TCU Preview: Offense

After surviving a scare against Kansas, the Longhorns will be forced to turn their attention to TCU. The Horned Frogs have lost 3 of their last 4 games, and what should have been a bounce back year for Gary Patterson’s squad has been disappointing thus far. Let’s take a look at how TCU stacks up on offense:

Quarterback

TCU entered fall camp with a quarterback competition that was ultimately won by graduate transfer Alex Delton, a former Kansas State QB. Delton’s time as the starter did not last long, as his inability to throw the ball consistently ultimately led the coaching staff to give the majority of the snaps to true freshman Max Duggan. On the surface, Duggan appears to be having a solid season (9 touchdowns and 0 INT’s), but has struggled with accuracy, completing only 56.34% of his passes. The Horned Frogs will place a heavy emphasis on the running game, and Delton will see snaps from time to time to utilize his ability as a runner.

TCU is averaging just over 200 yards passing per game, but it’s hard to imagine offensive coordinator Sonny Cumbie won’t dial up some deep shots to Jalen Reagor to see if Texas has fixed any of the issues in defending the pass.

Running Back

Senior Darius Anderson leads the TCU running back group. The Houston native is averaging a tad over 7 yards per carry and has 6 touchdowns. Fellow senior Sewo Olonilua will also receive plenty of touches. The 240-pound bowling ball is a bruiser but also has sneaky speed. 

Wide Receiver

Two weeks ago, it was CeeDee Lamb. Last week, it was Pooka Williams. This week, it is Jalen Reagor. Reagor is the one man Texas has to find a way to slow down. The junior is not putting up ridiculous stats (271 yards and 3 TD’s), but he is the focal point of the TCU passing game. The second leading receiver in terms of receptions is actually Darius Anderson, meaning if the Longhorns find a way to slow down Reagor, they will be in very good shape on defense.

Offensive Line

The Horned Frogs have a heavy veteran presence along the offensive line. They will start 3 seniors and 2 redshirt sophomores. RT Lucas Niang is a future NFL player and is one of the best tackles in the Big 12. Center Coy McMillon is the younger brother of former Texas offensive lineman Jake McMillon. The unit as a whole is allowing a little over 2 sacks per game, but the offense is about as quarterback friendly as you will find. You will not see many drop back passes where Duggan or Delton are forced to go through multiple progressions.

Overall Thoughts

The Texas defense is struggling mightily right now, so it’s tough to know how a subpar TCU offense will perform. If Texas is able to slow down Reagor and generate any resemblance of a pass rush, they are likely to have success. This is not as explosive of an offense as past TCU teams have had, so the opportunity is there for the Longhorns to take advantage if they clean up what has been plaguing them for most of the season.