Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released their Hard Promises album 40 years ago this summer.

Contained therein is a song entitled, “The Waiting,” a theme with which most Frogs fans can relate. Especially this week.

The chorus reads:

The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you see one more card
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part

The season opener is hours away and everyone should be anxious. And relieved.

When I was playing at TCU in the early 1980s, the start of the season marked a change in the practice routine. Fall camp and its incessant schedule of practices was over. In-season practices are much different, with a slant toward being fresh going into the weekend.

Weeks go fast. Until Friday night, then the clock seems to crawl as the players anticipate kickoff and that “first play” of the game.

It’ll be the same for the Frogs and their coaches over the next 48 hours or so. The preparation is done, months of hard work are in the barn and it’s all done. Except The Waiting.

While you’re waiting, here a few things to know about Duquesne:

• Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Northeast Conference (NEC), where the team has won five conference titles since 2011
• Played its last game on April 11, while the Frogs were going through spring football
• Head Coach Jerry Schmitt, that all-time winningest coach at Duquesne (sound familiar)
• The Dukes played a shortened schedule of five games last spring, going 4-1
• NBA great Norm Nixon played his college basketball at Duquesne
• TCU Basketball great Doug Arnold (one of Killer’s Frogs back in the early 1980s), transferred to TCU from Duquesne. Arnold played two years for the Frogs (1981-82 and 1982-83) and is a member of the 1000 Point Club at TCU.

Friday, we’ll take a detailed look at the Dukes and breakdown this season opener.

Until then,

Kick ‘Em High!