TCU heads to Albuquerque to face New Mexico
11/8/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 8, 2006
ABOUT THE GAME
•The TCU football team, in the midst of a stretch with just one home date in 50 days, plays the second of back-to-back conference road games when it travels to New Mexico.
•Last year's 49-28 win over the Lobos gave TCU a 4-3 series lead. It was also the first meeting between the teams since 1997 when both were members of the WAC. The Frogs are 3-1 at home versus New Mexico and 1-2 in Albuquerque.
•The defending champion Frogs and San Diego State have played the fewest MWC games (four) of any team in the league.
•TCU's schedule this fall has featured a Sunday game, two Thursday contests and a pair of open dates. The Frogs have had stretches this season where they've gone four straight Saturdays without a game and played just twice in a 34-day period.
LOBO TIES
Five TCU coaches, including head coach Gary Patterson, have worked at New Mexico.
•Prior to coming to TCU as defensive coordinator in 1998, Patterson served as New Mexico¹s defensive coordinator for two seasons (1996-97).
•TCU wide receivers coach Jarrett Anderson is a 1993 New Mexico graduate who played two seasons for the Lobos (1992-93). He was a New Mexico graduate assistant in 1994.
•Frogs' safeties coach Chad Glasgow was a Lobo graduate assistant in 1996.
•TCU offensive coordinator Mike Schultz spent six seasons (1992-97) as an assistant head coach at New Mexico. He was the secondary coach from 1992-95 before taking over the running backs in the 1996 and 1997 campaigns.
•Frogs' quarterback coach Dick Winder was New Mexico's offensive backfield/quarterbacks coach in the 1979 season. Winder was an assistant at Goddard (N.M.) High School from 1965-67 and head coach at Roswell (N.M.) High School from 1968-70.
•Patterson and Schultz were on the staff of the 1997 New Mexico team which made its first postseason appearance in 36 years when it faced Arizona in the Insight.com Bowl.
LAST YEAR AGAINST THE LOBOS
•Quarterback Jeff Ballard, making his first collegiate start, ran for four touchdowns and passed for two as TCU built a 28-0 first-quarter lead en route to a 49-28 victory.
•Ballard tied LaDainian Tomlinson's single-game TCU record of accounting for six touchdowns.
•After the Lobos scored 28 unanswered points to even the game, the Frogs took the lead for good when Ballard connected with tight end Chad Andrus for a 38-yard touchdown pass on a fourth-and-1 play with 4:20 left in the third quarter.
•TCU forced six New Mexico turnovers. TCU picks on two of the Lobos' first five plays from scrimmage gave the Frogs a 14-0 lead just 1:55 into the contest. The Frogs had three scoring drives that were one play with a total of four touchdown drives taking place in 10 seconds or less.
FROG HONOR ROLL
NUMBERS TO WATCH
•TCU's next victory would be the 50th for Gary Patterson, making him the fastest coach in Horned Frog history to reach 50 wins.
•At 59-21 (.738), TCU has the 13th-best record in Division I-A since the start of the 2000 campaign.
WEEKYL HONOR ROLL
•Peter LoCoco, PK - Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Week (Nov. 4 vs. UNLV)
•Robert Henson, LB - Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 28 vs. Wyoming)
•Chris Manfredini, PK - Lou Groza Award Star of the Week (Sept. 16 vs. Texas Tech)
•Chris Manfredini, PK - Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 16 vs. Texas Tech)
•Marvin White, S - Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 16 vs. Texas Tech)
•Marcus Jackson, QB - Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 3 vs. Baylor)
•Marvin White, S - Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 3 vs. Baylor)
BLAKE MAKES MID-SEASON WATCH LIST FOR HENDRICKS AWARD
•Tommy Blake is one of 28 players on the mid-season watch list for the Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award.
FROGS PROMINENT AS CANDIDATES FOR MAJOR AWARDS
•TCU has eight players and its head coach on a total of 11 different watch lists:
•Jeff Ballard, QB - Davey O'Brien Award
•Tommy Blake, DE - Chuck Bednarik Award, Ted Hendricks Award, Lombardi Trophy, Lott Trophy, Bronko Nagurski Trophy
•Aaron Brown, TB - Doak Walker Award
•Chris Manfredini, PK - Lou Groza Award
•Robert Merrill, TB - Doak Walker Award
•Chase Ortiz, DE - Ted Hendricks Award, Lombardi Trophy, Bronko Nagurski Trophy
•Jason Phillips, LB - Butkus Award
•Herb Taylor, OT - Lombardi Trophy, Outland Trophy
•TCU is one of nine teams to have three players on the Lombardi Award Watch List.
•Gary Patterson was one of nine coaches on the initial watch list for the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award.
FROGS AS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS
•Jeff Ballard, QB - Football Writers Association of America All-America checklist
•Tommy Blake, DE - Athlon, Street & Smith the nation. The Sporting News All-America checklist (No. 7 defensive end in the nation)
•Aaron Brown, TB - Football Writers Association of America All-America checklist
•Robert Merrill, TB - Football Writers Association of America All-America checklist
•Chase Ortiz, DE - Football Writers Association of America All-America checklist
•Jason Phillips, LB - The Sporting News All-America checklist (No. 13 inside linebacker in the nation)
•Herb Taylor, OT - Athlon, Street & Smith's, NationalChamps.net, Football Writers Association of America All-America checklist, The Sporting News All-America checklist (No. 10 offensive tackle in the nation)
•Marvin White, S - The Sporting News All-America checklist (No. 6 safety in the nation)
FROGS ON THE PREEASON ALL-MWC TEAM
•TCU placed five players on the 2006 preseason All-MWC Team: Tommy Blake (DE), Chase Ortiz (DE), Jason Phillips (LB), Herb Taylor (OT) and Marvin White (S).
TCU FARES WELL IN GSR
•TCU ranked 20th in the 2006 NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) with a 78 percent score.
•The Frogs placed second in the Mountain West Conference, trailing only Air Force (93 percent).
•TCU was eighth out of 2005 bowl teams, placing behind Navy, Boston College, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Nebraska, Florida and Penn State. frog Offensive notes
RECAPPING UNLV
•Against UNLV, TCU had season-highs in rushing attempts (55), plays from scrimmage (83) and time of possession (36:09).
•The Frogs tied season-best marks in first downs (29) and fewest punts (two).
AMONG THE BEST
•TCU ranks second in the Mountain West Conference in total offense (381.9) and rushing offense (174.9) while placing fourth in scoring (22.6).
BIG NUMBERS
•TCU is averaging 438.5 yards of offense in its last two games.
•The Frogs totaled 432 against Wyoming (Oct. 28) who entered the game third in the nation in total defense (227.0). TCU had 445 yards last week at UNLV.
NEARLY REACHING THE CENTURY MARK
•Tailback Lonta Hobbs came close to a 100-yard rushing game at UNLV. However, a fumble resulted in an 11-yard loss being charged to Hobbs who still finished with a season-best 93 yards on 22 carries. It's the top rushing mark by a Frog this season. Outside of the fumble, Hobbs had 104 yards on 21 attempts.
GROUND GAINS
•TCU has rushed for at least 180 yards in five of its six wins. The lone exception was a 98-yard effort in the season-opening 17-7 victory at Baylor.
•The Frogs average 196.2 yards rushing in their six wins and 111.0 in the two losses.
•TCU is averaging 209.3 yards on the ground in its current three-game winning streak.
•Six of TCU's top-seven rushers are averaging at least 4.5 yards per carry.
RUSHING TARGETS
•By averaging 209.3 yards rushing in the last three games, TCU has seen its season rushing mark climb to 174.9.
•In the three 10-win seasons under Gary Patterson, the Frogs averaged 201.0 yards per game rushing:
•2002 - 203.2
•2003 - 207.7
•2005 - 192.2
•The Frogs averaged 145.4 yards on the ground (124.5, 2001; 166.2, 2004) in their other two seasons under Patterson which produced 6-6 and 5-6 records, respectively.
LESS IS BEST
•The Frogs have won all six of their games when they attempted 28 or fewer passes.
TWO-THIRDS OF THE WAY THERE
•During the preseason, TCU's trio of Aaron Brown, Lonta Hobbs and Robert Merrill was ranked as the fourth-best backfield in the nation by The Sporting News.
•In just four (BYU, Army, Wyoming, UNLV) of eight games this season has TCU had two of its Big 3 tailbacks play in the same game.
•Robert Merrill, who entered the 2006 campaign as the third-leading active rusher in Division I-A with 2,771 yards, has yet to play after offseason back surgery.
•Lonta Hobbs missed the opening three games with an ankle injury before making his season debut Sept. 28 against BYU. That was also the contest when Aaron Brown sustained an ankle injury that kept him out of the Oct. 5 Utah game.
FINDING THE STICKS
•TCU quarterback Jeff Ballard ran for a first down on nine of his 14 carries at UNLV.
•Ballard rushed for a career-best 84 yards against the Rebels.
BALLARD ON THE GROUND
•Jeff Ballard has had four of the top-six rushing games of his career in the last six contests.
•Ballard had a personal-best 84 yards last week at UNLV, 72 yards against Texas Tech (Sept. 16), 71 versus BYU (Sept. 28) and 67 at Army (Oct. 21). During those four contests, he totaled 294 yards on a 6.7 per carry mark.
•Ballard's previous career-high of 79 yards rushing came in his first collegiate start, a 49-28 win last year over New Mexico.
•Ballard is third on the Frogs with 306 yards rushing on a 4.5 per carry average, nearly equaling his total from last year (314 yards, 3.4 avg.).
AT STAKE
•A victory over New Mexico would make Jeff Ballard TCU's career leader in winning percentage by a starting quarterback. He¹s currently 14-2 (.875) and tied with Howard Grubbs (1928-29) for the top spot.
CHARTING HOBBS
•Lonta Hobbs needs 38 yards to move past Curtis Modkins (2,763, 1989-92) into seventh place on TCU's career rushing list. Hobbs is also just 46 yards shy of surpassing current teammate Robert Merrill (2,771, 2003-06) for the No. 6 position. Merrill has been sidelined all season by a back injury.
•Hobbs has a rushing touchdown in three of the last four games. His first touchdown in that stretch, Oct. 5 at Utah, marked his first visit to the end zone in over two years (Oct. 2, 2004 at Army). Hobbs received a medical redshirt in 2005 after playing just two games due to a groin injury.
•Hobbs' streak of three straight games with a touchdown, snapped last week at UNLV, was the longest by a Frog since Aaron Brown found the end zone in four straight contests spanning the final two games in 2005 and the opening two this season.
•Hobbs has 35 career rushing touchdowns, second on the Frogs' all-time list behind only LaDainian Tomlinson (54, 1997-00).
•Hobbs' 28-yard fourth-quarter carry against Wyoming was his longest run from scrimmage since a 38-yard gain on Oct. 2, 2004 at Army. It is also TCU's longest rushing play this season.
•Hobbs is second on the Frogs with 320 yards on the ground while his four rushing touchdowns are tied with Brown for the team lead.
•Hobbs carried the ball on TCU's first five plays from scrimmage against Utah. He also had three receptions for 36 yards.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
•Seven different players have accounted for TCU's seven touchdown catches.
•TCU has 15 different players with a pass reception this season.
•Quentily Harmon (36), Aaron Brown (20) and Donald Massey (15) are the lone Frogs in double figures.
•TCU wide receivers have accounted for 78 receptions (60.9 percent) with running backs catching 30 balls (23.4 percent) and tight ends 20 (15.6 percent).
•Twelve players have scored touchdowns this season with Brown (five), Lonta Hobbs (four) and Marcus Brock (two) being the lone Frogs to reach the end zone more than once.
THE GO-TO-GUY
•Quentily Harmon tops TCU with 36 receptions, already surpassing his total of 28 from last season.
•Harmon has nearly as many catches (36) as all the other TCU wide receivers combined (42).
•Harmon has at least three receptions in each of his last 10 games and 13 of the last 14. He also has a streak of 15 consecutive contests with at least one catch.
•Harmon had a career-high 105 yards receiving against Wyoming despite having just three catches for his lowest receiving total of the season. He entered the night with at least four receptions in every game.
•Harmon's previous career-high in receiving yards (96) came in the season-opening win at Baylor. He tied a career-best with six receptions against UC Davis.
MR. FIRST DOWN
•All seven of tight end Shae Reagan's receptions this season have resulted in TCU first downs.
LOVING THE TIGHT END
•Four different TCU tight ends have touchdown receptions this season. The scores have come with the position totaling just 20 catches.
•Reaching the end zone have been Quinton Cunigan (Baylor), Shae Reagan (UC Davis), Brent Hecht (BYU) and Chad Andrus (Army). Cunigan and Reagan scored on their first career catch.
•With a 51-yard reception at Army and a 36-yard grab at Utah, Reagan has taken part in two of TCU's six-longest pass plays on the season. He has a team-best 22.0 yards per reception mark with his seven grabs for 154 yards.
•Hecht tops the Frog tight ends with eight grabs for 87 yards. Dating back to last season, he has at least one reception in 12 of the last 14 games.
•Andrus is a graduate student this fall.
FINDING THE END ZONE
•Wide receiver Marcus Brock has rushed for a touchdown in two of TCU's last three games. He had a 6-yard run at Army and a 3-yard score versus Wyoming.
•Brock's two rushing touchdowns have come on just four carries this season.
•Brock's touchdown against Army was the second score of his career and first since Sept. 9, 2004, when he reached the end zone on a 9-yard pass from Jeff Ballard against SMU.
•Brock had the first rushing touchdown for a TCU wide receiver since Cory Rodgers last year versus UNLV (Nov. 12, 2005).
RETURN TO THE END ZONE
•Michael DePriest's 34-yard touchdown catch at UNLV marked his first score since an 84-yard reception in last year's EV1.net Houston Bowl win over Iowa State.
PROTECTING THE QB
•Offensive tackle Herb Taylor's 44 consecutive starts, representing every TCU game over the last four seasons, is tied for the fourth-longest current streak in Division I-A.
•The other four starters (RG Maurice Bouldwin, LG Matty Lindner, C Blake Schlueter, RT Wade Sisk) on the Frog offensive line made their first collegiate starts this season.
•TCU has allowed the second-fewest sacks (nine) in the MWC, trailing only Utah (eight).
SENSATIONAL SOPHOMORE
•Tailback Aaron Brown, the 2005 Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year and a Freshman All-American by The Sporting News, leads TCU in rushing (419 yards) while placing second in receptions (20) and receiving yards (310). He tops TCU in touchdowns (five).
•Brown's 20 receptions have nearly doubled his total of 11 from last year. It's also the top mark by a TCU back since Basil Mitchell had 21 catches in 1997.
•Brown is third in the MWC in all-purpose yards per game (104.1) and fourth in scoring by touchdowns (4.3 points each contest).
•A native of Katy, Texas, Brown is seventh in the MWC in rushing (59.9 yards per game).
•Brown's 107 yards receiving at Baylor were the most by a Frog since Cory Rodgers totaled 128 yards on six catches in a 48-10 win at Air Force last season (Oct. 22).
•Brown became the first TCU running back to reach 100 yards receiving in a game since Andre Davis had four receptions for 109 yards in a 30-28 win at Tulane on Oct. 15, 1994.
•Brown is wearing the same jersey number (23) as former TCU standout Jim Swink, a consensus All-America selection and the runner-up for the 1955 Heisman Trophy.
DRIVE CHART
•The following is a recap of TCU's scoring drives this season:
Opp. - Plays- Yds.- Time- Result
Baylor- 8- 18- 3:51- FG
Baylor- 3- 79- 1:55- TD
Baylor- 12- 86- 5:06- TD
UC Davis- 11- 80- 4:13- TD
UC Davis- 5- 4- 3:22- FG
UC Davis- 5- 32- 1:58- TD
UC Davis- 4- 32- 1:01- TD
UC Davis- 6- 49- 2:34- TD
UC Davis- 7- 80- 3:12- TD
UC Davis- 5- 13- 1:58- FG
UC Davis- 10- 74- 5:08- TD
Texas Tech- 14- 48- 5:57- FG
Texas Tech- 7- 7- 3:43- FG
Texas Tech- 7- 21- 2:40- FG
Texas Tech- 13- 72- 6:29- FG
BYU- 5- 30 - 0:27- FG
BYU- 11- 80- 4:22- TD
BYU- 13- 83- 2:19- TD
Utah- 7- 67- 2:25- TD
Army- 11- 89- 4:41- TD
Army- 5- 29- 2:40- TD
Army- 6- 24- 3:15- TD
Army- 5- 32- 1:41- FG
Wyoming- 8- 85- 3:20- TD
Wyoming- 5- 15- 2:04- FG
Wyoming- 10- 77- 4:43- FG
Wyoming- 2- 80- 0:54- TD
Wyoming- 11- 65- 5:27- TD
UNLV- 7- 65- 1:45- TD
UNLV- 14- 46- 5:42- FG
UNLV- 8- 44- 2:57- FG
UNLV- 5- 72- 2:33- TD
UNLV- 11- 59- 3:32- FG
UNLV- 5- 80- 1:55- FG
•The Frogs have nine scoring drives (five touchdowns, four field goals) in under two minutes.
•TCU has eight touchdown drives of at least 80 yards. •Fourteen of TCU's 17 scoring drives which covered at least 65 yards resulted in touchdowns.
•Seven of the Frogs' 12 scoring drives that have gone at least 10 plays ended in a touchdown.
•An 89-yard possession at Army, for the Frogs' first points in the game, represented TCU's longest scoring drive of the season.
•The Frogs have had two season-long 14-play scoring drives. Both possesions, against Texas Tech and UNLV, resulted in a field goal.
•TCU had four scoring drives of at least 65 yards against Wyoming, including three that were 77 or longer.
BREAKING OUT
•Wyoming entered the Oct. 28 game with TCU as the nation's leading pass defense, allowing 120.6 yards per game. TCU more than doubled that with 244 yards. It was the Frogs' second-best passing total of the season, trailing only a 296-yard effort against BYU.
•TCU had three of its four-longest pass plays of the season in the Wyoming game.
•The Cowboys also entered the game with the nation's third-best overall defense (227.0 yards per game). The Frogs totaled 432 yards, shattering the previous top mark by a Wyoming opponent (Air Force, 367) this season and becoming only the second team to top 275 yards against the Cowboys.
STATISTICAL ODDITIES
•Against Wyoming, TCU had its second-best passing output of the year (244 yards) despite a season-low in completions (11) and pass attempts (18).
•The Frogs had their third-best offensive total (432 yards) while running their fewest number of plays (59) from scrimmage (59) in a game this year.
IN SELECT COMPANY
•Marcus Jackson is one of just 20 redshirt or true freshman quarterbacks nationally to play this season.
•After redshirting last season, Jackson has completed 65.6 percent (21-of-32) of his pass attempts for 305 yards with two touchdowns and just one interception.
•Jackson was 11-of-13 for 148 yards and two scores in the second half at Baylor as he rallied the Frogs from a 7-0 deficit to a 17-7 victory.
LONG-DISTANCE FROGS
•Six of TCU's seven-longest pass plays of the season have come in the last three games.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
•Included below is where Jeff Ballard ranks on TCU's all-time list for longest overall winning streak by a starting quarterback:
1. Davey O'Brien - 14
2. Jeff Ballard - 11
3. Tye Gunn - 10
4. Howard Grubbs - 9
QUARTERBACK U
•Five of the top-six career completion percentage leaders for TCU have played in the last six seasons:
1. Jeff Ballard - 58.7 (2004-06)
2. Sean Stilley - 57.9 (1999-02)
3. Brandon Hassell - 56.7 (2003-04)
4. Casey Printers - 56.1 (1999-01)
5. Max Knake - 55.8 (1992-95)
6. Tye Gunn - 55.0 (2002-05)
HITTING HIS MARK
•After feeling woozy and playing just the first half in the season opener at Baylor, Jeff Ballard completed 18-of-23 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns against UC Davis for the fourth-best single-game completion percentage (78.3) in TCU history.
DEJA VU
•In relief roles, the numbers of Jeff Ballard in last year's 51-50 overtime win at BYU and Marcus Jackson in the second-half comeback at Baylor are similar:
•Ballard - 8-of-12 passing (75.0 percent), 150 yards, 2 TDs
•Jackson - 11-of-13 passing (84.6 percent), 148 yards, 2 TDs
•Jackson was two attempts shy (a minimum of 15 is required) of qualifying for the second-best single-game completion percentage in TCU history.
FROG DEFENSIVE NOTES
AMONG THE NATION'S FINEST
•TCU tops the Mountain West Conference and ranks fourth nationally in run defense (68.2 yards per game), seventh in scoring defense (13.0 points each contest) and seventh in opponent fourth-down conversions (22.2 percent, 2-of-9).
•The Frogs are second in the league and 11th in the country in total defense (272.5 yards per game).
MOST RECENTLY
•In its current three-game winning streak, the TCU defense has recorded the following numbers:
•202.3 yards per game allowed (77.3 rushing, 125.0 passing)
•12 sacks
•8 takeaways
•6-of-34 (17.6 percent) opponent third-down conversions
•31 opponent first downs (10.3 per game)
•10.0 points per game
•37-of-79 passing (46.8 percent) with five interceptions and no touchdowns
•77.3 yards rushing on a 2.9 per carry mark
•Army (196) and Wyoming (165) were both held under 200 yards in offense. UNLV had 246.
•In the first half, the Black Knights were limited to one first down and 31 total yards. The entire offensive output came on 13 rushes. Army did not complete a pass in five attempts with TCU cornerback Nick Sanders recording a pair of interceptions.
DEFENSE AT ITS BEST
•This year's TCU defense is on pace for its top performance in scoring defense (13.0 points per game) and second-best effort in rushing defense (68.2 yards) and total defense (272.5 yards) in the six-year head coaching tenure of Gary Patterson.
Year- Ppg.- Rushing - Defense- Total Defense
2001- 23.4- 93.8- 322.5
2002- 18.5- 64.8- 240.2
2003- 21.2- 93.7- 249.5
2004- 33.9- 122.0- 426.0
2005- 18.6- 107.9- 329.1
2006- 13.0- 68.2- 272.5
•The 13.0 points per game allowed is the lowest for TCU since a 9.6 mark in the 2000 campaign, Patterson's final year as defensive coordinator before becoming head coach.
•The TCU defense is allowing 56.6 yards per game fewer this season (272.5) compared to last year's Mountain West Conference championship team (329.1).
•The Frogs are also allowing 5.6 points per game fewer than a year ago.
•The Frogs are 6-0 when allowing 17 or less points and 0-2 when the opponent scores more than 17 this season.
SEASON-BESTS AGAINST UNLV
•TCU allowed a season-low 10 pass completions (27 attempts, 37.0 percent) at UNLV.
•The 51 plays from scrimmage and 23:51 in time of possession by the Rebels were also season-lows by a TCU opponent.
NO FRIEND OF RUNNING BACKS
•TCU is one of nine teams nationally to not allow a 100-yard game by an opposing running back this season.
•The others are Boise State, Boston College, Florida, Kansas, LSU, Michigan, Utah and West Virginia.
SACK MASTERS
•In the last three games, 10 players have accounted for TCU's 12 sacks.
•Twelve players have combined for the Frogs' 19 sacks on the year.
•Defensive tackles Cody Moore and James Vess have recorded sacks in each of the last two games.
•All-MWC safety Marvin White, the Frogs' leading tackler with 59 stops, recorded the first sack of his TCU career on the fifth play of the UNLV game.
STUFFING THE RUN
•In the last 11 games dating back to last season, only two TCU opponents have surpassed 86 yards rushing. During that stretch, the Frogs' run defense has surrendered 58.5 yards per contest.
Team (Date)- Rush Atts.- Yards- Per Carry- Rushing First Downs
Colorado State (Nov. 5)- 30- 59- 1.9- 4
UNLV (Nov. 12)- 25- 5- 0.2- 1
Iowa State (Dec. 31)- 25- 34- 1.4- 1
Baylor (Sept. 3)- 20- 47- 2.3- 3
UC Davis (Sept. 9)- 28- 26- 0.9- 3
Texas Tech (Sept. 16)- 15- 38- 2.5- 3
BYU (Sept. 28)- 34- 72- 2.1- 4
Utah (Oct. 5)- 36- 131- 3.6- 6
Army (Oct. 21)- 29- 86- 3.0- 3
Wyoming (Oct. 28)- 26- 28- 1.1- 4
UNLV (Nov. 4)- 24- 118- 4.9- 4
Totals- 292- 644- 2.2- 36
•In six seasons under head coach Gary Patterson, TCU is 34-5 when holding the opponent under 100 yards rushing.
TIGHTENING UP
•TCU allowed just three touchdowns on the opposition's 12 visits to the red zone in the last four games. Three of those failed possessions were the result of Frog interceptions.
THE PICK ARTIST
•Redshirt freshman cornerback Nick Sanders had two interceptions at Army (Oct. 21) and a total of three picks in a three-quarter span dating back to the Oct. 5 Utah game.
•With his 21-yard interception return for a touchdown at Army, Sanders became the first Frog since Quincy Butler on Nov. 20, 2004 (versus Southern Miss) to score on a pick. It was also TCU¹s first defensive touchdown since linebacker Robert Henson's 22-yard fumble return for a score in last year's 28-14 win at Wyoming.
THE BREAK-UP ARTIST
•Redshirt freshman cornerback Rafael Priest's eight pass breakups top TCU and are tied for third in the Mountain West Conference.
•Priest's eight PBUs equal TCU's 2005 team-leading total shared by Quincy Butler, Drew Coleman and Jeremy Modkins.
DEFENDING THE PASS
•TCU has surrendered just six touchdown tosses, tied for the lowest total in the MWC, despite starting a pair of redshirt freshmen (Rafael Priest and Nick Sanders) at cornerback and facing several pass-oriented teams this season.
•Three of the six touchdown passes allowed by TCU came against BYU. The Frogs have given up just three scoring tosses in their other seven contests.
MAKING HIS MARK
•TCU safety Marvin White has a team-best 59 tackles and has twice been named the Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week.
•White's 59 stops are 19 more than the next-closest Frog (Tommy Blake, 40).
•White's average of 7.4 stops per game ranks in a tie for ninth in the MWC. It¹s also well above last year's TCU top mark of 5.9 (Jason Phillips).
•A senior from Port Barre, La., White recorded the first sack of his two-year TCU career against UNLV.
LIVING UP TO HIS BILLING
•Defensive end Tommy Blake, a preseason All-American who appeared on five watch lists for major awards in 2006, is second on the Frogs with 40 tackles while topping the Mountain West Conference with 9.5 stops for a loss.
•Blake, a former high school running back, is also among the league leaders with his team-best 3.5 sacks.
•On a 42-yard run by UNLV's David Peeples, Blake raced downfield to make the tackle.
•Blake has forced two fumbles this season to give him four in his career.
OFF THE BENCH
•Linebacker Robert Henson, who has yet to start a game this season, was the Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week against Wyoming. He totaled a team-best eight tackles, including two for a loss with one sack. Also a special teams standout, Henson forced a fumble on a Cowboy kickoff return which led to a TCU field goal.
•Henson is fourth on the Frogs with 37 tackles, including six for a loss. He has two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, pass breakup and quarterback hurry. Henson had a key punt block in the 12-3 win over Texas Tech.
•Strong safety Brian Bonner, who places second on the Frogs with three sacks and six tackles for a loss, has started the last three games in place of an injured Eric Buchanan.
•A former prep quarterback, Bonner is fifth on the team with 32 stops.
THE FASTEST AND THE STRONGEST FROGS
SPEED
•In a 40-yard timing by National Football League scouts, the fastest Frogs are wide receiver Michael DePriest (4.33) and safety Marvin White (4.37).
HOW STRONG ARE THEY?
•The following numbers come courtesy of TCU's strength and conditioning program:
•43 - Number of players who bench 350+ pounds
•16 - Number of players who bench 400+ pounds
•329 - Average team power clean in pounds
•48 - Number of players who squat 500+ pounds
•19 - Number of players who squat 600+ pounds
•523 - Average team squat in pounds
•Top Lifters
•Bench Press - Jarrarcea Williams, NT (475 pounds)
•Squat - Cody Moore, DT (760 pounds)
•Power Clean - Cody Moore, DT (440 pounds)
SETTING THE PACE
•TCU led the nation in 2005-06 with five football players and a total of 10 student-athletes receiving All-America honors from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
FROG LEGS
•In two games this season, TCU placekickers have single-handedly outscored the opposition.
•Chris Manfredini's four field goals accounted for all of the Frogs' scoring in a 12-3 victory over Texas Tech.
•Peter LoCoco had four field goals in a 25-10 win at UNLV.
NEARLY A RECORD
•The four field goals in a game by Chris Manfredini (Texas Tech) and Peter LoCoco (UNLV) were one shy of the TCU record of five set by Nick Browne against Cincinnati in both the 2002 and 2003 campaigns.
•In that 2003 game against Cincinnati, Manfredini was the opposing kicker for the Bearcats.
DYNAMIC DUO
•Chris Manfredini (8-of-10) and Peter LoCoco (7-of-10) are a combined 15-of-20 on field goals this season.
•Manfredini is 21-of-23 in his two years at TCU. When including a 10-of-11 mark for Cincinnati in 2003, he is 31-of-34 (91.2 percent) on field goals in his collegiate career.
•LoCoco has made his last six attempts dating back to the Oct. 28 Wyoming contest.
•LoCoco had the game-winning 44-yard boot in the 2005 EV1.net Houston Bowl victory over Iowa State. He made a career-long 52-yard kick last year at Wyoming.
TOUGH TO RETURN AGAINST
•TCU is allowing just 3.8 yards on punt returns and 17.2 on kickoff returns.
•The Frogs have forced fumbles on kickoff returns in two of their last three games.
THE RETURN GAME
•TCU is third in the Mountain West Conference in kickoff return average (20.8) and fourth in punt returns (9.6).
•Brian Bonner and Marcus Brock have 39- and 36-yard punt returns, respectively, this season. Bonner is averaging a team-best 15.2 yards on his six attempts.
•Donald Massey tops TCU with a 22.1 mark on 14 kickoff returns, including a 69-yard effort at Baylor.
THE PUNTERS
•TCU punters Brian Cortney (39.4 average) and Derek Wash (38.2) have combined to put 10 of 37 kicks inside the opponent 20 with only two touchbacks.
SPECIAL TEAMER EXTRAORDINAIRES
•In addition to standout play at linebacker which earned him Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors against Wyoming, Robert Henson has also excelled on special teams.
•Henson had a key punt block against Texas Tech. He also forced a fumble on a Wyoming kickoff return. Both plays led to scores in TCU victories.
•Reserve safety Stephen Hodge was TCU's Special Teams Player of the Week at Army after recording a team-high seven tackles, including solo stops on five of the Frogs' six kickoffs.
•Hodge also forced a fumble on a kickoff return which led to a 24-yard Chris Manfredini field goal to give the Frogs a 31-3 halftime lead.
THE BIG LEG
•Peter LoCoco has had touchbacks on 11-of-41 kickoffs (26.8 percent) this season.
•Against Texas Tech, LoCoco had two kickoffs go five yards deep in the end zone before being run out by the Red Raiders.
•LoCoco has had several other games this season in which his kickoffs were taken out of the end zone.
•Over the last nine games in 2005, LoCoco had touchbacks on 27-of-63 (42.9 percent) kickoffs.
FROG TIDBITS
SATURDAY IS A DAY FOR FROGS
•TCU has won 14 straight Saturday games and is 15-1 on that day over the last two seasons.
•During that stretch, the Frogs are 2-2 on other days of the week (1-0 on Sundays, 1-2 on Thursdays).
DAYLIGHT IS A GOOD SIGN
•TCU is 9-0 in day games over the last two seasons and 8-3 at night.
•The NCAA recognizes a night game as starting at 5 p.m. local time.
ROAD WARRIORS
•TCU is 15-7 (.682) in road and neutral-site games since the start of the 2003 season, tied for the seventh-best mark in Division I-A.
ON THIS DAY
•Since 1932, TCU has a 7-4 record when playing on Nov. 11. In their last game on that date, the Frogs won 24-7 over Fresno State in 2000.
QUICK STARTS
•TCU has started a season with a record of 6-2 or better for the fourth time in Gary Patterson¹s six seasons as head coach.
GOOD COMPANY
•The Frogs' 33 wins over the last four years are tied for the 16th-best total in the nation.
IN THE ZONE
•The Frogs are second in the Mountain West Conference in red-zone offense and defense.
•TCU has scored on 30-of-33 (90.9 percent) possessions in the red zone. The Frogs have 17 touchdowns and 13 field goals.
•Defensively, opponents have had just 20 red-zone visits against TCU for the lowest total in the MWC. The Frogs have allowed only six touchdowns to go with eight field goals. The opposition has scored on 14-of-20 possessions (70.0 percent).
THE TURNOVER STORY
•Over the last two seasons, TCU is 12-0 when winning the turnover battle and 3-3 on the negative side. The Frogs are 2-0 when coming out even.
•TCU is plus-3 in turnover margin in its six wins this season and minus-4 in the two losses.
•Since the start of the 2005 season, TCU is 17-3. In those three defeats, the Frogs have been at minus-2 or worse in turnover margin in each game.
•Against BYU, the TCU defense failed to register a takeaway for the first time in 19 games dating back to Oct. 30, 2004 at Cincinnati.
•The minus-2 differential versus the Cougars was the largest turnover deficit for TCU since a negative-3 last year at SMU (Sept. 10, 2005).
•The Frogs led the nation last season in turnover margin (+21), takeaways (40) and interceptions (26).
SCORING FIRST
•After scoring first in 10 of 12 contests in 2005, TCU has been first on the board just three times in eight games this year.
•Since the start of the 2002 season, the Frogs have scored first in 69.6 percent (39-of-56) of their games.
AFFORDABLE LIVING
•Coldwell Banker has ranked Fort Worth, Texas, as the fourth-most affordable city in the nation to have a Division I-A football program.
•Tulsa was ranked first with an average home price of $148,575. The remainder of the top five includes Southern Miss (Hattiesburg, Miss.; $151,225), Ball State (Muncie, Ind.; $151,238), TCU (Fort Worth, Texas; $151,250) and Louisiana-Monroe (Monroe, La.; $153,271).
•Stanford (Palo Alto, Calif.; $1,652,042) headlined the most-expensive college markets. Tied for second were Los Angeles-based UCLA and USC ($1,565,099).
•Air Force (Colorado Springs, Colo.) was second to TCU in the Mountain West Conference with an average home price of $217,000.
QUARTER BREAKDOWN
•TCU has outscored the opposition in all four quarters this season.
•Keyed by a 24-point explosion in a 6:50 stretch at Army, the Frogs' most potent offensive effort (63 points) has come in the second quarter.
•The top defensive quarter is the opening 15 minutes, as TCU foes have scored just 15 points in eight games (1.9 per contest).
•In the second half of action this season, TCU has outscored the opposition by a 83-51 margin. That total includes a 47-17 differential in the third quarter.
•Dating back to last year, the Frogs have allowed just 65 fourth-quarter points in their last 20 games (3.3 per contest). During that same period, TCU has outscored its foes by a 246-137 margin in the second half.
QUICK SCORES
•TCU has scored in the first quarter in 14 of its last 17 games.
CONTROLLING THE CLOCK
•TCU is 5-0 when holding an edge in time of possession and 1-2 when the opponent has the ball longer.
•TCU is averaging 31:29 on the season, placing it third in the MWC.
CLOSE CALLS
•Dating back to the 2003 campaign, 18 of TCU's last 44 games have been decided by seven points or less. The Frogs are 15-3 in those contests.
FINDING THE SCOREBOARD
•At 172 games, TCU has the seventh-longest streak in the nation for not being shut out. The Frogs haven't been blanked since a 32-0 defeat at Texas on Nov. 16, 1991.
FROGS OR TADPOLES?
•In offensive tackle Marshall Newhouse, linebacker Daryl Washington and defensive ends Wayne Daniels and Jerry Hughes, TCU is tied for 16th nationally in having the fewest number (four) of true freshmen who have played this season.
•Eleven redshirt freshmen have seen action.
BONUS FOOTBALL
•TCU is 5-4 since the NCAA adopted overtime play in 1996.
HONORARY BIG 12 MEMBERS
•In a stretch of just 15 games, dating back to the start of the 2005 season, TCU went 4-0 against the Big 12 while allowing just 11.0 points per game.
•Only four Big 12 teams (Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Colorado) won more games than TCU against Big 12 foes during that period.
•TCU opened and closed the 2005 campaign with victories over Big 12 squads, winning 17-10 at Oklahoma and 27-24 over Iowa State in the Houston Bowl.
•The Frogs defeated Baylor (17-7) and Texas Tech (12-3) earlier this season, holding the Bears and Red Raiders to a combined one touchdown and 10 points.
NFL DRAFT PICKS FROM MWC TEAMS
•TCU 163, San Diego State 133, BYU 131, Utah 123, Colorado State 93, Wyoming 75, New Mexico 59, UNLV 40, Air Force 7.
WHERE TO FIND THE TCU ASSISTANTS
•Press Box: Mike Schultz (offensive coordinator/running backs), Dick Winder (quarterbacks), Tony Tademy (linebackers) and Chad Glasgow (safeties).
•Field: Dick Bumpas (defensive coordinator/defensive line), Charles McMillian (cornerbacks), Jarrett Anderson (wide receivers), Dan Sharp (tight ends/special teams) and Eddie Williamson (assistant head coach/offensive line).
AN EXPERIENCED STAFF
•TCU returned its entire coaching staff from the 2005 season.
•The Frogs are one of just four teams (N.C. State, Oklahoma, Temple) in Division I-A to have all 10 of their coaches play Division I football. Eight members of the TCU staff competed on the Division I-A level with two in I-AA.
HERE TO STAY
•At a Nov. 22, 2005 news conference, TCU athletics director Danny Morrison announced that football coach Gary Patterson agreed to a contract extension through 2012.
SCHEDULING QUIRKS
•Since the start of the 1996 season, the Frogs are 12-8 in non-Saturday, regular-season games. Under Patterson, TCU is 9-7 and has played on every day of the week.
•TCU has played 16 of its 64 regular-season contests (25.0 percent) under Patterson on non-Saturdays.
ACTIVITY AND LAYOFFS
•TCU's 2006 regular-season schedule could be classified in three phases.
•Prior to facing Army on Oct. 21, which began a stretch of playing on seven consecutive Saturdays to close the regular season, the Frogs opened the 2006 campaign with three games in 14 days before playing just twice in 34 days.
•After facing Texas Tech on Sept. 16, the Frogs had an open date before back-to-back Thursday games versus BYU (Sept. 28) and Utah (Oct. 5). Following its date in Salt Lake City, TCU had another bye week before returning to action at Army.
•TCU had four straight Saturdays (Sept. 23, Sept. 30, Oct. 7, Oct. 14) without a game.
WIN-LOSS UPDATES
•After just three winning seasons in 13 years (1985-97), TCU has won over 70 percent of its games (74-31, .705) since the start of the 1998 campaign when head coach Gary Patterson arrived on campus.
•TCU has an all-time record of 533-504-57 (.513) in its football history which began in 1896.
BOUNCING BACK
•In the week after a regular-season loss, TCU has a 12-4 record under coach Gary Patterson.
•The Frogs have never lost three in a row under Patterson.
•TCU hasn't dropped three straight contests since a four-game skid in the 1998 campaign.
PLAYING THE SERVICE ACADEMIES
•TCU's Gary Patterson is 8-0 as a head coach against the service academies. Under Patterson, the Frogs are 6-0 versus Army and 1-0 against both Air Force and Navy.
THE RANKINGS
•TCU received seven votes in this week's USA Today poll and two in the Associated Press Top 25, placing it 31st in both rankings. The Frogs also had six votes in the Harris Interactive poll.
•TCU appeared in 15 consecutive top-25 polls by the Associated Press and USA Today before falling out after a Sept. 28 loss to BYU.
•At No. 15 in the Sept. 17 and Sept. 24 USA Today poll, the Frogs had their highest September ranking since 1959.
•With a No. 21 appearance in the USA Today poll and a No. 22 spot in the Associated Press Top 25, TCU posted its highest preseason rankings since it was No. 20 by AP in 2000.
THE BCS
•The Frogs were 14th in the final 2005 BCS standings. It was the 20th time TCU appeared in the BCS standings, the most of any school playing in a conference without an automatic BCS bid. Boise State is second at 16.
•Since Gary Patterson arrived at TCU as defensive coordinator in 1998, the Frogs are 12-6 against teams from leagues with automatic BCS bids.
•If this year's BCS rules were in effect last season, TCU would have been in a BCS bowl.
AT HOME
•Since the start of the 2000 season, TCU is 32-5 (.865) in Amon Carter Stadium. Included in that total are undefeated marks in four (2000, 2002, 2003, 2005) of those years which contributed to at least 10 wins in each season.
•Over the last four years, TCU's 18-4 (.818) mark ranks 18th nationally in home winning percentage.
•The BYU contest (Sept. 28) closed a stretch of three home games in 20 days for TCU. The Frogs have just three home dates in the final 65 days of the regular season, including one (San Diego State, Nov. 18) in 50 days.
•The 12-3 win over Texas Tech saw TCU record its first sellout crowd since 1984, when the Frogs hosted Texas. The attendance of 45,647 against the Red Raiders represented the second-largest crowd in TCU history surpassed only by the 47,280 for that 1984 contest against the Longhorns.
•TCU sold a record 13,962 football season tickets this season.
VERSATILE FROGS
•The TCU defensive line features five former high school running backs: Tommy Blake, Jerry Hughes, Cody Moore, Jared Retkofsky and Jarrarcea Williams.
THE MISSING
•TCU opened 3-0 despite starting tailbacks and past 1,000-yard rushers Lonta Hobbs and Robert Merrill not playing due to injury.
•Sidelined for the season is offensive tackle Heath Raetz. Starting wide receiver Michael DePriest missed the opening two games due to injury before returning to action against Texas Tech.
•The Frogs rallied from a 7-0 halftime deficit at Baylor with starting quarterback Jeff Ballard sidelined.
A SPECIAL BACKFIELD
•TCU's trio of Aaron Brown, Lonta Hobbs and Robert Merrill was ranked in the preseason by The Sporting News as the fourth-best backfield in the nation.
•Merrill (2,771 yards) and Hobbs (2,726) rank sixth and eighth, respectively, on TCU¹s career rushing list.
•Merrill has led TCU in rushing each of the last three seasons.
•Brown, Hobbs and Merrill make the Frogs one of just 13 teams in Division I-A to have three players with 100-yard rushing games on their resume.
THE CENTURY MARK
•Tailbacks Lonta Hobbs and Robert Merrill are tied for seventh in TCU history with 10 100-yard rushing games.
•TCU is 8-2 when Merrill rushes for at least 100 yards and 7-3 when Hobbs reaches the milestone. The Frogs are 3-0 when Brown hits the century mark.
8Merrill and Hobbs both reached 100 yards in a 62-55 win at Houston in 2003. Merrill ran for a career-high 204 yards on 22 carries, while Hobbs added 102 yards on 22 attempts.
PASSING TYE
•The 12-3 win over Texas Tech improved Jeff Ballard's record to 11-0 as TCU's starting quarterback. He surpassed Tye Gunn¹s previous school mark for most consecutive victories (10) to begin a career as a starting quarterback.
•Ballard's first start in that stretch, a 49-28 win over New Mexico last year, came after he replaced an injured Gunn. When Gunn was hurt the previous week at BYU, Ballard came off-the-bench and rallied the Frogs from an 18-point third-quarter deficit to a 51-50 overtime victory in Provo. It's the largest come-from-behind win in Gary Patterson's six seasons as TCU's head coach.
KEY NUMBERS FROM TECH
•TCU's 12-3 win over Texas Tech marked the first time the Frogs won when scoring 12 or fewer points since a 12-3 win over UT-Arlington in the 1974 season opener.
•TCU became the first team since 2000 to hold Texas Tech without a touchdown. The Red Raiders were limited to 204 yards passing after entering the contest with a 396.5 per game mark.
OFFENSIVE BREAKTHROUGHS
•TCU's 50 touchdowns in 2005 set a new single-season school record. The previous mark was 49 in 2000. With 48 touchdowns in 2004, the Frogs have recorded their top three single-season touchdown totals in school history over the last six years with Mike Schultz as offensive coordinator.
•During that same period, TCU has had three of its top four single-season point totals. The 398 points in 2005 were the second-best mark in school history.
OUTRIGHT CHAMPIONSHIPS
•The 2005 campaign saw TCU capture its first outright conference title since 1958.
•The Horned Frogs have taken part in conference championships in four different leagues over the last 12 years.
•Prior to last season, the five previous conference titles for TCU had been shared. TCU was co-champions of the Southwest Conference in 1959 and 1994, while also sharing a pair of Western Athletic Conference titles (1999, 2000) and a Conference USA championship (2002).
PERFECTION
•With an 8-0 record in its debut season in the Mountain West Conference last year, TCU posted its first undefeated conference record (8-0) since the 1938 national championship team swept through the Southwest Conference.
•The 2005 Frogs were just the fourth team in school history to go through a season undefeated in league play, joining the 1938 and 1932 Southwest Conference squads as well as the 1920 team that was unblemished in the Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
FROGS AND THE NFL
•In Gary Patterson's five-year tenure as head coach, TCU has had 14 players drafted with a total of 25 in NFL camps.
•Seven players from last year's Frog team were in NFL camps: Cory Rodgers (WR, fourth-round draft pick, Green Bay), Michael Toudouze (OT, fifth-round draft pick, Indianapolis), Drew Coleman (CB, sixth-round draft pick, New York Jets), Quincy Butler (CB, free-agent, Dallas), Tye Gunn (QB, free-agent, Chicago), Jeremy Modkins (S, free-agent, Green Bay) and defensive tackle Ranorris Ray (DT, free-agent, Dallas).
•Six other former Horned Frogs are currently active in the NFL: Anthony Alabi (OT, Miami), Robert Pollard (DE, Seattle), Aaron Schobel (DE, Buffalo), Bo Schobel (DE, Indianapolis), Matt Schobel (TE, Philadelphia), LaDainian Tomlinson (RB, San Diego) and Ryan Tucker (OL, Cleveland).
SPECIAL FROG
•Former TCU tailback and current National Football League star LaDainian Tomlinson was named to CBS SportsLine.com's All-Decade Team. He was joined in the All-Decade backfield by former USC standouts Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush.
•The Web site wrote of Tomlinson, Before he started running wild with the San Diego Chargers, Tomlinson was an excellent college player at TCU.
•Tomlinson rushed for a combined 4,008 yards in his final two years of college, including 2,158 as a senior. He ran for an NCAA single-game record 406 yards versus UTEP in 1999 and won the Doak Walker Award as the nation's top running back in 2000. Tomlinson, who has earned his TCU degree, had his No. 5 jersey honored by the Frogs last season.
TCU AND THE HEISMAN
•In 1938, quarterback Davey O'Brien became the first player from TCU and the Southwest Conference to capture the Heisman Trophy. O'Brien's name dons the trophy awarded each year to the most outstanding quarterback in the country.
•In the 70-year history of the Heisman Trophy, five Frogs (O'Brien; Sammy Baugh, 4th - 1936; Jim Swink, 2nd - 1955; Kenneth Davis, 5th - 1984; LaDainian Tomlinson, 4th - 2000) have finished in the top five in voting.
TCU AMONG STORIED PROGRAMS
•TCU was ranked 39th in Street & Smith's listing of the 50 Greatest College Football Programs of All Time.
•Selections were based on the following: national championships, undefeated seasons, major bowl wins, major bowl appearances, conference championships, overall won-loss percentage, graduation rate, All-Americans, Heisman Trophy winners, No. 1 overall NFL draft picks, NCAA infractions and mascot ferocity.
•The Horned Frogs have produced two national championship teams (1935, 1938), a Heisman Trophy winner (Davey O'Brien, 1938) and four others to finish in the top five in voting (Sammy Baugh, 4th - 1936; Jim Swink, 2nd - 1955; Kenneth Davis, 5th - 1984; LaDainian Tomlinson, 4th - 2000).
•TCU has posted four 10-win campaigns in the past six years and advanced to seven bowl games in the last eight seasons. and 3-3 on the negative side. The Frogs are 2-0 when coming out even.
•TCU is plus-3 in turnover margin in its six wins this season and minus-4 in the two losses.
