The week after TCU’s “Battle of the Iron Skillet” win over SMU on September 20 and before the Frogs’ looming, important Big 12 Conference-opener in the desert against Arizona State, TCU quarterback Josh Hoover had to answer questions about how it felt to not be considered as a Heisman Trophy candidate this season.
Hoover won’t have to answer those types of questions again anytime soon, after his miserable performance led an epic meltdown by No. 24 TCU in a 27-24 upset loss to unranked Arizona State, on Friday, September 26.
The game was broadcast nationally by FOX Sports and witnessed by a black-out, sellout crowd of 53,774 in Mountain America Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. It was Arizona State’s third consecutive sellout crowd.
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| Tom C. "Midnite Burke |
Arizona State’s game-winning points came with 1:14 left in the game, on a 23-yard field goal by Jesus Gomez, who was two-of-four on field goal attempts in the game.
For his performance against the Frogs, the Big 12 Conference named Gomez Co-Special Teams Player of the Week.
Arizona State is 4-1 overall and in first place in the Big 12 at 2-0.
Hoover, who is TCU’s million-dollar quarterback but who resembled more of a Dollar-store type of quarterback against the Sun Devils, was a big reason why the Horned Frogs left Tempe with a bitter loss and near the bottom of the Big 12 Conference.
TCU is 3-1 overall and 0-1 in the Big 12.
TCU is 0-3 all-time against Arizona State. This was the teams’ first Big 12 game against each other.
Against Arizona State, Hoover exhibited limited mobility and scrambling ability, failed to see open receivers, forced throws into coverage, took sacks instead of throwing the football out of bounds, often failed to recognize the Sun Devils’ defensive alignment and their intentions, such as to blitz, and appeared to run out of gas with the game on the line.
Most damning from Hoover’s standpoint is that during the final two minutes of the game, on TCU’s final two possessions, when the Frogs had a chance to win or tie the game, the junior quarterback was intercepted during one offensive series and during another offensive series he lost a fumble when he inexcusably loosely held the football in his throwing hand while being sacked.
Hoover also was intercepted earlier in the game, so he coughed up the football three times against Arizona State. He has five turnovers through four games.
Hoover didn’t receive any help against Arizona State from the Frogs’ offensive line, which was overpowered by the faster, stronger defensive line of ASU.
The Sun Devils not only got six sacks, but also an incredible 13 tackles for loss, which were the most Arizona State had recorded in a game since 2018.
The Horned Frogs’ running game was pathetic. TCU had only 10 net rushing yards (75 yards gained, 65 yards lost), for an average of 0.4 yards per rush.
“Our inability to run the football hurt us all night," said TCU head football coach Sonny Dykes. “We didn’t block ‘em up front. We couldn’t block ‘em. Turned the ball over three times. That’s the difference in the game, the three turnovers. We’ve got to do a better job of taking care of the football. You can’t win turning the ball over three times. Turnovers killed us.”
Hoover was solemn after the game.
“I’ve got to play better and not have turnovers in the future,” said Hoover. “We had too many long third downs. I have to learn from this. We all have to learn from this.”
Big-time players step up in big games, and that’s what Arizona State’s trio of quarterback Sam Leavitt, wide receiver Jordyn Tyson and running back Raleek Brown did against the Horned Frogs.
TCU’s defense played well against the Sun Devils, including stopping ASU twice on fourth-down plays, producing four sacks and eight tackles for loss and forcing and recovering one fumble, but at key times, Leavitt, Tyson and Brown made crucial plays at critical times.
“The defense played hard, with our back against the wall,” said Dykes. “We had some big fourth-down stops. I thought we played good defense. We certainly gave ourselves a chance to win.”
Leavitt completed 27-of-39 passes for 291 yards. He threw two touchdown passes and no interceptions.
Tyson, who consistently ran past TCU's defensive backs, caught eight passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns, including a long reception of 57 yards. His second touchdown catch tied the game late in the fourth quarter.
Brown carried the football 21 times for 134 yards, averaging 6.4 yards per rush. He had a long run of 35 yards. He also caught nine passes for 50 yards.
“Holy cow,” proclaimed Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham, who at 35 years old is one of the youngest FBS head coaches and who is in his third year of leading the Sun Devils and being a college football head coach. “A lot of ebbs and flows in this game, especially in the last two minutes. It’s incredible that our team continues to find ways to get it done in the big moments. It’s a testament to the character of the guys.”
Dykes’ teams always seem to have at least one, if not more, embarrassing games per season – the type of games, especially when they occur during national broadcasts, that keep the team from gaining and/or retaining the national stature and respect that it desperately seeks.
Dykes, who is in his fourth year as TCU’s head football coach, has presided over some of TCU’s most embarrassing losses on the gridiron in recent history, and while this loss to Arizona State doesn’t rank as the worst, it’s definitely in the top five.
With this loss, has Dykes again placed himself on the hot seat?
There is little tolerance for mediocrity in this new era of college athletics, particularly when it comes to the Power 4 Conference football scene and the extra $20 million or so that has to be spent on athletics by an university.
Two cases in point are Oklahoma State and the University of Arkansas, both of which just fired their head football coaches after an embarrassing loss and poor starts to this season.
New TCU Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mike Buddie and new TCU Chancellor Daniel Pullin may decide that as part of the university’s strategic plan for greatness that now is the time for the Horned Frogs to go “big” in securing a head football coach. Dykes was hired by former Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Jeremiah Donati, who now is at the University of South Carolina, and former TCU Chancellor Victor Boschini, who recently retired.
Texas college coaches getting the most attention today and being mentioned as candidates for high-profile openings are: SMU's Rhett Lashlee, who replaced Dykes at SMU four years ago; Texas State's GJ Kinne; Jeff Traylor at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA); and Eric Morris at the University of North Texas.
It will be interesting to see how Dykes and the Horned Frogs respond to the loss to ASU, beginning with their upcoming game, which is against the University of Colorado, on Saturday, October 4, in Amon G. Carter Stadium, on the TCU campus in Fort Worth, Texas. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 pm (Central). FOX Sports will broadcast the game nationally.
Big 12 Game Results
Here are results of other recent games involving Big 12 teams:
- Friday, September 26
- Houston 27 (4-0, 1-0) at Oregon State 24 (overtime)
- Saturday, September 27
- Baylor 45 (3-2, 1-1) at Oklahoma State 27 (1-3, 0-1); first game for OSU since head coach Mike Gundy had been fired
- UCF 20 (3-1, 0-1) at Kansas State 34 (2-3, 1-1)
- Cincinnati 37 (3-1, 1-0) at Kansas 34 (3-2, 1-1)
- Utah 48 (4-1, 1-1) at West Virginia 14 (2-3, 0-2)
- Arizona (3-0, 0-0) at Iowa State (4-0, 1-0)
- BYU 24 (4-0, 1-0) at Colorado (2-3, 0-2)
- Texas Tech (4-0, 1-0) bye
TCU Falls from Rankings
The game against Arizona State was TCU’s first this season as a ranked team.
The loss to the Sun Devils dropped the Frogs from 25th to 39th in the Coaches week six top 25 poll. TCU is ranked behind the University of North Texas (UNT).
In the Associated Press week six top 25 poll, the Frogs dropped from 24th to 34th.
ASU started the season ranked 11th. The Sun Devils dropped 14 spots after a loss to Mississippi State in their second game of the season, then fell out of the rankings despite wins over Texas State and Baylor.
With the win over the Horned Frogs, Arizona State vaulted back into the rankings.
The Sun Devils are ranked 24th in the Coaches week six top 25 poll. ASU is ranked 25th in the Associated Press week six top 25 poll.
TCU’s Offense Not Explosive
The best thing to say about Hoover’s performance against Arizona State is that with 242 passing yards, he passed Max Knake (1992-95; 7,370) for the fourth-most career passing yards in TCU history.
Against the Sun Devils, TCU’s offense had no explosive plays for a touchdown.
The three touchdowns came on runs and as a result of drives of 51, 71 and 65 yards.
A 27-yard field goal by Nate McCashland capped a drive that stalled after six plays netted a mere 29 yards.
Wide receiver Joseph Manjack IV led TCU’s receivers with six receptions for 83 yards.
Tight end DJ Rogers had four catches for 60 yards.
Wide receiver Jordan Dwyer had three receptions for 42 yards.
TCU’s offense was without star wide receiver Eric McAlister, who played only a few snaps during the game.
“Eric pulled something on Friday,” explained Dykes. “He thought he could play through it, but he couldn’t.”
In TCU’s previous game against SMU, McAlister had eight receptions for 254 yards and three touchdowns.
College football fans were anticipating a match-up of two of FBS's top receivers in McAlister and ASU’s Jordyn Tyson, but that didn't materialize.
TCU’s offense also was missing senior running back Kevorian Barnes, the team's leading rusher, who missed his second consecutive game after sustaining a lower body injury in the Horned Frogs’ second game of the season, against Abilene Christian University.
“Obviously, we missed McAlister and Barnes on offense,” Dykes said, in an understatement.
Running back Trent Battle led TCU’s running backs with 30 net yards on nine carries.
Running back Jeremy Payne had 20 net rushing yards on six carries.
Arizona State's strong defense was led by defensive lineman Prince Dorbah, who had four tackles for a loss, three sacks and forced the strip fumble of Hoover in the game's final two minutes. Dorbah became the first Big 12 player with four tackles for a loss in a Conference game since Kansas State’s Felix Anudike-Uzomah in 2021.
For his performance against the Frogs, Dorbah was named the Big 12 Conference's Co-Defensive Player of the Week.
TCU’s Defense Played Well
Despite giving up 498 yards of offense (297 passing yards and 201 rushing yards) to Arizona State, TCU’s defense was strong and kept the Horned Frogs in the game despite having to be on the field for the Sun Devils' 83 offensive plays. By comparison, TCU's offense ran just 58 plays.
The Frogs recorded four sacks in the game, matching a season-high set against Abilene Christian.
TCU’s defense allowed Arizona State to convert only five-of-16 third-down plays and two-of-four fourth-down plays.
Linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr led TCU’s defense with 13 tackles, including two tackles-for-loss and two sacks. He also was credited with a pass break-up.
Safeties Bud Clark and Jamel Johnson had nine and eight tackles, respectively. Johnson also had a fumble recovery.
Defensive end Devean Deal had eight tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, a forced fumble and a pass break-up.
Defensive tackle Tristan Johnson and safety Kylin Jackson combined on TCU’s other sack.
Unfortunately, the defensive battle between the Horned Frogs and Sun Devils came down to a difference of Arizona State scoring one more field goal than TCU, and, of course, the difference in the caliber of play of the two teams' quarterbacks.
- TCU-Arizona State box score: here
- TCU-Arizona State highlights: here
- TCU post-game press conference: here
- ASU post-game press conference: here
Colorado Heading to Fort Worth
Under the lights of Amon G. Carter Stadium, on the campus of TCU, in Fort Worth, Texas, the Horned Frogs will host Deion Sanders and the University of Colorado on Saturday, October 4. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 pm (Central). FOX will nationally broadcast the game.
TCU Athletics has designated the game as a blackout. Horned Frogs fans are encouraged to wear black to the game, not to mourn TCU's loss to Arizona State, but because the Frogs will don their all-black uniform combination against Colorado.
This will be the third-ever meeting between the Frogs and the Buffaloes.
The first time the two teams met was on September 2, 2022, in Boulder, Colorado. TCU won, 38-13, as the Frogs began a campaign that ended with a 12-0 regular-season record and an appearance in college football’s 2023 National Championship Game.
The second time the two teams met was on September 2, 2023, in Fort Worth, when Sanders made his debut as Colorado's head coach. The Buffaloes rewarded “Coach Prime” with a 45-42 upset victory over the 17th-ranked Horned Frogs, who were 20-point favorites (one of TCU's embarrassing losses under Dykes).
The loss to Colorado set TCU on its way to a 2023 losing record. At 5-7 (3-6 in the Big 12), TCU missed qualifying for a bowl game, just one year after appearing in the National Championship game. TCU became the first program to miss a bowl game and/or have a losing record after being national championship runner-ups since the University of Texas in 2010, following its loss in the 2010 BCS National Championship Game.
"Coach Prime"
Sanders is entering his third year as Colorado’s head football coach, after spending three seasons as head coach of Jackson State University.
In his first season, Jackson turned a Colorado team that went 1-11 in 2022 into a 4-8 team, earning him Sports Illustrated’s 2023 Person of the Year Award.
In 2024, Sanders led the Buffs to a 9-4 record, including a 7-2 record in Big 12 play. Colorado tied for first place in the Big 12 and came within a game of the Big 12 Championship game.
During this past off-season, Sanders, who in recent years has battled various health issues, including amputation of two toes in 2022, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of bladder cancer. He had his bladder removed and a neobladder created from his small intestine. Doctors have since declared him cured of the cancer.
This season, Colorado is without three of its biggest stars of the past two seasons: quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who is a son of Deion and who is in the National Football League (NFL) with the Cleveland Browns; defensive back Shilo Sanders, who is a son of Deion and who joined the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent this year but did not make the roster; and Travis Hunter, a two-way player at receiver and defensive back, who won the 2024 Heisman Trophy and is in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Buffaloes are 2-3 overall, 0-2 in the Big 12.
Colorado lost its season-opener to Georgia Tech, 27-20, in Boulder. On September 6, in Boulder, the Buffs defeated Delaware 31-7. On September 13, CU lost to Houston, 36-20, in Houston. The Buffaloes defeated Wyoming, 37-20, in Boulder, on September 20. On September 27, Colorado lost, in Boulder, to BYU, 27-24.
Colorado's Offense
Colorado’s offense is averaging:
- 25.8 points per game
- 358.2 total yards per game
- Six yards per play
- 147.4 rushing yards per game and 4.6 yards per rush; Colorado ranks 14th in the Big 12 in rushing yards per game
- 210.8 passing yards per game
The Buffaloes have scored 17 touchdowns: nine rushing and 8 through the air. They have thrown three interceptions and allowed six sacks.
Colorado’s offense has been led by two quarterbacks, sophomore Ryan Staub (#16) and senior Kaidon Salter (#3).
Staub has connected on 59-of-88 passing attempts, for 684 yards. He is averaging 171 passing yards per game. He has thrown five touchdown passes and one interception He has a long pass completion of 68 yards.
Salter (#3), who is a transfer from Liberty University and the University of Tennessee, has appeared in two games. He has completed 26-of-45 passes, for 362 yards. He is averaging 181 passing yards per game. He has thrown three touchdown passes and two interceptions. He has rushed for 202 yards and four touchdowns.
The Buffaloes’ leading receiver is sophomore Joseph Williams (#8), who is a transfer from Tulsa. Williams has caught 14 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns. He is averaging 15.71 yards per catch and 44 receiving yards per game. He has a long reception of 47 yards.
Graduate student wide receiver Sincere Brown (#9), who is a transfer from Campbell University and the University of South Florida, has caught eight passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns. He is averaging 26.38 yards per catch. He has a long reception of 71 yards.
Junior wide receiver Omarion Miller (#4) has caught 11 passes for 200 yards and one touchdown. He is averaging 18.18 yards per catch and 50 receiving yards per game. He has a long reception of 39 yards.
Senior running back Dekalon Taylor (#20), who is a transfer from Incarnate Word, has caught two touchdown passes.
Sophomore wide receiver Dre’Ion Miller (#6) has one touchdown reception.
Colorado’s leading rusher is sophomore running back Micah Welch (#29). He has rushed 40 times for 210 yards and one touchdown. He is averaging 5.2 yards per rush and 42 rushing yards per game. He has a long run of 44 yards.
Senior running back Simeon Price (#26), who is a transfer from Coastal Carolina and Mississippi State, has 143 yards on 21 carries. He is averaging 6.8 yards per rush and 35.75 rushing yards per game. He has two rushing touchdowns and a long run of 38 yards.
Junior tight end Zach Atkins (#85), who is a transfer from Northwest Missouri State, has one rushing touchdown, as does wide receiver Dre’Ion Miller.
Colorado's Defense
Colorado’s defense is allowing:
- 404.8 total yards per game
- 197.2 rushing yards per game
- 207.6 passing yards per game
- 22.8 points per game
The Buffaloes have allowed 12 touchdowns, seven on the ground and five through the air.
Colorado’s defense has intercepted two passes and recorded 12 sacks.
Colorado ranks 15th out of the 16 Big 12 teams in rushing defense and sacks.
Sophomore safety Tawfig Byard (#7), who is a transfer from the University of South Florida, leads the defense with 37 tackles. He has 3.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, one pass breakup and one quarterback hurry.
Graduate student linebacker Reginald Hughes (#50), who is a transfer from Jacksonville State and Ole Miss, has 28 tackles and three quarterback hurries.
Junior safety Carter Stoutmire (#23) has 26 tackles, five pass breakups and one quarterback hurry.
Graduate student linebacker Martavius French (#37), who is a transfer from UTSA and the University of Tennessee, has 24 tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack, one quarterback hurry and two forced fumbles.
Senior defensive end Arden Walker (#53), who is a transfer from the University of Missouri, has 24 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one pass breakup, three quarterback hurries and one safety.
Junior cornerbacks DJ McKinney (#8), who is a transfer from Oklahoma State, and RJ Johnson (#5), who is a transfer from the University of Arkansas, each has an interception.
Dykes, Sanders Discuss Game
Dykes talks about the TCU-Colorado game: here
Sanders talks about the TCU-Colorado game: here
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