TCU not quitting on the season despite lopsided defeat to Kansas State
TCU’s open week couldn’t have come at a better time for the Horned Frogs after Saturday’s brutal 41-3 defeat at Kansas State.
The bye week gives TCU a needed opportunity to reset and refocus before a grueling four-game stretch to close the season that includes two rivalry games and two games against top-10 opponents.
“The next four games are going to be big for us,” quarterback Josh Hoover said on Tuesday. “We talked about it on Sunday, why not do everything you can to see what can happen these next four games? We have an opportunity to go out and play Texas Tech, who’s a good team. Every week’s an opportunity to show what we can do on offense.”
Despite a rough outing in Kansas, the redshirt freshman quarterback kept his optimistic viewpoint about how the team can close the season.
But to ensure that the 41-3 debacle doesn’t happen again, Hoover is using his first road start as another learning experience.
“I learned a lot, it was a big opportunity for me, just taking in the road atmosphere and what it takes to go out and win on the road,” Hoover said. “It’s not the same as a home game, it’s not the same as coming out here and having the fans on your side. You have to bring the energy and execute from the start.”
With the Horned Frogs falling in a 21-3 hole in the first quarter, it’s clear execution was lacking from the start on both sides of the ball.
For the defense, it was especially disappointing considering how well the unit started against BYU.
“We had a slow start, the BYU game the defense went first and had a pick six,” linebacker Namdi Obiazor said Tuesday. “I feel like that set the tone for us that game, K-State they just marched down on the first couple drives and scored. I feel like that was the difference in how the game played out.”
So how can TCU ensure that the team gets off to a much better start next Thursday in Lubbock? One way is the coaching staff using the bye week to push the team instead of taking a more lax approach.
“The coaches aren’t really treating it like it’s a bye week,” Obiazor said. “We’re still trying to attack at practices and get better. We had a thud scrimmage period (on Sunday) which I felt was good for the people that needed it.”
Typically Sundays are for walkthroughs and film review to correct any mistakes from the previous day, but clearly the coaching believed the team needed a physical practice to shake back mentally and emotionally.
From frustration to sadness, there was a plethora of emotions that went through the locker room in the immediate aftermath of Saturday’s blowout.
But from Hoover’s perspective, he feels like the team is beginning to come out of the funk and will have the right mentality in the final stretch of the season.
“Everybody was disappointed after the game, we feel like we let everybody down,” Hoover said. “We let ourselves down, it was an embarrassing loss. We were down on ourselves, but then we picked ourselves up on Sunday and said we can sit here and feel sorry for ourselves or get back to work and do what we do.”
While the goal of winning a Big 12 championship is no longer on the table, there’s still something left to accomplish and that’s reaching bowl eligibility.
It’s still a solid possibility with winnable games against Texas Tech and Baylor while Quinn Ewers could miss Texas’ trip to Fort Worth next month as well. Even Oklahoma showed signs of weakness by struggling UCF at home.
The Horned Frogs don’t believe their season is over just yet.
“This team we don’t have any quit in us, I don’t have any quit in me,” Hoover said. “I know the coaches don’t either. We’re just going to lick our chops and move forward.”
