TCU vs Tarleton State: Preview and Prediction
Here is everything you need to know about the upcoming matchup between the TCU Horned Frogs and the Tarleton State Texans.
GAME INFO
Saturday, September 10th, 2022; 7:00 p.m. CT; Amon G. Carter Stadium; Fort Worth, Texas
TV: ESPN+ (Broadcast Crew TBA)
Radio: FrogsToday; Horned Frogs Sports Network
Records: TCU 1-0; Tarleton State1-0
Rankings: Both teams unranked
Series History: First ever matchup
Last Meeting: N/A
Favorite: TCU (No Line)
Fun Fact: Despite being located less than 80 miles from one another, these two programs have never met on the football field.
Key Players
TCU Horned Frogs
QB Max Duggan
With the news of Chandler Morris missing this game, Max Duggan will be the starting quarterback on Saturday. Duggan has plenty of experience as he has started 29 games during his time in Fort Worth. We all know that Max is a great athlete and is a true threat to run the football. However, he can be wildly inconsistent throwing the football.
LB Dee Winters
There aren’t many linebackers in the Big 12 that are better than this man. Dee was a preseason All-Big 12 selection, and he certainly looked the part against Colorado last weekend. He was everywhere on the field recording a sack and two tackles for loss. There is no doubt in my mind that he is going to have a field day against Tarleton State.
Tarleton State Texans
QB Beau Allen
It’s not often you see a former four-star quarterback at a school like Tarleton State. Beau was part of the 2020 Kentucky recruiting class and appeared in five games for the Wildcats before transferring to Tarleton State. Last week in their opening game against Mississippi Valley State Beau threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns in Tarleton State’s 29-13 win at home.
LB D.J. Harris
D.J. is one of the key leaders for this Texans defense. Last season he led the team in tackles (66) and solo tackles (35). In the WAC, Harris had the fourth most tackles per game (7.3) and the sixth most total tackles. If this defense has a chance stopping TCU, then D.J. will have to play a key part of it.
Key Storylines
TCU Horned Frogs
Since TCU played a power five opponent on the road in week one, this will be a nice tune up game before the Horned Frogs face nearby rival SMU in two weeks. With Chandler Morris out, I expect TCU to keep things fairly vanilla on offense. And by vanilla, I mean running the football with authority. There will be a mismatch in the trenches, and I expect TCU to exploit that and get the ground game going. Last week TCU managed to run for 275 yards against Colorado so TCU should have no problem getting over 300 on a team like Tarleton State.
Tarleton State Texans
After moving to the WAC last season, Tarleton State posted a 6-5 overall record a year ago. They made the jump to FCS two years ago and it will take a little time to get adjusted to the higher level of football. But this isn’t a WAC team they are playing. TCU is way above their level and by far is the best team they play on their schedule. I am not sure what the paycheck will be for them, but I am not expecting miracles to happen in Fort Worth. Let’s be real here, this game on Saturday is about funding their athletic program.
Prediction: TCU 55, Tarleton State 7
I don’t see TCU having any sort of trouble in this one. They should be able to move the ball with ease and shutdown the Tarleton State offense. This is one of those games where I fully expect the backups to be playing by the third quarter.
