TCU Football: Horned Frogs Fall Flat in Home Loss to West Virginia
TCU resumed Big 12 play on Saturday with a black-out theme hosting the West Virginia Mountaineers. After a solid first half which saw the Frogs leading 21-14, everything went horribly wrong for the Frogs and fell to West Virginia 24-21.
The defense got off to a quick start forcing a three and out, and on the first drive, Chandler Morris fired a quick hitter to Oklahoma State transfer J.P. Richardson for a 59-yard touchdown to make it 7-0. West Virginia would respond when quarterback Garrett Greene ran 35 yards for a score.
Morris would have a big run of his own at the beginning of the second quarter as he cut up the left sideline for a 31-yard house call to give the lead back to the Frogs.
On their next offensive possession, TCU faced a 4th and 1 at the WV 16-yard line. A field goal would've put the Frogs up 17-7, but Sonny Dykes elected to go for it. The Mountaineers' defense held strong, and after the game, coach Dykes said, looking back on it, he wishes they would've kicked the field goal.
It was an absolute disaster for the Frogs in the second half. TCU was blanked and struggled to find any rhythm on offense. Greene tied it up for West Virginia, and a field goal with 2:49 left in the fourth quarter was all they needed. The Mountaineers also controlled the field position battle and set up inside TCU territory consistently.
It was also a rough day for kicker Griffin Kell who missed all three field goal attempts with two of them blocked, including the kick to tie the game with 30 seconds left. West Virginia also did a great job on defense making Morris uncomfortable all night long and prioritizing stopping the run. Emani Bailey ran 19 times for just 55 yards.
With the loss, TCU drops to 3-2, and their 10-game winning streak against the Big 12 in the regular season came to an end. West Virginia improves to 4-1.
On a side note, I feel it wouldn't be right to address all the injuries sustained by the Mountaineers. In particular, my thoughts and prayers go out to Aubrey Burks and Trey Lathan. They were both carted off the field, and it was heartbreaking to watch. Football is a rigorous sport, and no one ever likes to see that side of the game. We are all hoping for a speedy recovery.
TCU will hit the road to take on Iowa State next Saturday at 7 p.m.
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