TCU Rolls to Home Opener Win over Abilene Christian

The Horned Frogs led wire to wire backed by a dominant night from Josh Hoover and the offense.

Sept. 13, 2025: TCU's Chase Curtis (81) and Ed Small celebrate a touchdown in their win over Abilene Christian. | Tony Beblowski/KillerFrogs

Football has finally returned to Amon G. Carter Stadium as 48,094 fans watched TCU defeat Abilene Christian 42-21. That number marks the second-largest crowd for a home opener in program history. Sonny Dykes also picked up his 100th career win.

Josh Hoover shines once again

TCU led from start to finish, and Josh Hoover was on a roll all night. The Horned Frogs took the opening kickoff 88 yards and capped it off with a touchdown pass to Chase Curtis. Hoover had three touchdown passes in the first half, and the freshman Ed Small was on the receiving end of two. Small had six catches for 45 yards on top of the two scores.

TCU's Josh Hoover and Ed Small celebrate a touchdown in their win over ACU. | X: @TCUFootball

Small said, "I have sneaky athleticism, but more importantly, I know the playbook well." The other touchdown pass went to Jordan Dwyer, who finished with five catches for 89 yards. The Idaho transfer has had a phenomenal start to the season and has developed instant chemistry with his QB.

Give him six, seven 🤷 pic.twitter.com/4QPn3fu4Ce

— TCU Football (@TCUFootball) September 14, 2025

Hoover's final stat line saw him complete 21 of his 27 passes for 337 yards and four touchdowns. His leading receiver was Joseph Manjack, who had his first career 100-yard game. Production like this could see him ascend the top quarterback rankings in the country.

Kevorian Barnes leaves with an injury

UTSA transfer running back Kevorian Barnes was the clear RB1 leaving the North Carolina game. His north and south running style was effective and led to a big game. He was used heavily on the first drive and finished with 10 carries for 43 yards.

However, he and DJ Rogers left the game with injuries. Barnes has an injury history, which was concerning for Frog fans. Coach Dykes provided reassurance postgame and said both players should be fine. He mainly took them out for precautionary reasons, with the game out of reach.

Trent Battle and Jon Denman each found the endzone. It was a balanced attack as five different players ran the ball for a total of 128 yards.

Team Comparisons	ACU	TCU
Time of Possesion	36:43	23:17
Total Yards	453	489
Passing Yards	276	361
Rushing Yards	177	128
Turnovers	0	1

TCU's defense stumbles in the second half

After a scoreless first half for the Wildcats, they scored 21 points behind a pair of touchdown passes from Stone Earle. JB Mitchell was their leading receiver as he caught five passes for 88 yards and a score.

It's safe to assume it was not the effort defensive coordinator Andy Avalos wanted from his unit in the second half. Coach Dykes said he was disappointed with the play of the cornerbacks tonight. He also mentioned that the team wasn't as focused as it was for UNC during practice this week.

“I didn’t think we were as focused and practiced as well as we did going into North Carolina.”

Sonny Dykes on TCU’s ACU preparation pic.twitter.com/DkhQoGLjto

— Nick Girimonte (@GirimonteNicky) September 14, 2025

It's hard to assess whether the defense simply took their foot off the gas in the second half or if there are future concerns about the personnel. They played a strong game against UNC but this second half against the Wildcats was worrisome. Defensive end Devean Deal took accountability and said "We have to be better in the second half especially heading into next week."

What's next for TCU?

Deal was right about having to clean up the mistakes quickly. The Iron Skillet will see its final installment for the immediate future next weekend as SMU rolls into town. The Mustangs are coming off a win over Missouri State and are 2-1.

TCU vs SMU kicks off next Saturday at 11 a.m. from Fort Worth. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

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