Bowl bound: TCU knocks off Oklahoma State in bowl-or-bust regular-season finale

Jalen Reagor did it all Saturday night.

He returned kicks and punts. He lined up at quarterback. He ran the ball. He caught the ball even if it meant out-jumping multiple defenders. Most important, he found the end zone.

Behind Reagor’s stellar performance and a solid defensive effort, TCU is going bowling for the 16th time in Gary Patterson’s 18 seasons.

TCU 31, Oklahoma State 24.

“Every time we line up, we have a chance to win,” Reagor said. “That’s why teams play us like they do.”

The bowl selection show is set for Dec. 3 and that’s when TCU’s destination will be formally announced. The most likely destination appears to be the Liberty Bowl in Memphis on Dec. 31 against an SEC team.

Other options could include the Texas Bowl in Houston on Dec. 27, or the Cheez-It Bowl in Phoenix on Dec. 26.

But things can change, especially if Texas beats Oklahoma in the Big 12 championship and both land in New Years Six bowl games.

For now, TCU is just happy to reach college football’s postseason.

The Frogs had a winless October, dropping to 3-5 on the season. They won two of their final three games, though, to avoid being just the third team that would’ve failed to reach a bowl game under Patterson.

“You’ve got to give our guys credit,” Patterson said. “Somehow we found a way to win. There’s a lot of positives across the board.”

Reagor played a starring role in making it happen.

Reagor scored the game’s first touchdown on a 6-yard reception from third-string quarterback Grayson Muehlstein late in the first half to give the Frogs a 7-3 lead.

That TD reception made history, too. Reagor became just the third receiver in school history – and the youngest ever – to join the 1,000-yard club. That TD reception put him at the century mark on the dot and gave him a school-record seven consecutive games with a TD reception.

The sophomore from Waxahachie didn’t slow down in the second half.

Reagor scored on an 83-yard run as TCU scored two TDs in 56-second stretch.

TCU linebacker Jawuan Johnson had a scoop-and-score off a fumble on Oklahoma State’s first offensive play, and then Reagor broke free for the lengthy run.

Reagor finished the game with more than 200 all-purpose yards. He had 91 receiving yards on eight catches and another 121 yards on five carries.

“That dude is a baller,” senior safety Niko Small said. “I don’t know how else to explain it. Some things you just can’t teach … speed, agility, vision, play-making agility.”

The 31 points were the most scored by TCU since its Week 2 victory over SMU. The Frogs had failed to score more than 28 points in nine consecutive games.

Muehlstein, a fifth-year senior, managed the offense well in his first career start. The Frogs went with a run-heavy approach, having Reagor even take a few direct snaps.

But Muehlstein took care of the ball and finished the night 16-for-25 passing for 180 yards and two touchdowns.

After Oklahoma State had cut a 24-3 deficit to 24-17 early in the fourth quarter, Muehlstein led TCU on a 72-yard scoring drive. Muehlstein went 3-for-3 passing for 55 yards on that drive, including a 24-yard TD pass to a wide open Derius Davis.

Oklahoma State responded with a TD drive of its own, pulling to within 31-24 with 5:07 left. But TCU’s offense gained enough yards to pin Oklahoma State on its own 4 with 2:29 left.

TCU’s defense made the game-sealing stand. Cornerback Jeff Gladney broke up a deep pass intended for Tylan Wallace on third down, and Vernon Scott broke up the fourth-down pass play.

“We just play hard, suffocate, don’t give easy throws, contest every shot,” said Gladney, who had four pass breakups and an interception. “That’s really all we do.”

TCU had a 34-yard field goal attempt to seal the win, but Jonathan Song missed it wide right. That gave Oklahoma State the ball at its own 20 with nine seconds left, but it didn’t have a miracle in it.

“I’m just proud of the group because I think they’ve started to grow up,” Patterson said. “Sometimes in pregame speeches, you get up and everybody talks about the seniors and all those kinds of things.

“I stood up and said I’m just going to be honest with y’all – you want to win this ballgame, you can’t have any second thoughts or mild moments. You’re going to have to go take the game and you’re going to have to go do this. This is not going to be an easy ballgame.”

It hasn’t been an easy season, either, but it’ll end with a bowl berth.

This story was originally published November 24, 2018 at 10:33 PM.