How TCU and Patterson set up Shawn Robinson for success in first start

Missing six starters, including quarterback Kenny Hill, TCU was right not to know what to expect Saturday in Lubbock.

But there was one thing Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson knew. Win or lose, he wasn’t going to judge Shawn Robinson’s future based on what happened over the course of three and a half hours against Texas Tech.

“That was the one thing that was not going to happen today,” Patterson said. “Shawn Robinson was not going to lose his confidence where he couldn’t play for the next three years. So no matter how this turned out, I was going to protect him as far as what I was going to say, how we were going to handle him and what we were going to do.”

Robinson, the true freshman quarterback from DeSoto thrust into starting duty with Hill sidelined suddenly at the start of the week, acquitted himself decently in his first collegiate start.

He ran for 84 yards, threw a touchdown pass and led an 80-yard drive in the third quarter that gave the Frogs a two-touchdown lead in their eventual 27-3 victory.

Despite completing only six passes, Robinson had the offense effective enough by the fourth quarter that the Frogs also put together a 12-play drive for a field goal that used almost half the period.

In fact, in back-to-back possessions in the second half of a Big 12 road game in his first start, Robinson’s offense took 20 penalty-free snaps, totaled 158 yards, used 10:49 of clock and scored 10 points.

And it happened immediately after his lone mistake, a fumble with a 10-3 lead.

Robinson deserves credit. So does Patterson. The coach took the pressure off the freshman by telling co-offensive coordinator Sonny Cumbie to let Robinson know that “whatever happened, good or bad,” wasn’t on him.

“He doesn’t have to be Superman, just stay within himself and play and no matter what it’s not going to be his fault,” Patterson said.

By Saturday night, there was no fault to be assigned. Just credit.

And there was enough to go around.

Some other observations from TCU 27, Texas Tech 3:

1. It had been a long time since Kyle Hicks carried the ball as much as he did Saturday at Texas Tech. His 22 attempts were a season high and only the third 20-plus-carry game of his career. He had 26 carries in a five-touchdown game at Baylor last year and 25 in the next game against Oklahoma State. This year, with Darius Anderson and Kenny Hill out of the lineup, the senior from Arlington Martin is clearly who the offensive coaches want to lean on. That isn’t likely to change the rest of the way.

2. For weeks, Kenedy Snell was last in line for carries, and he wasn’t getting many. There simply had not been enough to go around. The Waxahachie freshman, who scored the first time he touched the ball as a college player, didn’t even see the field against Texas or Oklahoma, and he hadn’t carried since Kansas State. But with Anderson sidelined, Snell is back in play. He got two chances with the ball against Texas Tech and delivered two solid runs. The offensive coaches may be ready to figure out how much more, and in what ways — a la KaVontae Turpin — they want to see Snell.

3. Stability returned to the kicking game. Cole Bunce stepped in as the Frogs played a second game without Jonathan Song and hit a 43-yard field goal late in the second quarter, the kind of kick that is no sure thing in college football. It gave the Frogs a touchdown lead at halftime. In the fourth quarter, Bunce made a 25-yarder for a three-possession lead that felt pretty much insurmountable. The Frogs are 10-for-11 on field goals this year, missing only on Ryan Graf’s 30-yard attempt at Oklahoma two weeks ago. Meanwhile, TCU opponents are 9-for-17. Coaches say missed field goals are like turnovers. The Frogs have been on the right side of that feeling far more than their opponent.

4. If you predicted Jalen Reagor would finish the season with the most touchdown catches for TCU — cough, cough, ahem — you’ve got a great chance to be right. The freshman from Waxahachie recorded his team-leading fifth touchdown catch when he took a 12-yard pass to the end zone in the third quarter. The next highest total is three, and it belongs to senior Desmon White. Twelve players have caught a touchdown pass for TCU this season, but Reagor and White are the only ones with more than two. (And Reagor has the only Hail Mary touchdown catch).

5. Defensive coordinator Chad Glasgow and his staff, led by Patterson, worked short-handed in Lubbock, missing linebackers Travin Howard and Montrel Wilson and safety Niko Small. They lost another safety, Ridwan Issahaku, during the game. But one of the replacement backers, Sammy Douglas, led the team in tackles. Another, Arico Evans, was second. Another, Ty Summers, had two sacks. Markell Simmons took over at free safety and earned praise from Patterson for playing the whole game. Former walk-on Michael Downing had two tackles after replacing Issahaku. Chatting with a reporter after the game, Glasgow was told the defensive coaches would be the talk of the town. He replied, “Make the kids the talk of the town. They’re the ones who played their tails off.” Except he used another word for tails.

This story was originally published November 19, 2017 at 5:39 PM with the headline "How TCU and Patterson set up Shawn Robinson for success in first start."