‘If he can, he will.’ TCU quarterback Max Duggan showing grit playing through injury
TCU coach Gary Patterson didn’t have a lengthy opening statement at his postgame news conference following his team’s 52-31 loss at No. 4 Oklahoma on Saturday night.
Patterson simply said “our kids fought” before answering questions.
At the top of the list of players who fought was junior quarterback Max Duggan, who had a career night despite playing with a foot injury.
The ABC broadcast revealed early in the game that Duggan had broken a small bone in his foot, and analyst Kirk Herbstreit raved about Duggan’s grit and toughness playing through it.
Duggan delivered even in a losing effort. He completed 20 of 30 passing for a career-high 346 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 45 yards and one score on eight carries.
TCU has a number of players battling through injuries this season, and Patterson is hopeful more of his players follow Duggan’s lead.
“He fought. You’ve got a guy playing with an injury,” Patterson said. “We should all learn that lesson. How to do things.”
Duggan’s previous career-high in passing yards was 323 at Texas Tech in 2019. Those are the only two games in which he’s topped the 300-yard mark in his career.
Much credit on Saturday night is due to wide receiver Quentin Johnston. Johnston had his own career night, finishing with 185 yards and three touchdowns on seven catches.
“Obviously Max has a lot of trust in me and I appreciate him for that,” Johnston said. “His trust in me alone builds a lot of confidence in me. [He’s] just a great person to be around on the field and off the field, so I feel like we’re growing a strong relationship where he can trust me.”
Similarly, TCU trusts that Duggan is going to be on the field, or at least do everything within his power to do so. It’s nothing new for Duggan. He played through a finger injury on his throwing hand during his freshman season. He battled through a previously undetected heart condition amid the COVID-19 pandemic last season. And now he’s playing with an injured foot that will have to be monitored the rest of the season.
Patterson acknowledged that Duggan will likely be questionable the next six games.
“I don’t even know if he goes next week. Who knows?” Patterson said. “We’ll see. It’s probably going to be week by week for the next six weeks. But, if he can, he will. I can promise you that.
Duggan has started 24 of the last 25 games for the Horned Frogs. He’s moving up in the record books, too, joining the 5,000-yard passing club during Saturday’s loss.
Duggan now has 5,221 yards passing, which is good for sixth place in TCU history. Duggan could have a chance to move into fifth ahead of Casey Pachall (5,414 yards) this week against West Virginia, if Duggan gives it a go.
The Frogs (3-3, 1-2 Big 12) return to Amon G. Carter Stadium for the game against the Mountaineers (2-4, 0-3) and kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
This story was originally published October 18, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
