MMQB: We Will Take It

The Frogs started 2024 off with a win on the road against Stanford.

The Frogs will start off their season better than they did in 2023 as they won their season opener on the road against Stanford by a final score of 34-27. Though it wasn’t always pretty and there are definitely things the Frogs need to improve, 1-0 is still 1-0.

The Good

Josh Hoover: It was an excellent performance from Josh Hoover on Friday night as he showcased the physical tools and moxie that have Frog fans believing he will be a star. Hoover completed 28 of 42 passes for 352 yards and two touchdowns along with another score on the ground. He looked to be in complete control of the game with the ball in his hands, making good decisions, going through his reads quickly, and delivering the ball on time and accurately. At times last season, Hoover looked as though he didn’t know when to take a risk with a deep throw or just to check it down but against Stanford, he showed great feel for the flow of the game. The biggest example of this was the drive before the end of the first half after Stanford had kicked a field goal to extend their lead to seven points. TCU needed some momentum going into halftime and Hoover was excellent, leading a very good two-minute drill, pushing the ball down the field until, of course, the fumble in the red zone but I will have more on that later. The throw right before the fumble to Jack Bech on a seam route for 46 yards was my favorite throw from Hoover on the day. It took arm strength to fit the ball over the defender running with Bech and touch to drop it in before a safety could come over and make a play. On the road in a frustrating game, Hoover led the Frogs to a win and looked like an excellent quarterback in the process.

Wide Receivers: One of the more encouraging takeaways I had from this game was how much more talented TCU looked on the perimeter than Stanford. Stanford’s defense was bad last year and probably will not be much better this year, but the ease at which Frog receivers were getting open was a great sign. Many have predicted 2024 to be the Savion Williams breakout year and he certainly looked the part in this game. He had 11 catches for 85 yards and showed off his strength with a contested catch on a goal-line fade for a touchdown. Jack Bech was even more impressive with six catches for 139 yards and a touchdown of his own. Bech was effective in all three levels of the passing game and looked to have very good chemistry with Hoover. JPR had a very solid game as well with six catches for 107 yards. Outside of a few scattered drops, the wide receivers looked dominant for TCU against Stanford.

Pass Protection: One of the keys to a successful season for the Frogs will be giving Josh Hoover time to throw and the offensive line did a very solid job of that on Friday night. Hoover was only sacked once despite the Frogs throwing the ball over 40 times. Credit to an offensive line that has little experience playing next to each other for quickly developing chemistry and keeping the pocket clean.

Pass Rush: An exciting change for Frog fans on Friday was to consistently see more than three players rushing the passer. Andy Avalos sent pressure early and often and it paid off as the Frogs got to Ashton Daniels for four sacks and produced 10 tackles for loss on the game. Namdi Obiazor looked explosive as he picked up 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for a loss. Marcel Brooks had arguably his best game as a Frog with 1.5 sacks of his own. The San Diego State transfer Cooper McDonald looked like an edge rushing weapon, consistently creating havoc in the backfield. TCU looks to have a much deeper and talented pass-rushing group than in 2023 which should immediately improve the defense from a year ago.

Cornerbacks: Coming into the game, I was very concerned about how the corners for TCU would hold up against star receiver Elic Ayomanor. I didn’t doubt the talent of JaTravis Broughton and Lamareon James but the cornerback group had been thinned out by injuries and both Broughton and James were playing their first game in a Horned Frog uniform. Those concerns were put to rest by an impressive performance from the two corners who played with confidence and physicality all night. Broughton especially looks like a vocal leader on the defense as he played with tremendous energy and had two pass breakups along with four solo tackles. The TCU cornerbacks looked very good against Stanford.

Road Win: Did the Frogs make the game more stressful than it probably should have been? Yes, but more importantly did the Frogs find a way to win a close game on the road? Yes. After watching Texas Tech get taken to overtime by Abilene Christian, Oregon struggle against Idaho, Arizona let up 39 points to New Mexico, and many other teams struggle with inferior opponents, I am happy the Frogs made it through week one with a win.

The Bad

Mental mistakes: The Frogs did find a way to win but some major mental errors kept the game much closer than it should have been. TCU outgained Stanford by almost 200 yards but did not put the game away until under two minutes left in the fourth quarter. A big reason for that was penalties. TCU was called for seven penalties for a total of 100 penalty yards. Almost all of these were warranted and very avoidable penalties. Committing defensive pass interference when the ball has no chance of being caught to give Stanford a conversion on third down on the first drive of the game was incredibly frustrating. Then three plays later, the Frogs committed an unnecessary roughness penalty to move Stanford into TCU territory. There were entirely too many frustrating mental errors from what is largely a veteran team. Turnovers were also an issue. Giving up two fumbles to kill promising drives took years off of my life with added stress. The one blemish on the record of the passing attack for the Frogs was dropped passes, another mental error. Most were concentration drops with receivers turning up field before securing the catch. Hopefully, these issues can be chalked up to first-game overexcitement and they will be ironed out in practice. As a member of the Big 12, the Frogs are all but guaranteed to play in plenty of close games and the fastest way to lose close games is to make mental errors.

After Big Plays: Three times against Stanford, the Frogs hit a big play on offense to get inside the ten-yard line and rushed to the line to quickly run the next play. Ideally, they would catch the defense off guard and get an easy run into the end zone. In reality, it never worked. It didn’t even kind of work. One time it resulted in a fumble and the other two times the play resulted in a minimal gain if any gain at all. The Frogs have an effective short-yardage back in Trey Sanders who has been solid at punching it into the end zone during his TCU career. There is no reason for the Frogs to not to take their time, get lined up correctly with the best personnel in the game, and make a smart play call. Trying to rush to the line to gimmick our way into the end zone makes it seem like the coaches lack confidence in TCU’s ability to convert in the red zone which is slightly concerning.

Scrambling: Andy Avalos dialed up some very fun blitzes and stunts on Friday that created constant pressure in Stanford’s backfield. The downside to running creative pass-rushing schemes is that pass rushers can get pushed out of their rushing lanes, opening up the defense to the quarterback scramble. Ashton Daniels took full advantage on Friday, running for 87 yards against the Frogs which was a career high. I was very excited to see a more aggressive defensive scheme and some work on stopping the quarterback scramble could make this defensive unit an elite one.

Play of the Game

Cam Cook staying patient, finding space, and putting the game away for the Frogs.

Honorable Mention

Have to give a shout-out to the big man interception from Tymon Mitchell. Electric stuff.