Winder finds new home with the Horned Frogs
Dick Winder brings experience, a business-like approach and possibly even stability.
By Brandon Ortiz
Editor in Chief

Dick Winder knows what it is like to coach at a school with a large football program.

He’s been the offensive coordinator at Texas Tech, and most recently at Oklahoma, a school that plays before home crowds of more than 70,000.

TCU is lucky to draw 40,000 but Winder, 60, is happy to be here.

“The big thing was I wanted to get out of the political part of it,” said Winder, who was fired by Oklahoma in 1997. “I was little bit tired of that. I thought about retiring, but I don’t have anything to do.”

Winder is TCU’s fourth quarterback coach in as many years. He is the most experienced coach on the team, but for the last two years he has sought refuge from the politics of large conference schools.

Winder coached the quarterbacks at Tarleton State for two years before he replaced Dan Lounsbury in February. Lounsbury left TCU to be the offensive coordinator at Tulsa.

In Stephenville, Winder worked under head coach Todd Whitten, who got his first coaching job from Winder at Texas Tech. For Winder, it was an opportunity to get out of the bright lights of Lubbock and Norman.

“I laid back a few years at Tarleton and stayed out of the big picture,” Winder said. “I decided if I am going to coach college football again, I am going to be in a place where I want to be.”

In less hostile surroundings, Winder helped Steve Kelly develop into one of the best quarterbacks in Division II football. Kelly passed for 3,411 yards and 27 touchdowns to lead Tarleton to a conference championship. In doing so, Kelly was named the offensive player of the year for Division II.

Winder not only helped Kelly on the field by quickening his release, he also provided moral support when his daughter was sick.

“He is a class act,” Kelly said of Winder. “There is no way you can’t like this guy. He’s funny, and he knows his stuff.”

Some of TCU’s quarterbacks are impressed by Winder, too.

Redshirt freshman Tye Gunn described Winder as a hard-nosed coach with big lungs.

“He’s a yeller,” Gunn said. “I like him a lot. He compliments you if you’re doing good, but if you are doing bad, he’ll let you know.”