TCU Horned Frogs @ Colorado State Rams Football Preview

The TCU Horned Frogs are the overwhelming favorite to win the Mountain West Conference. Now they need to act like it.

It has to be said even (perhaps, especially) when the scoreboard doesn’t suggest as much: The Horned Frogs played a terrible game this past Friday on the road, even though they still beat Southern Methodist by 17 points, 41-24. TCU quarterback Andy Dalton – who is extremely gifted and can be devastatingly effective when at his very best – threw multiple interceptions and continued to make bad decisions. Dalton’s goofs enabled SMU to take a 17-14 lead early in the second half. With TCU receivers also dropping easy passes and the Horned Frogs’ defensive front overrunning its cutback lanes on a consistent basis, Coach Gary Patterson had a semi-crisis on his hands. TCU always seems to cough up turnovers and drop passes when playing at its worst, but a lapse in defensive fundamentals had to create an extra level of alarm on the TCU sideline. A group that was so clinical and clean in 2009 has not regained its old precision to this point in the 2010 season.

Fortunately, however, TCU has the big-play athleticism that can cover a multitude of sins. Just when TCU fell behind in the second half at SMU, a huge (83-yard) kickoff return by speedster Jeremy Kerley allowed TCU to score a red-zone touchdown, regain control, and eventually pull away from the Mustangs.

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Having survived that sloppy and shaky performance against a non-conference opponent, the Horned Frogs now need to find their form – and their footing – in Mountain West competition. They should be able to solve a number of their lingering problems against their opponent on Saturday.

Colorado State ranks last in the nation (120th out of 120 FBS teams) in rushing yards per game with 59. The Rams rank 117th in scoring offense, averaging just 13.8 points per game. CSU stands at 107th in scoring defense, allowing a fat 35 points per game. This is not a team that TCU should have much trouble with.

However, this much needs to be said for the gritty and hard-working Rams: After being bossed around for much of last week’s game against Idaho, Colorado State fought back. The Rams shrugged off a 13-0 first-half deficit, a 27-17 third-quarter deficit, and a 34-27 fourth-quarter ditch to pull out a 36-34 win against an Idaho team that won the 2009 Humanitarian Bowl. Colorado State couldn’t have played any worse in its first three games, but in week four, a different incarnation of Coach Steve Fairchild’s group emerged. That version of the CSU crew will need to appear in order to make TCU sweat… maybe.

For a Horned Frog football force that made a lot of mistakes against SMU in its most recent game, it’s time to clean up the stat sheet and re-establish the excellence that defined a special 2009 regular season. Without showing improvement on a weekly basis, TCU can’t expect to run the table in 2010. The journey toward a BCS bowl berth has to become more serious for TCU now that conference play is at hand.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer