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The Texas A&M community is mourning the loss of one of its former football leaders. Dennis Franchione, who served as the Aggies' head coach for five seasons, died on Tuesday at the age of 75, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel. Franchione had been battling cancer for 10 years.
Before arriving in College Station, Franchione built a strong resume at TCU, where he compiled a 25-10 record over three seasons, including a 10-1 campaign in 2000. That success led to his hiring at Alabama in 2001, where he went 17-8 in two years, highlighted by a 10-3 season in 2002. The Crimson Tide offered him a 10-year contract extension, but he turned it down, instead choosing the Texas A&M job that had opened after R.C. Slocum's departure, partly due to NCAA sanctions looming over Alabama.
Franchione's Tenure in Aggieland
Franchione's time at Texas A&M began with a difficult 2003 season, as the Aggies finished 4-8, including a 77-0 loss to Oklahoma that ranks among the worst defeats in program history. The team showed progress in 2004, going 7-5 overall and 5-3 in the Big 12, but slipped below .500 again in 2005. The 2006 season proved to be his best, with a 9-4 record and a 5-3 conference mark. That year featured two ranked wins: over No. 19 Missouri in College Station and No. 11 Texas in Austin, one of only two victories he earned against the rival Longhorns.
The following season, in 2007, Franchione's squad beat another No. 11 Texas team, 38-30, in College Station, marking the only ranked win of that year. The Aggies finished 7-5, and Franchione resigned after the season. Over his five years, his teams went 32-28, with a 4-16 record against ranked opponents and a 2-3 mark against Texas. They did not win a bowl game during his tenure.
After leaving Texas A&M, Franchione coached at Texas State for five seasons. He is survived by his wife, Kim; daughters Ashley and Libby; and son Brad.
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Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writers Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.