‘He was sensational.’ TCU’s Duggan garnering big-time praise following Texas victory
TCU quarterback Max Duggan turned in another standout performance against Texas on Saturday. It’s generating plenty of buzz across the college football world.
Duggan and the Horned Frogs out-played and out-performed Sam Ehlinger and the No. 9 Longhorns in a 33-31 victory in Austin.
“Max Duggan was sensational,” said Joel Klatt, Fox Sports college football analyst who called the game. “He converted with his feet. He played terrific against Texas last year and he played terrific again against Texas this year. They’ve got to clean some things up, obviously, but moving forward you’ve got to feel real good about yourself if you’re TCU because of your quarterback Max Duggan. I thought he was sensational.”
Duggan completed 20 of 30 passes for 231 yards and rushed for a game-high 79 yards and two TDs on 17 carries. The play of the day was when he checked into a QB draw late in the fourth quarter, scoring what proved to be the game-winning TD on a 26-yard run up the middle.
Duggan had a game-ending TD run against Texas last season. Against the Longhorns in 2019, Duggan was 19 of 27 passing for 273 yards with two TDs and one interception. He also rushed for a game-high 72 yards, including an 11-yard TD run to seal the victory late in the fourth quarter.
But what makes Duggan’s early-season success even more remarkable is the fact that he missed a significant amount of training camp after being diagnosed with a heart condition, discovered through enhanced COVID-19 protocols.
Duggan had been born with the condition, but it wasn’t discovered until the COVID-19 tests. He had a procedure to fix the issue and was sidelined indefinitely.
However, Duggan made a quicker-than-expected return to the field and played in the second-half of TCU’s season-opening 34-31 loss to Iowa State. There were questions going into the Texas game whether Duggan would have the strength and conditioning to play the entire game.
He made it through, though, and shined brightest late in the game with the 26-yard TD run.
“They get their cues from this guy,” Klatt said. “They say he’s tough. He’s a great leader. He dealt with that heart issue. My player of the game is Max Duggan.
“They were a bit concerned if he could get through an entire 60 minutes because of his conditioning and here he is making plays late.”
Klatt wasn’t the only person to praise Duggan’s performance.
Bruce Feldman, a national football reporter for Fox, posted on social media: “TCU QB Max Duggan is such a stud. Have seen countless times where he’s about to get drilled and he still hangs in there and delivers a good ball on the money. That, in addition to his wheels, are why I think he’s gonna have a great career in Forth Worth.”
Former TCU players took note as well.
Jalen Reagor wrote: “MAD MAXXXXX!!!”
Added Marshall Newhouse: “Duggan has a lot of flaws but he’s grown on me. He fights. I want the kid to succeed in the worst way.”
For his part, Duggan downplayed the notion that he gutted it out during a postgame news conference. He made it through the game without any issues.
“Yeah, I feel good,” Duggan said. “It’s honestly exciting to get a win against a very talented Texas team. Everybody is excited.”
TCU’s next game is at home against Kansas State on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
Johnston impresses
Duggan wasn’t the only TCU player who stood out to Klatt.
Klatt also mentioned freshman wide receiver Quentin Johnston, saying he “looks like an absolute star.”
Johnston, who initially committed to Texas before flipping to TCU, finished with a team-high 70 yards receiving on three receptions. Johnston had a 50-yard reception during a TCU TD drive in the first half.
Asked about his connection with Johnston on Saturday, Duggan said: “Quentin is very talented and a hard worker. He played one heck of a game today. I had a good feel for him — he was running good routes and catching the ball and he kind of bailed me out on a couple of them. I’m really proud of him.”
No sacks, no problem?
TCU defeated Texas despite having no sacks in the game. It’s the first time the Horned Frogs have won a Big 12 game without a sack since joining the conference in 2012.
TCU had no sacks in losses to Oklahoma and Oklahoma State in 2012; Texas in 2013; Kansas State in 2016; and West Virginia in 2018.
The Frogs’ last victory without recording a sack was a non-conference win over SMU in 2017.
Briefly
▪ Saturday marked TCU coach Gary Patterson’s 12th victory over a top-10 team, and his 27th over a ranked team. An unranked TCU team hadn’t defeated a top-10 team on the road since 2011 at Boise State.
▪ Since 1996, TCU’s Gary Patterson ranks No. 1 nationally among all head coaches past and present in winning percentage (.700, 7-3) against Texas with a minimum of five games played.
▪ TCU improved to 96-8 when rushing for at least 200 yards under Patterson. The Frogs combined for 226 yards rushing on Saturday.
This story was originally published October 4, 2020 at 9:51 AM.
