TCU Football Preview

LaMarcus McDonald

After several twists, hairpin turns and detours through the long and winding road that represented the 2001 football season, the TCU Horned Frogs appear to be settling into a comfortable groove as they begin their travels down the path that should become a successful 2002 campaign.

The 2001 season started out with a new driver leading the TCU Express. Longtime assistant coach Gary Patterson took over the wheel from the departed Dennis Franchione and began his first year steering the TCU squad.

The gas tank may not have been on empty for Patterson with 29 lettermen and 10 starters returning, but after losing 28 seniors from a unit that went 10-2 in 2000, and with the unknown terrain that comes with moving into a new conference, the first-year head coach knew his tank was far from full. Little did he know what awaited him. Patterson ran into as many hazards over a five-month period as any first-year head coach could have ever expected.

Patterson and the Horned Frogs began their 2001 campaign on August 25 with a season-opening date with the Cornhuskers of Nebraska in front of a nationally televised audience and over 77,000 hostile red-clad fans hungry for football in Lincoln. The Frogs turned some heads nationally with an excellent showing against the heavily-favored Huskers, but moral victories were not what Patterson had in mind. The Frogs came away from Lincoln more battered than beaten. Injuries to Bo Schobel, Bo Springfield, Matt Schobel and Josh Goolsby would have a lingering effect on the remainder of the season.

The Frogs returned to Texas and posted hard-fought, back-to-back road victories against local rivals North Texas and SMU, Patterson's first wins as a head coach. But the journey was only beginning.

Patterson and the Frogs, like the rest of the country, struggled through an unexpected off week due to the tragedies of 9-11, then were unable to regain focus against a surprisingly tough Northwestern State squad that would not be denied. The upset loss snapped an 11-game home winning streak for the Frogs.

TCU regrouped with an impressive win at Houston in its conference lidlifter, then fell flat at Tulane before bouncing Army in front of an emotional and patriotic Homecoming crowd.

An inconsistent schedule parlayed into inconsistent performances on the field throughout the remainder of the season. After 10 days off, an unbelievable second half comeback fell short against East Carolina in the school's first Tuesday night regular-season battle. The Frogs would wait 11 days before facing UAB and suffer another disappointing loss, one which had the Frog faithful resigned to spending their Christmas holidays at home.

Patterson and his squad would have none of that.

The Frogs' coaching staff had 13 days to rally the troops for a battle with nationally ranked Louisville. TCU put together its best game of the season in routing the conference champion Cardinals on national TV, then two weeks later came back with an improbable hard-fought two-point victory at Southern Miss to clinch a bowl appearance for a school record fourth straight season. In an odd twist, repurcussions of a late game-saving interception by Kenneth Hilliard at Southern Miss were felt throughout the country. The interception not only propelled TCU into the galleryfurniture.com Bowl against former Southwest Conference rival Texas A&M, but due to the complicated BCS computer format, lifted Nebraska into the Rose Bowl and a date with Miami for the national championship.

From its season-opening clash at Nebraska to the regular-season finale at Southern Miss on December 7, the Frogs squeezed an 11-game schedule into an NFL-like 16-week calendar.

"We had some great highs and we've had some very, very low points in our season," said Patterson. "I think it's the incredible part of our kids, the chemistry and the kind of makeup that they have that they fought back and gave themselves a chance.

"I've never been through a season where I've had six off-weeks, especially with a younger football team and trying to get them to grow. Looking back on it now, I'd probably say that in the middle of the season the off-weeks hurt us because we were trying to establish ourselves, we were trying to get a little bit of a rhythm and we were trying to find out what kind of football team and who our go-to people were and really who our leaders were. As we went through it, I think the two weeks we had for Louisville and Southern Miss really helped us because I think we matured and we started to grow up," he added.

Like all coaches, Patterson believes that the rocky road traveled through the 2001 season will only make his squad tougher as they prepare for the 2002 campaign. The numbers leading into the season are certainly better. The 2002 Horned Frogs return 48 lettermen, including 16 starters. Only 13 lettermen are gone from last season's 6-6 squad.

The defense is again expected to be the strength of the club. The returnees include second team all-league selections tackle Chad Pugh, linebacker LaMarcus McDonald and cornerback Jason Goss. Also returning is second team Freshman All-American safety Marvin Godbolt. The Frogs will also be bolstered by the return of a pair of starters who missed almost the entire 2001 season with injuries, defensive end Bo Schobel and linebacker Josh Goolsby. Safety Kenneth Hilliard and defensive tackle John Turntine also return as starters.

Offensively, the Frogs should be solid if not explosive. A young offensive line has grown up and should be an asset, rather than a liability. Jamal Powell, John Glud, Brady Barrick and J.T. Aughinbaugh all return as starters on the line, but they will be challenged by the likes of Anthony Alabi, Chase Johnson, Jon Morgan and Josh Harbuck. The wide receiving corps which features seniors Adrian Madise, LaTarence Dunbar, Terran Williams and Kevin Brown, may be the best that Conference USA has to offer. The running back position will be deeper with transfer Kenny Hayter added to the mix that features returnees Ricky Madison and Corey Connally. Senior Reggie Holts brings experience to the fullback position. Senior Sean Stilley enters the fall as the number one quarterback. He is the only signal caller on the squad with any game experience.

Special teams is another strong suit for Patterson and the Horned Frogs in 2002, as TCU returns all the key components. Back are all three specialists - Joey Biasatti, who helped the Frogs to a national top 15 ranking in net punting a year ago, junior placekicker Nick Browne and deep snapper Andy Boerckel. Also back are punt returner Jason Goss and kick returner LaTarence Dunbar.

The schedule is more familiar if not more favorable in 2002. The Frogs will be one of the few Division 1-A teams in the country with just 11 regularly-scheduled contests on tap, which could be a benefit as the season wears on.

A tough opening week awaits the Frogs with an ESPN-conceived Labor Day test at conference opponent Cincinnati before a date with Northwestern out of the Big 10 just five days later.

"There's no Nebraska on the schedule like last year, but in many ways, our opener at Cincinnati is a bigger game," says Patterson. "They may be one of the top two or three teams in the conference. That's a critical game starting out. That gives us that same sense of urgency that Nebraska did a year ago. It's a national TV game, so it has the exposure we had a year ago, but actually carries more importance because it's a conference game. A big key will be how well we prepare for the quick turnaround the next week at Northwestern," noted Patterson.

After playing just four games at home during the entire 2001 season, the Frogs will play three straight contests at home from September 14 to October 5, facing a trio of Texas-based teams in SMU, North Texas and Houston.

"SMU will have a new coach and North Texas has a lot of guys back from a bowl team," continued Patterson. "We're a big target on both of those teams' schedule. Then Houston is a conference game and another Texas school that we battle for braggin' rights."

A pair of road conference games await the Frogs in mid-October with dates at Army and pre-season conference favorite Louisville. Both schools will have revenge in their hearts and minds after losing contests in Fort Worth last season.

The Frogs get another chance to perform in front of a nationally televised audience when they host Southern Miss on Wednesday, October 30. The Frogs look for a little revenge of their own when Tulane comes calling in early November, before a date at East Carolina, which could have bowl implications attached. The Frogs conclude the 2002 regular season with its first meeting ever against Memphis, a team that Coach Patterson considers a darkhorse in the conference.

"I think it's a positive to play at both Louisville and East Carolina," Patterson said. "They carry a lot of people in their stadiums and our kids will be excited about that. Memphis has a really good quarterback, played very well at the end of the season and has a really good defense.

"It's another challenging schedule," said Patterson. "We learned last season that we have to be ready every week of the season in this conference. We learned a little about most of the teams in the league and learned a lot about ourselves last season. Now we have to use what we've learned and continue to get better," he added.

If things go as Patterson and the Horned Frogs hope, hold on. It could be another wild ride.