TCU football vs. Kansas Jayhawks: Kickoff time, TV, betting line, radio, prediction
TCU football has been battling injuries all season, but it could get one significant piece back this week.
Sophomore running back Kendre Miller is expected to return, interim coach Jerry Kill said this week. That would provide a big boost to the Horned Frogs’ offense.
Miller would be a welcomed addition as TCU takes on Kansas, which ranks last in the Big 12 in rushing defense (241.7 yards per game). But the Jayhawks are playing inspired football, upsetting Texas in Austin last weekend.
TCU, meanwhile, returned to its losing ways. Oklahoma State pounded TCU for a 63-17 victory, the worst loss by the Frogs since 1993. Can TCU recover?
The Big 12 has shown that it’s hard to draw too many conclusions week to week. And TCU still has an outside chance to become bowl eligible if it knocks off KU and then Iowa State on Nov. 26.
As safety Nook Bradford said of the team’s mentality, “To end the season with a good season after all the tough losses that we’ve already taken. We’ve got a group of hard working young men, so we’re trying to get to a bowl game.”
Added wide receiver Blair Conwright: “I think making a bowl game would really be a good way to end it. Like Coach P said early in the season, the goal for the year, for the seniors, is to give the seniors the best season they can. Making a bowl game would really do that for them.”
With that being said, here’s everything you need to know going into it:
THE DETAILS
Kickoff: 3 p.m. Saturday
Where: Amon G. Carter Stadium, Fort Worth
TV: ESPN+ (Courtney Lyle, Ryan Leaf, Tori Petry)
Radio: WBAP/820 AM, XM 199, Sirius 138 (Brian Estridge, John Denton, Landry Burdine)
Spanish Radio: Zona MX/99.1 FM (Miguel Cruz, Elvis Gallegos)
The line: TCU by 21 1/2 points, over/under 64 1/2 points (per VegasInsider.com’s consensus line Thursday)
DID YOU KNOW?
TCU is 8-1 against KU since joining the Big 12 in 2012. The Frogs are 4-0 in Fort Worth. ... TCU’s first Big 12 game came against Kansas in 2012. The Frogs won 20-6 in Lawrence. ... TCU interim coach Jerry Kill is a native of Kansas. He was born in Cheney and graduated from Southwestern College in Winfield. ... The Frogs are averaging 29.8 points per game compared with the Jayhawks’ 19.3. ... TCU and KU are both allowing more than 200 yards rushing per game (TCU’s 226.1, KU’s 241.2).
PREDICTION
Vegas oddsmakers usually know what they’re doing but I was shocked to see TCU open as a 23-point favorite. I think we’re in for a closer game than that. In the end, TCU still has a chance for a bowl game and should play better at home. Yes, KU is coming off a big win but so was TCU before getting throttled in Stillwater. TCU 30, Kansas 26.
