TCU Dominates Oklahoma State, 38-13; Frogs Host Arizona on November 23

TCU junior linebacker Deaven Deal (#11) and the TCU defense held Oklahoma State quarterback Alan Bowman and the Cowboys' offense to 13 points, their lowest scoring game of the 2024 season.

By Tom C. "Midnite" Burke

That loud, collective sigh of relief you heard coming from Stadium Drive in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday, November 9, came from TCU Athletics Director Jeremiah Donati and TCU football coach Sonny Dykes.

Donati’s and Dykes’ profound relief was the result of TCU’s 38-13 win over Oklahoma State in Amon G. Carter Stadium, before an announced crowd of 45,348, and on Sonny’s birthday.

The win over the Okie Cowboys improved TCU’s overall 2024 season record to 6-4, which means that the Horned Frogs are bowl-eligible for the first time since the 2022 season.

And it means that Dykes received a memorable gift on his 55th birthday.

“That’s big. Getting bowl eligible is big for our program,” Dykes said after the win. “We’re still trying to develop a little bit of an identity. It’s been a bit of big swings and we don’t want that to be the case long term.”

Bowl eligibility for the Frogs means less heat on Donati and Dykes from frustrated and perplexed TCU donors and fans who only two years ago were enjoying the Frogs’ magical journey to college football’s national championship game, but who had to tolerate a bowl-less season last year and ugly losses this season to in-state rivals SMU, Houston and Baylor.

Since TCU is basically out of the race for the Big 12 title game, bowl eligibility also is a nice consolation prize for the Horned Frogs.

Early bowl projections have TCU playing in one of these bowl games:

• Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl, in Amon G. Carter Stadium, in Fort Worth, Texas, on December 27
• First Responder Bowl, in Ford Stadium, in Dallas, on January 3, 2025
• Autozone Liberty Bowl, in Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, in Memphis, Tennessee, on December 27
• TaxAct Texas Bowl, in NRG Stadium, in Houston, Texas, on December 31
• Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl, Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana, on December 28

With the win over the Cowboys, TCU bounced back from a gut-wrenching, last-second 37-34 loss to the despised Baylor Bears, on November 2, in Waco. The Frogs, who have won three of their last four games, improved to 4-3 in the Big 12 Conference. TCU’s road and home records are each 3-2.

Here are the results of the other Big 12 games played on Saturday, November 9:

• West Virginia 31 (5-4, 4-2) at Cincinnati 24 (5-4, 3-3)
• Iowa State 36 (7-2, 4-2) at Kansas 45 (3-6, 2-4)
• Colorado 41 (7-2, 5-1) at Texas Tech 27 (6-4, 4-3)
• UCF 31 (4-6, 2-5)  at Arizona State 35 (7-2, 4-2)
• BYU (9-0, 6-0) 22 at Utah (4-5, 1-5) 21
• Baylor (bye) (5-4, 3-3)
• Houston (bye) (4-5, 3-3)
• Kansas State (bye) (7-2, 4-2)
• Arizona (bye) (3-6, 1-5)

The first ranking for the 12-team College Football Playoff was revealed Tuesday (November 5) night. The top 12 teams are:

1. Oregon
2. Ohio State
3. Texas
4. Penn State
5. Indiana
6. BYU
7. Tennessee
8. Notre Dame
9. Miami
10. Alabama
11. Ole Miss
12. Georgia

See the entire rankings: here

In this week’s USA TODAY Sports Week 12 Ranking of 134 Division 1 football teams, TCU is 53rd, six spots better than the Frogs’ 59th ranking after their loss to Baylor.

See this week’s USA TODAY Sports Week 12 Ranking of 134 Division 1 football teams: here

The Frogs are tied with Texas Tech for fourth place in the Big 12. BYU, 6-0, is in first place. Colorado, 5-1, is in second place. Arizona State, Iowa State, Kansas State and West Virginia are tied for third place, with 4-2 conference records.

TCU has a bye on Saturday, November 16. The Frogs’ next game is on Saturday, November 23, against the University of Arizona, in Amon G. Carter Stadium, in Fort Worth, Texas. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 pm (Central). No major TV station wanted the game, so it will be televised on ESPN+.

Coming off a Big 12 championship-game appearance last season (a 49-21 loss to Texas), Oklahoma State lost its seventh consecutive game of the 2024 season, after opening the season with three straight non-conference wins. The Cowboys, at 0-7 in Big 12 games, are the conference’s last-place team.

OSU has a bye on Saturday, November 16. Oklahoma State’s next game is on Saturday, November 23, against Texas Tech, in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Oklahoma State’s seven-game losing streak is the program’s worst since the 2000 season. During their losing streak, the Cowboys have allowed at least 38 points in six straight games.

The loss to the Frogs means that the Cowboys’ bowl streak will be snapped at 18 consecutive years and guarantees that coach Mike Gundy will have a losing season for the first time since 2005, when he debuted as OSU’s head coach.

Saturday's game marked the 34th meeting between Oklahoma State and TCU, with the series dating to 1915. OSU owns a 17-15-2 all-time series advantage.

Since beginning Big 12 play in 2012, TCU is 6-6 against Oklahoma State with a 5-1 record in Fort Worth.

TCU has won two games in a row versus the Cowboys, and five of the last seven games between the two teams.

The last time that TCU and Oklahoma State met was on October 15, 2022, in Fort Worth. The 13th-ranked Frogs rallied from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit for a 43-40 double-overtime win over the eighth-ranked Cowboys.

The Saturday of the game between the Frogs and Cowboys was billed as a “Hail All Heroes” Gameday, featuring:

• First Responders appreciation
• TCU Police Department members leading the Frog Walk
• Members of the Fort Worth Fire, Police, MedStar and TCU Police Department participating during the National Anthem
• K9 Unit recognition

The heroes of the game were members of the TCU defense.

Against Oklahoma State, junior safety Bod Clark and TCU senior linebackers Johnny Hodges, a transfer from Navy, and Namdi Obiazor led a Horned Frogs' defense that bounced back from the loss to Baylor, during which the TCU defense could not protect several TCU leads.

The TCU defense protected leads over Oklahoma State of 3-0, 10-0, 17-0, 24-0 at halftime, 31-6, 31-13 and 38-13.

TCU’s defense shut out the Cowboys in the first half, during which the Frogs held Oklahoma State's offense to under 100 total yards. It was the third time this season that TCU has held an opponent scoreless in the first half of a game. 

In the second half, OSU was held to two touchdowns. The 13 points the Pokes scored were the least points they have scored in a game this season.

The Horned Frogs’ defense recorded three turnovers -- two interceptions and a forced fumble and recovery. It was the first time TCU had three takeaways in a game since its 2022 College Football Playoff Semifinal 51-45 win over Michigan in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.

Clark and Obiazor had a team-best eight tackles and Clark had an interception and a forced fumble. Clark's eight tackles were one shy of a career-high nine against Colorado last season. His second interception of the season was the ninth of his career, most among active Horned Frogs.

The fumble that Clark forced was recovered by senior safety Abe Camara.

Hodges had five tackles. He also was credited with a half of a tackle for loss.

True freshman edge rusher Travis Jackson had his first career interception, with a 22-yard return, in addition to his first career sack, which resulted in a 23-yard loss

Senior defensive lineman NaNa Osafo-Mensah, a transfer from Notre Dame, recorded his second sack of the season.

Junior linebacker Devean Deal, a transfer from Tulane, had a tackle for loss to give him a team-best 7.5 on the year.

Oklahoma State’s offense did have some success against TCU’s defense.

Cowboys quarterback Alan Bowman completed 19-of-29 passes for 141 yards and one touchdown.

OSU senior wide receiver Brennan Presley caught 10 passes for 75 yards to become Oklahoma State’s all-time leading pass-catcher, with 297 career receptions. Presley surpassed a school record that had been set by Rashaun Woods in 2003.

Redshirt junior wide receiver De'Zhaun Stribling caught seven passes for 101 yards. He caught one touchdown pass, an eight-yard scoring toss in the fourth quarter.

Oklahoma State junior running back Ollie Gordon II rushed 25 times for 121 yards against the Horned Frogs. It was Gordon's third 100-yard rushing performance of the 2024 season.

Gordon scored one rushing touchdown, on a two-yard run in the third quarter.

Howland added 47 yards on eight carries, and Sesi Vailahi had one reception for 14 yards.

Presley led the Cowboys in catches with 75 yards on 10 catches, and De’Zhaun Stribling had 101 yards on seven grabs with a touchdown.

Brennan Presley led Oklahoma State (3-7, 0-7) with eight catches for 63 yards. His eight catches gave him 70 this season and 294 in his career.

TCU’s offense made sure that TCU’s defensive performance would be rewarded, scoring early and consistently throughout the game.

TCU scored on six of its first seven possessions. The Horned Frogs didn’t punt until halfway through the fourth quarter. Before that, they only failed to score on their second possession, when a field goal attempt sailed wide right.

TCU sophomore quarterback Josh Hoover led TCU’s offense, which is among the five most productive in the nation.

Hoover completed 26-of-35 passes for 286 yards and a touchdown. He did not throw an interception and was sacked only once. In the first half alone, Hoover completed 20 of his 27 attempts for 217 yards and two touchdowns.

Senior wide receiver JP Richardson, who transferred to TCU from Oklahoma State prior to the 2023 season, caught seven passes for 100 yards, his third career 100-yard receiving game. Richardson has at least one reception in 37 consecutive games, tying for the seventh-longest streak in the nation.

Senior wide receiver Jack Bech, a transfer from LSU and who is on the watch list for college football's Fred Biletnikoff Award, had 59 yards receiving on five catches, leaving him 18 yards shy of becoming the sixth player in TCU history with a 1,000-yard receiving season.

Senior wide receiver Savion Williams had seven receptions for 52 yards. He scored two touchdowns, one on a six-yard catch and another on a one-yard run. It is the second time in the last three games Williams has had a receiving and rushing touchdown in the same game.

Williams has a career-high six receiving touchdowns this season and 14 in his career, tops among active Horned Frogs. The touchdown run was Williams' second of the season and of his career.

The Horned Frogs rushed for a season-high 175 yards, on 28 carries.

Sophomore running back Cam Cook rushed seven times for 47 yards and two touchdowns, on runs of 18 and 4 yards, to give him a team-best eight TD runs on the season. It was Cook's second career game with multiple scores.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Jordyn Bailey caught two passes for 11 yards, but his most important contribution was on his one run in the game, which resulted in a career-long 59-yard touchdown. It is the second straight week that Bailey has scored a touchdown.

Junior wide receiver Eric McAlister, who is a transfer from Boise State and who is on the watch list for college football's Fred Biletnikoff Award, made his first start as a Horned Frog and had three catches for 41 yards.

True freshman Kyle Lemmerman's 32-yard field goal to cap TCU’s opening drive of the game was his fifth consecutive made attempt. Later in the game he missed a 44-yard field goal attempt.

• Highlights of TCu-Oklahoma State game: here
• Box score of TCU-Oklahoma State game: here 
• Dykes talks about TCU's win over Oklahoma State: here
• Hoover, Clark, Richardson and Williams discuss TCU's win over Oklahoma State: here 
• Gundy talks about Oklahoma State's loss to TCU: here

Arizona Wildcats Headed to Fort Worth

The game between TCU and Arizona on Saturday, November 23, is TCU’s final home game of the 2024 season. It will be Senior Day and Fan Appreciation Day.

It also will be the first game between the Horned Frogs and Wildcats with both teams as members of the Big 12 Conference.

This is Arizona’s inaugural season in the Big 12, after playing in the Pac-12 Conference for decades. Arizona joined the Big 12 on August 2, 2024, alongside Arizona State University, the University of Colorado and the University of Utah, to bring the total number of teams in the conference to 16. 

TCU played Utah earlier this season, winning 13-7. The Frogs played Colorado in 2022 and 2023, prior to the Buffaloes joining the Big 12.

TCU does not play Arizona State this season.

TCU and Arizona have played each other twice, with each team winning a game.

The last time the two teams met was on September 27, 2003, in Tucson, Arizona. Nineteenth-ranked TCU won, 13-10, in overtime, when Nick Browne kicked a 33-yard field goal.

The first time the Frogs and Cats met was on September 5, 1999, in Fort Worth, Texas. Arizona won, 35-31, when the Wildcats scored the winning touchdown with 2:10 remaining in the game, to complete an 18-point comeback.

Brent Brennan is Arizona's head football coach. He was named Arizona's head coach in January of 2024, following seven seasons leading the San José State University football program. He steered the Spartans to three bowl game appearances and earned 2020 Mountain West Coach of the Year honors. 

Arizona is 4-6 overall, 2-5 in the Big 12, in Brennan's first season with the 'Cats. Arizona is 3-3 at home and 1-3 on the road. 

The Wildcats got their latest win on Friday, November 15, when they returned from a bye week and beat the University of Houston, 27-3, in Tucson. The score included a 62-yard field goal by Arizona kicker Tyler Loop.

Arizona's wins:

• New Mexico, at home, 61-39
• Northern Arizona, at home, 22-10
• Utah, away, 23-10
• Houston, at home, 23-7

Arizona's losses:

• Kansas State, away, 31-7
• Texas Tech, at home, 28-22
• BYU, away, 41-19
• Colorado, at home, 34-7
• West Virginia, at home, 31-26
• UCF, away, 56-12

Arizona started the season ranked 21st in the nation. After their first game of the season, the Wildcats improved to 20th. After their third game of the season, a 21-7 loss to 14th- ranked Kansas State, in Manhattan, Kansas, Arizona dropped out of the top 25.

In the USA TODAY Sports Week 12 Ranking of 134 Division 1 football teams, the Wildcats are ranked 104th.

Arizona's offensive numbers:

• Points per game: 22.60
• Total yards per game: 371
• Passing yards per game: 256.20
• Rushing yards per game: 114.80
• Total passing touchdowns: 15
• Total rushing touchdowns:
• Sacks allowed: 24
• Interceptions thrown: 11

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Noah Fifita (#11) leads Arizona's offense. He has completed 217-of-357 passes. He has thrown 15 touchdowns passes and 11 interceptions. He has a long pass completion of 78 yards.

The Wildcats' leading receiver is junior wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (#4). He has caught 69 passes, including seven touchdown passes. He is averaging 113.60 receiving yards per game.

Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Chris Hunter (#16) has caught 24 passes, including one touchdown pass.

Junior tight end Keyan Burnett (#88) has caught 18 passes, including one touchdown pass.

Redshirt junior wide receiver Jeremiah Patterson (#2) and redshirt junior tight end Sam Olson (#84) each have caught two touchdown passes.

Senior running back Quali Conley (#7), who is a transfer from San Jose State, leads Arizona's rushing attack. He has rushed 127 times for 677 yards. He is averaging 67.70 rushing yards per game. He has scored eight rushing touchdowns and has a long run of 58 yards.

Sophomore running back Kedrick Reescano (#3), who is a transfer from Ole Miss, has rushed 64 time for 293 yards. He has one rushing touchdown and a long run of 56 yards.

Arizona's defensive numbers:

• Points per game allowed: 28.30
• Total yards per game allowed: 387.9
• Passing yards per game allowed: 220.30
• Rushing yards per game allowed: 167.60
• Total passing touchdowns allowed: 17
• Total rushing touchdowns allowed: 16
• Sacks: 15
• Interceptions: 7
  

Redshirt junior defensive back Dalton Johnson (#43) is Arizona's leading tackler. He has 70 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss. He has two pass breakups and two forced fumbles.

Sophomore linebacker Taye Brown (#6) has 57 tackles, including two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. He has two pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

Junior linebacker Jacob Manu (#5) has 47 tackles, including two tackles for loss. He has two pass breakups and a fumble recovery.

Redshirt junior defensive lineman Tre Smith (#3), who is a transfer from San Jose State, has 44 tackles, including 6.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. He also has been credited with 10 quarterback-hurries, and a forced fumble.

Junior defensive lineman Ta'ita'i Uiagalelei (#46) has 5.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks and seven quarterback-hurries.

Sophomore defensive back Genesis Smith (#12) has intercepted three passes.

Redshirt freshman Jack Luttrell (#13), a transfer from Tennessee, has two interceptions.

Senior defensive back Owen Goss (#27), who is a transfer from Colgate, has forced three fumbles and recovered two fumbles.

Freshman punter Michael Salgado-Medina (#19) has punted 29 times. He is averaging 44.17 yards per punt. He has a long punt of 71 yards. He has not had a punt blocked.

Senior kicker Tyler Loop (#33)has made 16-of-20 field goal attempts. His long field goal of 62 yards came against the University of Houston, in Arizona's game in Tuscon on November 15. He has not had a field goal attempt blocked. 

TCU is an early 9.5-point favorite over the Wildcats.

The over-under for total points scored in the game is 57.5.

Dykes talks about Arizona: link to be determined

Brennan talks about TCU: link to be determine.