What Did We Learn From Football's Spring Camp - Offense Edition

Which group impressed? Which group has me worried? Now that the spring practices have concluded, here are my thoughts and grades.

TCU QB Josh Hoover against Oklahoma State / Tony Beblowski, KillerFrogs

After a 9-4 season, the TCU Horned Frogs ripped off four straight wins to conclude the season, including a dominant 34-3 bowl win. Now, with both coordinators returning, Head Coach Sonny Dykes likes where his team is, saying they get to work on "physicallity, rather than learning a system". So after the spring practices concluded, I felt it was fair to take inventory of the roster and go over where each group sits, just three and a half months away from fall camp.

TCU Quarterbacks in Spring Camp

Don't get it twisted. This is Josh Hoover's team, and nothing will change that, not even Tennessee offering him a million more in NIL. With that said, Ken Seals had a great spring camp. He looked comfortable in the system and was direct with his decision making, to a point where if this team were to, heaven forbid, lose Hoover to injury, fans could feel comfortable in Seals at the helm.

Another thing to mention was freshman Adam Schobel, the legacy player, who impressed me on the field. He is big, fast, and looks the part. His arm strength is there, and with some time tuning his accuracy to the speed of a college wide receiver, he will be a great future player for this team. I was getting Casey Paschall vibes watching him on the field.

TCU QB. A. . . TCU QB Room

TCU Running Backs in Spring Camp

The RB room in Fort Worth will be tricky to navigate throughout fall camp and might even bleed some into the beginning of the season. Each back provides a different value, evident in spring camp. Nate Palmer has a remarkable ability to get downhill and had some good runs with the first team, while Kevorian Barnes was great catching passes out of the backfield. Jeremy Payne can do both at a high level, but doesn't excel at one more than the other. Trent Battle, the veteran, has the trust of the coaching staff and the team and will provide the leadership that an otherwise young position group needs.

After a disappointing season last year in the running game, Sonny Dykes talked about trying to find consistency this season, rather than one off explosive plays. All the backs can provide explosiveness and showed it last season, but will they find consistency? Only time will tell.

TCU RB. B -. . . TCU RB Room

TCU Wide Receivers in Spring Camp

In what will be massive shoes to fill compared to last year's receivers' core, Head Coach Sonny Dykes went out and got two players from the transfer portal to fill the exact positions they would need to replace.

Joseph Manjack Jr. has the build and skill set similar to JPR from last season, and will fit into the slot for his ability to catch short passes in tight coverages. Jordan Dwyer, the Idaho transfer, will play where Bech was, but in a completely different way. Dwyer lacks Bech's size and physical catching ability, but makes up for it with a great route tree and an inept ability to create separation in pass-catching opportunities.

Eric McAlister, the explosive playmaker from last season, will return, and his connection with Josh Hoover was apparent in the spring already. Connecting on multiple deep passes shows off his ability to get deep behind coverage and be the actual deep threat TCU fans are used to watching.

This group is tough to predict because achieving what last year's room was able to produce will be tough to replicate, but the pieces are there, and with Hoover throwing the ball, I fully expect them to find success again.

TCU WR. B. . . TCU WR Room

TCU Tight Ends in Spring Camp

The Tight-end room is where I get the most excited for the season. Last season, I raved on social media about Drake Dabney and what he would bring to the offense, but due to the struggles on the offensive line, he was left to spend most of his time blocking to give time to Hoover or try to kickstart the running game.

Now, with what should be a revamped and better offensive line, Briles will be able to use the talent he has in the passing game. DJ Rogers and Ka'Morreun Pimpton, the LSU transfer, are both big-bodied and a physical presence on the field. Both players finished last season without eye-popping numbers, but were relatively underutilized in their passing game.

Rogers will be a big sit-down target in the middle of the field, and Pimpton has some really good speed for his size, which he showed off in the last spring practice for a 50+ yard touchdown.

Last season left much to be desired for the tight-end room, but this is primed to be the year TCU has a player put up numbers close to what Jared Wiley did in 2023.

. . TCU TE Room. TCU TE. A-

TCU Offensive Line in Spring Camp

Last season was odd; outside of Cade Bennett, there were minimal injuries to the offensive line, yet you rarely saw the same five play the entire game. I asked Coach Dyke's about it after a game halfway through the season, and he said they were still trying to find guys that would succeed, but fans never got to see that at any point.

The offensive line looked pretty good this spring and should give fans optimism for their performance this upcoming season. Bennett is back healthy, Coltin Deery lost some weight and slid back to the center position, and Carson Bruno and Remington Strickland will fill in the other guard position well. The tackles will be led by Ben Tayler-Whitifield, who should take a step forward this year, and the LT spot will be where the primary position battle takes place, with Ryan Hughes potentially getting the nod for now.

My main problem with the O-Line is the depth, or well, lack thereof. The second team struggled mightily throughout the spring practices, primarily because they are a younger group that is inexperienced and slightly below the size of typical college linemen. Now, this isn't to say they will be a problem in the future, but they might be a problem for now, and this could be something addressed in the portal. For now, however, I am high on the starting group, but worried if any injury were to occur.

TCU O-Line. TCU O-Line. C+. .

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There was a lot to take in this spring, and again, it was spring, so that things could change at the start of the fall camp, but for now, I like where the offense sits. They might take a step back from last season's production in the passing game, but they should pick up the slack in the running game. As long as Josh Hoover is at the helm, this offense should be among the top 25 in the country.

TCU kicks off the 2025 season in Chapel Hill, North Carolina against the Tar Heels on Monday, September 1 at 6:30 pm CT. The game can be seen on ESPN.

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