FORT WORTH, Texas -- The ongoing construction on the athletic facilities at TCU serves as a perfect reminder for what the football program is going through.
The Frogs are trying to build a Big 12 conference winner and Wednesday's National Signing Day was another step in that process.
TCU signed 22 players Wednesday, including one four-star recruit according to Scout.com in Arlington Martin running back Kyle Hicks. While the class isn't one of the national's best according rankings, it's a sign TCU is headed in the right direction and that the Big 12 is helping.
"It made a difference this year, but I think you're going to see it even more with the facilities," TCU head coach Gary Patterson said. "A kid comes over during junior days and most of the facilities were not done. They see progress. They don't see the end result. We're seeing this in junior recruiting that interest. We've made a living on two-star and three star guys."
TCU's class ranks 47th nationally according to Scout.com, but it fills needs and contains a marquee player in Hicks. He had a total of 1,571 yards and 28 touchdowns in nine games for Martin. The 5-10, 190-pound Hicks had originally committed to Texas but ended up staying closer to home and joined a high school teammate in freshman All-America Devonte Fields.
Fields helped recruit Hicks but Patterson doesn't think that was the deciding factor.
"Kyle always liked us," Patterson said. "He was one of those guys that was always real close to TCU. He just felt like it was the better place. Kyle did it for all the right reasons. He's a great kid. I think he just wanted to stay close to home, stay close to mom. Having Devonte Fields here didn't hurt."
Patterson referred the duo signed by TCU in Hicks and Alief Taylor running back Trevorris Johnson as Thunder and Lightning, with the 5-11, 205-pound Johnson handling the role of Thunder. Johnson ran for more than 2,100 yards and 19 touchdowns last year.
Patterson said to win in the Big 12, teams have to be able to recruit offensive and defensive linemen. The Frogs signed four offensive linemen Wednesday and two on the defensive side. Offensive lineman Lloyd Tunstill (6-4, 305) played two years of junior college ball and defensive lineman Mike Tuaua (6-3, 260) comes to the Frogs after playing one year of JUCO football in California.
The Frogs also added a quarterback in Temple's Zach Allen, who was the District 8-5A most valuable player. Allen will join a jumbled quarterback field that includes Casey Pachall, who is back with the team, and Trevone Boykin, who replaced Pachall after he was suspended last year.
TCU also got a late signee in Gainesville athlete Denzel Johnson. The 6-2, 205-pound Johnson played quarterback in high school but will work with the safeties at TCU.
While the players signed by the Frogs have impressive high school numbers, that means little once they hit the campus in Fort Worth.
"My biggest thing is understanding who can play," Patterson said. "It's been that way the last 16 years so I'm not going to change much. I call them paper tigers because the first thing I tell them when they come in here in the summertime is the paragraph is clean. It doesn't matter how many touchdowns you scored, how many tackles you made. It really comes down to what are you going to do to make yourself a better player."
