TCU
Horned Frogs
Preview 2009
By
Pete Fiutak
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2009 CFN TCU Preview |
2009 TCU Offense
-
2009 TCU Defense |
2009 TCU Depth
Chart
-
2008 TCU Preview |
2007 TCU Preview |
2006 CFN TCU
Preview
Head coach: Gary Patterson
9th year: 73-27
Returning Lettermen:
Off. 25, Def. 18, ST 3
Lettermen Lost: 21 |
Ten
Best TCU Players
1.
DE Jerry Hughes, Sr.
2.
CB Rafael Priest, Sr.
3. OT Marshall Newhouse, Sr.
4. WR
Jimmy Young, Jr.
5. LB Daryl Washington, Sr.
6. CB Nick
Sanders, Sr.
7. QB Andy Dalton, Jr.
8. WR/PR Jeremy
Kerley, Jr.
9/ FS Tejay Johnson, Jr.
10. OT Marcus
Cannon, Jr. |
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2009 Preview
CFN Prediction: 11-1
2009 Record: 0-0 9/5 OPEN DATE
9/12 at Virginia
9/19 Texas State
9/26 at Clemson
10/3 SMU
10/10 at Air Force
10/17 Colorado State
10/24 at BYU
10/31 UNLV
11/7 at San Diego State
11/14 Utah
11/21 at Wyoming
11/28 New Mexico |
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2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 9-3
2008 Record: 11-2
Aug. 30 at New Mexico
W 26-3
Sept. 6 Step. F. Austin W
67-7
Sept. 13 Stanford W 31-14
Sept. 20 at SMU W 48-7
Sept. 27 at Oklahoma L 35-10
Oct. 4 San Diego State W
41-7
Oct. 11 at Colorado St W
113-7
Oct. 16 BYU W 32-7
Oct. 25 Wyoming W 54-7
Nov. 1 at UNLV W 44-14
Nov. 6 at Utah L 13-10
Nov. 15
OPEN DATE
Nov. 22 Air Force W 44-10
Poinsettia Bowl
Dec. 23 Boise State W 17-16 |
Take a step back and take in just how truly amazing the 2007 TCU team
was. Only two teams scored more than 14 points against the defense,
Oklahoma (35) and Boise State (16), and seven teams scored just seven
points or fewer. The offense was almost perfectly balanced (220 rushing
yards per game, 201 passing), the punting game was the one statistical
weak spot, and that’s because 30 …
30 … kicks were put inside the 20, and the overall special teams
were among the best in the country.
Had Utah not gone on what had been called the greatest drive in school
history to pull off the win, TCU would’ve had a legitimate claim to
become the first non-BCS school to crack the BCS with a loss on the
résumé.
Take a step back and take in just how amazing TCU has been under head
coach Gary Patterson. Five double-digit win seasons in eight, the
seventh best record in college football over the last four years, and a
factory in place that appears to have reloaded enough to do it all
again.
Patterson and his staff have a tremendous knack for finding players who
don’t necessarily fit at other places and turning them into stars. For
example, superstar DE Jerry Hughes was a running back, the coaching
staff made him an end right away, and after a few years of seasoning,
boom, he’s an All-American. But can the program really overcome the loss
of 13 starters and still be as good as it was last year? Yes, and it
could be even better.
The offense was strong last season, and now it should be even more
explosive with receivers Jimmy Young and Jeremy Kerley leading a fast
group for solid veterans for Andy Dalton to throw to, and a good
rotation of backs to work behind a big, talented line. The special teams
should be among the best in America with no apparent weaknesses
whatsoever, and then there’s the defense.
There are huge replacements needing to be made at tackle, linebacker and
safety, but there are tremendous stars in place, like Hughes and corners
Rafael Priest and Nick Sanders, and new stars on the horizon, like LB
Daryl Washington, to get excited about, the production of the nation’s
No. 1 defense shouldn’t drop off too much.
The team had a bit of a spring in its step and a quiet confidence
throughout spring ball, and it’s expecting to be special this year. Will
this finally be the season TCU joins Utah, Hawaii, and Boise State on
the list of BCS busters? With the juggernaut Patterson has created, it’s
a possibility.
What to watch for on offense: As many as five backs in the
running rotation. Helped by running quarterbacks, TCU ran for 2,863
yards and 39 touchdowns. However, there will be production coming from
some of the receiver, QB Andy Dalton, and five running backs, Ryan
Christian, Joseph Turner, Chris Smith, Jai Caveness, and Edward Wesley,
who could rotate in and out when needed.
What to watch for on defense: Daryl Washington. The Horned Frogs
only use two linebackers, at least technically, with a weak safety
serving as a hybrid, and they lose two great ones in first-team
All-Mountain West performers Jason Phillips and Robert Henson. And in
comes Washington. The star reserve and spot starter from last year made
63 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, and 5.5 tackles for loss.
Now, one of the best athletes on the team is going to be all over the
place with his increased role.
The team will be far better if … the passing game is more
productive early on and in the big games. Only three of the team’s 14
touchdown passes came in the first seven games, and while it didn’t make
a difference considering the team went 6-1 in the span, there’s too much
pop at receiver to not do more. In the losses to Oklahoma and Utah, and
the razor-thin close calls against Boise State and Colorado State, the
passing game threw a total of zero touchdown passes with seven picks. In
the other nine games, TCU threw 14 scoring passes with one interception.
There were only three touchdown passes thrown in the first seven games
of the year.
The Schedule: The Horned Frogs start
the season a week after everyone else, and then it's game on with a trip
to Virginia to kick everything off. A Texas State layup will be a
tune-up before a showdown at Clemson that could turn out to be the
make-or-break moment early on in TCU's BCS dream. The games alternate
between home and on the road, but that might mean it could be hard to go
on a run. Going to Air Force and BYU will be a problem, but Utah has to
come to Fort Worth and getting two of the conference road games against
San Diego State and Wyoming is a huge bonus
Best Offensive Player:
Senior OT Marshall Newhouse. The longtime producer with 26 starts under
his belt will be among the best Mountain West blockers. TCU might have
some explosive players at receiver, and a strong playmaker in QB Andy
Dalton, but it’s Newhouse who’ll lead the talented line that’ll make
everything go.
Best Defensive Player: Senior DE Jerry Hughes. A one man wrecking crew at times throughout last
season, he pantsed BYU, was camped out in the backfield throughout the
first half of the season, and cranked it up when he had to in a game
like the Poinsettia Bowl battle, when he exploded for the big sack
needed late to seal the win. And here’s the scary part … he’s one of the
team’s hardest workers. He’s desperately doing everything he can to get
even better.
Key player to a successful season: The defensive tackles. While there isn’t too much of a concern after a
good spring, the biggest loss of all the big losses is in the middle of
the line where pass rushing terror Cody Moore is gone from one tackle
spot and the solid James Vess gone from another. There’s good potential
in Kelly Griffin, the undersized Wayne Daniels, and top recruit Jeremy
Coleman, and the spotlight will be on...
The season will be a success if
... the Horned Frogs win the Mountain West title. Getting to the BCS
will be the overall goal, but that might be asking for a bit too much
considering all the turnover on both sides of the ball and the road
games at Clemson and BYU. Winning the Mountain West isn’t anything to
sneeze at, and it’s the first step to being in the discussion for one of
the big 2010 games.
Key game: Oct. 24 at BYU. The Cougars are pointing to this game right now after
what happened last year. It should be an electric environment with the
excitement ramped up to 11 if the Horned Frogs are 6-6-0 with a win over
Clemson. With the Utah game in Fort Worth, this might be TCU’s biggest
obstacle to getting a Mountain West title.
2008 Fun Stats:
- Sacks: TCU 41 for 317 yards – Opponents 18 for 141 yards
- Rushing touchdowns: TCU 39 – Opponents 9
- Penalties: TCU 115 for 1,000 yards – Opponents 55 for 513 yards
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2009 CFN TCU Preview |
2009 TCU Offense
-
2009 TCU Defense |
2009 TCU Depth
Chart
-
2008 TCU Preview |
2007 TCU Preview |
2006 CFN TCU
Preview
|