TCU’s quarterback question isn’t who’s starting, it’s who’s the backup?
TCU quarterback Shawn Robinson hasn’t received that public stamp as the Horned Frogs’ starter yet, but he’s got the respect of his coaches and teammates.
And he’s not concerned about hearing any official label at the moment.
The sophomore from DeSoto High School, who is TCU’s heir apparent to Kenny Hill and Trevone Boykin, respects his fellow quarterbacks Mike Collins, Grayson Muehlstein and even incoming freshman Justin Rogers too much to quibble of titles going into August camp.
But make no mistake, he expects to be leading the Frogs’ offense when the season starts against Southern on Sept. 1 at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
“I like to approach it like I’m the guy mentally but I’m still in a quarterback battle,” Robinson said judiciously during the Big 12 media days at The Star on Monday. “All I can do is control what I control and be the best me I can be. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen.”
Robinson, besides being a prized recruit two years ago, has a massive advantage on the others because he started a game as a true freshman in 2017. More importantly, he won, said TCU coach Gary Patterson. Robinson led the Frogs to a win over Texas Tech on a very windy day in Lubbock. That goes a long way for Patterson.
“I took a lot of positives out of it. I loved the way he prepared,” he said. “I’m more comfortable with him now seeing how he got ready for that ball game. That’s what we have to learn about Justin, Mike and Grayson. How do we get that second and third guy? There’s a great chance for at least one game [Robinson is] not going to start. We need at least two [quarterbacks].”
And that’s really the more intriguing question going into camp. Who will be Robinson’s top back-up? Rogers is unlikely to play early in the season while he’s still recovering from knee surgery last September. And when he’s available, it’s almost a guarantee that he won’t play in more than four games to keep him eligible for four complete seasons.
TCU defensive end Ben Banogu has been impressed with Collins, who transferred from Pennsylvania a year ago.
“They both were doing great things in their own respects [during spring practice],” Banogu said. “Shawn can scramble and make plays just off his intellect and his football savvy. Mike is the same way. A lot of people don’t understand that Mike has wheels. Even though he’s more of a pocket passer, he can create plays too. Right now it’s pretty tight. The position is up for grabs. Whoever wants it more will have it.”
Banogu might be laying the company line on extra thick, but he wasn’t the only one impressed with Collins, who was a somewhat unheralded recruit out of Connecticut in 2016. Banogu said both are born leaders.
“The thing that sticks out to me the most, even though he’s young he doesn’t let the small things get to him,” he said of Robinson. “As a leader, that’s one of the things you need because there will be times when the team really needs Shawn and times where we have to lean on Shawn or Mike or whoever is at quarterback. For him to have a short memory and go out there and play every down like it’s his last, that’s something the team will need more than anything.”
Banogu said Robinson’s demeanor should serve him well in 2018.
“At that position, you can throw three touchdowns and be the king of the world and then you can go out and throw three picks and everyone hates you,” Banogu said. “So it’s great to have a short memory and that’s something he has and it will work to his benefit this year.”
Robinson has dissected video of all of his action from 2017, especially that Tech game, and the process has helped him learn more about himself.
“I learned how prepared I need to be,” he said. “Every mistake I made I learned from. I learned about the speed of the game and the mental sharpness you have to have, the thinking while playing that I didn’t think about in high school.”
It’s good he has studied video of his first start because the whole game was a blur, he said.
“I did all right. I’m glad we won, that’s what matters. But I made a lot of mistakes,” he said. “It just happened so quick. It was surreal. I didn’t think I was really playing. It was weird. It was a good moment though.”
This story was originally published July 19, 2018 at 2:49 PM.