Frog Report Card

Passing Offense: A-
The key to beating Southern Miss was to use the running game to set up the pass. Redshirt freshman Tye Gunn successfully accomplished this, averaging 12.8 yards a completion. After Gunn severely injured his knee in the third quarter, senior Sean Stilley’s solid 2-of-2 performance after missing a month with an injured shoulder was also a good sign, since he will man the controls in Gunn’s absence. Sophomore wide receiver Reggie Harrell is beginning to fulfill his potential, catching three passes for 56 yards.

Rushing Offense: A+
Junior Ricky Madison averaged a robust 5.4 yards a carry on 17 attempts. His tough running up the middle wore down defense for true freshman Lonta Hobbs, who dismantled Southern Miss’s strong defensive unit. He ran for three touchdowns, each for more than ten yards. In Hobbs’ four games, he has rushed for seven touchdowns and 383 yards. The offensive line also deserves kudos for only allowing four Southern Miss tackles of running backs behind the line of scrimmage.

Passing Defense: A
Senior LaMarcus McDonald won the battle of Butkus Award candidates over Southern Miss junior Rod Davis. McDonald sacked Dustin Almond four times and continually forced him to throw under duress. Linemen Chad Pugh and John Turntine each added two sacks. TCU’s defense sacked Almond a combined nine times for 59 yards of loss. Senior safety Jared Smitherman stepped in front of an Almond pass and made a fantastic interception, running 37 yards to paydirt. This interception gave the Frogs a 23-7 lead, putting the game out of reach.

Rushing Defense: A
Derrick Nix ran the ball nine times for 48 yards. Once he left the game with a right ankle injury in the second quarter, the running game was not an issue for TCU’s defense. In the second half, Southern Miss rarely could run the ball since they were in too many third and long situations. TCU held the Golden Eagles to just 75 yards on the ground.

Special Teams: A
Junior Nick Browne hit a field goal in each of the first three quarters. His third quarter field goal was crucial because TCU needed an answer to Southern Miss’s touchdown drive. This 48-yarder enabled TCU to establish a two possession lead, 16-7. Senior Joey Biasatti averaged 40.1 yards a punt. Credit senior Terran Williams for always making forward progress on punt returns and holding onto the football when he knew he would receive some hard hits by charging Southern Miss special teamers.

— Jay Zuckerman