Our staff gives predictions for the upcoming TCU football season.
TCU’s Offensive MVP:
- Anthony: WR Savion Williams. Coming off a career-best season as TCU’s leading receiver, Williams is back for his fifth season in Fort Worth and ready to make another leap forward. He already has a connection with QB Josh Hoover; 76% of Williams’ 2023 yardage came with Hoover as the starter, including his monster 11 reception, 164 yard, 1 TD game vs. Texas. Look for Williams to show up on the All-Conference Team at the end of the season.
- Austin: I’m going with a long shot here—running back Cam Cook. Looking back at the Horned Frogs’ past two seasons, both featured a 1,200-yard rusher, Kendre Miller and Emani Bailey, respectively. Prior to 2022, TCU employed a running back by committee approach, thus three different backs churned out 440-plus yards. Cook is largely unproven, but he’s earned rave reviews throughout the summer. Anointing Cook as offensive MVP is more so an indicator of question marks surrounding the rest of the unit. Josh Hoover has the easiest path to offensive MVP, while Savion Williams is probably the biggest difference-maker, but Cook should be the most consistent.
- Drew: WR Savion Williams. I think TCU’s offense is going to depend heavily on how good Williams can be. There are other weapons on the offense who can be solid contributors but Williams needs to take the next step and become a true number one wide receiver for the Frogs to have an elite year offensively. Williams has the talent to be a very good wide receiver and I think he puts it all together this season.
- Russ: It’s an easy answer but I’m going with Josh Hoover. While it was a rough start initially for Hoover, I felt that he made great strides as the season progressed. His efforts against BYU, Baylor and Oklahoma prove that he has the potential to put up big numbers in Big 12 play. TCU needs Hoover to step up if the Horned Frogs have any chance of competing near the top of the new 16-team conference this season.
- Wyatt: WR – JP Richardson. Richardson was second in receptions for the Frogs during the 2023 season, and I expect him to be towards the top in receptions again in 2024. He is a solid and reliable option at the wide receiver position, who has the capability to explode, like we saw with his 104-yard performance against BYU in 2023. Savion Williams is most likely the popular pick for MVP for the wide receiver position, however, I believe that Richardson’s consistency will be valuable this upcoming season.
TCU’s Defensive MVP:
- Anthony: CB JaTravis Broughton. The speed with which the re-built secondary can gel will determine the successes of the new Andy Avalos defense. With All-Big 12 CB Josh Newton in the NFL and returning veterans Avery Helm and Vernon Glover out indefinitely with injury, the Frogs will need the Utah transfer to be an instant impact. With the season opening with dangerous receiving threats at Stanford, UCF, and SMU, Broughton and the DB unit will have little time to work into form.
- Austin: Defensive end Paul Oyewale. The Horned Frogs must pressure the quarterback with an injury-riddled secondary. Enter redshirt sophomore Oyewale. Last season, the 6-foot-4 down lineman recorded three sacks—tied for second on the team. While Namdi Obiazor is as good a choice as any, Oyewale will be relied upon to stuff the run and make a difference in the passing game. Projecting the redshirt sophomore to record six-plus sacks isn’t egregious.
- Drew: LB Johnny Hodges. I think an underrated reason for the struggles TCU had defensively last season was the absence of Hodges in the middle of the defense. Hodges is a very solid tackler and smart run defender, two things the Frogs were lacking in 2023. Hodges is also a vocal leader on the team and his return to the field will have a big impact on the defense.
- Russ: Namdi Obiazor was arguably TCU’s best defender last season and I think he returns this fall with another strong campaign. Obiazor has transitioned from the safety position beautifully and has made a name for himself on special teams as well. Most of TCU’s returning players are at the linebacker position and I think Obiazor rises to the top.
- Wyatt: S – Bud Clark. Clark will be one of the Captains for the 2024 season. Clark’s veteran leadership will be extremely important for the new Avalos defense. With the new Avalos defense, I predict Bud to have a season more like 2022, when he led the team in interceptions, with 5.
TCU’s Newcomer of the Year:
- Anthony: Kicker Kyle Lemmermann. The Frogs lose All-Big 12 placekicker Griffin Kell and will likely be turning to the true freshman from Southlake to take over the role this season. Ranked as the top kicking prospect in the 2024 Class, he will be called upon to deliver in the clutch, to keep calm in the most anxiety-filled moments, with games hanging in the balance. The margins are going to be very thin for the Horned Frogs in the Big 12 this season, every point will matter and if Lemmermann can ensure those points are realized, TCU will be able to steal some games it may have otherwise dropped.
- Austin: I’m rolling with transfer tight end Drake Dabney. Following Chandler Morris’ injury a season ago, Josh Hoover took over and prioritized getting Jared Wiley the ball. With Hoover beginning the season under center, expect Dabney to be a primary target. It’s likely the Baylor transfer surpasses his previous season-highs in receptions (33), yards (552), and touchdowns (5).
- Drew: WR Eric McAlister. McAlister was on track for a monster year at Boise State last season before stepping away from the team and I expect him to be a major contributor for the Frogs this season. The outside receiver position opposite Savion Williams was somewhat of a revolving door last season and I think the addition of McAlister to take that job will be big for the Frogs.
- Russ: Devean Deal is going to have a big role on the TCU defense as an edge rusher. Deal had a solid 2023 season at Tulane and we’ll see if he’s talented enough to compete at the Power 4 level this fall. My prediction will be that Deal leads TCU in sacks this year and becomes a difference maker for a defensive unit that struggled mightily for sacks in 2023.
- Wyatt: CB – LaMareon James. With the losses of Avery Helm and Vernon Glover during the preseason, I believe that the Old Dominion transfer will step up to help lead the secondary unit.
Most anticipated TCU game:
- Anthony: TCU at Stanford, Week One. It’s been a long offseason. Nine excruciating months for fans to dwell on the disastrous 2023 season and get hopes up again; nine months for this squad to improve and work back to form. We need Horned Frogs football back in our lives, or more pointedly, we need winning Horned Frogs football back. I am highly looking forward to seeing that winning football from the Frogs in California next Friday.
- Austin: TCU vs. Arizona a week before Thanksgiving in Fort Worth. The Horned Frogs have played the Wildcats only twice in program history. Although Arizona lost head coach Jedd Fisch, the Wildcats return one of the best quarterback-receiver duos in college football.
- Drew: I’ll say at home against UCF. The first two games for the Frogs should (hopefully) be wins with Stanford coming off a tough year and facing off against KJ Jefferson and the Knights will be telling for what this TCU team can be this season.
- Russ: Kansas at Arrowhead Stadium will be an unreal fan experience for any TCU faithful who are making the trip for a rare in-season neutral site game. The Jayhawks should be competitive once again with Jalon Daniels and many other notable starters back this fall.
- Wyatt: Utah at Rice-Eccles Stadium. The Utes have a ton of hype in their first season playing in the Big 12, being voted the media preseason favorite. Additionally, this game will revive the old Mountain West rivalry between TCU and Utah. The last matchup between the 2 schools was in 2010 and ended with a 47-7 TCU victory in Salt Lake City, Utah.
TCU’s regular season record:
- Anthony: TCU, like most of the Big 12, is an incredibly difficult team to project. The schedule sets up pretty nicely despite some big challenges, but the range of outcomes is vast. Defense should be improved, but the new unit on the O-Line could be problematic. TCU is a bowl team, it simply has to be, but will never be ranked and be essentially eliminated from Big 12 contention by Halloween. However, some wins down the stretch push the Frogs to a 7-5 record. My purple-glasses projection, which I do actually find realistic: TCU is 6-0 headed to Salt Lake City for Top 5 showdown with College GameDay on-site, a movie we’ve seen before.
- Austin: It’s never easy to predict a subpar record for your favorite team. However, I didn’t expect much in 2022, and the Horned Frogs made it to the National Championship. Although the talent isn’t near what it was a few years ago, I expect TCU to win six or seven games this season. I’ll take the optimistic route and project a 7-5 record.
- Drew: 8-4 feels like a solid yet very reachable goal for the Frogs. Coming off of a disappointing year in 2023, 8-4 would be a success in my eyes considering the road trips to Utah and Kansas and tough home games against OSU and Arizona.
- Russ: Since I’m always optimistic I’m going with 8-4 overall. Considering the 5-7 result last season and all of the changes that took place over the offseason, TCU will be under serious pressure for more major moves should they not become bowl eligible this season. I’m hopeful that the changes on defense and a more experienced Josh Hoover make for a more successful season this fall.
- Wyatt: It can be hard to realistically predict your favorite team’s record. My bias makes me want to say TCU will be going 12-0, but I do not think this season will be like that magical 2022 run. I am cautiously optimistic this season and predict the Horned Frogs to go 8-4 overall.
TCU’s Bowl game (if any):
- Anthony: Liberty Bowl vs. Mizzou. Tigers fans will be whining about not making the Playoff with 5 losses from a cupcake schedule. Frog fans paint Memphis purple and TCU takes care of the SEC squad
- Austin: Since I projected a seven-win season, TCU would hypothetically reach a bowl game. I foresee the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Phoenix, Arizona as a reasonable projection. After all, TCU’s last two bowl game victories have been in Phoenix.
- Drew: With an 8-4 season, I think the Frogs wind up in the Texas bowl with a chance to get to nine wins and feel very good about the season.
- Russ: Should TCU finish in the top-6 of the conference, I’d imagine they wind up somewhere like the Liberty Bowl or the Texas Bowl. But because I love them, I’m going with the Pop Tarts Bowl, because why not?
- Wyatt: With my prediction of 8 win season, I expect the Frogs to find themselves in the Texas Bowl. Bowl projections may be a little trickier this year due to the Play Off’s expansion to 12 teams.
Big 12 Championship matchup & winner:
- Anthony: UCF defeats Kansas. I already went out on a limb saying the Knights would win the league and neither KSU nor Utah would play reach Arlington. And while I think the season in Arrowhead will be a home field advantage downgrade and am skeptical Jalon Daniels will remain healthy, the Jayhawks should easily go 7-2 or better in league play.
- Austin: Utah vs. Kansas State. While I was tempted to include two newcomers (sorry Arizona), I opted for a former Pac-12 versus tenured Big 12 clash. My Big 12 champion is the Utes.
- Drew: Arizona over Utah. I think Arizona’s star combo of Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan will have a great first year in the Big 12 and earn an autobid to the playoffs.
- Russ: Kansas State vs. Oklahoma State with Kansas State emerging victorious.
- Wyatt: Utah vs. Oklahoma State. I predict that Oklahoma State finally avenges their devastating Big 12 Championship loss in 2021 vs. Baylor.
National Championship matchup & winner:
- Anthony: Oregon vs. Ohio State. The Ducks and Bucks play for the third time of the season with Ohio State taking the finale of trilogy and lifting the trophy. Buckeye fans still clamor for Ryan Day to be fired.
- Austin: Texas vs. Georgia. The revamped Bulldogs get it done for the third time in four years.
- Drew: Ohio State over Georgia. The Buckeyes brought in an incredibly impressive transfer haul with Quinshon Judkins and Caleb Downs as the two headliners and that talented of a roster can carry Will Howard to a natty.
- Russ: Georgia vs. Oregon with Georgia emerging victorious.
- Wyatt: Oregon vs Ole Miss with Oregon winning their first national championship.