Frog Mailbag: How can TCU build on its 2024 season?

We took questions from Facebook and polled our followers on X as the Horned Frogs gear up for their bowl game.

The TCU Horned Frogs will have roughly three weeks of preparation before concluding the 2024 season with their New Mexico Bowl matchup against Louisiana on Dec. 28. It’s a pretty lackluster postseason destination for the Horned Frogs, who went 8-4 overall and 6-3 in the Big 12 Conference this season. TCU won five of its last six games and took down Cincinnati 20-13 on the road to finish in a tie for fifth place in the conference. Should the Horned Frogs emerge victorious against the Ragin’ Cajuns later this month, TCU will win nine games for the second time in three years under head coach Sonny Dykes. But does a nine-win season in this new Big 12 mean the 2024 season was a success? How do the fans feel right now?

In one of our final installments of the Frog Mailbag for the football season, we took questions from Facebook and polled our followers on X to see how TCU fans are feeling about this year’s results and what lies ahead for the Horned Frogs going forward.

TCU has been assigned to the New Mexico Bowl, which will be played against Louisiana on Dec. 28 in Albuquerque. Despite finishing with the same in-conference record as Baylor and Texas Tech, TCU has been relegated to a non-Big 12 affiliated bowl game against the Sun Belt Conference runner-up. Baylor will compete at the Texas Bowl in Houston, while Texas Tech will travel for the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. To make matters worse, Kansas State has been selected to face Rutgers at the Rate Bowl in Phoenix despite having a worse record in conference play than the Horned Frogs. TCU couldn’t even get to the Armed Forces Bowl, which will feature Oklahoma and Navy at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth. While there are rumors circulating as to why the Horned Frogs have chosen to play in the New Mexico Bowl over a more prestigious event, there’s nothing at this time to confirm those rumors.

I hate to use a cliche here, but the 2024 season was really a tale of two halves for TCU. That applies to the defense, which struggled mightily against opponents like UCF and Houston but rebounded with solid performances against opponents like Utah, Arizona, Oklahoma State and Cincinnati later in the season. Despite hiring a new defensive coordinator in Andy Avalos, whose scheme featured an EDGE rusher, TCU finished with 23 sacks, three less than last season. TCU also finished with 57 tackles for loss, nine less than last season. But the Horned Frogs generated slightly fewer turnovers than last season, as TCU intercepted eight passes and forced nine fumbles with six recoveries in 2024 after four forced fumbles and recoveries in 2023. Ultimately, TCU’s better defensive performances this season came against weaker teams, while the defense struggled mightily against powerful offenses like Baylor and Texas Tech. With the Horned Frogs set to lose key seniors on defense after the season, I think the general consensus is that the defense is further behind than the offense.

With Texas and Oklahoma now in the SEC, TCU should be a regular contender for the Big 12 championship. Given that the Horned Frogs frequently out-recruit their opponents (and currently have the No. 1 recruiting class in the conference signed for 2025), there’s no excuse for TCU to be fighting for relevance. The first major key to make a CFP return will be the continued development of redshirt sophomore quarterback Josh Hoover, who threw for 3,697 yards and 23 touchdowns, but also had 10 interceptions and six fumbles lost. The second major key will be acquiring and developing talent on the defensive line, which struggled mightily throughout last season and this season. Thirdly, TCU has to vastly improve its rushing attack and that begins with better offensive line play and more talent in the backfield. Veterans like Trey Sanders and Dominque Johnson have failed to deliver results, while underclassmen like Cam Cook and Jeremy Payne are showing promise, but not consistency. More needs to happen too, but those are the three starting points for me.

We have reached the part of the season where players will begin (or have already) entered the transfer portal. So far, TCU has lost five notable players to the portal, four of which are on the defensive side of the ball. Safeties Jamel Johnson and Richard Toney Jr. will be departing, while linebackers Shad Banks Jr. and Terrence Cooks Jr. have both declared for the portal as well. The lone transfer out on the offensive side is offensive lineman Marcus Williams, who didn’t see much playing time over the last few years. I expect there will be a few more players trickling out, as the portal window officially opened yesterday. As the offseason inches closer, I believe that defensive line, wide receiver and defensive back are the three areas TCU will look to upgrade its roster. That said, with 29 recruits signed for the 2025 class, I’m not sure the Horned Frogs will recruit the portal as heavily as last year.