Three Things I Know, Three Things I Think: TCU football not a lock for preseason Top 25 next year

The middle of the week means it’s time for “Three Things I Know, Three Things I Think.”

Let’s not waste time. We all got stuff to do.

Three Things I Think

1. TCU is not going to open as a Top 25 team in football next year, based only on the first of the “way-too-early” lists that are going to be all the rage in a couple of weeks. What’s the argument against an 11-3 Power 5 runner-up? No returning starter at quarterback. I know what’s in the pipeline for TCU. But watch and see how often the departure of a veteran quarterback comes up.

2. Last week’s loss to OU in basketball stung for TCU, but it’s not a killer. After all, OU is going to distribute a lot of losses this year across the league. The Frogs won’t be the only team to lose at home to OU. They just need to beat the teams they should beat at home.

3. Defensive end Ben Banogu could be leaning toward another year at TCU. Gary Patterson said in October that Banogu is still a raw player who can gain much from another year in college. Patterson talks to NFL people. He’s not making that up.

Three Things I Know

1. Tuesday night in Waco was big for Jamie Dixon’s basketball team. He has visions of a conference championship, and whether they’re realistic or not, an 0-2 start would have been a severe kick. Short-term, the Frogs’ first win in Waco since 2002 means they stay on their feet, which is no small thing in this Big 12.

2. Saturday’s game against Kansas is going to be another sellout. That follows the OU sellout last week. TCU’s two largest crowds of the season to date will have come during the winter break, with hardly the benefit of a student section, against the two biggest powers in the Big 12.

3. The Kansas league championship streak is in trouble. OU has the best player in the league, TCU and Texas Tech have their best teams in forever. West Virginia is West Virginia — still the best rebounding and steals team in the league. And that’s only half the league. The Jayhawks, who always penciled in 9-0 at home during the league schedule, lost to Tech for the first time at Allen Fieldhouse on Tuesday night.

This story was originally published January 3, 2018 at 1:29 PM with the headline "Three Things I Know, Three Things I Think: TCU football not a lock for preseason Top 25 next year."