Daily Skiff

Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief said he supports the university's football program and encouraged city residents and employers to show their pride this Friday as part of the first-ever "Go Purple Day."

As part of the day of Horned Frog awareness, Moncrief said people should go casual and wear purple to work to recognize the team.

Moncrief said he hoped the day of celebration would help increase the city's and the team's presence on a national scale.

"I think that there's no better way to show support for this coach, for this team and for this university than for our city to dress in the appropriate color," Moncrief said. "(We want) to show the team that's coming to visit that we are here with our game faces on as well as our colors."

With ESPN's College GameDay show coming to the university this weekend, as well as SuperBowl XLV scheduled to take place at Cowboys Stadium in 2011, Moncrief said now was the perfect time to raise Fort Worth's profile.

"Folks who are going to fill up our hotels, our restaurants, our entertainment venues ... will set the stage for next season," Moncrief said. "I think that this is a strong statement from our city saying that we care about this great university (and) support this outstanding ball club. This is a big deal for Fort Worth - make no mistake."

Mark Cohen, director of athletics media relations, said Moncrief's announcement only reinforced the university's strong partnership with the city.

"It's just a continued sign of the momentum in our program and the City of Fort Worth's commitment to TCU," Cohen said. "It's fantastic ... for the mayor to recognize the success of the football program. The success we're having is great for Fort Worth ... not just for TCU."

Frog head coach Gary Patterson said at Tuesday's press conference that he aims to make Fort Worth residents and Frog fans proud in Saturday's football game against Utah.

"The thing that's most exciting to me is that we hopefully get a chance to share this with somebody else," Patterson said. "What I want people to do is believe in it, and be part of it and to be able to cherish the experience."

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