Monday Morning Quarterback

Jaden Oberkrom kicked one of the nicest field goals you'll ever see on any level.  Man, the bend on that thing was an absolute sight.

A lot has been said about the defense this year- how good and talented they are, how they deserve better than the offense we're fielding, how good Jason Verrett is.  All of that is still certainly true, but it seems to me that two things are lacking that keep this defense from being a truly elite one.  The first is, clearly, the pass rush.  TCU is the conference leader in sacks, as the announcers so readily point out, so you'd think that the Frogs are getting good pressure on opposing quarterbacks- this is not the case, as the sacks tend to come from either blitzing or being a result of excellent coverage by the secondary giving the d-line five or six seconds to get to the quarterback, which is a lifetime to spend in coverage.  The second is probably related to the first, but all the more frustrating given the talent level of the defense- this is not a clutch defense.  As poorly as TCU's offense has been this year, there have been games that the Frogs could have won if the defense had stepped up in the clutch- LSU, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Kansas State all saw TCU's offense pull within a score or have a lead late, only for TCU's defense to go back on the field and either not get the ball back while the opposition wasted time or give up the points that led to a loss.  As talented and good as the defense is, they are not blameless in the failure of this season- hopefully Fields brings his A-game next year.

I mentioned in the game thread and postgame that I missed a sizable portion of the game due to a power outage, but it served to clarify how screwed I am without internet down here.  I tried switching to the TV's internet (but the TV had no power), I tried getting n my tablet (before I remembered that our wireless would be down), but in the end i was left twiddling my thumbs while missing TCU's lone bit of competence for the day.  Then the power went out again during the last second kickoff return, leaving me in limbo if the Frogs had completed the comeback or not.  Fate is cruel.

Marshall Weber

The Good:

The duel system worked?!!

Pachall, who went 23-33 for 248 yards, had really only one bad pass in the game…an interception in the first half. Boykin was equally effective, granted he only threw once…a one yard touchdown pass to Josh Doctson, but his legs and using him in the wildcat paid off. The offense was creative, consistent and wasn’t timid to throw it deep…most notably to David Porter who caught a 51 yard pass from Pachall late in the third to give the Frogs a 28-24 lead. The Frogs didn’t run much, only accumulating 99 total rushing yards, but Catalon looked his best since the LSU game Labor Day weekend. Also, props to the offensive line for stepping up and not playing absolutely horrible and thus allowing for Boykin and Pachall to do their thing

And how about that Jaden Oberkrom? I’ll take him over Anthony Fera any day of the week.

The Bad:

It sounds weird saying it, but the defense was the sloppiest it’s been all year and cost us the game. Granted, there were some weird calls (illegal uniform?), but there’s no reason why Jake Waters should’ve had one, let alone TWO seventy-plus yard touchdown passes. Receiver Tyler Lockett was able to get past Verrett on one of them, but I’d put the blame on Safeties Derrick Kindred, Chris Hackett, and even Elisha Olabode for those bombs. The run defense was also quite underwhelming and K-State quarterback, Daniel Sams, made it look too easy. The Frogs not stepping up on defense Saturday was essentially the season in a nutshell as there wasn’t a game this season where it all came together for them.

Clock management was also horrible.

Oh, and we get to play Baylor next. Yes, we beat them last year in Waco. But an upset is very slim. Baylor is one to hold grudges (shocker) and will be eager to avenge their loss from last year. Regardless, we don’t have anything to lose and the Frogs will leave it all on the field. Look for GMFP to get tricky like RUN DMC.

2004:

For the first time in almost ten years, we’ll be ineligible for a bowl game. Following the 2004 season, the Frogs had an 11-1 record and finished ranked 9^th and 11^th in the Coaches and AP Polls respectively. Granted it was still the Mountain West, but it’s still indicative about the kind of turnaround GMFP can produce. These past two seasons have been rough for sure, but there’s still plenty to be hopeful for.

Jamie Plunkett

The Good:

When it mattered most, the offense moved the ball just enough to get into field goal range for a ridiculous kick from Jaden Oberkrom. Casey Pachall zipped the ball around the field, and showed some signs of his old self, giving this fan hope that he can really pull it together with two weeks to prepare for Baylor.

The Bad:

The Defense crumbled in the second half for the second straight week. I'm not sure what's going on with this crew, but with Jason Verrett back on the field I expected the secondary to shut things down. However, they had huge mistakes that led to two 70+ yard touchdown passes. Meanwhile, stopping the run was simply too much to ask as well. On the offensive side of the ball, receivers dropped multiple passes, resulting in some punts that should have been points.

The Other:

No bowl for the Froggies, but still a chance to ruin Baylor's perfect season. You better believe Patterson will have his crew ready to roll.