Will TCU’s leading rusher play in the Alamo Bowl?

Running back Darius Anderson will be a game-time decision for the Alamo Bowl as TCU takes as much time as it can to make a decision about whether to use its leading rusher against Stanford.

Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson described a balancing act between getting something out of his top back and maximizing his recovery for next season, when he will return as the team’s most experienced and explosive back.

“You can’t accomplish any more in this season, so you got to make sure he is ready to go and there’s no chance of putting him in harm’s way,” Patterson said after Friday’s practice.

Anderson rushed for 768 yards and eight touchdowns, both team highs, in 10 games. He left in the second quarter of the Nov. 11 game at Oklahoma with a leg injury, having scored TCU’s first touchdown with a 13-yard run on his first carry of the game.

Initially, TCU suspected it was a season-ending injury. But Patterson said before the Big 12 championship game that Anderson was running on a non-weight-bearing treadmill and might play in a bowl game.

“Every day he gets better,” Patterson said Friday. “He’s been running, doing things. We’ll be very smart about that.”

Otherwise, the Frogs are relatively healthy, Patterson said. For the first time, they are playing a 14-game season with the conference title game and bowl game included.

“We’re OK,” Patterson said. “We’re still beat up, ankles and things. It was a long season.”

This story was originally published December 17, 2017 at 10:13 AM with the headline "Will TCU’s leading rusher play in the Alamo Bowl?."