While the last of the holiday lights and Christmas decorations have come down and are back in storage, proof of Fort Worth’s love and support of the TCU Horned Frogs football team dotted the landscape of the 107 throughout January.

Purple flags are still hanging from porches — some looking out-of-the-bag new and unmarred by the elements — and yard signs are firmly planted in winter’s golden turf. We’ve even spotted a few Horned Frog inflatables sitting proudly where Santa and his reindeer once held court.

TCU’s loss to Georgia in the national championship game still stings. After all, the incredible comebacks and victories, a thumping — even by a team as talented as the 15-0 Bulldogs — is hard to swallow. But both the longtime faithful and new Frog admirers are walking away with a lot from this championship season, one that started with exclusion from preseason polls and uncertainty and ended in Southern California against a team aiming at making its own mark in history. They have a sense of pride, joy in being the underdog and a lasting hope that this can — and will — happen again. The 2023 season begins at home Sept. 2 against the Colorado Buffaloes. Save the date and those lawn signs.