32 / 204
@VT_Football
@HokiesFB HokiesFB
hokiesports
1 7 F O O T B A L L ME D I A G U I D E
THE MEMPHIS TURNAROUND
BUILDING THE
BLUEPRINT AT TCU
• Compiled a 19-6 record in his final two seasons at
Memphis, guiding the Tigers to back-to-back bowl
berths after inheriting a program that went 5-31 in
three years before his arrival.
• Unanimous selection as 2014 American Athletic
Conference Coach of the Year when he led Memphis
to its first conference title since 1971.
• Guided Memphis to a 15-game winning streak
that included a 37-24 win over No. 13 Ole Miss
(10/17/15).
• Memphis posted a 9-3 regular season mark in 2015,
capped by a 63-0 win vs. SMU in Fuente’s finale as
the Tigers’ head coach.
• The Tigers concluded a 10-3 season in 2014 with
a 55-48 double-OT triumph over BYU in the Miami
Beach Bowl, the first 10-win season for the Tigers
since 1938.
• Fuente’s final game as Memphis head coach was a
63-0 win vs. SMU (11/28/15). QB Paxton Lynch tied
an FBS record with seven touchdown passes in the
first half of that game. Lynch threw for
a school-record 28 TD passes on
the 2015 season.
• Memphis outscored its
opponents by an average margin
of 20.7 points per game during a
run of 15 consecutive wins from
2014-15, scoring 652 points
(43.5 ppg), while allowing only
341 (22.7 ppg).
• Memphis scored 471 points
in 2014, shattering the
old school record
of 430 points set
in 2004, while
allowing a mere
19.5 points per
game, a figure
that ranked 11th
among
FBS
squads.
• The Tigers went +11 (31 takeaways/20 giveaways)
in the turnover column in 2014, finishing the campaign
ranked in both the AP Top 25 and in the USA Today/
Amway Coaches Polls, a first in school history.
• Fuente’s squad led Conference USA in total defense
in league games in 2012, giving up just 331.6 ypg.
• The Tigers also excelled on special teams under
Fuente as Tom Hornsey won the 2013 Ray Guy Award
as the nation’s top collegiate punter.
• Earned a well-deserved reputation not only as a top
recruiter, but also as one of football’s most innovative
offensive minds during a record-setting five-year stint
on head coach Gary Patterson’s staff at TCU (2007-
11).
• It was also at TCU where Fuente began a track
record of developing quarterbacks and preparing
them for NFL futures.
• During his final three seasons as play caller, QBs
coach and co-offensive coordinator at TCU from
2008-10, the Horned Frogs produced a 36-3 overall
record and went on a 24-game win streak in the
Mountain West Conference.
• From 2008-10, TCU was the only program in
the country that finished in the Top 10 in both the
AP Poll and USA Today Coaches Poll all three of
those campaigns. TCU also made back-to-back
appearances in BCS bowls with Fuente on the staff,
registering a 2011 Rose Bowl victory over No. 5
Wisconsin.
• In 2010, TCU set single-season school marks in
touchdowns (73), points scored (541), total offense
(6,199 yards) and first downs (327).
• The Horned Frogs also ranked fourth nationally in
scoring (41.6 ppg), sixth in passing efficiency (166.9),
10th in rushing (247.4 ypg) and 12th in total offense
(476.9 ypg) in 2010.
• His prowess for mentoring quarterbacks garnered
national attention as TCU QB Andy Dalton flourished
under his tutelage. From 2009-10, Dalton led TCU
to a 25-1 record and set the Mountain West career
record for total offense (11,925 yards).
• TCU was the only school in the nation to have two
different quarterbacks rank in the top 10 in the country
in passing efficiency from 2009-11.
• After Dalton completed his career as TCU’s career
leader in virtually every passing category, QB Casey
Pachall picked up where Dalton left off. In 2011,
Pachall led TCU to an 11-2 mark, completing 66.5
percent of his throws (228 of 343) with 25 TDs and
seven INTs.
The Fuentes — Justin and Jenny with daughters Charlotte, Cecilia and Caroline.