TCU and West Virginia will look to return to their winning ways and begin the second half of their seasons on a positive note when they square off Saturday evening in a Big 12 Conference game in Fort Worth, Texas.
It will be a battle between two of the conference’s most disappointing teams.
The Horned Frogs have dropped three of their past four outings, and West Virginia has lost three straight and shares the bottom of the league standings with Kansas and Kansas State.
The Horned Frogs (3-3, 1-2 Big 12) head home after a 52-31 loss at then-No. 4 Oklahoma on Saturday. TCU fell despite career-best performances from quarterback Max Duggan and wideout Quentin Johnston.
Duggan threw for a career-high 346 yards and four touchdowns, while Johnston had personal-best totals of seven receptions, 185 yards and three scores.
Johnston said the Horned Frogs learned from the loss and that the team would go “back to the drawing board.”
“You can’t go off last week’s performance, so win or lose, we just have to keep looking forward and fight like we are 6-0 even though we are not,” Johnston said. “We’ve just got to keep moving forward, leave the past in the past, and worry about the future.”
Duggan had been listed as “week to week” because of a foot injury, but TCU coach Gary Patterson said Monday after Duggan played hurt against Oklahoma: “If he can (play), he will.”
The Mountaineers (2-4, 0-3) will return to action after an open week and following a 45-20 loss at Baylor on Oct. 9.
West Virginia ranks in the bottom half of the conference in most significant offensive categories, including rushing offense (111.8 yards per game, last).
The Mountaineers’ problem running the ball is a huge concern, especially since Leddie Brown, who ran for 1,010 yards last season and was a first-team All-Big 12 selection, is rushing for an average of just 70.3 yards per game this season.
“I think [it’s] a little bit of everything,” West Virginia coach Neal Brown said. “I still think Leddie is a really good player. The defenses we’ve played are quality defenses; I’ll say that. But we’re not doing a good enough job creating movement for him. For us to be successful, we have to make sure he’s more productive.”
West Virginia spent its bye week in plenty of self-evaluation and knowing it easily could have a much better record – three of the Mountaineers’ losses have been by six points or less.
–Field Level Media
