Thursday, December 13, 2007

Football at TCU

[this summary (minus more recent material) of TCU's football history was originally posted at The Thwarth's Wimple on September 20, 2006. The Wimple heartily recommends Caroline Collier's feature The Frogs Rise Again, published in the Fort Worth Weekly, November 24, 2009.]

Beginnings
TCU traces its football origins to 1896, when it was still AddRan College in Waco, Texas. The school played its cross-town rival, Baylor, twice a year.

After moving to Fort Worth, rivaling SMU in the new Southwest Conference, TCU football flourished. In the first 37 years TCU was a member of the SWC, from 1923 to 1960, the Horned Frogs were consistently the best team in the Southwest Conference. They won more national championships, conference championships, went to more bowl games, produced more all-Americans, the Conference’s first Heisman Trophy winner; became the first SWC school to play in the Sugar Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl and Bluebonnet Bowl, and maintained a winning edge over all six of their conference opponents. Read Dan Jenkins' colorful reminisce of that period here.

The Decade of Legends
In 1935, TCU and SMU battled for a bid to the Rose Bowl, in the "Game of the Century" (see Time Magazine's report of that game). Quarterback Sam Baugh (who came to TCU to play baseball, but was convinced by Coach Dutch Meyer to play football instead) led Meyer's revolutionary "spread" attack of short passes on any down first in college and then in the pros, leading the Horned Frogs and then Washington Redskins each to their first national titles. (Here's the TCU Magazine's posthumous feature on Baugh.) Baugh's successor Davey O'Brien took TCU to its second title, and won the Heisman, Maxwell and Walter Camp trophies for his unbeaten 1938 campaign.

The 1950s Resurgence
The spread offense went out of style, but the Horned Frogs flourished again in the 1950s under Abe Martin, playing in the Cotton Bowl four times, including a win over Jim Brown and Syracuse in 1957. Jim Swink led the squad in the late '50s. (This SI.com writeup about the '57 season, and the pre-game photo at the right, which Sports Illustrated named its photo of the century for the 1900s, is spectacular.) TCU expanded the football stadium, nearly doubling its seating capacity, and adding the distinctive upper deck that still dominates the southwest Fort Worth landscape.
Complacency and Decline
After the 1959 Cotton Bowl, TCU let the Southwest Conference pass it by in recruiting, facilities, and budgeting. The decade was not without its bright spots-- TCU upset Texas a number of times, once thwarting the state school's bid for a national title. Darrell Royal, the Longhorn coach, fought back off the field, pressing for--and getting-- rule changes that allowed for unlimited substitutions during the game. This gave rise to two-squad play, where teams field separate offensive and defensive units. As predicted, state schools flourished in the new game, as their superior funding and attractiveness with the GI Bill enabled them to gather in the best recruits, sometimes offering a good player a scholarship just so he wouldn't play on another team. Until 1994 there was no limit to the number of athletic scholarships a school could maintain, giving a distinct edge to the state-funded schools.

For TCU, which didn't evolve with the the game very well, th
e result was three long decades of football mediocrity: from 1960 to 1998, TCU appeared on the AP poll only six times-- four of these in '84.

The SWC schools engaged in flagrant cheating in competition for high school recruits. In the late 1970s, TCU boosters joined in, financing top-price recruits and a conference co-champ team by '84. (OU's coach Barry Switzer indicated surprise when his team lost to little TCU in a bidding war for a recruit!) Coach Jim Wacker caught wind of the violations, and gave an impassioned speech to the team, urging them to come clean and stay that way. Kenneth Davis, a Heisman finalist and All-American runningback, and several other players confessed taking money from boosters. The NCAA imposed the "death penalty" on the school, cancelling TV revenue, scholarships, and post-season eligibility. Losses mounted; SMU had already been penalized, and soon found itself the first (and to date, last) NCAA program to suffer the "death penalty." Oddly, other SWC schools, notably Texas A&M, received only light sanctions for similar infractions.

In 1994 the parting blow came: the Southwest Conference was dissolved when the Big Eight invited four
SWC teams to join: Texas, A&M, Texas Tech and most bitterly, Baylor. Governor Ann Richards had pushed hard for her alma mater's inclusion in the expanded conference, and TCU was left with Houston, Rice and SMU to glean for themselves.

Conference Hopping
TCU's administration decided to begin an experiment: can a rule-abiding, student-graduating football program win in Divison I? The school began updating its athletic facilities. Pat Sullivan led the team through it's first years in a new conference, the WAC, including its darkest year, 1997, when its only win was against fellow wanderer SMU, keeping the Mustangs from bowl eligibility. Horned Frog students pulled down the goalposts, so glad were they for that win.


The next year Dennis Franchione was hired at great expense to turn around the program, which had again drawn the short straw, as the conference's top teams announced that they would withdraw in 1999 to form the Mountain West Conference. Perhaps the Horned Frogs had the last laugh, when they managed bowl eligibility in '98, and won an invite to the Sun Bowl. The bowl had a tie to the new Mountain West conference, but snubbed the clique, inviting the Fort Worth left-behinds instead. TCU outclassed USC in a memorable upset.

In 1999 a fullback named LaDainian Tomlinson that Franchione inherited from his predecessor was moved to tailback, and led the NCAA in rushing yards. In 2000, LT and defensive genius Gary Patterson led the Horned Frogs on a dizzying winning streak to the last game of the season, in San Jose. Following the Frogs to the west coast was a glut of media speculation about a bid for the Fiesta Bowl. In a rainy game, TCU lost inexplicably. A few w
eeks later, Franchione fled for a top-tier coaching post. ConferenceUSA invited the Frogs, who accepted and turned their attention east in conference play, for the first time.
The Patterson Era
In 2001, the team landed their fourth straight bowl game. The Frogs' quarterback threw the game away, being disgruntled at the coaches and having already decided to transfer to a D-2 team. In 2002 a bizarre trend began at TCU, when the starting quarterback got injured and his replacement seemed to be a better player. In this manner Sean Stilley gave way to Tye Gunn, who gave way to Brandon Hassell in 2003. Gunn's season ending injury in 2005 opened the door to Jeff Ballard, one of the winningest quarterbacks in TCU history.

The 2003 season was similar to the 2000 season: a long winning streak coaxed great attention from the national media; the Fiesta Bowl took interest in TCU: so much that after the Frogs beat conference contender Louisville, the bowl put a little bag of Tostitos on every seat in Amon Carter Stadium for the next game. More than 40,000 fans attended the game, in which the Frogs routed Cincinnati. Expectations soared-- only road games to Southern Miss and SMU stood in the way of a BCS bowl, the jackpot of college football's bowl system. TCU played very poorly in Hattiesburg, but scored 28 points in less than 5 minutes in the 4th quarter
to come within three points of a tie, but lost the game anyway. They returned to Texas and almost lost at SMU, and then lost the inaugural Fort Worth Bowl to Boise State a month later.

The experiment seemed to have reached its logical limits: a team outside the BCS cartel and resources, committed to recruiting and graduating honest student athletes, could win most games, but not regularly, and not under pressure.

This pattern was repeated in 2004 with a highly touted trip to Lubbock to face an old SWC foe, Texas Tech. Mike Leach had helped coach the BYU resurrection of Dutch Meyer's spread attack, and then implemented it in Lubbock with tremendous results. The Frogs held the Red Raiders scoreless for 25 minutes. By halftime, however, Mike Leach's offensive machine had come alive, and tied the score 21-21. The Frogs never regained momentum and left Lubbock with the most embarassing loss in recent memory, 70-35. The 5-6 season ended TCU's streak of bowl seasons at six. Head Coach Gary Patterson had the team drug tested in search for answers, so desparate was he to locate problems and get his team's attention.

Meanwhile, Utah achieved a BCS berth from the second tier Mountain West conference- decimating Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl. ConferenceUSA was gutted in a flurry of re-alignments; Louisville, South Florida and Cincinnati joined the Big East, a cartel conference, again leaving TCU behind. TCU joined the Mountain West that summer.

After a tremendous upset of 5th ranked Oklahoma to begin 2005, the Horned Frogs found their focus only after being
upset the next week by 90-something ranked SMU. However, as Jeff Ballard replaced Tye Gunn to lead a stunning comeback win in Provo, the unlikely Frogs proceeded to sweep the conference, winning their first outright conference title since the 1950s, and landed a bowl bid against a Big 12 opponent in Houston, beating Iowa State 27-24.

The Frogs won and finished the season ranked 11 and 9 in the AP and Coaches polls. Coach Patterson turned down a top-tier coaching post in the Big 12, signaling that his optimistic statements about TCU contending for a BCS bowl and national title were more than coach-speak.

During the off season, the BCS cartel relaxed the admission rules for the lucrative BCS bowls. The Frogs began 2006 as the most prominent non-cartel contenders for a top-tier bowl, cementing that status with a defensive masterpiece against Texas Tech, holding the normally explosive Red Raiders to just one field goal. The Frogs didn't find their own offense until two conference losses had accumulated, tumbling out of the rankings and the national media attention once again. Jeff Ballard led the team to second place in the conference by the end of the season, cracking the top 25 in December, and decimating NIU in the Poinsettia Bowl with a suffocating, second-ranked defense. Meanwhile, the WAC champion Boise State followed Utah's lead to the Fiesta Bowl.

The 2007 season seemed custom-made for showcasing TCU's resurgent program. However, days before the season began, the defensive line turned into a work in progress, with Tommy Blake and James Vess absent; injuries decimated the backfield. Turnovers plagued the offense, and after an emotional loss in Austin, the Frogs went on to lose 4 conference games-- Air Force, Wyoming, Utah, and BYU, by a total of 18 points, but win a bowl berth, and the bowl, too. The program had reached the point where a bad season no longer meant a bowl-less one.

In 2008, the MWC became increasing visible, as DirecTV began carrying its network, the mtn. TCU's defense returned to high form (#1 nationally), and the Frogs snuck up on BYU, handing the Cougars their first conference loss in over two years. The Frogs came within a missed field goal of the conference championship and an invitation to the Sugar Bowl.

Breakthrough
The Horned Frogs finally found the heretofore elusive mix in 2009, when they replaced offensive coordinators (sending Mike Schultz to Illinois, where Schultz efficiently sunk that offense, lasting only one year) and suddenly found themselves well-balanced, even in big games. Yes, there had been a talent upgrade in the works, but the Frogs returned much of its offense for the '09 season, and with the new coordinators and an influential new receivers coach (Rusty Burns), the offense simply went ballistic. TCU improved from the 21st best scoring offense and 24th best total offense in 2008 to 5th and 7th best, respectively. And this while fielding the nation's best defense, again led by two-time All-American defensive end Jerry Hughes.
Dalton's connection with his wideouts suddenly weaponized. (Dalton's passer rating jumped from 129 in 2008 to 151, not least because of Antoine Hicks's knack for finding the endzone on long receptions.) Joe Turner, Matt Tucker, and Ed Wesley ran all over the competition-- and when they were given the reigns to do so, the Frogs were unstoppable. TCU notably won in the rain at Clemson, and in finger-freezing cold at Air Force, and then trod all the heck over BYU in Provo, Utah in Fort Worth, and everybody else in between. ESPN Gameday was on hand for the wins against BYU and Utah, the second of which came before the all-time biggest crowd at TCU. By year's end, the Frogs had outgained their conference opponents by 261 yards, on average.
The only blemish: the culminating game of the season was the Fiesta Bowl, against Boise State, another non-cartel team. The Frogs went into that historic matchup feeling like they had been robbed of a chance to best a BCS legacy program, and in the end left losers. Maddengly, the Frogs chose not to try and run the ball in the face of an unexpected realigned Boise defense. Shorn of its balance, the Frog offense sputtered, and TCU lost the defensive battle, 17-10.

TCU's loss in Glendale lowered its national rank to #6-- which was higher than earlier years' teams would have dreamed of finishing. Remarkably, the Frogs will start 2010 ranked about the same-- 6-- and won't be the highest ranked non-cartel team. Boise will start at #2 or #3. Replacing only one starter, really, on offense (left tackle Marshall Newhouse), the Frogs should field their most explosive offense, ever. The defense, while replacing Jerry Hughes, Daryl Washington, and two four-year starters at CB (Nick Sanders and Raphael Priest), shouldn't fall too far from its accustomed #1 national ranking.

So the experiment has changed: yes, a clean-run non-cartel program can break into the big-money bowls; can it sustain that kind of success into a realistic run at the biggest bowl of them all? Given their returning experience, talent, and starting position, 2010 will be the Frogs' best chance.
[photos: (top to bottom) TCU Stadium in the 1940s, Davey O'Brien, Sam Baugh, TCU at halftime during the 1957 Cotton-Bowl, Jim Swink, Bob Lilly in the NFL, TCU beats Texas in the 1960s, TCU v. Texas in 1994, Basil Mitchell runs past USC at the 1998 Sun Bowl, LT runs for 406 yards against UTEP, TCU v. Cincinnati in 2003, Texas Tech v. TCU in 2004, Cory Rodgers returns a kickoff for a touchdown at BYU in 2005, Coach Patterson celebrates TCU's victory over OU in Norman in 2005, TCU v. Texas Tech in 2006, Jeff Ballard scores against NIU in 2006, Antoine Hicks scores, 2009, Matthew Tucker's one (!$#%$^!) touch during the Fiesta Bowl, 2010, Andy Dalton at the Fiesta Bowl, 2009.]

Friday, December 7, 2007

Post-season awards

Several TCU football players have received recognition in the post season.
Chase Ortiz and Brian Bonner made the MWC First-Team;
Jason Phillips, Blake Schleuter, Stephen Hodge, and David Roach made the Second Team;
Robert Henson, Marshall Newhouse, Chris Manfredini, Rafael Priest, and Derek Wash received honorable mentions.

Chase Ortiz will play in the East-West Shrine all-star game. Andy Dalton and Kelly Griffin received an honorable mention on the Sporting News' freshman All-American team.
Phil Steele put 13 Frogs on his All-MWC team.

Thursday, December 6, 2007

The American Enterprise Institute dumps on the BCS

Normally AEI's online magazine, The American, gets the Wimple's attention at The Thwarth's Wimple. But today The American has an article up about the BCS and how inferior it is to a playoff, and how the usual litany of defenses for the BCS cartel are insufficient.

Link to the article through the title of this post.

Monday, December 3, 2007

TCU to return to Houston for the Texas Bowl; 5 MWC Teams Go Bowling

http://www.texasbowl.org/-- TCU will square off against the Houston Cougars in the 2007 Texas Bowl . . . This is the Horned Frogs’ third consecutive winning season and their third consecutive bowl appearance. . . TCU head coach Gary Patterson is in his seventh season at the helm and has posted a 60-25 record, including leading the Horned Frogs to a bowl game six times. Patterson has had four 10-win seasons, more then any other coach in TCU history.

The 2007 Texas Bowl will be played on Friday, December 28 at Reliant Stadium at 7:00 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally on NFL Network. DePelchin Children’s Center, Houston’s oldest charitable organization, is the official charitable partner of the Texas Bowl.

[here's the goFrogs.com release]

Five Mountain West teams will play bowl games this year- the most ever. The Mtn.'s preview of the MWC bowls.
BYU will face UCLA (again!) in Las Vegas, Air Force v. California in Fort Worth; Utah v. Navy in San Diego, TCU v. Houston in Houston, and New Mexico v. Nevada in Albequerque.

Monday, November 26, 2007

TCU 45, SDSU 33

TCU re-wrote its record book Saturday in San Diego, emerging victorious despite giving up their longest pass-play in history- a Kevin O'Connell completion to Chaz Schilens for 97 yards and a touchdown.

The Frogs' own Joe Turner turned in 226 yards rushing, and four touchdowns-- tying for the third-highest individual touchdown total in TCU's history. (Jeff Ballard last hit that mark, against New Mexico in '05.)
The Horned Frogs' offense snapped 111 plays, a new high for TCU and the MWC, and tying Texas Tech for the NCAA's all-time mark. The Frogs gained 39 first downs-- also a TCU and MWC high. (Texas Tech got 45 first downs in their 111-play game.)

By the final whistle, the Frogs had possessed the ball for just over 40 minutes.

Bowl speculation puts the Frogs in Houston for the Texas Bowl against Houston, who has already accepted a bid to that bowl, or in Albuquerque for the New Mexico Bowl, or in Fort Worth for the Armed Forces Bowl.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

TCU 34, UNLV 10


TCU beat UNLV in the first half Saturday in Fort Worth, scoring 28 points in 30 minutes, but only 6 after that. The third team played most of the fourth quarter.

Junior safety Stephen Hodge tallied 11 tackles; senior end Chase Ortiz had two sacks and took the MWC's defensive player of the week award.

The Frogs go to San Diego next week to try and secure a bowl berth- likely to the New Mexico Bowl, to face a team from the WAC.

Monday, November 12, 2007

BYU 27, TCU 22

The Frogs lost another close contest, this time in Provo, falling to 1-2 against BYU since joining the Mountain West.

TCU must beat surging SDSU on the road and UNLV at home in order to attract a bowl bid.

Monday, November 5, 2007

TCU 37, New Mexico 0


Continuing its guess-who game, TCU tried on complete domination for size, throttling New Mexico on Saturday after 16 days off. Andy Dalton, who threw four interceptions against Utah in his last outing, was flawless, delivering three touchdown passes and no interceptions against the Lobos.


TCU's defense regained its swagger, shutting down the league's second-best back, Rodney Ferguson; after allowing a 22 yard pass in the game's opening offensive play, the Frogs held Donovan Porterie to just more 54 passing yards in the remaining 59 minutes.
TCU travels to BYU Thursday.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

TCU 20, Utah 27

The Frogs turned in one of their most disappointing offensive efforts Thursday, losing to Utah by a touchdown. TCU frequently stopped the Ute's offensive drives, but gave them second chance after second chance, throwing 5 interceptions before the final whistle.

TCU gets its first bye this week; New Mexico comes to Fort Worth on November 3rd.

Monday, October 15, 2007

TCU 38, Stanford 36


Down 31-17 shortly after halftime, the Frog offense, fully staffed for the first game since game since the season opener, outscored the Cardinal 20-5 for the win.

TCU 21, Wyoming 24

Trading quarters, the Frogs lost another close game by three points, this timeto Wyoming in Laramie. Dalton came in for the ineffective Jackson, and after a frustrating third quarter in which Wyoming scored on a drive that featured two dubious pass-interference calls against the Frogs on consecutive Cowboy 3rd downs, led the Frog to 14 unanswered points. Chris Manfredini missed what would have been the game-tie-ing field goal, from the 31 yard line.

Monday, October 1, 2007

TCU 24, CSU 12

The Horned Frogs delivered their nearest-to-well-balanced perform-ance Saturday, beating Colorado State's Rams in Fort Worth in the air and on the ground.

Andy Dalton marched the team to CSU's 4-yard-line before suffering a contusion on his thigh and exiting the game for good.

Marcus Jackson took over, ran for a TD, and led the Frogs to 14 more points before the final whistle.

Aaron Brown had his first 100-yard game of the season, winning the MWC's offensive player of the week. Rafael Priest had his first two interceptions.

Dalton will travel to Wyoming, but Jackson will start under center.

Monday, September 24, 2007

TCU 21, SMU 7

TCU prevailed Saturday against SMU in a contest that was unlike the Frogs' loss to Air Force last week except for one critical area: turnovers. TCU twice fumbled away the ball within a few yards of a score. In every other way, the game was as opposite its predecessor as possible: Andy Dalton struggled; the defense played progressively better throughout the game; Marcus Jackson shone in the game's longest drive; Aaron Brown played, and except for a fumble at the Mustangs' 3 yard line, played brilliantly; the Frogs didn't give up big plays-- but lost yards consistently in 5s and 10s.
But they won, and have the Iron Skillet back in their pantry.
Colorado State comes to Fort Worth, hoping to reverse a 10-game losing streak. The Rams have never beaten Gary Patterson's Frogs.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

First Quarter: MWC analysis

A few thoughts on the MWC, one quarter of the way through the season.
One everybody's tongue: Air Force. The academy opened with arguably the scariest conference, and season, stretch: Utah, BYU and TCU in the first four games. Utah and TCU have both fallen to the academy, but BYU gets the Zoomies at home. Neither of the upsets came easily-- but the Falcons boast the conference's only 3-0 record, and appear to have positioned themselves as this year's surprise contender for the title.

Quarterbacks. Simply put, the MWC is loaded under center. Max Hall and Andy Dalton have exceeded expectations as freshmen; Karsten Sween and Donovan Porterie have not lost their respective freshmen magic; Travis Dixon and Tommy Grady have burst on the scene with solid performances. Kevin O'Connell is no longer a liability in sunny San Diego; Shaun Carney and Caleb Hanie are turning in solid senior years. Who's missing from this list? Brian Johnson, at Utah. Tommy Grady's outstanding performance against UCLA might keep Johnson in rehab longer than planned, however.

Out of Conference Play: the MWC has finally turned in a solid season out of conference. Utah State (twice), Baylor, Virginia, Arizona (twice), New Mexico State, and UCLA have all suffered losses against the MWC. A few surprises: BYU couldn't outpace Tulsa in a 1,000-yard, 100-point shootout in Oklahoma; Colorado State nearly topped Colorado and California; UNLV almost stopped Wisconsin's winning streak; New Mexico, in a strange game, lost to UTEP to open the season; the conference's victor against UCLA? Not BYU, but their sorely depleted rivals up I-15-- Utah. This was Tommy Grady's breakout party, and will be talked about on The Hill for years to come.

Dangerous sleeper: well, Air Force isn't a sleeper any longer, so the award goes to New Mexico, who boasts the league's best tandem at wide receiver to date, and a QB who has excelled in getting them the ball. Marcus Smith and Travis Brown will be household names for the conference before too long. Combine them with the nationally-underappreciated ground play by Rodney Furgeson, and New Mexico might have what it takes to threaten the conference's power structure, and finally win a bowl game for Rocky Long.

Re-loaded: BYU's offense, and TCU's defense. The classes of the league, each unit, appear to have lost none of their lustre. BYU has experienced almost no dropoff from last year's incredible production, despite losing its three top playmakers. TCU's defense finally coalesced against Air Force, holding the Falcon's tricky attack to just 3 points before a bizarre 17-point finale in the game's final minutes and overtime. The Frogs' defense has had to stifle opposing teams without the aid of a productive running offense, and a litany of turnovers in the red zone. The unit has performed admirably, and will be under much less pressure to produce near shut-outs as the Frogs heal and mature on the other side of the ball.

Disappointments: some of the league's marquee matchups turned into marquee routs. Oregon State stuffed Utah to open the season, and TCU's high hopes for a best-in-Texas claim were crushed a bad second half in Austin.

Friday, September 14, 2007

Air Force 20, TCU 17


How does a team rack up 320 passing yards, throw for 15 first downs, lead almost the whole game, hold its opponent to 17 points in regulation, and lose?

TCU showed the way, turning the ball over four times in the red zone, and generating almost no running game to speak of.

Air Force showed the way, capitalizing on every Frog mistake after halftime, including blocking a field goal that would have given the Frogs the lead with less than two minutes to play.

Notwithstanding the loss, TCU has much to look forward to for the remainder of the season. Aaron Brown and Joe Turner did not play, but Tommy Blake did, and did well, as did the defense generally. Dalton was poised, consistent and productive, and made some terrific throws. The receiving corps had a stellar game, hauling in pass after pass-- Massey, Brock, Moore and Dickerson were as sharp as ever. The team has eight days to heal and prepare for SMU and then the remainder of conference play.

When the Frogs get a playmaker back in the backfield, the Wimple confidently predicts that this offense will to its potential, and win most of its remaining games. And the Fort Worth Bowl (or Armed Forces Bowl, as it's now styled) is already within his scheduled Christmas vacation. Nice.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Texas 34, TCU 13

TCU held the Longhorns scoreless for the first half of Saturday's marquee matchup, but were unable to sustain any offensive drives in the third quarter. After playings defense for more than ten minutes in the third quarter, the Frogs ran out of gas, and were routed.

The Frogs never found their running game, which surprised nobody-- UT's rush defense was one of only two that ranked higher than TCU's own last year, and the Frogs' best tailback was injured last week and unavailable for the game.

TCU faces Air Force's triple-option attack in Colorado Springs on Thursday night.

Friday, September 7, 2007

What TCU takes to (and can bring home from) Austin

The immensity of tomorrow's game in Austin is worth a few words. TCU isn't playing Texas for just a win-- that could be done with less fanfare against almost any other program in the nation. The Frogs have not circled this came on their schedule so that they could bask in the national spotlight, or re-live the glory days of the Southwest Conference.

What's possible tomorrow is both the closing of the door to a painful adolescence, and the re-opening the path to a forgotten throne. When football was young, the Frogs reigned, and purple-clad legends named Baugh, O'Brien, Aldrich, Matthews, Swink and Lilly ruled. Fort Worth's dynasty was toppled by the Longhorns in the '60s, however, and by the time the Southwest Conference dissolved, TCU was accustomed to penury.

The Frogs were ignominiously born again, as it were, in that dissolution. Being orphaned by the state's politically powerful programs in the '90s, TCU grew, and has become surprisingly strong. But, like a fatherless young man who suddenly meets his deadbeat dad only to discover that he is an heir in the kingdom, the Horned Frogs have a chance Saturday to throw off their childhood demons, and live independently, among their grandfather's peers. And all the king's men are watching to see if he will do just that.

This is a tremulous moment-- it can be a coming-of-age for the ages. The whole world is watching, so to speak, for the first time. Some of them paid brief attention when TCU beat a weakened aristocrat in the 1998 Sun Bowl. More still cocked an eye toward Fort Worth's little private school when the Frogs took a 10-game winning streak to Hattiesburg in 2003. After that game they smiled like a parent who dusts off a lost child who's scraped his knee, and sends him home where he belongs-- to the other side of the tracks. More still took a double take, and said politically correct things when the Horny Toads waylaid Oklahoma, a reigning aristocrat on a usurped throne, in 2005-- in Norman, no less. But when the Frogs were destracted by the glad words, and toppled by another scrabbling SWC orphan, the watching world turned away again.

But that world was not the same. The comfortable confines on the rich side of the tracks seemed less safe, when a TCU or a Boise State could raid with so much success among them. Next fell Texas Tech in Fort Worth, and the chattering class began to hedge their bets whenever the Frogs were on the table.

And so tomorrow, amid a torrent of carefully hedged publicity, TCU goes to battle another of college football's ruling elite- the same princely program that ousted the Frogs from their own throne generations ago. It should not surprise us that TCU has everybody's attention now. Their foe is their own grandfather's foe, figuratively speaking; the modern doyen of Texas Football, the Frogs' own crowned brother who watched with secret glee as the Frogs withered, and when finally TCU was powerless to resist, ousted them from the kingdom altogether. Since then UT has crowned itself "State Champions" when it won less games than TCU; it has received the BCS Championship Trophy with the fallacious commendation, "On behalf of the eleven BCS conferences..."; it has countenanced-- nay, spawned-- the outrageous condenscension of TCU's privileged twin in Waco; in sum, UT-- the Frogs' own brother-- has declared the Horned Frogs bastards: illegitimate, irrelevant, underprivileged, ostracized.

And tomorrow, Texas must defend its house.

From forgotten ashes in Fort Worth have risen the heirs to the house that Baugh built. The Lone Star State's very center of gravity is unsettled anew, and the reigning gods of the state cannot find comfort in their Austin tower. Their dirty deeds are shouted from the rooftops by the very syccophants who cheered them: Thy Brother Lives, and Hath Returned!

Indeed, the true giants of Texas's football history will not be forgotten, and in the awesome shadow of their descendants does all of Texas shake.

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

TCU v. Texas-- hype

The Dallas Morning News points out that TCU will be a much tougher win for Texas than Arkansas State was, and the Indians almost upset the 'Horns. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram agrees. One Sports Illustrated columnist even forecasts (through a crystal ball) an upset on September 8. UT's coach is on the bandwagon, saying that TCU would flourish in the Big XII, and that he ranked TCU somewhere near 10th on his post-season coaches' ballot last season. We'd believe that more if we saw it, but the final ballots are, conveniently, not public. A UT fan and writer at Pegasus News is convinced the Frogs will upset the Horns.

Sporting News, SI.com, CBSSports, The Washington Post, and CSTV all have color pieces on the game. The Sporting News has two reprises and a Q&A with Chase Ortiz; ESPN one; the Austin-American Statesman has run dozens of articles about TCU and its tilt with Texas. Here're a few. Stewart Mandel predicts Texas will win by one point.

CFN's team preview for 2007 highlights this game, as does nearly every other pre-season look at the Frogs. Top's Corner at KF.C has been replete with articles focused on September 8 since the middle of the summer. CBS Sports lists the game in its "Key Dates" script on its front page (this won't archive, but it's been posted there for months.) In short, this game is probably the most intensely scrutinized game TCU has played since Davey O'Brien was under center in the 1930s.

Monday, September 3, 2007

TCU 27, Baylor 0

In the 1100th football game TCU has ever played, the Frogs engineered a shutout of their oldest rival, evening the all-time series with the Baylor Bears at 49 wins each (with 7 ties). Red-shirt freshman Andy Dalton commanded the offense with remarkable poise, throwing 18 completions in 30 attempts (60%) for 205 yards. He worked behind a strong performance from the offensive line, and in tandem with his senior receivers. Marcus Brock caught five passes, and four other receivers had two catches, including a twisting, diving touchdown catch by senior Irvin Dickerson.


The Frog defense returned to usual form by about halftime. Baylor moved the ball with some success at first- amassing 204 yards by halftime. The Frogs upped their intensity in the second half, though, holding the Bears to only 78 yards in the third and fourth quarters. The Frogs intercepted Baylor four times.
Tommy Blake did not play, but has returned to practice and is expected to start against Texas on Saturday. Aaron Brown and Sir Demarcus Bledsoe sustained injuries; Brown will likely return to play in a week or two; Bledsoe may be out longer.

Monday, August 27, 2007

The Roster is set:

FIRST TEAM
Offense
LT 70 Marshall Newhouse 6-3 317 So.
LG 64 Matty Lindner 6-4 298 Sr.
C 75 Blake Schlueter 6-3 272 Jr.
RG 65 Giles Montgomery 6-5 295 Jr.
RT 61 Marcus Cannon 6-5 319 RFr.
TE 86 Shae Reagan 6-4 261 Jr.
FB 47 William Jackson 6-0 235 Sr.
TB 23 Aaron Brown 6-1 196 Jr. 2007
QB 14 Andy Dalton 6-3 210 RFr.
WR (Z) 3 Marcus Brock 6-0 182 Sr.
WR (X) 21 Ervin Dickerson 6-1 200 Sr.
WR (H) 13 Derek Moore 6-3 177 Sr.
WR (Y) 2 Donald Massey 5-11 172 Jr.

Defense
LE 93 Chase Ortiz 6-3 255 Sr.
DT 69 Kelly Griffin 6-1 280 Fr.
NT 56 Cody Moore 6-1 292 Jr.
RE 97 Tommy Blake 6-3 252 Sr.
SLB 46 David Hawthorne 6-0 225 Sr. or 51 Robert Henson 6-1 228 Jr.
MLB 39 Jason Phillips 6-1 234 Jr.
SS 6 Brian Bonner OR 5-11 199 Sr. or 29 Stephen Hodge 6-0 212 Jr.
FS 4 Steven Coleman 6-3 204 Jr.
WS 27 David Roach 6-2 215 Sr.
LCB 20 Nick Sanders 5-10 174 So.
RCB 10 Rafael Priest 5-10 163 So.

Specialists
PK 44 Chris Manfredini 5-9 165 Sr.
KO 58 Drew Combs 6-3 225 So.
H 13 Derek Moore 6-3 177 Sr.
P 11 Derek Wash 6-4 177 Sr.
SN 54 Clint Gresham 6-3 225 So.
KR 23 Aaron Brown or 2 Donald Massey
PR 6 Brian Bonner or 3 Marcus Brock

SECOND TEAM
Offense
LT 79 Nic Richmond 6-8 298 So.
LG 60 Preston Phillips 6-6 293 Jr.
C 74 Tony Savino 6-2 277 Sr. or 76 Jake Kirkpatrick 6-3 273 RFr.
RG 73 Josh Karlin 6-4 280 So.
RT 63 Heath Raetz 6-5 315 Jr.
TE 89 Quinton Cunigan 6-3 237 Sr.
FB 36 Chris Smith 5-11 231 So.
TB 32 Justin Watts 5-10 195 Jr.
QB 11 Marcus Jackson 6-1 216 So.
WR (Z) 1 Walter Bryant 6-4 206 Jr.
WR (X) 88 Jimmy Young 6-1 200 RFr.
WR (H) 30 William Cage 6-4 202 Jr. or 6 Bart Johnson 6-1 190 RFr.
WR (Y) 85 Jeremy Kerley 5-10 185 Fr.

Defense
LE 98 Jerry Hughes 6-2 248 So.
DT 57 Cory Grant 6-2 303 RFr.
NT 90 John Fonua 5-10 270 Jr. (JUCO transfer from L.A. Valley College)
RE 42 Matt Panfil 6-2 232 Jr.
SLB 46 David Hawthorne 6-0 225 Sr. or 51 Robert Henson 6-1 228 Jr.
MLB 41 Daryl Washington 6-3 228 So.
SS 29 Stephen Hodge 6-0 212 Jr.
FS 40 Tejay Johnson 6-1 195 Fr.
WS 6 Brian Bonner 5-11 199 Sr.
LCB 9 Alex Ibiloye 6-0 170 RFr.
RCB 15 Torrey Stewart 5-11 175 Sr.

Specialists
P 38 Anson Kelton 6-4 260 Fr.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Pre-season hype for the Frogs

TCU notes from the Star-Telegram

August 24 - One Armed Kicker
August 23 - Frogs Push Hard
August 22 - Dalton Interview; Vess to Practice, but not Play
August 21 - Vess Out for the Season, Blake Returns
August 20 - Frogs Have Their Man Under Center
August 19 - Blake Returning to Practice
August 18 - Panfil Makes an End Run
August 18 - Sisk Injured
August 17 - Tommy Blake's Absence
August 15 - Frogs Work from the Inside Out
August 14 - Defense on Track; Offense Coming Along
August 11 - Frogs Seeking Elite Opponents
August 10 - Defense Stout in Scrimmage
August 9 - Practice Gets Hot for Fighting Frogs
August 8 - Frogs Set for First of Two-a-Day Tests
August 7 - Newcomers are Making Impact
August 6 - School Starts Early for TCU Hopefuls
August 5 - Frogs Looking to Find Right Catch
August 4 - Offensive Guard Duo Return from Injuries
August 2 - No Controversy, but QB Question is #1

Thursday, June 28, 2007

A survey of pre-season rankings

TCU comes in 17th, and is predicted to win the MWC by every listed ranking service.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

CFN's weekly favorite MWC games

Week 1 - Utah at Oregon State: A battle between two of the better under-the-radar, top 25-caliber teams around, this will be Ute QB Brian Johnson’s first game back after missing all of last year with a knee injury.
Week 2 - TCU at Texas: It’s dream shot time. TCU should have the Mountain West’s best team and should roll through the rest of its schedule. Don’t laugh; a win here might start legitimate national title talk.
Week 3 - UCLA at Utah: Utah had a chance to make a statement last year in L.A. and got blasted. This year, UCLA will be among the 10-to-15 best teams in America and the Utes get the game in Salt Lake City.
Week 4 - Air Force at BYU: The best in a bad week of games, this ends the murderer’s row of Mountain West games with a trip to Utah and a battle with TCU before the date in Provo.
Week 5 - BYU at New Mexico: The Lobos can’t afford to give away home games and might need to win its opening conference game with three road trips in the following four games.
Week 6 - Utah at Louisville: A terrific Friday night showdown, the Utes will get a chance to see just how good they really are against a legitimate national title contender.
Week 7 - New Mexico at Wyoming: Air Force at Colorado State will be interesting, but the Lobos and Cowboys should put on the better show with two of the league’s best young quarterbacks, UNM’s Donovan Porterie and UW’s Karsten Sween.
Week 8 - Utah at TCU: The first installment of the Mountain West title battle trilogy between the three superpowers, Utah can’t afford a loss with its date with BYU on the road.
Week 9 - Utah at Colorado State: Will Utah be flying high or down in the dumps after the date with TCU? This ends a nasty stretch of three road games in four weeks. BYU at San Diego State has the potential to be more interesting.
Week 10 - New Mexico at TCU: BYU at Wyoming will be a good enough game to go out of your way to watch, but this could be more important as TCU’s letdown sandwich game between Utah and BYU.
Week 11 - TCU at BYU:
Each team will only have four days to prepare for the Thursday night showdown. If TCU beats Utah on October 18th, it should effectively be able to wrap up the title with a win over the Cougars.
Week 12 - New Mexico at Utah: Utah can’t be looking ahead to BYU while New Mexico could close out the year on a run with UNLV at home to finish.
Week 13 - Utah at BYU: Even if TCU has the title won, this will still be worth watching if only to hope it’s half as good as last year’s last-second thriller. This might be the nation’s best unnoticed rivalry.

Friday, June 22, 2007

Analyzing the '07 schedule, predicting the outcomes.

9/1 BAYLOR- the Bears will bring a hungry, but sadly under-talented, under-experienced team to Fort Worth for the season opener. Coach Patterson's game-plan will feature running, short passes, and more running, as he breaks Marcus Jackson into the starting role under center, and Andy Dalton takes his first college snaps; Coach P won't want to give anything away for Texas's scout team, either- not that anyone is sure TCU's new QBs could handle difficult plays, anyway. TCU's marquee defense will stifle Baylor; Frogs win with a low score.
9/8 at Texas- Not since Texas Tech came to town early last year has an opponent fired the competitive juices in Fort Worth like the Longhorns. TCU will turn in a tremendous defensive performance, and might pull off an upset. A Frog win would be just that, however: an upset. More likely, Colt McCoy will find just enough room to lead a balanced attack, and will win a close game. Horns win with a close, and probably low, score.
9/13 at Air Force- On four days' rest, the Frogs begin conference play at Colorado Springs, facing their second veteran quarterback of the season, Shawn Carney. Air Force's rebuilt offense won't find any traction against the Frogs' defense, however, which will have Carney on his back time and time again. Either Jackson will cement his starting role with a solid performance, or lose it to Dalton, who will have pressured Jackson in every game so far. In the first case, Frogs will easily. In the second case, Frogs win in another low scoring tilt.
9/22 SMU- As Tech learned last year, nothing motivates TCU like revenge, and the Frogs' kitchen has embarassingly been short one iron skillet for two years too many. SMU will bring a good crowd, but they'll have nothing to cheer about. TCU blasts SMU relentlessly.
9/29 COLORADO STATE- If winning generates momentum, TCU will have plenty of it by now. Sonny Lubick's Rams will come to Amon Carter Stadium for their second time, and their second slaughter in Cowtown. TCU wins in style.
10/6 at Wyoming- TCU will fly to Laramie ranked again, and Wyoming either will be ranked also, or flirting with the polls, having upset Boise State a few weeks earlier. The Frogs win this one, but barely. Jeff Ballard's toughest game as a new starter came in Wyoming; Jackson or Dalton's toughest as a newbie under center will be there, too.
10/13 at Stanford- The bottom-feeder of the PAC 10 will consider breaking its contract for a second game with TCU before this one's over; TCU will decimate the Cardinals.
10/18 UTAH- On a short week, Utah and TCU will square off in a battle to each others' strengths: the Utes will bring a national top-five offense to Fort Worth, facing the Frogs' national top-five defense. If Utah has won two or three of its non-conference games, this will be a clash of titans. The Frogs are likely to win in a close, hard-fought game.
11/3 NEW MEXICO- Like Wyoming, New Mexico may surprise in the Mountain West this year, especially after their re-tooled offense and offensive line gels. They won't be able to surprise the Horned Frogs, however, who will be well rested, and will turn in their first complete game against the a bowl team, winning by a large margin.
11/8 at Brigham Young- The Cougars are in a similar position as TCU and Utah: if they can win most of their non-conference matches, they'll garner a great deal of media attention. If BYU and TCU bring significant winning streaks to this game, the match-up may be the most anticipated game in MWC history. If the game features two unbeaten teams, then a BCS berth, and unbelieving discussion about a national title will echo from the Wasatch Front. Both teams will boast first-season, but very experienced quarterbacks, strong lines, and budding stars. Expect an emotional triumph, but don't expect a score prediction from me this far out from the contest.
11/17 UNLV- TCU wins this one easily, and Mike Sanford's seat begins to get warmer than its Las Vegas surroundings...
11/24 at San Diego State- TCU finishes the regular season with another win, although it may be more difficult to come by than last season's record-setting demolition of the Aztecs.
BOWL- TCU, if 10-2, will tie for first place in the conference, and likely play in the Armed Forced Bowl against Arizona, UCLA, or Oregon. The Frogs will win, and finish the season ranked between 14 and 21.

Monday, June 11, 2007

'07 early honors and watch-lists


Athlon lists TCU's defensive front seven the pre-season's best;
O-lineman Matty Lindner is on the Outland Trophy watchlist;
DEs Chase Ortiz and Tommy Blake are listed on the Nagurski, Hendricks, and Bednarik watchlists;
Tommy Blake is Dave Campbell's Texas Football defensive player of the year, and is on the Lott and Lombardi watchlists.
Blake, Ortiz, Brian Bonner, Jason Phillips, Matty Lindner and Chris Manfredini made DCTF's first-team all-Texas college team, and David Hawthorne made the second team. Bonner made the second special team as well.

Monday, June 4, 2007

the freshmen check in

Today is the day for freshmen to report for summer drills. Of a handful of signees whose prospective enrollment is questionable, Tekerrein Cuba, is confirmed on campus today, as well as the all-star recruit in 2007, Jerome Kerley. The presence of a highly anticipated signee for the interior of the defensive line, Braylon Broughton, has been confirmed.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Rank the '07 opponents

Two KF.C regulars rank TCU's 2007 opponents.
Lindy's views them in this order:

5 Texas, 44 BYU, 45 Utah, 65 SMU, 69 Wyoming, 72 New Mexico, 75 Baylor, 79 Stanford, 83 Colorado State, 93 Air Force, 9 San Diego State, 102 UNLV.

Like KillerFrog-in-the-Kitchen-Sink, it seems odd to the Wimple to rank SMU-- at home!-- higher than Wyoming and San Diego State. Both are road games, and in '05 when they were last road games, both teams played TCU very tough.

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Sorting the MWC: Kings of the Mountain

The usual suspects will vye for supremacy in the Mountain West next season: TCU, BYU, and Utah. The Horned Frogs and Cougars both bring new quarterbacks to play behind seasoned lines (Max Hall at BYU, either Marcus Jackson or Andy Dalton at TCU). TCU returns nine starters in its leage-best defense, and will be the only one of the three to start the season ranked. Brian Johnson returns under center for the Utes, who will probably boast one of the nation's best offenses.

None of these teams play each other before Columbus Day. Utah must travel to Fort Worth and Provo. BYU hosts both TCU and Utah. Each of these games will be tremendous contests.

Utah has the toughest OOC schedule, playing Washington State, UCLA, Louisville. While the Utes can win them all, they'll more likely split them. BYU gets rising Pac-10 challengers UCLA and Arizona in its schedule, and will likely split those as well- but two wins is not out of the question. TCU faces Texas in early September- a win in Austin would be a memorable upset.

Most likely these three conference giants will all end up 10-2 or so. However, if any one of them has only one loss, they may win a BCS berth. If any one of them goes undefeated, a BCS bowl is certain.

Sorting the MWC: Pushing for a Bowl

Last season's adjustment in schedule lengths and bowl-eligibility made seven the new six: non-BCS teams are unlikely to go bowling unless they have seven wins. The Mountain West has ties to only four bowls, meaning five teams are likely to sit at home for Christmas, unless they can come up with seven wins, making them more eligible for an at-large bid than a 6-6 BCS team.

Which MWC teams are likely to get seven or more wins this year? TCU, BYU, and Utah are all but certain to. UNLV, SDSU and Air Force are all but certain not to. In the mushy middle sit Wyoming, New Mexico, and Colorado State. Of the three, Wyoming seems the most likely to achieve seven wins: Virginia, Utah State, Ohio, and Boise State are all winnable OOC games for the Cowboys. In conference, a .500 record is a possibility. Wyoming's tight defense is probably going to be improved in '07, and their star QB, Karsten Sween, won't be so shiney and new.

New Mexico also returns a rising star at QB- Donovan Porterie- but will be building a new offensive line to protect him and Rodney Ferguson, a terrific runningback. Look for the Lobos to start the year slowly.

Colorado State hopes Kyle Bell's return will spur new life into its offense, which went lifeless in the second half last year. Coach Lubick, who is feeling heat, is trying to get more physical play from his team. If he gets it, the Rams will be bowling again in 2007.

Look for Wyoming to place fourth or tie for third in conference, with New Mexico and Colorado State coming in next.

Sorting the MWC: bottom feeders

MWC teams can be categorized into three groups heading into 2007: teams for whom 2nd place will feel like a let-down (TCU, BYU, Utah); teams for whom missing a bowl will feel like a letdown (Wyoming, New Mexico, and maybe Colorado State), and teams hoping to avoid last-place (Air Force, San Diego State, UNLV).

UNLV and SDSU have grovelled at the bottom of the league since its foundation. Second-year coach Tom Craft's Aztecs appear lively, and may surprise Arizona State or Cincinnati, and enter conference play with a .500 record. UNLV, on the other hand, seems likely to start conference play with only one win, against Utah State. Once conference play is underway, SDSU appears more likely to cull a few wins and may flirt with bowl eligibility.

Air Force and Colorado State both ended last season in a tailspin. Runningback Kyle Bell returns to the Rams, however, making it more likely that Colorado State will produce an upswing than Air Force, which has the league's only new coach, and is installing a new offense.

The Wimple predicts SDSU, Air Force, and UNLV will fill out the bottom three in 2007.

Remembering the 2006 football season...

TCU 17, Baylor 7
TCU 46, UC-Davis 13
TCU 12, Texas Tech 3
BYU 31, TCU 17
Utah 20, TCU 7
TCU 31, Army 17
TCU 26, Wyoming 3
TCU 25, UNLV 10
TCU 27, New Mexico 21
TCU 52, San Diego State 0
TCU 45, Colorado State 14
TCU 38, Air Force 14
TCU 37, NIU 7

Football Preview Season

'Tis the season for football previews. Here're several already out for TCU or the MWC, with commentary:
CFN's mammoth preview of the MWC, team by team, position by position, etc. is now out. It's a little too TCU and BCS centered, believe it or not, but it's got lots of good information.
The most thorough TCU preview is ESPN's Blue Ribbon preview (there's one for every D1 team).
Here's one listener's review of Coach Patterson speech at the Fort Worth Rotary Club in July.
KF.C's David May previews the team for spring practices.
Feisty's depth-chart after spring drills, and another look with recruiting in mind.
SMQ: oddly, SMQ treats Jackson as the only game in town for QB at TCU. He does discuss the top three in the league with more insight than most other commentators, combined. Also SMQ on SMU, BYU, Baylor, Wyoming, Texas, and others as they come.
ESPN: a team-by-team blurb through the MWC; QB battle, Hodge, Brown, O-Line and receivers highlighted.
ESPN, again: two three-part story-lines for the MWC. TCU gets both first mentions-- will the Frogs follow Boise State to the BCS? How powerful will the re-loading go this year?
ESPN, yet again: a focus piece on Tommy Blake and Chase Ortiz
Athlon: ranks TCU at 25, with a short preview.
Lindy's ranks TCU at 15, with a short preview, and speculates that one loss to Texas shouldn't keep the Frogs out of the BCS.
USA Today/CBS.Sportsline: spring report; highlights the QB battle, Hodge, Stewart, Young.
CollegeFootballNews (and Fox Sports) has previews up for BYU, Utah, San Diego State and UNLV. As they're posted, each preview for Colorado State, Air Force, Wyoming, New Mexico, TCU, Baylor, UT, Stanford, and SMU will be linked to each school's name in this list.
Yahoo sports previews the top ten toughest road schedules, naming Utah, TCU, and BYU to the list.
Rivals previews TCU ranking 33, citing primarily non-BCS status and a new QB for the low position.