Head coaches Sonny Dykes of SMU and Gary Patterson of TCU compliment each others programs ahead of Saturday’s rivalry game in Fort Worth.
After it's 2-0 start, TCU is back in the Top 25 and SMU may not be far behind. The 3-0 Mustangs received one vote in the latest coaches poll.
"I don't know if Gary (Patterson) votes in the deal or not. It wouldn't surprise me if it was him," SMU head coach Sonny Dykes said. "You know how it goes, a little showmanship, you know how that stuff goes."
There's nothing wrong with a little showmanship in a rivalry that dates back to 1915.
"It's a rivalry," TCU cornerback Jeff Gladney said. "It's always heated but, we're just going to play our game and do what we do."
"Of course it's going to bring more energy, but you know we really can't get caught up in that. It's still a game," SMU safety Patrick Nelson said.
But it's actually so much more than a game with the "Iron Skillet" going to the winner. TCU has held on to the unique trophy for seven years straight.
"Ponies and Frogs get together and played against each other through the years," TCU head coach Gary Patterson said. "I think that's one of the coolest things about us keep playing is you still have that connection."
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The skillet is somewhere in the athletic facility at TCU, but don't look for it in the cafeteria.
"We put it where it can be seen," Patterson said. "I don't use it. I don't have time to cook."
Unless he's trying to cook up up a game plan he hopes will be the right recipe against a hungry SMU squad.
"It's a measuring stick for us to see how far we've come in a year and how much we've improved and it gives us some credibility," Dykes said.
