What Did We Learn From TCU Baseball's Wins Over Ranked SEC Powerhouses?

After climbing to #7 in the latest rankings following wins over two ranked SEC teams, what did we really learn about the Horned Frogs after opening weekend?

TCU Horned Frogs Players pregame against the Vanderbilt Commodores on 02/14/2026 | Brian McLean, OnAssignment/TCU On SI

Welcome back to another edition of What Did We Learn. With the return of the football season, my weekly article returns, a two-year-long tradition now. At the end of every weekend, I release my weekly "what did we learn"—an opinionated editorial detailing what Frog fans can take away from the week before that might not appear in the box score.

Opening weekend of college baseball. Another season, another chance, for the pre-season #10TCU Horned Frogs to finally be the team to dogpile on the mound at the end of the season in Omaha. With a new season, though, come new expectations and a new roster that must fulfill the lofty goals placed upon them.

So now, one weekend into the season, after a 2-1 finish for the Horned Frogs that included two top-25 wins (one of them a top-10 win) and a loss to an unranked team that was called via run rule, what did the first three games of the season tell us about this team?

No overreactions

This is important. You, the reader, must take heed of the words that you are about to read. Do not overreact to the first three games of the season. Sure, it's fun to announce after two ranked wins that you are already looking at hotels in Omaha. Or, after the loss via run-rule, this team isn't cut out to make the College World Series.

Maybe there is a truth to one. Perhaps both are correct, or maybe neither is accurate. One thing is for sure, though, from opening weekend. This 2026 team has the "it" factor. They have the gusto, the gumption, the confidence, or whatever you want to call it. They can play, and they know they can. Don't take my word for it, even freshman shortstop Lucas Franco said a Vanderbilt pitcher got lucky after he just missed a homerun, and then proceeded to get one on his next at-bat.

Both Friday and Saturday were gutsy, one-run wins where they struggled at the plate at times, but also found their moment and made it theirs. The same story can be said on the mound—moments of near collapse that were rectified after taking a deep breath.

#10 TCU opening game vs #23 Vanderbilt at Shiners Children's College Showdown, Jack Bell makes play. | On Assignment, Brian McLean for KillerFrogs.com | TCU On SI

Then you get to Sunday. In what was effectively the championship of the weekend, a 2-0 Frogs team against a 2-0 Oklahoma Sooners team. For Kirk Saarloos and his squad, the game got away from them. There were some early mistakes on the mound from pitchers making their season debuts, including Game Three starter Lance Davis in his first collegiate appearance.

None of that is enough to cause worry. There were a few problems with walks and a few strikeouts at the plate. Overall, though, if you had been told before the weekend that TCU would go 2-1 in the opening weekend against two ranked SEC teams, you would have taken that every time.

No team is going to be undefeated all season; it just isn't possible. However, this team proved they have the grit, they have the talent, and, more importantly, they have the mental fortitude to close out games, another step in the right direction as the young breakout players from last year mature into sophomore stars.

Baseball is a long season, and with an impending weekend series against the number one team in the country, UCLA, the Frogs have given fans confidence, and more importantly, themselves confidence after their performance this weekend.