KU Jayhawks vs. TCU Horned Frogs: Five things to know entering Saturday’s game
Kansas junior linebacker Rich Miller has long believed in the potential of the Jayhawks’ defensive unit.
“We are getting it now for sure,” Miller, a 6-foot-1, 225-pound Detroit native, said Saturday after the Jayhawks (5-0, 2-0) held Iowa State to 313 total yards and one touchdown in a 14-11 victory at Booth Memorial Stadium.
KU had allowed 27 points against Duke, 30 versus Houston and 42 against West Virginia in its previous three games, all wins. Tennessee Tech scored just 10 points against KU in the season opener.
“During (preseason) camp we had a little player-led defensive meeting,” Miller said. “I told everybody, ‘It’s going to click one day.’ It sure has been clicking a lot. You got to see it. You got to know it. You got to go.”
KU’s defense will face an immense challenge on Saturday against TCU (11 a.m., Booth Memorial Stadium) as it attempts to put together two straight defensive gems.
The No. 17-ranked Horned Frogs (4-0, 1-0) and senior quarterback Max Duggan put up 668 yards of total offense in Saturday’s 55-24 victory over Oklahoma in Fort Worth, Texas.
TCU gained 479 yards in the first half in building a 41-17 lead. That’s the most points by a team in a half against an FBS opponent this season.
TCU’s 27-point first quarter against Oklahoma was its highest-scoring quarter since totaling 28 points in the second quarter of a 62-22 win at Baylor in 2016.
Duggan, in his 32nd career start, completed 23 of 33 passes for 302 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He added 116 yards rushing on five carries with two additional TDs versus the Sooners.
Duggan had a 67-yard TD run Saturday. He went 81 yards for a score against Texas Tech two seasons ago.
For the year, TCU has averaged 48.5 points a game while allowing 22.0.
“We are more aggressive on defense this year,” said KU coach Lance Leipold, who indicated he was “proud” of the defense Saturday. “Next step … steady improvement. We’ve got to prevent big plays, be well rounded in everything we are doing defensively, stopping the run and pass, be consistent defensively.”
Miller, who started his career playing for Leipold at Buffalo, says he’s always recognized the importance of defense.
“The way I was brought up was offense wins games, defense win championships,” said Miller, who has a team-leading 38 tackles. “That’s my mindset.
“We are prepared to face adversity. We are prepared to bend. We don’t want to bend but if we do bend, we’re not going to break.”
THE DETAILS
Kickoff: 11 a.m., Saturday
Where: Booth Memorial Stadium, Lawrence
TV: FS1
Radio: WHB (810) in Kansas City; KFH (1240 AM, 97.5 FM) in Wichita
Early betting line: TCU favored by 5 1/2 points.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. TCU was picked to finish seventh in the 10-team Big 12 Conference in the preseason media poll. The Horned Frogs entered this season with moderate expectations after last year’s 5-7 season (3-6 in league). The Horned Frogs have defeated Colorado (38-13), Tarleton (59-17), SMU (42-34) and Oklahoma (55-24). By the way, last time the Horned Frogs were picked seventh was 2014, when TCU won the Big 12 championship.
2. Sonny Dykes is off to a stellar start in his first season at TCU. Last time TCU was 4-0 was 2017, when Dykes was on staff as an offensive analyst. Dykes, 52, has also been a head coach at Louisiana Tech, Cal and SMU. Dykes is the first TCU head coach to win his opening four games since Francis Schmidt in 1929. He’s the Horned Frogs’ 12th head coach since Schmidt.
3. The Horned Frogs have led almost the entire season. TCU has not trailed in a game since the first 24 seconds of the second quarter in its season opener at Colorado. A Derius Davis 60-yard punt return gave the Horned Frogs a 7-3 lead it would not relinquish. TCU led from start to finish in its next two games. For the year TCU averages 48.5 points and allows 22.0.
4. KU punter Reis Vernon attempted just five punts through KU’s first four games. In game five against Iowa State, Vernon, a 6-2 junior from Bixby, Oklahoma, had six punts for a 39.8 average. For the year, Vernon has punted 11 times for a 41.7 average. His longest punt is 53 yards. He had an excellent punt Saturday that pinned Iowa State at the 1.
5. KU defensive lineman Sam Burt had 1.5 sacks against Iowa State. It was his first game since being named a semifinalist for the 2022 William V. Campbell Trophy, college football’s premiere scholar-athlete award. Burt is one of 156 semifinalists for the award, which recognizes an individual as the best in the country for combined academic success, football performance and leadership. The candidates for the Campbell Trophy also make up the pool of nominees for the 2022 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award. Burt is a super senior from Abilene, Kansas.
