TCU football is moving closer to its 2026 season opener against North Carolina in Dublin, Ireland on Aug. 29. As the Countdown to Kickoff continues, we’ll highlight a former Horned Frog whose jersey number coincided with the number of days remaining until the opener. At No. 12 is former TCU cornerback Jeff Gladney!
Gladney played in 49 games over his five years with the Horned Frogs, amassing 146 total tackles and 43 pass breakups. Gladney, who also intercepted five passes and made six tackles for loss in his college career, became a starter during his redshirt freshman season in 2016. One of the top corners in the Big 12 over his last two seasons at TCU, Gladney was named an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention in 2017, an All-Big 12 Second Team player in 2018 and an All-Big 12 First Team player in 2019. Gladney was a Second-Team All-American in 2019 as well.
An NFL Combine and Senior Bowl invitee in 2020, Gladney was selected by the Minnesota Vikings with the 31st overall pick in the first round of the NFL Draft. He made 15 starts during his rookie season, posting 81 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, three pass breakups and an interception. In 2021, Gladney was indicted on a domestic violence charge and subsequently released by the Vikings, but he was found not guilty in 2022.
Gladney signed with the Arizona Cardinals soon after, but tragically, he and his girlfriend, Mercedes Palacios, were killed in a car accident in Dallas two months after signing. Gladney was 25 and Palacios was 26.