TCU football close to finalizing games for Week Zero, Week 2. Possible opponents?
TCU is planning to open the football season on Aug. 29 and play another non-conference game on Sept. 12 in Week 2, athletic director Jeremiah Donati said.
Donati refused to say who TCU had lined up to play, but acknowledged the school is close to finalizing contracts with two new opponents.
TCU lost two of its non-conference football games this month when the Pac-12 opted for a conference-only schedule, eliminating TCU’s season opener at Cal on Sept. 5, and when the SWAC postponed fall sports to the spring, eliminating TCU’s home opener against Prairie View A&M on Sept. 12.
But TCU has opponents lined up with plans to go forward with a 12-game season this fall amid the coronavirus pandemic. There’s a strong sense that TCU would open the season at UNLV on Aug. 29 in Las Vegas. Similar to TCU, UNLV had a non-conference game against Cal canceled with the Pac-12’s decision.
The game would be played at Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium, which will be the new home to UNLV and the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders. With the NFL canceling its preseason, TCU and UNLV would be the first football game played at the stadium if it happens.
TCU has a history with UNLV. The schools were both members of the Western Athletic Conference from 1996-98 and the Mountain West from 2005-11. TCU owns the all-time series record 9-1.
The Frogs went 7-0 against the Rebels under Gary Patterson in the Mountain West matchups (2005-11), including a 48-6 victory in their last trip to Las Vegas in 2010.
It’s unclear who the Week 2 opponent may be to replace Prairie View A&M.
“We liked these options because it gave us flexibility,” Donati said. “We have the ability to adapt if needed.”
As of now, TCU’s non-conference schedule would have games on Aug. 29 (possibly at UNLV), Sept. 12 (home opener) and Sept. 26 (at SMU) with Big 12 play starting Oct. 3 (Oklahoma State). But, as Donati said, this also gives the program flexibility to shuffle games, given the unpredictability of the pandemic, with open dates on Sept. 5 and Sept. 19.
The Horned Frogs are preparing for a Week Zero matchup. The team started the “summer access” portion (walkthroughs, meetings, conditioning) of preseason camp last week and is expected to start fall camp late next week.
That’s the timetable for programs preparing for Week Zero. Programs scheduled to open the season on Week 1 can begin their “summer access” portion this Friday with fall camp starting Aug. 7.
Cal makeup?
TCU isn’t playing at Cal as expected this season, but the schools are working on rescheduling that game at some point down the road. However, it’ll be years down the road, given the number of non-conference matchups already on the books for the foreseeable future.
Cal is committed to playing at TCU in 2021.
Plus-one model?
TCU remains hopeful of playing a full 12-game season, although it knows how fluid the situation is amid the pandemic. Things can change.
One model on the Big 12’s table, according to Brian Davis of the Austin American-Statesman, is a “plus-one” in which teams would play one non-conference game and then the full nine-game league schedule.
For now, though, that’s a secondary option the schools hope to avoid.
This story was originally published July 22, 2020 at 4:50 PM.
