Frogs Set to Host Arkansas State
9/19/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
- Live TotalCast!
Game 3
Sept. 23, 2000 * 6:05 p.m. (CDT)
Amon G. Carter Stadium (44,008)
Fort Worth, Texas
Television:
The game will be televised on a tape-delayed basis by Fort Worths CCTV Channel 45. Radio: TCU/ESPN Sports Network (Brian Estridge and John Denton). The game will be broadcast on KWRD 94.9 FM in Fort Worth-Dallas.
The Coaches:
Dennis Franchione (Pittsburg State, 1973)
Overall Record: 18th year * 130-64-2 (.668)
at TCU: 3rd year * 17-9 (.654)
Joe Hollis (Auburn, 1969)
Overall Record: 5th year * 14-32-1
at Arkansas State: 4th year *(10-27
The Series: TCU leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: TCU 24, ASU 21 ('99)
Frogs set to host Arkansas State
The TCU Horned Frogs (2-0) return to Amon G. Carter Stadium Saturday, September 23 to host the Arkansas State Indians of the Big West Conference. The Frogs enter the contest ranked 18th by the Associated Press and 19th by the ESPN/USA Today. Kickoff for the contest is set for 6:05 p.m.
The Series
The Frogs and Indians are meeting for the second time. Last season, TCU escaped Jonesboro, Arkansas with a 24-21 win over Arkansas State. LaDainian Tomlinson led TCU with two touchdowns and a then-career high 269 yards on 40 carries. Casey Printers made his first career start at quarterback for TCU, throwing for 88 yards. Aaron Schobel had two of TCUs four quarterback sacks. Dennis Franchione has a 2-0 record against Arkansas State. In the 1989 season, Franchiones Pittsburg State Gorillas defeated Arkansas State, 34-13. TCU has a a record of 18-2-1 against current members of the Big West Conference.
Frogs Look to Extend Winning Streak
TCUs 41-14 win over Northwestern extended the Frogs winning streak to seven games. The current streak is the longest since 1959, when the Frogs put together a seven-game winning streak. The 1935 Frogs won 11 straight games, and the 1937-38 TCU teams produced 14 straight victories. TCUs current streak is the fourth longest in the nation, trailing only Florida State (15 consecutive wins), Wisconsin (11) and Nebraska (8).
What to Look for
- A TCU win would extend the winning streak to eight games. The Frogs have also won six straight home games.
- Heisman Trophy Candidate LaDainian Tomlinson needs only 226 yards to establish a TCU record for career rushing yards.
- The Frogs have a record of 9-3 when Tomlinson rushes for at least 100 yards.
- Under Coach Fran, TCU has a 12-1 record when rushing for 240+ yards.
- The TCU defense has allowed 263 rushing yards in the last seven games, an average of 37.6 yards per contest.
- TCU is averaging 47.7 yards per kick return to lead the nation.
Poll Notes
For the fifth consecutive week, the Frogs are ranked in the national polls. This week, TCU is ranked 18th by the Associated Press and 19th by ESPN/USA Today.
Before this season, TCU last appeared in the national polls on October 23, 1990, when TCU was ranked 24th by the AP and 19th by UPI. TCUs preseason national ranking was the first for the school since the 1960 season, when the Frogs were ranked 11th by the AP.
Against the WAC
In four-plus seasons in the Western Athletic Conference, the Frogs have compiled a win-loss mark of 14-18 against WAC competition. However, TCU has won eight of their last 10 conference games. Nevada, the newest member of the WAC, was the 15th different conference opponent for the Frogs since joining the league in 1996.
Rush for 240
A major statistical trend under Coach Fran has been TCUs success when they rush for at least 240 yards in a game. Overall, TCU is 12-1 in two-plus seasons under Franchione, when rushing for 240 yards or more. Last week, TCU rushed for 387 yards against Northwestern.
Last season, the Frogs were 4-0 when they surpassed the 240-yard barrier. Franchione-coached teams have won 28-of-32 games since 1992, when rushing for at least 240 yards. The game-by-game totals for 2000:
Opponent Att. Yards Avg. TDNevada 55 317 5.8 4Northwestern 69 387 5.6 3Arkansas StateNavyHawaii
Big Play Offense
The Frogs have an offensive category titled 'Explosives', which are rushing plays of 12 yards or more and pass plays of 16 yards or more. TCUs goal is to get at least eight per game. The breakdown for the 2000 season:
Opponent Run Pass TotalNevada 7 2 9Northwestern 9 2 11Arkansas StateNavyHawaiiLaDainian Tomlinson led the 1999 Frogs with 39. The single-game high under Franchione is 12, which the Frogs recorded in 1999 against Tulsa.
Individual Rushing: Tomlinson (9), Printers (5), Layne (1) Stilley (1).Individual Receiving: Maiden (1), James (2), Brown (1).Explosives by year Run Pass Total2000 16 4 201999 60 31 911998 38 16 54
Receiving Leaders
Tailback LaDainian Tomlinson enters the 2000 season as the active leader in career receptions. The following list is a breakdown of TCUs receptions leaders.
Player, Class ReceptionsLaDainian Tomlinson, Senior 33Cedric James, Senior 23LaTarence Dunbar, Sophomore 21Tim Maiden, Senior 17Kevin Brown, Sophomore 11B.J. Roberts, Junior 7Matt Schobel, Junior 4George Layne, Junior 4Terran Williams, Sophomore 3Chad Purcell, Senior 1Andrew Hayes-Stoker, Junior 1
LaDainian Tomlinson
Heisman Trophy Candidate
One of the premier college football players in the country... a candidate for the 2000 Heisman Trophy, Doak Walker National Running Back Award and the Maxwell Award... on his way to leading the NCAA in rushing, Tomlinson burst onto the college football scene with an NCAA single-game record 406 yards rushing on 43 attempts against UTEP on November 20, 1999... A first-team All-America selection by Athlon, Playboy, Football News, The Sporting News, Texas Football, Blue Ribbon, Street and Smith and Preview Sports... a second-team All-America honoree by Lindys... WAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year by Athlon, The Sporting News, Dave Campbells Texas Football, Street and Smith, Preview Sports, Rivals.com and Lindys... Texas Colleges Offensive Player of the Year by Dave Campbells Texas Football.
Solid Start
- Tomlinson leads the nation in rushing with 209.5 yards per game and he is first in all-purpose yards with 212.0 yards per contest. He has rushed for 419 yards on 63 attempts, an average of 6.7 yards per carry.
- LT rushed for 243 yards on 39 attempts against Northwestern, scoring two touchdowns.
- Despite playing only three quarters against Nevada, Tomlinson rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns on 24 attempts. He had one pass reception for two yards. In the process, he bypassed Andre Davis for second in career rushing at TCU.
- LT needs only 226 yards to move past Tony Jeffery into first in career rushing yards at TCU. Jeffery rushed for 3,749 yards from 1984-87.
- LT is the TCU record holder for touchdowns with 37. All 37 of his touchdowns have been on the ground. He tied the single-season record with 18 rushing scores in the 1999 season. This season, he has already crossed the goal line five times. He is second nationally in scoring, averaging 15.0 points per game.
- Tomlinson is first in the NCAA among active leading rushers with 3,524 career rushing yards on 601 attempts. Last week, Tomlinson moved past Marylands Lamont Jordan, who has rushed for 3,327 yards on 634 attempts. Last week, Jordan rushed for only 38 yards against West Virginia. Anthony Thomas (Michigan) is third with 3,158 yards.
- LT is also moving his way up the WACs career record lists. He is seventh in rushing yards with 3,524 yards. He needs 1,289 yards to pass Steve Bartalo (Colorado State) and become the Western Athletic Conferences all-time leading rusher. He is only 39 yards behind John Harvey (UTEP), 88 yards behind Dee Dowis (Air Force) and 230 yards behind Woody Green (Arizona State).
- He needs to rush for 1,424 yards, an average of 158.2 yards per game to move into the top-10 in NCAA Career rushing.
- He has eclipsed the 100-yard barrier on 12 occasions in his career, including seven times in 1999. Andre Davis owns the record with 16 career 100-yard games. The Frogs have a record of 9-3 when Tomlinson rushes for at least 100 yards.
- He can become the first TCU running back to earn first-team All-America honors since Kenneth Davis in 1984. Jim Swink earned first-team All-America honors in 1955.
- Entering the 2000 football season, Tomlinson is the only running back in NCAA Division I history to surpass the 400-yard mark in a single-game.
- He led the country in rushing in 1999 with 1,850 - the first TCU player to lead the nation in rushing. The yardage total set a new WAC record and it ranks 22nd in NCAA history.
- Tomlinson can become the fifth TCU player to finish in the top-five in voting for the Heisman Trophy. Sam Baugh finished fourth in 1935, Davey OBrien won the award in 1938, Jim Swink was the runner-up in 1955 and Kenneth Davis finished fifth in 1984.
- He is averaging 109.5 yards per game against ranked opponents. Since Tomlinson arrived at TCU in 1997, the Frogs have faced four nationally-ranked foes. He has rushed for 438 yards on 96 attempts, scoring five touchdowns. TCU has a record of 2-2 in the four games.
- He owns four of TCUs top-seven single-game rushing efforts, rushing for at least 269 yards three times in 1999. In the process, he tied Kenneth Davis school-record for 200-yard games in a season at three.
- He is the TCU single-season record holder in attempts in a game (43), attempts in a season (268), yards in a game (406), yards in a season (1,850).
- He owns three of TCUs 15 longest runs from scrimmage, including a school-record 89-yard touchdown run vs. San Jose State. Tomlinson also had an 80-yard touchdown run against Tulsa and a 79-yard run at Arkansas State.
Head Coach
Dennis Franchione
In his third season at the helm of the TCU football program is Dennis Franchione (Pittsburg State 73). He has recorded a 130-64-2 record during his stints at Southwestern (Kan.), Pittsburg (Kan.) State, Southwest Texas State, New Mexico and TCU.
Coach Fran is 17-9 overall at TCU, 9-4 at home and 8-5 on the road (including neutral sites). The Frogs had won only 11 games in the previous three seasons. He has led the Frogs to bowl wins over USC (Sun Bowl) and East Carolina (Mobile Alabama Bowl). In his 18th season as a head coach, the 49-year old Franchione is presently ranked 16th among active NCAA Division I-A coaches in winning percentage (.668) and 13th in victories (130).
The 1999 WAC title was TCUs first football title in the conference, and the schools first football championship since 1994, when the Frogs tied for the Southwest Conference Championship. TCUs bowl win against USC was the schools first since the 1957 Cotton Bowl, when TCU defeated Syracuse, 28-27. Plus, the win over East Carolina gave Frogs back-to-back bowl wins for the first time since 1936-37, when TCU defeated LSU in the 1936 Sugar Bowl and Marquette in the 1937 Cotton Bowl.
Under Franchione, 18 Frogs have received first or second-team all-conference honors in the last two years, plus LaDainian Tomlinson was named the 1999 WAC Player of the Year. Franchione was a member of the West coaching staff in the 2000 East-West Shrine game.
Double-Digit Starters
Sixteen Horned Frogs have double-digit starting assignments to their credit, including Aaron Schobel who has started 36 games in his TCU career.
Player, Class, Position StartsAaron Schobel, Senior, DE 36Michael Keathley, Senior, OL 29 Greg Walls, Senior, CB 27Shawn Worthen, Senior, DT 26Curtis Fuller, Senior, FS 25Shannon Brazzell, Senior, LB 24 Russell Gary, Senior, SS 24Jeff Millican, Senior, OL 24Jeff Garner, Senior, C 21David Bobo, Senior, OT 19LaDainian Tomlinson, Senior, TB 18B.J. Roberts, Junior, TE 15Jason Goss, Sophomore, CB 14Victor Payne, Junior, OL 14Chad Bayer, LB 14Shane Ladewig, Senior, OL 12Casey Printers, Sophomore, QB 12Tim Maiden, Senior, WR 11George Layne, Junior, FB 10
Experienced O-Line
Entering Saturdays contest against Arkansas State, the TCU offensive line has combined to start 119 games. Mike Keathley leads the way with 29 starts in his TCU career. Guard Jeff Millican has 24 starts, center Jeff Garner has started 21 games and tackle David Bobo has 19 starts to his credit. Junior Victor Payne has started 14 games and senior backup guard Shane Ladewig has started 12 games.
O-Line Knockdown Blocks
In last weekends win over Northwestern, the TCU offensive line recorded 139 knockdown blocks, including 36 by junior Victor Payne. The game-by-game totals for 2000 with the starters totals in parentheses.
Oppt. (total) Bobo Millican Garner Payne KeathleyNev. (88) 17 16 8 10 12NU (139) 30 33 25 36 13Totals (225) 47 49 33 46 25Now Wearing #1, Casey Printers
In 12 career starts, Casey Printers has a 10-2 record as the starting quarterback. Last season, he led the Frogs to a 8-2 record, earning third-team Freshman All-America honors. Printers, the MVP of the Mobile Alabama Bowl, helped lead the Frogs to a five-game winning streak to end the 1999 season.
Last week against Northwestern, Printers accounted for three touchdowns, two passing and one rushing. He enters the Arkansas game, needing 1340 yards to move pass Lindy Berry into 10th in career passing yards at TCU.
Special Teams
After the first two games of the season, the Frogs have are ranked among the national leaders in both kick and punt returns. The Frogs lead the NCAA in kick returns, averaging 47.7 yards per return. They are 11th in punt returns with a 18.4 average. In the Nevada contest, LaVar Veale returned eight punts for 143 yards, scoring one touchdown on an 85-yard return. The punt return for a touchdown was the first by a TCU player since John Washington returned a punt 65 yards against Texas in 1995. LaTarence Dunbar also returned a kickoff 95 yards for a score. TCU ranks second in net punting with a 45.6 average.
Replacing Royce
Over the last several seasons, Royce Huffman served many roles for the Frogs, most notably punter and punt returner. Entering the 2000 season, no one on the TCU roster had punted in a collegiate football game. Sophomore Joey Biasatti, who won the job in two-a-days, has punted nine times, recording a 45.6 average. In the Nevada game, Biasatti placed two punts inside the opponents 20-yard line, including a 79-yard effort. Veale opened the 1999 season as the TCU punt returner, but was replaced midseason by Huffman.
Tough Against the Run
In the last seven games, TCU has allowed only 263 yards rushing on 207 attempts, an average of 1.27 yards per attempt and 37.6 yards per game. This season, the Frogs have allowed 124 yards rushing on 65 attempts, an average of 1.9 yards per rush.
Since the arrival of Dennis Franchione and defensive coordinator Gary Patterson, a TCU opponent has been held to 100 rushing yards or fewer in 13 of 26 games.
Last season, TCU allowed only 139 yards rushing in the final five games of the year. In the Mobile Alabama Bowl, TCU held East Carolina to minus-16 yards rushing on 26 attempts. Overall, the Frogs finished the season fifth in the nation in total defense, allowing a meager 284.5 yards per game. In 1999, the Frogs were first in the WAC and 14th in the final NCAA rushing defensive statistics. Here is a closer look at how the TCU defense has fared under Patterson.
Rushing Yds Passing Yds TDs Total Yds NCAAYear Avg./GM Avg./Gm Allowed Avg./GM Total Def. Rank1998 163.1 182.7 25 345.7 40th1999 100.9 183.5 24 284.5 5th2000 62.0 202.0 3 264.0 20th
Sack Attack
The 1999 TCU pass rush recorded a school-record tying 37 sacks. The 2000 Frogs are half way there. TCU has recorded 18 sacks in two games, including a single-game school-record 15 sacks at Nevada. The Frogs recorded 12 in the first half, erasing the previous school-record of nine in just two quarters. Ten different Frogs have posted at least one sack.
Aaron Schobel, TCUs all-time leader in sacks, had three sacks in the first half. He did not play in the second half. Backup end Joe Hill has recorded 3.5 sacks in two games. Chad McCarty, Chad Bayer and Shannon Brazzell are tied for third with three sacks each.
Behind the line of Scrimmage
The Frogs have recorded 26 tackles behind the line of scrimmage, resulting in losses of 129 yards. Including the school-record 15 sacks, TCU posted 20 tackles behind the line against Nevada. In the Northwestern contest, the Frogs recorded six tackles behind the line, including three sacks.
Last season, TCU recorded 117 tackles behind the line of scrimmage for losses of 452 yards. Aaron Schobel led the team with 19 stops in the backfield, Shannon Brazzell had 15 and Chad Bayer had 14 tackles behind the line. The following is a list of TCUs current leaders in career tackles behind the line.
Career Tackles Behind the LinePlayer, Class TotalAaron Schobel, Senior 54.5Shannon Brazzell, Senior 26.5Shawn Worthen, Senior 21Chad Bayer, Junior 17Russell Gary, Senior 12
Run-Stopper
Shannon Brazzell is TCUs active leader in career tackles with 212, one ahead of teammate Aaron Schobel.
Player, Class Career TacklesShannon Brazzell, Senior 212Aaron Schobel, Senior 211Curtis Fuller, Senior 194Russell Gary, Senior 115Terrance Maiden, Senior 104Chad Bayer, Junior 102LaVar Veale, Senior 97Shawn Worthen, Junior 82Greg Walls, Junior 75
Aaron Schobel, a candidate for the Bronko Nagurski and Lombardi Trophies, has developed into one one of the top defensive ends in the country.
He is TCUs all-time leader in sacks, both career and single-season. He has posted 28.5 sacks in three-plus seasons, resulting in losses of 194 yards. Overall, he has recorded 54.5 tackles behind the line for losses of 278 yards. He established the single-season record in 1999, recording 10 sacks. He added three more to his total in the Mobile Alabama Bowl, when he posted three sacks against East Carolina.
Schobel has started 36 consecutive games in his career. The only game he did not start was the first game of his redshirt freshman year. Schobel was a preseason second-team All-American by Football News, and the WAC preseason Defensive Player of the year by the WACs head coaches, The Sporting News, Athlon, Preview Sports and Lindys magazines. The Sporting News rated Schobel as the fifth best defensive end in the country.
Career SacksRank Player Total1. Aaron Schobel, 1997- 28.52. Royal West, 1991-94 22Career Tackles Behind the LineRank Player Total1. Royal West, 1991-94 562. Aaron Schobel, 1997- 54.5Career Yards Lost TacklingRank Player Total1. Aaron Schobel, 1997- 2782. Royal West, 1991-94 209 Schobel Year by YearYear UT AT Total Sacks/Yds TFL/Yds1997 42 27 69 7-39 15-641998 40 26 66 7.5-65 16.5-1131999 43 27 70 10-63 19-742000 5 2 7 4-27 4-27Totals 130 82 212 28.5-194 54.5-278
Playing at Home
Dennis Franchione has preached to the Frogs the importance of protecting their home turf. Last year, the Frogs did just that, recording a 5-1 (4-0 in WAC play) record at Amon Carter Stadium. The Frogs fared well both offensively and defensively at home. The following is a look at how the TCU offense and defense has performed at home in the 1999 and 2000 seasons.
Offense Points Rushing Passing Total Year Avg. Avg. Avg. Yards/Avg.1999 38.1 305.6 100.1 405.82000 41.0 387.0 101.0 488.0Defense Points Rushing Passing Total Year Avg. Avg. Avg. Yards/Avg.1999 13.6 48.0 198.6 246.62000 14.0 113.0 145.0 258.0
Leadership Council/Captains
When Coach Fran arrived at TCU, he formed a group called the TCU Leadership Council. The 12-member unit is represented by a player from each position. Four game captains are chosen each week. The 2000 Leadership Council consists of offensive tackle David Bobo, linebacker Shannon Brazzell, safety Curtis Fuller, wide receiver Cedric James, kicker Chris Kaylakie, offensive tackle Mike Keathley, defensive end Chad McCarty, offensive guard Jeff Millican, quarterback Casey Printers, tight end B.J. Roberts, defensive end Aaron Schobel, safety Cody Slinkard, tailback LaDainian Tomlinson and cornerback Greg Walls.
Frogs on Television
Eight of TCU's 11 games are scheduled to be televised. ESPN Regional will televise the Nevada (Sept. 9), Tulsa (Oct. 21) and Rice games (Oct. 28). Fox Sports Net will nationally televise the Northwestern (Sept. 16), Navy (Sept. 30) and SMU (Nov. 24) contests. Fox Sports Southwest will televise the Hawaii (Oct. 7) and UTEP (Nov. 11) games on a regional basis. The Fresno State contest is expected to be televised by Fox Sports Net. In the last two seasons, TCU has appeared on television 10 times, including five national broadcasts.
Fran vs. Non-WAC Opponents
Since Dennis Franchione arrived at TCU, the Frogs have compiled a record of 7-3 against non-WAC opponents, including wins over USC and East Carolina. TCU has won four straight non-WAC games.
1999 Recap
The Frogs were 8-4 in 1999, winning the final five games of the season over Hawaii, North Texas, UTEP, SMU and East Carolina... TCU tied Fresno State and Hawaii for first in the WAC, compiling a 5-2 league record... the Frogs were 5-1 at home, 2-3 on the road and 1-0 at neutral sites... TCU faced two ranked opponents, losing to Arizona (35-31) and defeating East Carolina (28-14).
Up Next
The Frogs will travel to Navy to face the Midshipmen in a non-conference game. Kickoff for the Fox Sports Net nationally-televised game is set for 11 a.m. central time.
