TCU football to ‘cut loose and have fun’ with a bowl berth on the line at Iowa State
TCU football is in a playoff game as interim coach Jerry Kill called it.
If the Horned Frogs win at Iowa State on Friday afternoon, the season continues with a bowl berth. If they lose, the season is over.
Nobody is more excited to be in the situation than the players even if they are two-touchdown underdogs going into it. It’s been a tumultuous season for all involved with longtime head coach Gary Patterson and TCU parting ways on Oct. 31. At the time, the Frogs were sitting at 3-5 overall and riding a three-game losing streak.
Now TCU sits at 5-6 and has played inspired football two of the last three weeks. The Frogs stunned then-No. 12 Baylor three weeks ago and delivered a 31-28 Senior Day victory over Kansas last Saturday.
Sandwiched between those two highlights was a forgettable night and 63-17 loss at Oklahoma State. But the players are excited to still be playing for something.
“Oh, man, we’ve got to go cut loose and have fun like we did today,” senior defensive tackle Corey Bethley said following the KU victory. “I feel like the games we’ve lost, we weren’t having fun and we were thinking too much. When we start to come together as a team, have that energy and play for each other, it’s unbelievable the things that can happen.”
Being a team that is playing with a “nothing to lose” mindset could make TCU a dangerous team to pull off another unexpected upset.
Bethley returned for a “super senior” season with the NCAA freezing eligibility last year due to the coronavirus pandemic. He leads the team with 37 career starts, including eight starts this season. He is coming off the best game of his career with a career-high six tackles against KU.
TCU senior wide receiver Derius Davis is another player who is hopeful to extend the season. Davis didn’t participate in Senior Day festivities and could return next season, but his focus is on 2021 for now.
Davis overcame a muffed punt early in the KU game by rushing for a touchdown and finishing with a season-high 103 yards receiving on six catches.
“When I make a mistake, it really doesn’t affect me,” Davis said. “I played cornerback, and as a cornerback, you have to have the next play mentality. I just go out there and play the next play.”
Kill loved the resiliency he saw from Davis in the game.
“He says, ‘Coach, I’m a dog.’ And that means he loves the game,” Kill said. “He stays after every practice. He’s one of my favorite guys. What he did tonight, he’s the comeback kid. He could have folded his tent but that’s not who he is.”
TCU’s entire team could have folded the tent this season. From Patterson’s exit to injuries crippling the depth chart, TCU had plenty of reasons to call it quits. Instead, they’ll be playing for bowl eligibility in the regular-season finale.
“A lot of motivation (going to Iowa State),” sophomore running back Kendre Miller said. “It wasn’t a pretty win (against Kansas), but we pulled it out. We just have to take it one step at a time — give the seniors the best season we can with all that happened this year. We’ve just got to keep going.”
Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. at Jack Trice Stadium.
