The TCU Horned Frogs are less than 10 days from kicking off the 2025 football season with a nonconference road matchup against the North Carolina Tar Heels and new head coach Bill Belichick. As we count down the days until kickoff, we’ll highlight a former (or current) Horned Frog whose jersey number represents the number of days left until the opener.
8 – Davey O’Brien (Quarterback – 1935-38)
O’Brien became TCU’s starting quarterback in 1937 and was named an All-SWC honoree over both the 1937 and 1938 seasons. O’Brien, whose No. 8 was retired by TCU in 1939, is one of only three football players in school history to have their numbers retired (LaDainian Tomlinson and Sammy Baugh are the others). O’Brien started his career as Baugh’s backup, but ascended to the starting job in 1937 and threw for 1,457 yards during the 1938 season, when he won the Heisman Trophy and guided TCU to an 11-0 record and the title of national champions. The only Heisman Trophy winner in TCU history, O’Brien threw only four interceptions over 194 pass attempts in 1938, when the Horned Frogs defeated Carnegie Tech 15-7 to win the 1939 Sugar Bowl.
O’Brien compiled 2,404 passing yards and 24 touchdowns as a collegiate player. O’Brien, who was named a unanimous All-American and the winner of the Maxwell Trophy in 1938, was taken by the Philadelphia Eagles with the fourth pick in the first round of the 1939 NFL Draft. Over two NFL seasons, O’Brien completed 223 of 478 passes for 2,614 yards and 11 touchdowns. O’Brien played multiple positions for the Eagles, spending time at quarterback, defensive back and punter. O’Brien, who intercepted four passes and punted nine times as an NFL player, retired after two seasons to work for the FBI, where he worked for 10 years.