Despite numerous miscues, TCU was able to make enough plays to pull off a road upset, 13-7, over Utah late Saturday night.
The Horned Frogs had multiple opportunities in the second half to put the game away after taking a 13-0 lead, but the lack of offensive execution caused TCU to go scoreless on its final five drives. During the drought Utah made a small comeback as Isaac Wilson threw a 71-yard touchdown pass to Money Parks to make it 13-7 late in the third quarter.
With the pressure mounting, TCU’s defense stepped up and held Utah without points on the Utes’ final four drives. That included making two straight stops on fourth down. Savion Williams would then ice the game for TCU with 2:17 remaining as he converted a 4th-and-1 off a direct snap.
With Utah out of timeout, the Horned Frogs were able to run off the remaining clock and escape from Utah with a much needed win which brings the program closer to bowl eligibility.
Receivers do just enough
In our three reasons why, we listed that one of the few advantages TCU would have over Utah would be at the receiver spot and the Horned Frogs’ receivers didn’t disappoint. TCU’s depth was a problem for Utah early as the Horned Frogs had three different receivers with at least a 20-yard reception. Savion Williams wasn’t among them, but he made up for it by being TCU’s leading rusher through three quarters with 33 yards on three carries.
Baylor transfer tight end Drake Dabney had his best game as a Horned Frog and set up TCU’s lone touchdown of the first half when he beat his defender on a wheel route for a 20-yard gain. Dabney’s catch was initially ruled a touchdown, but he was stopped at the 1-yard line which led to a Hoover rushing touchdown. The running backs also got involved as Cam Cook and Trent Battle converted numerous third downs off short passes.
As the game continued Utah decided to not let Hoover stand in the pocket and find his receivers as the Utes increased the defensive pressure in the second half to slow TCU’s passing attack down.
Defense dominates
It’s been weeks since TCU’s defense has played quality football, but facing a limited offense the Horned Frogs’ defense was able to generate some confidence. It should be noted that Utah was without starting quarterback Cam Rising and leading rusher Micah Bernard exited the game briefly in the second quarter, but TCU’s defense still deserves credit for paving the way to a victory.
The pass rush in particular was dominant when Utah was in obvious passing situations as three different Horned Frogs came up with sacks in the first half. The biggest came from Kaleb Elarms-Orr during Utah’s two-minute drill at the end of the first half. Utah had managed to finally cross the 50-yard line and was driving for a late score, but Elarms-Orr shot through the line and sacked Isaac Wilson for a 10-yard loss that stalled out the Utes’ best offensive drive of the half.
After the offense failed to extend the lead, the defense did allow a huge play as Isaac Wilson connected with Money Parks for a 71-yard touchdown with 6:12 remaining in the third quarter to cut TCU’s lead to 13-7. The defense stood tall after that moment with Bud Clark intercepting a pass on fourth down and players like Devean Deal coming up with clutch sacks when Utah was driving. It was the defense’s best performance of the season.
Overcoming a rough start
Early on it appeared TCU hadn’t learned lessons from previous defeats as the Horned Frogs squandered multiple opportunities to take a commanding lead over the Utes. On TCU’s first drive of the game, the offense averaged seven yards per play and made it all the way down to the Utah 9. However, that drive didn’t lead to points as Hoover fumbled the handoff exchange with Trent Battle and Utah quickly recovered.
TCU’s second drive started in the Utah red zone after Shad Banks blocked a punt, but that drive also resulted in no points as Kyle Lemmerman’s field goal attempt was blocked by the Utes. At one point TCU outgained Utah 151-20, but only had a 3-0 lead after another drive stalled at the Utah 5.
If it wasn’t for the defense, TCU could have easily found itself in a tough situation. However, the offense finally was able to generate some breathing room when Hoover capped a 8-play, 79-yard drive with a touchdown from the 1-yard line to make it 10-0 with seven minutes remaining in the first half. TCU would take the 10-0 lead into halftime despite out-gaining Utah 242-86.