MMQB: Frogs Win Without Boykin...Barely

I don't like the ridiculous "reverse MVP" logic, where you point to a team that has lost a key player and say, "look, obviously that player is great because that team can't win without them." I've heard a lot of folks saying it about Tony Romo and the Cowboys this year. People are probably saying it about Baylor right now, after their 44-34 loss to Oklahoma without Seth Russell.

But one thing became explicitly clear after Trevone Boykin left in the first quarter of Saturday's game with what hockey teams would call a "lower body injury": The Frogs really can't afford to lose Boykin before they have to.

"Thanks Captain Obvious"

The Good

Well, they didn't lose...so that's pretty good. A loss to Kansas, with or without Boykin at the helm, would have been horrific.

KaVontae Turpin finally housed a punt return, doing his best Jeremy Kerley impression on his way into the endzone.

Probably the craziest thing about that return is it looks like he's just jogging the entire time.

Aaron Green assumed a lot of the responsibility on offense, and he took advantage, rushing for 177 yards (a career-high) on 30 carries.

Meanwhile, TCU should get some props defensively, as they got stops when they needed to most, when it was apparent the offense couldn't do much to put this game away. Ty Summers came away with an interception, and Terrell Lathan recorded a sack on fourth down, pushing over Kansas' left tackle like he was a toddler on the way, to end Kansas' final two possessions.

The Bad

Boykin's injury tops the list, but we can't go without noting that TCU also lost CB Nick Orr and LG Jamelle Naff over the course of the game. Naff's injury is the third along the offensive line in recent weeks.

Of course, a six point win over Kansas is generally reflective of a lot of things going wrong, and that's what happened here.

The Glimpse Into The Future

Foster Sawyer playing behind an offensive line that consisted of mostly non-seniors gave us a glimpse into what could very well be the future for the Frogs. Did you like what you saw?

Obviously things would be different with a full week of first-team snaps, working with the receivers, the line working together, etc. etc., but it was a glimpse none the less.

The Next Team Up: Oklahoma Sooners

Better start lighting some candles.

The Staff Standings

With three weeks left in the season, I went ahead and added a "Games Behind" column so we could all look up at Andrew in a new way.

Props to Hawk for going a staff-best 8-2 this week, and being the only one to correctly call Oregon over Stanford. Also, props must be given to Scott for being the only one to correctly call Arkansas' win over LSU. Warrior didn't get his picks in, so he is assigned the customary 5-5, which drops him to last place.

Here are this week's games (all rankings based on latest AP Poll).

Big 12

Kansas (0-10) vs. West Virginia (5-4)

Kansas State (3-6) vs. Iowa State (3-7)

No. 4 Oklahoma State (10-0) vs. No. 10 Baylor (8-1)

No. 11 TCU (9-1) vs. No. 7 Oklahoma (9-1)

Around the Country

No. 2 Ohio State (10-0) vs. No. 9 Michigan State (9-1)

No. 21 Wisconsin (8-2) vs. No. 20 Northwestern (8-2)

No. 18 Utah (8-2) vs. UCLA (7-3)

Penn State (7-3) vs. No. 14 Michigan (8-2)

Oregon (7-3) vs. USC (7-3)

Ole Miss (7-3) vs. No. 17 LSU (7-2)