College Football

TCU's Two-way Kicker
The Energizer Horned Frog

Texas Christian hasn't cloned Nick Browne, it only appears that way. On each of the last two weekends Browne, a junior, played midfield in a soccer game on the road on Friday night, flew back to Texas to placekick in a football game on Saturday night and then rejoined the soccer team for another game on Sunday.

The schedule hasn't affected Browne's play in either sport. He made all five field goals and six extra points he attempted in 19-5 and 38-10 wins over North Texas and SMU, respectively. He took 13 shots in the four soccer matches and assisted on TCU's goal in a 1-1 double-OT tie with the College of Charleston last Friday.

"I played 117 of 120 minutes on Friday night," said Browne, who is not on scholarship for either sport, on Sunday afternoon. "The field was wet and soggy, which made it worse on my legs. They were really sore on Saturday. The soccer game didn't end until 10:30 p.m., and I got four hours of sleep before I had to get up at 5 a.m. for my flight to Dallas. After the SMU game, I went to bed at about midnight and woke up at 6:30. That flight to Charleston was the best sleep I've had traveling in the last two weeks." Browne played 70 minutes in a 3-0 loss to South Carolina.

Browne took on the place-kicking duty after special teams coach Dan Sharp invited him to try out last spring, and he then beat out a freshman in preseason practice. The coaches of the two teams work together to accommodate his schedule. Football coach Gary Patterson even moved Browne's special teams work from the end of practice to the beginning, so Browne can finish early and join soccer workouts.

Although there are no more weekends like the last two for Browne, on Sept. 29, TCU's football team plays at Houston while the soccer team plays at St. Louis. Soccer coach Dave Rubinson has told Browne to kick footballs that day. "He kind of figures that football pays the [athletic department] bills," Browne says.