TCU Horned Frogs
Big 12
Through four weeks this season, TCU was 4-0. Quarterback Casey Pachall had tallied 948 yards, ten touchdowns and just one, lone interception. Andy who? Then, prior to the October 6th Iowa State game, it was announced that Pachall would not play again this season after entering rehab for drug and alcohol treatment stemming from a DWI arrest. Since their 4-0 start, TCU then lost that many games in the next six weeks. The schedule certainly got harder as the Horned Frogs had five ranked opponents in their final six games, but losing their star quarterback certainly seemed to derail what was a promising first year in the Big 12 conference. Folks speculated before the year began that a previous mid-major such as TCU would struggle with the rigors of a full BCS conference schedule. That did in fact happen but it will take another year to figure out the true reason behind it.
2012 Record: 7-5, 4-5
Coach: Gary Patterson
Coach Bowl Record: 7-4
Big Wins: 10/13 at Baylor (49-21), 11/12 at Texas (20-13)
Bad Losses: 10/6 Iowa State (23-37), 10/20 Texas Tech (53-56)
Strengths:
Before the quarterback change, TCU’s signal caller was a game changer. His replacement, Trevone Boykin, has been…okay. Of course Boykin’s touchdown to interception ratio is closer to 1 to 1 as opposed to Pachall’s 10 to 1 rate. But no one expected the elite quarterback play to continue for long after the switch. Instead, TCU has had to rely on other aspects of their game, like their defense. Nationally, they were pretty good; but for a Big 12 team, TCU’s defense is superb, ranking at or near the top of the conference in total defense, pass efficiency defense and rush defense. Other than a couple overtime games, the Horned Frogs played well on that side of the ball all year long. Of course, much like QB play, the defense slipped noticeably either when Pachall left or when the schedule got tougher, depending on how you look at it. Other than that, TCU was very strong in the return game, namely on punts, tabulating one of the better averages in the nation.
Weaknesses:
The rest of this team left people clambering for the old, Mountain West days of TCU football. The rushing attack on offense was suspect for the entire season, imposing quarterback or not. With carries split between any number of players, including Boykin, no one back took control of the ground game and it suffered because of that. The other outcome of the quarterback change was the uncertainty in the passing game. Wide receivers were not as familiar with the replacement and the offensive line had to block for a different type of player. Thus, TCU was one of the worst teams in the Big 12 in sacks allowed at year’s end. It would have been fascinating to see how this team would have done with Casey Pachall behind center all year long. Their first year in a major conference, skeptics were ready to pounce on the Horned Frogs, saying they couldn’t handle it. Well, to start out, they were handling it rather impressively. Then, once the meat of the schedule was approaching, Pachall ran into his trouble. Would he have made a difference in traversing these last two months? Would TCU still have stumbled, proving doubters correct about them in the Big 12? Just like the program and the fans, everyone will have to wait until next year to find out which side the truth stood on.
Statistical Leaders:
Rushing: B.J. Catalon, RB, 562 yards
Passing: Trevone Boykin, QB, 1,853 yards
Receiving: Josh Boyce, WR, 800 yards
Tackles: Kenny Cain, LB, 74
Sacks: Devonte Fields, DE, 9.0
Interceptions: Jason Verrett, CB, 6
2012 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 161.00 (64th in nation, 8th in conference)
Passing Offense: 240.27 (55, 7)
Total Offense: 401.27 (64, 8)
Scoring Offense: 30.45 (53, 8)
Rushing Defense: 97.27 (7, 1)
Pass Defense: 226.64 (50, 4)
Total Defense: 323.91 (17, 1)
Scoring Defense: 23.00 (35, 2)
Turnover Margin: 0.36 (42, 4)
Sacks: 2.36 (36, 2)
Sacks Allowed: 2.09 (75, 9)
Recent Bowl Appearances:
2011 Poinsettia Bowl Louisiana Tech (31-24)
2010 Rose Bowl Wisconsin (21-19)
2009 Fiesta Bowl Boise State (10-17)
2008 Poinsettia Bowl Boise State (17-16)
2007 Texas Bowl Houston (20-13)
*all team stats through 11/24
