Friday morning, the TCU football team left Fort Worth, headed to California for Monday’s College Football National Championship game against the Georgia Bulldogs.
At 9:45 a.m. fans lined the sidewalks on the north side of campus and cheered on the players as they boarded buses headed to the airport.
The Fort Worth Fire Department used two engines to hold up a massive TCU flag on West Cantey Street near Rogers Avenue. As they left, the buses drove under the flag.
"It's the first time it's happened in 84 years," said John Woods, who's attending the game.
David Hawthorne, a former TCU player who returned to Fort Worth after retiring from the NFL, is a season ticket holder.
"It just finally feels good, you know, to walk around campus or to walk around town and say, 'man they finally gave us the respect that we needed,'" said Hawthorne.
His 'Not Just Q" food truck is an official TCU vendor. He says his staff and family are all headed to Hollywood for the game.
"We took from today to Tuesday off," said Hawthorne. "This is a national holiday for my company."
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In downtown Fort Worth, the Rotary Club of Fort Worth organized a group photo in support of TCU.
Kirk Driver, the president-elect of the Rotary Club of Fort Worth, said the national exposure of TCU’s football program will be an economic benefit for both the school and the community.
“People in other states hearing about it, ‘well, let’s look at this little school out of Fort Worth, Texas.’ That, in itself, will drive national attention, national eyes on the city of Fort Worth,” he said.
Fast Signs in Fort Worth has seen an increase in business with demand for TCU signs being non-stop lately, according to Candace Boykin. She says families, fans, and businesses have been stopping by to pick up signs for display.
“Every day there are lines. We are having lines. We have phone calls coming in. We have them premade, ready to walk in and get them. We just keep them stocked,” she said.
Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. Monday -- the game is being broadcast on ESPN and will be available to stream for free.
NBC 5's Lili Zheng and Meredith Yeomans contributed to this report.
