexa Hines)

Hines returned to California after graduation. She said there's still a strong TCU fanbase in her area.

“We have a TCU alumni group in Orange County, so when I was living at home I would go to the watch parties and they were packed,” she said. “I ended up being a liaison because I had just graduated so all these freshmen parents were asking me questions, so that’s what a fun part is about being from a densely populated place at TCU.”

The TCU difference

TCU mascot Superfrog flies a team flag during the pregame of an NCAA college game against SMU on Saturday, Sept. 24.

Current California students said the best part of TCU is the people.

Tessa Payne, a sophomore biology major from Half Moon Bay, said everyone in her first class was from California and the sand volleyball courts reminded her of home. She added, "people were just a lot nicer here. I kind of have noticed that about Texas."

Sophomore criminal justice major Abby Sansone, of Orange County, transferred from a small liberal arts college in San Diego.

“I had TCU on my radar for many years but wasn’t able to apply freshman year," she said. "But now being here I feel more at home in Texas, even if I’ve lived in California my whole life.”

Students said the DFW jobs market also makes TCU so appealing as well.

Boschini said the student experience is key.

“I hope the reason we have a lot of good California kids is that they have a good experience here,” said Boschini. “Then they go home, they tell their friends and high school counselor they had a good experience. So then that just brings more kids here.”