TCU football keeps bowl dreams alive, winning a wild game over KU on Senior Day
TCU football has a chance to go bowling.
TCU needed a late field goal to knock off Kansas 31-28 on Saturday afternoon at Amon G. Carter Stadium, but it kept the postseason possibilities alive for another week.
The Frogs (5-6, 3-5 Big 12) have a chance to become bowl eligible with a victory in the regular-season finale at Iowa State on Friday. KU fell to 2-9 on the season a week after an upset victory at Texas.
“Proud of the kids,” TCU interim coach Jerry Kill said. “They know and understand that we’re not going to be here. There’s a new coaching staff coming in. They’re still playing hard. The coaches are coaching hard. I couldn’t be more proud.
“We won on Senior Day. That’s something special those kids will never forget.”
The Frogs will be underdogs against the Cyclones in the finale, but they at least have a chance. They turned what had the makings of a disappointing Senior Day into a memorable one.
TCU trailed by one touchdown at halftime, led by two touchdowns early in the fourth quarter and eventually won it on a 25-yard field goal by Griffin Kell with 6 seconds left.
“I knew he was going to make it,” said TCU senior receiver Derius Davis, who rushed for a touchdown and finished with a game-high 103 yards receiving. “I didn’t feel no pressure.”
At the end of the day, TCU has a road to the postseason. Or, as Lloyd Christmas would say, so you’re telling me there’s a chance.
TCU found itself trailing 14-7 at halftime with a string of disappointing plays. Two drives ended in KU territory on an interception by quarterback Max Duggan and a failed fourth-and-1 play from the KU 9.
Heck, the loudest ovation of the opening half went to former TCU coach Gary Patterson. He delivered the ‘Give ‘em hell, TCU!’ portion of the Riff Ram video shown during the second quarter, shortly after making his first appearance inside Amon G. Carter Stadium since parting ways with the school on Oct. 31.
Patterson, the program’s all-time winningest coach, shook hands with the senior class before the game.
“It meant a lot to me. When I went out, I thanked him, told him that I appreciate the opportunity he gave me to come play college football and live out my dream,” senior defensive tackle Corey Bethley said. “If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be here. I appreciate Coach P.”
Eventually, along with Patterson’s presence, the players on the field gave the fans something to cheer about with three consecutive TD drives in the second half, turning a 14-7 deficit into a 28-14 lead.
Frogs running back Kendre Miller got the scoring started, breaking loose for a 56-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 14-14 in the third quarter.
“We needed a touchdown,” said Miller, who finished with 112 yards rushing on 12 carries. “I knew it was big, and it got everyone’s spirits up. We got in the groove.”
Duggan delivered the go-ahead score on a 1-yard run when TCU went for a fourth-and-goal from the KU 1, a drive that was set up by a 42-yard run by Duggan. Finally, the Frogs had a 12-play, 99-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard TD run by Emari Demercado.
Just when it felt like TCU was in control, KU put together back-to-back touchdown drives. The Jayhawks tied the game at 28-28 with less than five minutes left on a 10-yard pass from Jalon Daniels to fullback Jared Casey. Casey is the walk-on who caught the game-winning two-point conversion in Kansas’ victory over Texas last weekend.
But the Frogs had one more scoring drive in it, capped with Kell’s field goal.
Duggan, who was sidelined the past two weeks with a broken bone in his foot, went 10 of 16 passing for 166 yards with zero touchdowns and one interception. He also had 74 yards rushing on 14 carries.
Even though his stat line may not have been pretty, Duggan earned rave reviews for the toughness and grit he displayed.
“Max Duggan is the toughest quarterback, and one of the toughest people, that you’ll ever see play this game,” Kill said. “Period.”
This story was originally published November 20, 2021 at 6:26 PM.
