Spit Blood

Meet the Future Frogs: Gerren Ballard

2012-01-27T14:27:00.003-06:00

One of the more intriguing prospects in TCU's recruiting class of 2012 is Gerren Ballard, a massive tight end from tiny Whitewright, Texas. Part of that mystery is because of the uncertainty that always surrounds a top-level athlete from the lower levels of Texas high school football, and part because of what TCU's presence in Whitewright may mean in the near future.

What we do know about Ballard is that he's big- real big. And fast- real fast for his size. Anytime you've got a kid who ran run a 4.6 forty in a 6'6" 250lb frame, you've got to be excited about his potential. Ballard starred at tight end for Whitewright, and is listed at that position in just about any recruiting publication you can find- but you have to wonder if defensive end or even offensive tackle will be his true calling once he's in Fort Worth. I couldn't find a free highlight tape of his on youtube, but those of you that have watched his video through your purplemenace subscriptions know that he moves extremely well for his size. He's not all that hyped (although he did get three stars from Rivals), but I could see a number of positional coaches at TCU waging a passionate bout of tug of war with him once he's on campus.

The other intriguing part of Ballard's commitment is his relationship to one of TCU's (and likely every other school in the nation) top targets for next year's class- Tyrone Swoopes. The 6'5" 220lb quarterback from Whitewright (and Sheryl Swoopes' nephew) has already been awarded five stars from Rivals, and is the leading candidate to be the most sought-after recruit in all of Texas for next year. The internet rumor mill maintains that the kid loves TCU, which is substantiated to some degree by the fact that his facebook profile photo is of him wearing a Frogs jersey during a visit to Amon G. Carter Stadium. You'd have to think that having one of his high school teammates already on campus would be enticing for him.

Who ever would've thought that a town of less than 2,000 in Fannin County would be such a major talent pipeline for TCU? If you're looking to thank someone for creating a legacy that would produce interest in the program from such talented athletes as Ballard and Swoopes, look no further than William Jackson, a 2003 graduate of Whitewright that went on to become a four-year starter at fullback for the Frogs.

Daily Discussion: Big 12 Expansion

2012-01-27T10:19:00.002-06:00

The inevitable part about jumping into an unstable conference, as the Frogs have now done for about the 1,000th time, is that expansion rumors are never really going to go away. While the biggest questions about the Big 12 might currently be about when West Virginia will actually join (we hear this year) and when the 2012 football schedule will come out (very soon, supposedly), you still have to wonder if, when and how the league will get back to as many members as it's name would indicate.

A report from our very own Fort Worth Star-Telegram earlier this week indicated that Louisville and BYU may very well be targets for the 11th and 12th spots. What would you think about adding the Cardinals and Cougars- good move, bad move?

Let's say you're the Big 12 commissioner. What schools would you go after? What schools do you think are reasonable targets? Or do you think the league should even expand at all?

Morning Dump

2012-01-27T09:01:00.003-06:00

Football:

Maponga receives honors from Dave Campbells College Football GoFrogs.com

In Big 12 predictions, TCU should be first or second Dallas Morning News

Curry gets TCU offer, set for visit ESPN

Daje Johnson "90 percent" he'll switch ESPN

Tennis:

Weather forecast forces change in TCU's weekend schedule GoFrogs.com

Athletic Department:

TCU earns 41 fall academic All-MW selections GoFrogs.com

Meet the Future Frogs: AJ Hilliard

2012-01-26T15:24:00.002-06:00

Once the 2011 squad hit the practice field at the end of the summer, the TCU coaching staff took a break from recruiting. That's actually probably not true at all, but they did take a few months off from procuring any commitments from future Horned Frogs. That hiatus ended in late November, when AJ Hilliard became the 15th member of TCU's 2012 recruiting class.

Hilliard is a 6'2" 215lb linebacker from Klein Oak, which is just north of Houston for those of you not familiar with the area. He totaled 101 tackles along with 4 sacks and 2 interceptions his junior year, which was good enough to earn him three stars from Rivals. They also listed him as the 21st-best outside linebacker in the country and the 72nd-best overall recruit in Texas.

A player with Hilliard's size, speed (he runs a 4.6 forty) and versatility (he has a 30-inch vertical leap) is going to garner a lot of attention from college recruiters. He received scholarship offers from coast to coast, deciding at first to commit to the University of Arizona. But he always had TCU in his mind as his college destination, so when he was offered he accepted almost immediately back in November.

I couldn't find his highlight film on youtube, so those of you that don't have a subscription to purplemenace will just have to trust me: this kid is a prototypical TCU linebacker. He's fast, hits hard and has a great knack for getting to the ball carrier. He also wore #46 in high school, so you know he's ready to fit right into the somewhat unorthodox numbering system that Horned Frog linebackers have adhered to under Patterson.

Live Chat w/ Del Conte @ 3:00pm

2012-01-26T13:53:00.002-06:00

He once caught a fish THIS big

TCU Athletic Director Chris Del Conte is hosting a live chat on gofrogs.com at 3:00pm today. He's usually answers most of the questions fairly evasively, but there are always still a few informative nuggets to take out of the whole thing. As usual, you'll win some sort of super-special prize if you can get him to mention Spitbloodtcu.com. Use the link below to enter the live chat at 3:00pm, or you can submit your questions right now:

Chris Del Conte Live Chat

Basketball Team Tounament Bound!

2012-01-26T10:24:00.003-06:00

Adrick McKinney bein' all basketball lookin'.

pic via Star-Telegram

Well, at least Mountain West Tournament bound, but last night was one step closer to finishing in the upper tier of the Conference and sneaking into one of the various post-season tournaments.

In a performance similar to the comeback win over Boise this past weekend, the Frogs fell behind early, fought back and held on by the skin of their teeth/defense and pulled out 59-56 win over Air Force. As a friendly reminder, the members of the Air Force team play basketball as a secondary endeavor, so I'm not sure what we should make of this exactly. Also in the, "not sure what to make of it" category, the game was essentially over with 2:58 remaining, as neither team scored over the remainder of the game from that point. On the one hand, yaaaaay defense! On the other hands, sad face offense! But, with this team, you finish the job however you can, and a win will always be considered a win.

Leading the charge for the Frogs was the once dominant, more recently quiet, JR Cadot with an all around performance. He was second on the team with 13 points and first with 7 board, 3 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocked shots. Not a bad day at the office. Cadot opened up the season with a string of strong performances and quickly earned the reputation of being, if not our best, at least our most aggressive player, and he showed what he's capable of last night. Also showing what he's capable of was Hank Thorns who tossed in 22 points to go along with that measly 1 assist. I used to argue that Thorns should work more on being a distributor at the point, but the recent results suggest otherwise. As a team, the Frogs out rebounded, out-assisted, out-blocked, out-stole and pretty much out-everything'd the Falcons.

And now, some humbling facts.

With the W, TCU doubled their Conference win total from last year with 2, eclipsed their overall win total with 12 and won Consecutive Conference games for the first time in THREE seasons. The year was 2009, the future was brighter after the Dark Days and Zvonko Buljan was being given free college tuition, room and board to play college basketball. The Frogs would go 14-17 that year and get knocked out in the first round of the Conference Tourney. Call me crazy, but I think they do a little bit better this year, at least record wise. Seriously, you can call me crazy, I don't mind.

Next up for TCU is a date with the New Mexico Lobos this Saturday in Methbuquerque. The Lobos have an identical 2-2 Conference record, so you could frame this as a PIVOTAL Conference placing matchup, but you'd be kind of a dumbass if you did so. Besides that, New Mexico has only lost to San Diego State and UNLV, two teams that are not only the class of the MWC, but of college basketball overall. Their resume is a just a tad bit more impressive. Regardless, if you're dicking around Saturday at 5:00 in the afternoon, turn on the Mountain and give it a look.

Maybe it's a Big Ten thing?

2012-01-26T10:06:00.004-06:00

A sexual deviant with THAT facial hair? You don't say...

More than a year removed from the Rose Bowl victory, you might think that it's a little excessive to still be piling on Wisconsin. Then again, those people were just TERRIBLE. Up until now, I thought the only thing Big Ten folks all had in common was their horrifically-overrated football teams and the fact that even their women could probably make a decent living as a shopping mall Santa. Turns out that at Wisconsin, much like Penn State, employees of the athletic department like to use their position of power to put their hands on younger males' junk.

The guy you see above in John Chadima, who until very recently was a Senior Associate Athletic Director at Wisconsin. The night before this year's Rose Bowl (which you'll remember, the Badgers lost to Oregon when overly-angry coach Brett Bielema forgot how long a second was), Chadima hosted a party at his Los Angeles hotel. At the party, Chadima used university funds to buy alcohol- including for under-aged kids. As everyone was leaving, he asked one male UW student-worker to stay behind and have a drink with him. He then proceeded to stick his hands down the kids' pants and, after being told not to do so, told the kid he could have him fired from his job.

You do have to give credit to the Wisconsin administration for at least swiftly acting on this, forcing Chadima out of his job very quickly after the incident. But after all of the bullshit we received from Badger fans before and after our little ol' private school beat their big, bad Big Ten champs, they deserve to have their athletic department dragged through the mud over this a little bit.

Morning Dump

2012-01-26T09:25:00.002-06:00

Basketball:

TCU men hold off Air Force Star-Telegram

Strong second half propels TCU to comfortable 66-44 victory GoFrogs.com

Tennis:

Frogs take down Islanders to open 2012 season, 5-2 GoFrogs.com

Athletic Department:

Notes on a scorecard GoFrogs.com

Big 12 expansion meeting yields 'nothing eminent' Star-Telegram

TCU Baseball 2012: What should we expect?

2012-01-25T10:52:00.003-06:00

TCU baseball has been pretty rewarding for us over the past few years. We win every conference championship, we've hosted Regionals, we've bitch-slapped Texas in Austin then dogpiled on their longhorn, and of course, we went to Omaha and made a pretty deep run before running into 2 top-5 MLB draft pick pitchers.

And then last year happened...

Now let's not act like last year was a complete disaster. We still won the conference (a feat that will obviously become much tougher entering the Big 12 for the 2013 campaign) and we hosted a regional, but it seemed like last year wasn't meant to be from the get go despite our incredibly lofty preseason rankings. I tried to hold onto hope for as long as I could, but the writing was on the wall early on with the loss of stud closer Kaleb Merck to Tommy John surgery before the season even began. Then seeing Matt Purke's opening night start last only 4 innings (I think) with a fastball in the mid-80's was a concern- a concern that went from being a blister to a dead arm over the course of the next few months. Then there were a rash of injuries during the season as well, from CF Aaron Schultz, to Steven Maxwell, a #3 starter who would've been an ace at 95% of the teams across the country. Kyle Winkler carried the pitching staff, along with a slew of young, talented arms, but I think we all finally knew the season was more or less officially over when Wink pulled himself in the first inning of his start in the Fort Worth Regional.

So coming off an injury-riddled, error filled baseball season in 2011, what can we expect from our preseason #15 squad this year? I think there are more unanswered questions about this group than any I can remember in recent memory for the Frogs, so let's just get right into them (keep in mind, these opinions are my own and could be wayyyy far off from what really happens):

At #15, are we overrated or underrated?

It's hard to tell, honestly. We certainly have the talent on this roster to be considered underrated, but will that talent perform up to expectations? I think Matt Purke and the 2010 squad proved that experience might not matter as much in football or even basketball, so maybe having a young team won't be a negative. There's still plenty of veteran leadership, especially offensively, with a loaded front end of the lineup consisting of Jason Coats, Brance Rivera, Josh Elander, and Jantzen Witte (more on him later). The question is whether talented youngsters like freshman Kevin Cron and sophomore Brett Johnson can produce, and will junior Kyle Von Tungeln finally emerge into the player we've expected him to be after ending last year on a hot streak?

The pitching staff is young as well, but they gained a lot of valuable innings with all the injuries last year. Hopefully some more young arms emerge this season to do the kind of great work that freshmen Andrew Mitchell, Stefan Crichton, and Nick Frey did last year. Getting Kaleb Merck back to secure the back end of the bullpen should be a major boon to the staff as well, because as we all know, that was a major cause for concern last season, at least until Crichton stepped admirably into that role. Which brings me to my next point...

With Merck back as closer, what do we do with Stefan Crichton?

I think we move Crichton back into a starting role. He made a few starts there before becoming the closer at the end of the year last year, so maybe he becomes our Saturday starter with Mitchell going Friday nights. A lot of this depends on how the talented freshmen arms we have coming in look leading up to the season. I hear rumblings that RS Freshman Trey Teakell has looked sharp, and Nick Frey, who saw a lot of innings towards then end of last season, also has to be a candidate for a weekend spot. I won't speculate too much on the freshmen arms that we have due to lack of knowledge and having not seen them pitch yet, but I'm sure some will emerge. However, I think for this team to be successful deep into the 2012 season, Crichton and his filthy low-90's sinker have to be in the starting rotation somewhere. I'll save my breath and not even try to speculate any further on who emerges from this freshmen heavy staff as players, but I'm sure there will be a few.

Is Andrew Mitchell a legit #1 starter?

Look at last year for your answer- 6-1, 2.84 era, 73 K's in 76 innings with a .197 opponents batting average. I'd say with pretty good certainty on this one that your answer is yes. Is he Matt Purke from 2010? Most likely not, and we might never see that again, but he does have a mid-90's fastball with some pretty knee-buckling offspeed pitches. I'm pretty excited to see what kind of season this talented sophomore can put together as the focal point of our pitching staff.

Will Kaleb Merck be 100% and return to 2010 form?

I'm not sure the exact date, but I believe Merck had Tommy John surgery sometime around September, 2010, so that means when the season gets going towards the end of February it will have been almost 18 months since his surgery. I'm sure we will ease him back into things to start the season, but hopefully by the time conference rolls around he will be back in full swing and as effective as before. Of course, asking him to duplicate his 2010 numbers (1.47 era, 30.2 IP, 23 K's) will probably be asking too much, but if we get anywhere near that kind of production from his freshly built arm I'd say the back end of our bullpen is certainly secure. Steven Maxwell had Tommy John surgery a few years back and he came back better than ever. I don't see any reason why Merck can't do the same.

Who replaces third baseman Jantzen Witte while he recovers from hip surgery?

Witte, who has been our starting 3b for us for pretty much 2 full years now, will miss 8-10 weeks after having surgery to repair a torn hip labrum. While I thought hip surgery was strictly reserved for old men, this is certainly bad news. He is expected to miss the first 16-20 games of the season. His .331 average was third on the team, and he also led the team with 84 hits and 21 doubles. His 45 RBI were good for second on the team as well, so I don't have to tell you how big of a bat we are missing from the lineup. Third base is arguably the hardest position on the field to play defensively as well, and losing a mainstay at that spot for a good chunk of the season scares me.

Honestly, I don't have a good answer for you here just like I can't go in depth on what freshmen will emerge in the pitching rotation. There are so many unknowns with so many young players. Some candidates are veteran utility man Davey Wright, who I've seen fill in around the middle infield, but I don't recall him playing much at third. Can baseball ginger Brett Johnson, who played a lot of 1b last year, slide into the hot corner for a while and play 3rd and let our star recruit Kevin Cron (who is a ridiculously massive 6'5, 260, so I don't see him at 3rd)? Can one of the newcomers like JUCO transfer Josh Gonzales or freshmen Michael Resnick, Trevin Sonnier, Keaton Jones, or Derek O'Dell fill in there? Honestly, I have no clue. Or could we move senior OF and leadoff hitter Brance Rivera back to that spot? Pretty sure he's seen some time there during his career at TCU.

Who replaces Taylor Featherston at Shortstop and Jerome Pena at Second?

Taylor Featherston, while a great hitter for TCU for 3 years, had his struggles in the field. Jerome Pena didn't duplicate the great offensive season he had during our CWS run, but I think he might have been another Frog battling injuries throughout last season. Just like the question about Witte, I don't have a good answer for you, but let's assume that two of the above listed players move into the 2 open middle infield spots. I'd say Josh Gonzales finds a spot somewhere for sure, because why else would you bring in a JUCO transfer? I doubt he sits. I think you can rule out Johnson, Rivera, and of course Cron for middle infield, so that leaves freshmen Resnick, Sonnier, Jones, and O'Dell to fill the other open spot. For what it's worth, O'Dell was 2 time All-State as well as a Max Preps All-American and was drafted in the 42nd round by the Red Sox, so he comes in pretty highly touted, so maybe he has a leg up on the competition?

So those are my own questions about the upcoming 2012 baseball season, and I obviously did this post in part to try and answer my own questions. If anyone out there has any better information than me please feel free to share, as most TCU baseball fans are pretty in the dark at this point in time since baseball news isn't that easily accessible. Also, if you have any other questions, the comments section is a great spot for those too.

Hey, at least I've turned attention away from "Daje's of Our Lives"...

An Alternate Reason for Daje Johnson's Visit to Austin.

2012-01-25T08:59:00.004-06:00

This pic would work a lot better if I could photoshop...

When it comes to Daje Johnson continuing his flirtations with UT despite reaffirming his commitment to TCU, I'm just going to go ahead and say it: BIG FUCKING DEAL!!!! Remember Jonathan Gray? He's the best running back in the country. He chose UT over TCU. And there was NOWHERE near the amount of "the sky is falling!" "run for your lives!" "everybody's gonna die!" talk that we've seen about this particular situation. I realize that was mostly because we never expected to land him in the first place, but still, he might be the piece that gets UT back to being a Conference contender. And we let it slide without much hand-wringing. Ah, to be young and naive again... Let's be honest with ourselves. Daje is going to be good at college football. Daje is probably going to be VERY good at college football. But if Daje ultimately chooses to go to Austin, we're not going to turn into SMU, which you'd think is a legitimate threat considering how rough some of you are taking the news.

I know it has been said by various others in the commentary and postings, but seriously team, let's put things in perspective. I hate UT as much as any of you and probably moreso than most, but holy hell! If I was good at sports when I was 18 and ole butterteeth invited me down for a weekend to sell me on 6th street and a stadjium with 105,000 screaming fans and girls and national exposure... all hate aside, I'm taking him up on the offer. And I wasn't even from the Austin area. So we should pull the kid's scholarship as a power move on account of him exhibiting the behavior of any 18 year old in the same situation? Girl PLEASE. The notion that we should pull it because, "We don't want kids that want to go to UT," is the most ludicrous thing I have ever had to put in writing in my life, and I one time wrote a sonnet based on ordering a McRib for a creative writing class. First of all, I'd take literally ANY recruit in UT's wheelhouse, as would most every other school in the country. And second, if we stop recruiting kids because they have UT on their list, then you'd have to kick probably 75% of the kids off of our team and field a squad entirely composed of intramural players. Is that what you want? You all sound like the same entitled asshole UT fans you're simultaneously abhorring. If that's your game, fine, but go do it at Killerfrogs. We don't need that bullshit here.

But beyond that, I think everyone is missing three KEY issues here. One is that UT has yet to offer him a scholarship. True, if Daje makes his scheduled visit this weekend, it's LIKELY UT does offer, and if they do it is also likely he will accept because those cats aren't exactly in the business of getting left at the altar. Another thing is that Patterson is going to personally sit across from Daje tomorrow afternoon sometime and put the final touches on his sales pitch. Looking folksy, back-slappin' Mack Brown in the eye and telling him thanks but no thanks is one thing, but doing the same to Patterson? With him putting the full-on hard sell with a quivering smile that is barely concealing the rage you know lies beneath? I'm sometimes nervous to even be in the same room as GP when he's in a good mood, and he has no clue who I am. I would hate to see the alternative. Good luck with that.

But the third, and perhaps the most important factor of all is this: Daje has now verbally committed to TCU twice, once months ago, and another this week. Now, I'm the first to say that soft verbal commitments are complete bullshit and should be done away with, but for the sake of this post, let's go against the grain and take him at his word. Isn't it entirely possible that, after practically bending over, spreading his cheeks and telling UT to take him now or lose him forever, he's kind of soured on the Horns a bit for ignoring him? Perhaps he views the fact that they aren't offering him a visit until the very last second before signing day as the slap in the face it is? Surely he understands that, by withholding a scholarship offer until the 11th hour, the Longhorns were exhausting all options for a more desirable recruit before doling out an offer to him. So what if going to Austin this weekend is just a ploy by Daje, an act of revenge? What if knowing that, presuming he makes it to campus this weekend, UT is going to make him an offer, Daje wants to turn them down face to face? See that shit eating grin slide off Mack's face? Watch Bryan Harsin's expression turn from smug glee to, "Holy shit, I thought once I left Boise this would never happen again?" Watch Manny Diaz' hair gel melt from his perfectly manicured coif and cover his head like candlewax? Perhaps give Mack's furniture the, "fuck yo couch!" treatment popularized by the Murphy brother who didn't wear a fat suit, dress like a woman and become responsible for Tyler Perry's success?

Eh, who am I kidding? He's totally going to UT. EVERYBODY PANIC!

Morning Dump

2012-01-25T08:27:00.003-06:00

Football:

Patterson to have in home with Daje Johnson Star-Telegram

Basketball:

TCU men try to pull even in MWC vs. Air Force Star-Telegram

TCU women hope to start road winning streak Star-Telegram

Baseball Frogs open at #15

2012-01-24T15:22:00.002-06:00

The preseason Top 25 poll from Baseball America came out today, and TCU opens up as the #15 team in the country. Taking a quick glance at the schedule, and you realize that the Frogs' first two weekend series are against fellow Top 25 teams: they host #22 Ole Miss on February 17-19 and travel out west to play #25 Cal State Fullerton on February 24-26.

If you're the kind of fan that likes to get ahead of themselves, the Frogs are one of three teams ranked currently that'll be in the Big 12 next year- along with #13 Texas and #18 Oklahoma. And if you're the nostalgic type, they are one of five Southwest Conference teams ranked- beyond Texas and TCU, the SWC would have Arkansas at #4, Rice at #6 and Texas A&M at #7.

With the season opener just a little more than three weeks away, you can expect to see more and more baseball posts here on Spit Blood as we get you ready for what is hopefully a redemption season for the Frogs. If you're in the mood for some more baseball content right now, check out these photos from the teams' promotional video shoot.

Meet the Future Frogs: Ricky Collins

2012-01-24T12:37:00.002-06:00

Moving on with our profiling of all of the incoming recruits, today we take a look at wide receiver Ricky Collins. At 6'0" and 185lbs, Collins boasts 4.4 speed that has made him a feared threat both in the passing game and as a possible kick- and punt-returner. He's one of two JUCO recruits in this year's class- and much like Keivon Gamble, he's a guy that was originally committed to SMU out of high school.

As a senior at Tyler John Tyler in 2009, Collins caught 43 passes for 1,059 yards and 13 touchdowns while averaging about 20 yards on kickoff returns. He earned All-District honors in District 11-5A and All-East Texas honors from piney woods guru David Smoak. Frogs' co-offensive coordinator took a long look at him, but TCU never offered and Collins eventually signed with SMU. He's later admitted that if TCU had offered him then, he would've signed with them instead of the Mustangs. Here's June Jones talking about Collins on Signing Day 2010:

Collins never made it to SMU's campus, though, and enrolled at Kilgore Junior College to play for two years while getting his academics in order. After catching 24 passes for 492 yards and three touchdowns as a freshman in 2010, the TCU coaching staff had seen enough and finally offered him a scholarship- which he accepted in late July of last year.

As a sophomore at Kilgore this fall, Collins hauled in 46 passes for 574 yards and six touchdowns, leading Rivals to award him three stars and rank him as the 33rd-best overall JUCO recruit in the country. He will enroll at TCU in May to take classes and work out with the team over the summer.

Daily Discussion: Daje Johnson

2012-01-24T09:24:00.002-06:00

I didn't think there would ever be a recruit that would stir up casual fans quite like Johnathan Gray. When the record-setting tailback from Aledo put the Frogs in his top three before publicly choosing Texas, he became the center of attention to the extent that girls were talking about recruiting. GIRLS!

But over the past week, I've been getting countless texts and emails from folks that I never really knew had a vested interest in this area of the college football world. The topic: Daje Johnson. While he doesn't quite have the numbers or the Dave Campbell's Texas Football cover story like Gray, he does have the explosive athleticism and similar sky-high upside that have caused an increasingly-public tug of war between fans and coaching staffs in Fort Worth and Austin.

After committing to TCU last March, Daje has been the subject of rumors that he'd switch his commitment to a number of different schools. To his credit, he's squashed most of those rumors. The one that has stuck around, though, has been the burnt-orange team in his backyard....Texas. There were a lot of whispers of him switching his commitment on a scheduled visit to the Austin campus this weekend, but a tweet from the Pflugerville Hendrickson star last night seemed to negate that with a simple & direct "STAYING WITH TCU".

Obviously, that rubbed UT the wrong way. And why wouldn't it? When you're used to getting everything you want, you're going to act a little petulant when the little bitty school up the way in Fort Worth gets something you covet. Longhorn offensive coaches Bryan Harsin and Major Applewhite have apparently told Daje that he'd be making a big mistake to go to TCU, and the new rumor out this morning is that he's been persuaded to still make his official visit to UT this weekend after all.

Clearly, no one is going to know where Daje is going for sure until his signature is on a national letter of intent on Signing Day. That's just the nature of how college football recruiting goes sometimes, but it also sets up today's daily discussion...

If he ends up succumbing to the last-minute effort by Texas to get him to switch, how bitter would you be? And how much of that negativity would be directed toward him specifically, as opposed to just being pissed that your UT friends would once again have a bit of recruiting scoreboard on you? While it's certainly frustrating for us as fans to be uncertain of a future watching and cheering for an athlete as dynamic as Daje, how much can you really blame an 18 year-old kid for having a tough time making such an important decision?

Morning Dump

2012-01-24T08:55:00.003-06:00

Football:

Daje Johnson sticking with TCU ESPN

Another accolade for Dalton Star-Telegram

Cannon and Williams to represent TCU in the Super Bowl Star-Telegram

Baseball:

Nine baseball games to be televised this season GoFrogs.com

2012 baseball promotional schedule GoFrogs.com

Meet the Future Frogs: James McFarland

2012-01-23T16:30:00.002-06:00

The second of the two future Horned Frogs to give TCU their verbal commitment this weekend was actually a re-commitment. James McFarland, a high school teammate of Chucky Hunter's from West Monroe, Louisiana, had actually committed to TCU last spring. But he eventually backed off of it, opening his recruiting process back up and taking a hard look at Arkansas and Boise State before confirming his initial decision this weekend.

At 6'3" 240lbs and with a 4.6 forty time, McFarland looks like either a linebacker or a defensive end at the next level. He's certainly bigger than most of the linebackers that TCU has had in the past decade, but many people think a few extra lbs on the Frogs' LBs might not be such a bad thing once Big 12 play starts this fall. I'm just some blogger- but when I watch his video, I see a defensive end.

Rivals has McFarland as a three-star linebacker, ranking him as the 36th-best outside linebacker recruit in the nation and the 16th-best overall recruit coming out of Louisiana. He doesn't have a free highlight tape on youtube, at least that I can find- so those of you that are too cheap for a subscription to purplemenace will just have to trust me on this one.

Meet the Future Frogs: Zach Jackson

2012-01-23T11:32:00.003-06:00

I was completely away from the internet this weekend, so I noticed when I got back and checked in on Spit Blood that there was some trepidation about the Frogs losing momentum in recruiting with just over a week left until National Signing Day. The TCU staff got two impressive commitments over the weekend, though- the first of which was Zach Jackson, 6'0" 185 lb safety from Snellville, Georgia.

Jackson played a little bit of everything at Snellville's Brookwood High School, helping them win a Georgia state championship his junior season. He has stated in interviews, though, that he feels his strengths are in pass coverage and hitting ability- so he'd like to use his 4.4 speed to play safety in college. Knowing how the TCU coaching staff loves to stockpile athleticism in the defensive secondary, I'm sure they were glad to hear that.

Despite multiple offers from SEC and ACC schools much closer to home, Jackson originally committed to Illinois. If you follow Big Ten football closely, as I'm sure most of you do not, you would know that the Illini have had quite of bit of coaching turnover lately. That's why, when Jackson was offered a scholarship by Patterson himself on his official visit to TCU's campus this weekend, he didn't hesitate to make the switch.

Sometimes these out of state kids can be a bit of a mystery- just because we here (or at least myself) don't have the same knowledge about individual programs outside of Texas and haven't had a chance to see the kid play or read much about them. Watch his highlight tape, though, and you'll get the sense that he can play:

Morning Dump

2012-01-23T09:24:00.003-06:00

Dalton headed to Pro Bowl GoFrogs.com

Moore favors two after TCU visit ESPN

Cannon, Pats bound for Super Bowl Odessa American

Shock Linwood to Baylor...

2012-01-20T14:06:00.002-06:00

Per his twitter feed. I guess he fell in love with the Waco scenery and plethora of pale, chubby virgins patrolling the campus. Mark this under who gives a shit. If we lose Daje I'll be bummed, but I'm not gonna get too butt-hurt about losing the next Donald Massey.

Okay, so maybe I'm in a little bit of a sour mood...

Meet the Future Frogs: Jaden Oberkram

2012-01-20T12:33:00.000-06:00

I don't think I have to tell you that the place-kicking job at TCU is open now that a certain #37 has exhausted his eligibility. The TCU coaching staff addressed this anticipated opening and went out to recruit a kicker. They held a special camp for kickers and punters last June, and a week later had a commitment from Arlington Martin's Jaden Oberkram.

Like Ethan Perry, the incoming Frog punter, Oberkram is not a small guy. At 6'3", he's one of the taller place-kickers you'll see. He's got a big leg, too- having once hit a 54-yard field goal in a playoff game and having connected from 60+ on occasion in practice. That leg strength will pay off on kick offs, an area of the game that TCU has struggled at for years.

I had a hard time tracking down Oberkrom's official stats, and there were some whispers of him being benched for part of this last fall because of a disagreement with his coaches. I don't want to speculate any further on that issue, but wanted to acknowledge that it is out there. Either way, judge for yourself by watching him in action:

Daily Discussion: Super Bowl Possibilities

2012-01-20T10:02:00.000-06:00

Most of our readers are Cowboys, Texans, Bengals or Saints fans- with probably another good chunk of folks that don't care for the NFL at all. So there aren't a whole lot of us with a dog still in the NFL playoff hunt. But since there are just three meaningful football games left until September, I think it's worth a daily discussion to try to decide which two teams we'd like to see facing each other in Indianapolis in two weeks. Let's take a look at the possible match ups:

Patriots vs. Giants: Classic Super Bowl rematch
-I'm not sure which of these teams I dislike more. If the East Coast of the United States is good for one thing, it's annoying sports fans. And shitty weather. And stupid-sounding accents. And faux-intellectuals. All that being said, the last time these two teams squared off in the Super Bowl, it was one of the most exciting games I've ever watched.

Ravens vs. Giants: Meh Super Bowl rematch
-Casual football fans probably don't remember that the Ravens have won a Super Bowl, and even some die-hards probably don't remember their boring 34-7 win over the Kerry Collins-led Giants back in January of 2001. It's one of those very random-feeling championship match ups that you'd never expect to repeat itself- you know, like Mavs vs. Heat. I wouldn't say I'm necessarily rooting for this scenario, but I might like to make some Brother Mouzone references it if does end up being Bodymore vs. New York.

Patriots vs. 49ers: Guaranteed Ring for a Frog
-The national media will play this game up as the Team of the '80s vs. the Team of the '00s, but that'll be a different story from how it's played up amongst TCU fans. Last year, former Frog Marshall Newhouse won a Super Bowl ring in his rookie season when the Packers defeated the Steelers at Jerruh World. It'll happen again if the Super Bowl ends up being New England against San Francisco, as Marcus Cannon and Malcolm Williams are Patriots rookies and Colin Jones is in his first year as a pro with the 49ers.

Ravens vs. 49ers: The Harbaugh Bowl
-Those of you that are only children probably aren't rooting for this match up, but the rest of us have to be at least a little bit intrigued at the prospect of two siblings facing each other on the biggest stage in all of sports. And you know with two guys as intense and competitive as head coaches John and Jim Harbaugh, they will pull out all the stops to beat each other. Then again, with Tim Tebow out of the playoffs, Sportscenter needs another story to beat us over the head with and fill 85% of their air time with. By the time this one kicked off, we might be so tired of the brother vs. brother angle that we'd want both teams to lose.

Since it's Friday and you're not doing any real work at the office today, you ought to have plenty of time to share your thoughts in the comments section. Which of these do you want to see, and why?

Morning Dump

2012-01-20T09:10:00.003-06:00

Football:

Big 12 recruiting capsules San Antonio Express

Basketball:

Horned Frogs return to the hardwood Saturday at Boise State GoFrogs.com

Baseball:

Third annual women's baseball clinic set for Feb. 9 GoFrogs.com

Meet the Future Frogs: Rashodrick Linwood

2012-01-19T10:57:00.003-06:00

After a brief quiet period this past spring in which they received no commitments, the TCU coaching staff got back to adding to the recruiting class of 2012 in June when they received the pledge from Rashodrick Linwood, a 5'9" 180 lb running back from East Texas.

"Shock" Linwood was a bit of a do-everything player for quite a while at 2A Linden-Kildare, having amassed over 1,000 total yards and 16 TDs as a sophomore in 2009. As a junior, he eclipsed the 1,500-total yard plateau and scored 20 TDs. That was enough to earn him a place in Dave Campbell's Texas Football's Texas Top 300, a three-star evaluation from Rivals and a scholarship offer from TCU and Baylor amongst others.

As a senior last fall, Linwood rushed for 2,103 yards and 25 TDs while lining up mostly at quarterback for the Tigers- also throwing for 729 yards and 5 TDs. His efforts were rewarded with 2nd Team 2A All-State honors from the Associated Press. It's not entirely clear what position he'll play once he gets to Fort Worth, but as you can see from his junior year highlights, he's got plenty of athleticism to go around:

Morning Dump

2012-01-19T10:14:00.003-06:00

Football:

Former Mansfield Legacy receiver transfers to TCU Star-Telegram

The Big 12's offseason to-do list for 2012 ESPN

Basketball:

UNLV's fast start too much for TCU men Star-Telegram

Playing Vegas a tough ticket for TCU guard Star-Telegram

Athletic Department:

Notes on a scorecard GoFrogs.com

Stay Positive: A TCU Basketball Saga.

2012-01-19T09:15:00.002-06:00

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeah, so about that whole "staying positive about every loss" posts thing... I forgot to mention it doesn't really apply to 23 point losses. No one expected TCU to win. Heck, no one expected TCU to keep it all that close. But covering a gaping 19 point spread would've been an accomplishment, right? And there's just something about the 100 point barrier that makes a loss feel that much heavier. PERSONAL ANECDOTE TIME! I can remember, back in my glory days of JV Basketball, a game in which my team inexplicably navigated our way to the Championship game of some tournament and got blasted 97 to something that wasn't anywhere close to 97, like maybe 40. The team in question hit the 97 point mark with probably 2-3 minutes to go, then spent the rest of the game firing off 3's in hopes of hitting triple digits. When the clock hit 0:0 and they didn't, even though we got our asses absolutely handed to us, there was some sort of small victory we all felt with not giving up 100. Guess TCU can't claim that one. And when you start talking about your NCAA Division 1 team in terms of your JV Basketball team getting beat by 60 points nearly 15 years ago, you officially have no hope of post season success and it's time to end your post. Let's just forget this game and post ever happened.

Meet the Future Frogs: (maybe?) Daje Johnson

2012-01-18T16:44:00.000-06:00

Just about every year, TCU will lose one of their prized recruits who change their mind about spending their college years in Fort Worth. Some of them do it quietly, others after publicly flirting with other schools for months. Then there are kids who like the attention other schools heap on them after they make a commitment and continue to visit other schools and hear their sales pitches without any real intention of switching. Right now, the folks that follow TCU recruiting are trying to decide into which of these categories Daje Johnson fits.

Johnson, a 5'10" 185lb athlete from Pflugerville's Hendrickson High, isn't one of those kids who is listed as an "athlete" because he doesn't have a true position. Instead, he's listed as such because he runs a 4.34 forty and appears to be moving in fast-forward compared to his teammates and opponents. At the beginning of his recruiting process, he was thought of mostly as a prospect to play cornerback in college. Dave Campbell's Texas Football listed him as a 3rd Team Super Team defensive back prior to his senior season.

But then he exploded this past fall- rushing for 2,178 yards and 26 TDs and catching 28 passes for 496 yards and 6 more scores. Oh, and he returned a punt for a touchdown too. On one hand, that's a lot of potential offensive production to leave on the table. On the other, that's the kind of athletic ability that just screams 1st round money if it's lined up on defense. Either way, the folks at Rivals love him- they gave him four stars and ranked him as the 29th-best overall recruit in Texas.

Back to the point I was trying to get to in the first paragraph, though- if there is one kid I'm afraid may decommit from TCU before Signing Day, it's Johnson. He took an official visit to Cal in December, and has been rumored to be in talks with just about every school in the Big 12. Now comes word, via the twitter feed of Orangebloods.com's Jason Suchomel that Johnson will be taking an official visit to Texas. Texas generally doesn't invite kids for a visit unless they plan on offering, and they don't usually offer a scholarship until they know that it'll be accepted.

If he does end up opting for the stomach-acid orange instead of purple, I've got no hard feelings for him. For a kid who grew up in the Austin area, I could understand if he had dreamed of playing for the Longhorns and I'd wish him the best in his time at UT. Sure, I'd boo him lustily when he was on the field against the Frogs, but I think TCU would be just fine without him.

All that being said, I sure hope he sees the light and decides that playing for TCU is his top priority:

Reminder: Basketball in Action Tonight.

2012-01-18T15:55:00.002-06:00

Just a reminder that the Frogs are in action tonight against UNLV at 9:30PM on the mtn. Typically in this space we'll have at least a moderately lucid preview, but since the Frogs enter the game as a 19 point underdog, I didn't really want to waste the keystrokes. Regardless, I like Hank Thorns' attitude, via the S-T.

"We just need to buckle down on defense and keep guys out of the paint," TCU guard Hank Thorns said. "I think we need a [late 1980s] Detroit Pistons-type attitude; we can't come out with smiles. We need to come out with a chip on our shoulder and take everything personal."

Uhh, THIS, anyone:

Rough Start for the Hooker Killer

2012-01-18T12:59:00.004-06:00

Our old friend and Jack the Ripper impersonator Craig James isn't off to a very good start in his campaign to replace Kay Bailey Hutchison in the US Senate. According to the Houston Chronicle, the former SMU employee is polling at just 4%. Four percent? That's almost an entire point for every prostitute he murdered during his college days!

I'm joking, of course. I don't think the fact* that CRAIG JAMES KILLED FIVE HOOKERS WHILE AT SMU has anything to do with his polling numbers. According to the Chronicle, he is struggling because "he's largely unknown and unpopular amongst those that do know him." Then again, perhaps they were unusually popular hookers who held an inordinate amount of political sway? Nah, it's probably just because he's a douche bag.

If you're like me and want to get Craig to sign your copy of Swing Your Sword, you might want to become acquainted with the events page on his campaign website. He's got an event in Plano on February 4th, and is only charging $100/head to attend.

*- I use the term "fact" here fairly liberally as there has been, to this point, no evidential proof that CRAIG JAMES KILLED FIVE HOOKERS WHILE AT SMU. It may be beneficial to open up a line of dialogue in the comments section to state our thoughts on whether or not is is true that CRAIG JAMES KILLED FIVE HOOKERS WHILE AT SMU.

Daily Discussion: WVU in 2012?

2012-01-18T09:43:00.003-06:00

It's been funny to hear fans of our new-found Big 12 rivals complain that it's late January and the football schedule hasn't come out yet. After all, in the MWC we were used to having to wait until March or even early April for the football schedule every year.

We're pretty sure now that TCU will be taking aggy's spot in the home/away rotation, meaning the Frogs will face Oklahoma, Kansas State, Iowa State and Texas Tech at home while traveling to Texas, Baylor, Oklahoma State and Kansas. The hold up in making any of this official is the precarious situation of West Virginia, who still does not know whether or not they'll be allowed to join the Big 12 next year. Read more about their scenario here and here. If they do end up joining at the same time as TCU, the prevailing thought is that the Frogs would venture up to Morgantown this fall.

So what do you think? Will the Mountaineers be able to muscle their way past the Big East lawyers in time to join the Big 12 this year? Or will rising senior Geno Smith torch that league for one more year before they make the switch?

Oh, and as a completely-unrelated bonus item for this post- I know you all hate Wisconsin, so here's a funny video of some drunk female Packers fan crying about their loss to the Giants.

Morning Dump

2012-01-18T09:07:00.003-06:00

Basketball:

Frogs head to Vegas with chip on their shoulder Star-Telegram

TCU faces #14 UNLV on the road tonight gofrogs.com

TCU at UNLV preview CBS Sports

UNLV's Marshall uses negative tweets as motivation Las Vegas Sun

TCU women look to continue offensive outburst vs. UNLV Star-Telegram

Lady Frogs host UNLV tonight at 6:30pm gofrogs.com

Maybe Dallas Isn't So Bad After All?

2012-01-17T14:54:00.002-06:00

The Dallas Morning News has taken its lumps over the years, from this site and others, and deservedly so. Besides being the only local newspaper to charge for their content, they still hang their hat glorified hockey columnist Tim Cowlishaw's insight and employed Jean Jacques Taylor for many, many years before ESPNDallas was stupid enough to pluck him away. They're also RAVENOUS sack riders of UT and the Big 12 and, until recently, you'd never have known that a perennial Top 25 program resided within their readership. So when I saw that they had published their BOLD predictions for TCU's 2012 season, I got ready to do some serious eye-rollin'. However, perhaps due to our newly minted status into the Big 12 boys club, I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw.

You can flip through the full thing HERE, but so we aren't foolish enough to give them the pageviews, here is the list:

TCU will beat OU next season. I like this prediction, although I think it depends strongly on where in the schedule that game happens to fall. Having it at Amon G guarantees a rollicking crowd, but I like our chances if it falls in late October/early November rather than September-early October. The Sooners will be returning QB Landry Jones, as well bring Mike Stoops back into the fold at DC to shore up those issues, and will likely be the pre-season favorite to win the league. I think we should all temper our Conference Champions in Year One aspirations a bit, but if that is to happen, this game will be uber important in that fight.
Gary Patterson will be the Big 12 Coach of the Year. If Patterson can come in and have a double digit win year the award is his to lose simply because the Big 12 elitists don't think he can keep the train rolling in year one. His main competition will likely be WVU Coach Dana Holgerson, as the Mountaineers expect to have a breakout year, as well as Kansas State Coach Bill Snyder who returns QB/Superflous letter enthusiast Collin Klein. OSU Coach Mike Gundy won the award this year.
Casey Pachall will rewrite the TCU record book. Well, he almost did it this year, so that's not exactly a CrAzY prediction or anything. Plus, having Josh Boyce, Brandon Carter, David Porter, Cam White and the still unseen LaDarius Brown to run under his passes, Pachall is surely due more than a few "BOMBS AWAY!" type days. Say what you will about the defenses he faced in the MWC, but have you watched Big 12 football lately? Pachall piled up the numbers he did despite more or less being a game manager post-Boise as the OC shifted the focus to our ground game. He won't have many of those types of games next year.
TCU will set a single season attendance record. Well, duh.
Stansly Maponga will lead the Big 12 in sacks. The least generic prediction of all, this one could very well happen. Last year, Sean Porter of aggy led the Conference with 9.5; Maponga had 9. Of the top 3 sack leaders in the Conference last year, two played for aggy and will therefore be out of the running, and the third was a Senior from Oklahoma. It would appear the closest competition will come from fellow Junior Jackson Jeffcoat from UT who had 8. This will certainly be a fun race to follow along with.
TCU will win a share of the Big 12 title. See? They really aren't so bad, are they?

So has the DMN really trimmed the fat - or had the fat trimmed for them by ESPNDallas - to the point that they actually have good, level headed writers? Or is it just that the sports guys are so relieved they have a Big 12 program in their own backyard, and therefore can stop pretending that SMU is in any way relevant, they feel the need to over compensate? I don't know, but at least I won't have to cringe every single time I see Cowlishaw's face on Around the Horn.

Meet the Future Frogs: Griffin Gilbert

2012-01-17T13:00:00.000-06:00

The first weekend of March 2011 was pretty eventful for TCU. While the baseball team was busy sweeping past Texas Tech out in Lubbock, the football team was busy adding future offensive firepower with commitments from running back LaDarius Anthony, quarterback Austin Aune and finally wide receiver/tight end Griffin Gilbert.

Casual fans might recognize Gilbert, the massive 6'5" target out of the Austin area, as the younger brother of Garrett Gilbert, former UT and soon-to-be SMU quarterback. But other than the fact that they both wore jersey #7 (Griffin switched to that number for his senior year) while contributing to Lake Travis' unprecedented five consecutive state championships and that both were named to the Dave Campbell's Texas Football Super Team in their respective senior seasons, they really don't have a whole lot more in common as far as football is concerned.

Griffin has been a pass-catcher since the beginning of his varsity career, hauling in more than 160 passes for over 2,600 yards and totaling 35 touchdowns over three years. As he's gotten older, he's learned how to use his 6'5" frame and his elite ability to adapt to the ball while it's in the air to become a living head ache for opposing defensive coordinators. As dangerous of a threat as he was as a pass-catching option, he was equally (if not more) dangerous because of the attention heaped on him that allowed teammates to get open.

Rivals has Gilbert scored as a four-star tight end, and lists him as 10th-best at that position in the country and the 36th-best overall recruit coming out of the Lone Star State. Despite a scholarship offer from the Longhorns (as well as one from Clemson, where former LT head coach Chad Morris is the offensive coordinator), Gilbert stuck to his initial commitment to TCU. He was recruited by Trey Haverty, who will now be the wide receivers coach- leading to more speculation that he may end up lining up out wide. Watch his highlights and judge for yourself:

Daily Discussion: Daniel-Meyer Coliseum

2012-01-17T10:04:00.006-06:00

Stefan Stevenson of the Star-Telegram had an article this morning that drew attention to the disparity between Daniel-Meyer Coliseum and the basketball facilities of the Big 12. You can read the whole thing by clicking here. There's nothing earth-shattering in the article: if you've been inside the DMC any time in the last couple of decades, you already knew it was below par for the MWC...much less our new conference home.

With the renovations to Amon G. Carter within months of completion and already entirely paid for, the next massive project has to be Daniel-Meyer. But (at least to my knowledge) plans for an upgrade of the 50 year-old facility have not taken shape as of yet, which leads us to today's daily discussion questions.

If you were in charge of bringing TCU's basketball home into the 21st century, what would those plans look like? Would you renovate the facility and add seats and luxury suites? Would you tear it down and build a completely new arena in its place? Or would you look for another site?

PS- if you're wondering what that baseball diamond is doing in the picture above where the football and basketball practice facilities are now, that is actually the old TCU Baseball Diamond- which predated Lupton Stadium. And I use the term "old" loosely, because believe or not our baseball program used that as their home field until 2001.

Morning Dump

2012-01-17T10:04:00.003-06:00

Daniel-Meyer puts TCU at a disadvantage in Big 12 Star-Telegram

Big 12 gives TCU new recruiting opportunity Rivals

Stay Positive: A TCU Basketball Saga.

2012-01-16T11:30:00.003-06:00

To bridge the gap between the month long completed football season and the dawning of what will hopefully be a more rewarding year on the diamond, we're going to introduce a new segment to SpitBlood. We're going to call it "Stay Positive: A TCU Basketball Saga" and it will go as such: TCU Basketball is going to lose games. TCU Basketball is going to lose quite a few games. But, based on Saturday's moderately gritty performance, other than against the top of the MWC, they shouldn't be absolutely run off the floor in any game this season. I say "shouldn't" because I lack the confidence required to say with any certainty that they won't, but it's a start. So after each loss - and with a game against a pissed off UNLV team coming up on Wednesday, expect another one of these suckers first thing Thursday - I want to take a brief look at the positive takeaways even though the final score wasn't in the Frogs favor. The idea is to generate hope and build fan support as the season rolls on. And if they manage to win a game or two? Well, I'm not exactly used to writing about THOSE types of games, so it'll be back to the drawing board!

Today's Episode: Colorado State 95, TCU 89 (2OT).

Despite an heroic rally- coming back from 12 points down late in the second half to force OT on two CLUTCH free throws from Amric Fields- the Frogs fell by six to the Rams to open the final year of MWC play. It was the team's 12th consecutive road loss in Conferece, a streak that looks to continue Tuesday in Las Vegas. After forcing double OT on a driving lay in by Fields, the TCU D got a teency bit slappy in the last five, surrendering nine free throws that made up the difference. It wasn't the prettiest performance by TCU - they shot WAY too many threes, going 12-31 on the night, turned the ball over 18 times for 27 points, were out rebounded 42-32 by one of the few teams in the country worse than they are in that category and allowed the Rams to shoot 55% from the floor- but it wasn't all bad.

For one, the play of Amric Fields - my no brainer bright spot of the first half season, for the 4 of you who read it - surely turned the heads of even the most detached of TCU fans who may have followed along on their iPhones. Despite coming off the bench, he finished with 36 minutes, scored 20 points on 67% combined shooting, and iced all five of his free throws. But it was his clutch play to keep the Frogs alive that really stood out. As mentioned, he was the reason the Frogs had a chance in either extra period in the first place, and his layup at the end of OT #1 was one of the biggest shots of the season.

However, I'd argue that his free throws to end the fourth were bigger. TCU has never been a great free throw shooting team, and only ranks 102nd in the category right now at 71.4%. This is an increase from the roughly 67% mark they shot last year, but still probably doesn't strike fear into the hearts of opponents. Saturday should make opposing teams think twice before simply hacking away and making TCU win that way, if it comes down to it. As a team, TCU shot 85% (17-20) for the evening, a pace no team in the country can hope to replicate, let along TCU, but a positive development considering past struggles. I honestly believe TCU will be involved in close games like this one more often than the alternative this season. A high free throw shooting percentage can be the difference between a win and loss in those types of games. This will definitely be an area to keep an eye on.

A tough mindset also played a key role Saturday as, without it, TCU doesn't fight back as a team to score the final 11 points and give Fields a chance to extend the game in the first place. This is part of the reason why they were run off the floor so often in years past. Hank Thorns came up huge when it mattered, tossing in 10 of his team high 21 points during the last 6 minutes of the second half. Garlon Green grabbed a couple of clutch rebounds, and was the only other Frog in double figures with 14 points. Still, TCU is going to need a lot more from him going forward if they hope to win some games. Same goes for JR Cadot, who only scored 8 points and played limited minutes due to foul trouble. I suppose you can get your "glass half full" on here and look at it from the perspective that the Frogs led in double OT despite a lack of significant contributions from two key players, but I'm not sure I'm THAT much of a homer.

Regardless, it was a hard fought game and gives me at least a semblance of hope for the future. Not necessarily "pilot episode of Homeland" style hope, but maybe "Angry Boys totally sucks but I'll give Chris Lilley rope to hang himself with because I owe him for Summer Heights High and what else am I gonna do at 9PM on Sunday night?" hope. A victory Wednesday would be among the more shocking in recent TCU Basketball history, but if the Frogs can at least make it moderately competitive, we all owe it to them to come back for at least a few more helpings.

Meet the Future Frogs: Austin Aune

2012-01-16T10:05:00.000-06:00

One of the most under-the-radar members of TCU's 2012 recruiting class is Austin Aune, a 6'2" 185lb quarterback from just up the road in Argyle. He turned a solid junior campaign (2,484 yards passing, 24 TDs to just 9 INTs) into an early scholarship offer from TCU, which he accepted back on March 4th of last year.

The folks at Rivals do not seem to be all that impressed with Aune, giving him just three stars and not included him in any of their QB or state of Texas rankings. Maybe they should take a look at his senior season. He threw for 3,411 yards as a senior this fall, leading the Eagles all the way to the state championship game. He tossed 33 touchdowns and had just 9 interceptions again. He also ran for 538 yards and 9 touchdowns on the ground. He played valiantly in the title game at Cowboys Stadium, nearly leading a last-minute, game-winning drive despite playing with a temperature of 104.

An all-around athlete, Aune is also expected to play baseball at TCU. Because of this, he's drawn numerous comparisons to Chad Huffman. While it's got to be quite an honor to be compared to Huffman, it seems as if some people are overlooking Aune as a candidate to be the "quarterback of the future" at TCU. Those people conveniently forget that Huffman, had he not left to pursue pro baseball, would've been the starting QB in 2007. Aune will have quite a bit of competition for the job once Pachall departs the program, but I think he has just as good a chance as any of the others. Check out his highlight video:

Long Sunday Afternoon Dump

2012-01-15T13:29:00.005-06:00

Men's Basketball:

TCU men can't cash in on late rally in double OT Star-Telegram

Frogs fall to CSU in double overtime, 95-89 gofrogs.com

I really hate that the current state of TCU basketball allows us to celebrate moral victories, but that's really how I'd describe last night's loss in Fort Collins. The Frogs were behind for most of the second half, but were able to come back to force not one but TWO overtimes, all the while showing they were better conditioned to the altitude than the Rams. Amric Fields had a season-high 20 points to continue his strong play of late, and Garlon Green brought down 12 rebounds. I'm glad to see someone hitting the boards, as 6'8" post men Craig Williams (3) and Adrick McKinney (0) were not getting the job done in that department.

Women's Basketball:

Shots fall for TCU women against Colorado State Star-Telegram

Lady Frogs take down CSU, 79-71 gofrogs.com

It's been a rough start to 2012 for Coach Mittie's squad, so it was nice to see them break into the win column for the first time since New Year's Eve and for the first time in the MWC slate. At 8-9 overall, it doesn't look like the Lady Frogs will be making another run to the NCAA Tournament this year. But it's also good to see them not just folding up shop because of a few key injuries. Senior Antoinette Thompson and true freshman Natalie Ventress combined for six three-pointers and 40 of the team's 79 total points.

Football:

TCU football will soon find answer for Big 12 question Star Telegram (Randy Galloway)

Why TCU bet big on football D Magazine

It's pretty refreshing to see the Frogs garnering attention from the Metroplex media outside of the completely mailed-in game stories that made up the entirety of their press coverage for so long. Galloway and the rest of the snarky columnists at the Star-Telegram used to turn their noses up at TCU, but he and Gil Lebreton have really come around on the Frogs...leaving only the talent-challenged Engels in the "I'll write about TCU if my editors tell me to, but I'll be sure to do it in a way to let the readers know that I feel like I'm above covering college sports" department. If you haven't read that D Magazine article yet, it's a good look at how the TCU administration has done such an outstanding job of putting the Frogs' athletic programs- and the university as a whole- in a position to succeed.

Football Alumni:

49ers special teamers comes through with big plays Sacramento Bee

Cowboys miss on TCU safety Colin Jones ESPN Dallas

Imagine Andy Dalton after a real offseason Cincinnati Enquirer

I'm not so sure it was as much the Cowboys "missing" on Jones as much as it was the Bridgeport product dodging a bullet by not being drafted by the complete trainwreck of an NFL franchise currently wearing stars on their helmets. Jones' fumble recovery helped the 49ers extend their second-half lead over the Saints on the way to victory yesterday. Coupled with the Patriots (and former Frogs Marcus Cannon and Malcolm Williams) completely dismantling the Broncos, there are already three TCU alums that will be playing in the conference championship round next weekend. That number could grow to five if the Packers (with Marshall Newhouse and Herb Taylor) beat the Giants later this afternoon.

Other:

TCU student Kendall Morris to compete for Miss America title Daily Skiff

I don't have any commentary, but I do have a photo:

Meet the Future Frogs: LaDarius Anthony

2012-01-13T13:45:00.000-06:00

Joining BJ Catalon in the replenishment of the TCU running back corps will be LaDarius Anthony, a 6'0" 190lb tailback from Kilgore. He was the third member of this recruiting class, having switched his commitment from Baylor to TCU way back on March 3rd of last year. I'm sure that our East Texas readers that have enjoyed watching Matthew Tucker tote the rock the past few years will be glad to see another 903 ball carrier coming to Fort Worth just before #29 graduates.

Anthony has been on the recruiting radar for quite a while, after he rushed for over 1,500 yards and 24 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2009. He followed that up with another 1,000+ yard season as a junior, and was named one of the 25 best running backs in the state by Dave Campbell's Texas Football prior to his senior year. He must be toward the front of those 25, because Rivals (who awarded him three stars) also named him the 40th-best running back in the nation.

This fall, Anthony missed the first few games of the season but came back with a vengeance- rushing for over 1,200 yards and 20 touchdowns while leading the Bulldogs all the way to the state quarterfinals. That earned him Offensive MVP honors in District 14-4A. For a brief glimpse at what you can expect to see out of him when he gets to TCU, watch this:

Second Season Begins Tomorrow.

2012-01-13T11:38:00.000-06:00

More of the foreground, less of the background.

With a thorough pasting of something called UT-Pan American to the tune of 88-58, TCU completed a 10-5 run through their non-con slate this week. Those ten wins included big, by our standards at least, wins over Virginia, Texas Tech, Houston and Lamar with the only truly "bad" loss being that yack-fest against USC, although I bet Christian would LOVE to have the second half against Tulsa back. It's the first time since 2004-2005 that the Frogs made it into double digit wins before Conference play began and they're only one win off of last year's blistering 11 win regular season pace. Hopefully non-coincidentally, 04/05 is the year the Frogs made it to the third round of the NIT, their last trip to the post season of any kind. That team was visibly more talented and well-oriented than this one, so I won't get ahead of myself, but as the UVA game showed, this is a team that's capable of competing on a given night and a second straight 1 win Conference season shouldn't be in the cards. Note, I said SHOULDN'T, not WON'T.

The Frogs officially close out non-con play February 8th at SMU, but tomorrow marks the start of their final year of MWC play when they travel to Fort Collins to face the surprising Rams. CSU has gotten off to an 11-4 start and is frequently mentioned in just about any Bracketology report you're sure to run across. Led by guards Dorian Green and Wes Eikmeier, the Rams have taken out current Pac 12 leader Colorado and gave Duke a game before fading down the stretch. Fortunately, the Rams aren't a big team, only grabbing 30 rebounds per game on average, but they're 11th in the country in field goal percentage which doesn't bode well for a Frogs team that isn't always on point defensively when it counts. The Frogs lead the series 10-9 and will look to make the overall record out of reach by the time the Rams come to town next month.

When you're a team like TCU I suppose every win is of the "must" variety, but considering the Frogs next game on the slate is at #12 UNLV next Wednesday, it'd be VERY good for them to steal this one. It won't be easy, but if this is truly a team built for a post season invite, they will have to win games like tomorrow's. Catch it at 7:00PM on the mtn. Dont' get sucked in by Tebow time running concurrent. SPOILER ALERT: The magic has run out.

Switching gears though, for the four of you who may have kept up with TCU basketball this season, at least on the surface, what have been the brightest, and not so bright, spots for you over the first half of the season?

Other than the unexpected win over a good Virginia team and JR Cadot playing like a mad man those first few weeks, I'd have to say having Amric Fields start to look like the next-level caliber player we've been hearing about has been the brightest. At least when he's not in foul trouble. For the year he's averaging a not-so-eye-popping 9.8 points per game, but he's only getting about 20 minutes a night, partially due to said foul trouble. He's gotten a little more time post-Christmas and has made the most of it, putting up 18 in a win against Rice and 14 against Pan American despite only playing 15 minutes in the latter. He doesn't grab as many rebounds as you'd like for a 6'10" player but hey, I don't think they exactly teach that at TCU anyway. Fields has scored in double figures in nine games this season; they've won eight of them. This isn't a coincidence. Fields will be one of, if not THE, most important players for this team if they have any chance of competing for a post season spot. He'll be one to keep an eye on. Honorable Mention: Kyan Anderson.

As for my not-so-bright spot, the easy answer is the curious situation surrounding Ryan Rhoomes' eligibility. As with all things TCU basketball, Alex Apple at Menace is presumably your best bet for up to date information on Rhoomes, but unlike Killer Frogs I'm not going to outright lift his paid commentary and make it my own. All I can say with any certainty is that Rhoomes is enrolled at TCU, so take that for what it's worth. The hope is Ryan gets his academic house in order in time to be the big body difference maker the Frogs SEVERELY need, but that comes with a caveat: cohesiveness. Anyone close to the basketball program will readily admit that this is one of the most cohesive TCU basketball teams they have seen in quite some time and that's a major reason for their moderate success. How will Rhoomes affect this? Will he fit right in? Will he be able to learn the schemes quick enough to have an impact? I know nothing of his character, so don't take this is a slam because I genuinely have no idea, but how will a high profile recruit like Rhoomes handle riding the bench to start his college career, as he likely will? Also, the other major elephant in the room is that Rhoomes came to TCU from the New York area at least partially based on our entry into the Big East. How will he feel now that that arrangement is toast? Things to think about. Let's just hope he's not the basketball Dwight Smith. Honorable Mention: Connell Crossland, although I do not know why I had high expectations to be honest.

Yours after the jump.

Bad News

2012-01-13T09:13:00.005-06:00

The young TCU baseball team just got a bit younger, at least for the first part of the season. Junior third baseman Jantzen Witte, who was third on the team with a .331 batting average a year ago, is out 8-10 weeks after hip surgery.

He ought to be back by mid- to late March, in plenty of time to contribute to what is hopefully the Frogs' 7th consecutive regular-season MWC title and another deep postseason run. But TCU's schedule is fairly front-loaded, and Witte will be out for at least the three-game sets against Ole Miss, Cal State-Fullerton, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech and the mid-week games against Baylor and Texas State.

It's not totally clear yet who will take over the hot corner in Witte's absence, but a quick glance at the 2012 roster (which is 64% freshmen or sophomores) gives one the impression that it'll be someone with not a whole lot of experience.

Morning Dump

2012-01-13T09:05:00.003-06:00

Football:

TCU announces Glasgow's return as safeties coach gofrogs.com

Frogs' coaching shuffle now official Star-Telegram

Baseball:

Diamond Club luncheon set for January 19th gofrogs.com

Golf:

TCU alum JJ Killeen shoots a first-round 68 (-2) in his PGA Debut ESPN

UVA @ Duke tonight and why you should care

2012-01-12T17:24:00.004-06:00

The Cameron Crazies have probably found Mike Scott's facebook page by now

As TCU fans, most of the big time college basketball games on ESPN are of little significance to us, unless you happen to have money on one of them. That's not the case tonight, though, as the 17th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers visit Cameron Indoor Stadium to take on the 6th-ranked Duke Blue Devils on ESPN at 8:00pm. That's because UVA might be TCU's ticket to postseason basketball.

Now, when I say "postseason basketball", don't misconstrue my words by thinking that I'm putting the Frogs on the NCAA bubble. They're a long way from that right now, but could (with a strong showing in their upcoming conference schedule) land a spot in the NIT or the lesser-known CIT or CBI. Before you turn your nose on those events, remember that it's been seven very long years since TCU has played any kind of postseason basketball beyond the conference tournament. Just like when SMU football fans went crazy about a Hawaii Bowl berth two years ago, TCU fans should be very appreciative of any invitation extended to our hoops team.

According to Joe Lunardi's latest NCAA Tournament Bracketology, the last four teams in the Big Dance are Florida State, Notre Dame, Arizona and Northern Iowa. Those four have an average RPI ranking of 56.75, which we'll round up to 57 for simplicity's sake. Using 57 as the estimated RPI cut-off for an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament and remembering that there are 72 total spots in the ancillary tournaments (32 in the NIT, 24 in the CIT and 16 in the CBI), the estimated cut-off for any postseason berth is 129. TCU currently has an RPI of #134, so it'd be a close call if the season were to end right now.

Back to why tonight's game is important- Virginia, at 14-1 on the season, has an RPI ranking of #39 and are currently projected as a #5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. That one loss, you'll remember, was to little ol' TCU way back on November 18th in the Virgin Islands. Jim Christian's squad is 10-5 currently, and their next-best victory after UVA is their 77-72 home win over Lamar, who currently has an RPI of #96. So as you can see, the win over the Cavaliers is far and away the most attractive line on the Frogs' postseason resume. A road win over Duke would be a major boon to Virginia, but that benefit would definitely trickle down to TCU.

I know this is all a HUGE stretch, but I am looking forward to having some kind of rooting interest in a big-time basketball game without having to have a financial stake in the outcome. Hopefully some day it won't have to be so convoluted, but if I've learned anything from Dr. Leo Marvin, it's to understand the importance of setting small, reasonable goals.

Never Forget.

2012-01-12T16:30:00.000-06:00

We told you so.

I don't exactly remember when the whole "Craig James Killed Five Hookers While at SMU" thing became entrenched in the blogosphere and really took on a life of its own. I remember HOW it started - a simple amendment to James' wikipedia page discovered by EDSBS got it started - but not necessarily the exact moment when you couldn't think of James without immediately eulogizing those five poor, poor souls who gave their lives to satisfy James' carnal lust. My best guess, though? The moment James officially announced that he was running for Congress, which immediately ratcheted "Craig James Killed Five Hookers While at SMU" up the Google search pecking order and into the hearts and minds of America's James hating youth.

But while I more or less assumed the mania would die for a time after the initial madness as it did before, it actually seems to have gained steam as evidenced by this campaign contribution. Now, I realize the inherent irony of slandering James while at the same time giving him money, but in this case I'll make an exception. I'm not suggesting we should all go out and give money to James because clearly that would be counter-productive to the cause, but we've been kind of slacking in our mentioning that Craig James did, indeed, Kill Five Hookers While at SMU. Because, when Craig James Killed Five Hookers While at SMU, Craig James can't have really expected to have gotten away with Killing Five Hookers While at SMU, can he? After all, the slaying of Five Hookers By Craig James While at SMU, even in the wacky 80's, was never legal and when He, Craig James, Killed Five Hookers While at SMU he should have never expected to get away with Killing Five Hookers While at SMU. Who am I talking about killing Five Hookers While at SMU? Why Craig James, of course. The same Craig James who Killed Five Hookers while at SMU.

Craig James...

Hookers...

Killed...

You get the idea. Do your bidding.

Meet the Future Frogs: Joey Hunt

2012-01-12T12:05:00.000-06:00

The very first player to commit to being part of TCU's Recruiting Class of 2012 was Joey Hunt, a 6'3" 285lb defensive tackle from down in El Campo. He gave Coach Patterson his pledge on January 30th of last year, even before the 2011 class had put ink to paper on their own letters of intent.

Before last season started, Dave Campbell's Texas Football named Hunt one of the Top 30 defensive linemen in the state, as well as the preseason Defensive MVP for District 23-4A. He didn't disappoint, racking up 21 tackles for loss in the Ricebirds' ten ballgames. During that time, he picked up scholarship offers from Texas Tech, Stanford, Rice, Houston and others- but stuck to his word of wanting to become a Horned Frog.

I've heard some talk that Hunt may be looked at on the other side of the ball, assumably as a guard- but he looks like a D-tackle to me. Judge for yourself:

Morning Dump.

2012-01-12T09:11:00.002-06:00

BasketFrogs:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/news?slug=ap-201201110576.tal.recap

http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/011112aaa.html

http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/01/11/3653740/frogs-get-conference-tuneup-in.html

http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/011112aac.html

http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/011112aab.html

Stadjium:

Are you rich? Do you like club seats? TOO BAD! http://www.tcu360.com/sports/2012/01/14201.tcu-athletics-sell-out-club-seats

Belated Daily Discussion Question.

2012-01-11T13:42:00.003-06:00

Sorry to be late to the ball with this, but now that the TCU seating summit has officially laid out how things are going to operate from here on out, what are your thoughts? We won't completely rehash it here - read THIS if you missed out - but the bottom lines are these:

TCU has the cheapest tickets in the Big 12 All good seats require a donation, but it is tax deductible, so in reality most tickets are cheaper than this past season. (Section V Equivalent Tickets cost exactly the same as they did one year ago, including the required donation).
The days of a mob like Section V are likely over A) because Sec V no longer exists and B) because since the entire stadjium is being reseated, priority points are going to divide the haves and have nots. How does this make you feel? Also, once the Finch comes through on his Dump t shirts promise, I think we need to design Spitblood Section V Memorial ones. Just a thought.
With the best seats available being on the West side, and since Sec V is deceased, do you dare make the move into the shade of Geriatricville?

Meet the Future Frogs: Kolby Listenbee

2012-01-11T12:54:00.000-06:00

The fourth and final member of the Recruiting Class of 2012 that will be enrolled this semester and taking part on spring practice with the Frogs is Kolby Listenbee, the 6'0" 170lb athlete from Arlington Bowie.

Aside from getting started toward his degree early and getting used to being part of a collegiate program a few months before most of his classmates, it is good news that Listenbee is enrolling early so that it can be figured out exactly where he'll be lining up once he puts on the purple and white. He played quarterback at Bowie, throwing for 1,202 yards and 9 TDs (to go along with 746 rushing yards and another 9 TDs on the ground) while leading the Volunteers to a 9-4 record in a senior season that included a playoff win over Odessa Permian. He might get a shot at playing QB in Fort Worth, but it's not hard to imagine him as a wide receiver, corner or even safety.

Rivals gives Listenbee three stars, and ranks him as the 31st-best "athlete" in the country and the 65th-best overall recruit in Texas. To give you a better idea of his abilities, though, take a look at his very well put-together highlight tape:

Back to Reality with Ye, Baylor!

2012-01-11T08:58:00.002-06:00

Despite the protestations of a certain low rung track star from Texas State via the Twitters, it now appears that Robert Griffin, I refuse to say third, will indeed be cashing in on the Heisman hype and turn pro. The rumors started leaking as early as two weeks ago that this would be his ultimate decision, but he did not meet with Art Briles until yesterday, where he reportedly let his coach know that he would not be returning to the cosmopolitan sanctuary of Waco, Texas. Of course, I've been wrong in firing off this speculative postings the past few weeks when Arizona State told June Jones, "Hey we like you.. JK!!" but I feel like this one is going to stick. And if it doesn't? Well, Griffin is simply an idiot for not cashing in at the peak of his success.

And, who could blame him? Griffin had one of the most impressive rises to prosperity over the course of one season that many of us have ever seen and his draft stock will never be higher. It's also possible he saw the writing on the wall with Kendall Wright and Terrance Ganaway graduating, but no one down south would admit that. Regardless, doesn't it seem like just yesterday I was making accusations about Griffin regarding his having of lady parts and declaring a TCU victory in Waco all but assured? And I wasn't alone. As a TCU fan, the most vivid memory we all had of Robert was him egging on Section V as we heckled him while the scoreboard read 45-10. We thought he was a mental midget. We thought he was over hyped. We thought the loonies in Waco were absolutely bonkers for launching a Heisman campaign for him. Turns out we were all wrong because as of today Griffin has gone from mid-round WR conversion project before the season to guaranteed Top 5 overall QB selection, a pretty stunning about face. Sure, it doesn't hurt that Landry Jones lost his best WR and RB which torpedoed his season; Matt Barkley deciding to return to the battle fields and sorority houses of USC doesn't hurt either. But the fact remains, Griffin is going to make a lot more money with one pen-stroke than a lot of us are going to make in our entire lives, and for that, we are just a little envious.

So congrats to Griffin, I guess, and I couldn't be happier about his decision to turn pro from a purely selfish standpoint. No, I don't mean the one that directly relates to TCU as far as having to face him again. After all, he's still only batting .500 against the Frogs. No, I'm talking about how Griffin's absence is going to single-handedly turn Baylor back into the dreadful program and Big 12 succubus they were in the decade plus preceding his time on campus. And I couldn't be more happy about it. I hear it now from the Baylor faithful,"THINGS ARE DIFFERENT NOW! BAYLOR IS NO LONGER A PUSHOVER!" You're also going to hear a lot of, "TCU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO MAKE THE LEAP NOW THAT THEY'RE IN A REAL CONFERENCE!" And while I agree, it's not going to be easy for TCU to come in and dominate in year one or even year two, I'm also pretty sure it'll take us less than 16 years to finally reach the pinnacle of success for any college football program: Third place in their Conference. Yes, Baylor's best ever season in football was a third place finish in a shrink wrapped Big 12. So congratulations, Bears. Do they make a banner for third place? I suppose we'll find out.

Baylor fans need to be very honest with themselves and realize that as long as Phil Bennett is calling their defense, they're going to be vulnerable in every single game. Because, oh my goodness, had Robert Griffin not won the TCU, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas games in spite of his defense, the Bears aren't bowl eligible and Art Briles is probably trying to slip poison into Tommy Tuberville's mai tai in order to make the lateral move to Lubbock. That's why Griffin, deservedly, won the Heisman because without him under center there's a decent chance 5-7 is the ceiling for that team, although you have to give Ganaway and his 5 TDs the assist in the bowl game. Seriously, the would have beaten SFA and Rice, perhaps Iowa State, Tech and...? Maybe I was being too generous.

Baylor fans will point to backup Nick Florence's performance in Griffin's absence against Tech as a sign that the drop off will be limited, but let's get real. With all due respect to Chad Glasgow, Tech's defense was the WORST. No, literally - THE WORST; they were ranked nearly dead last in yards and points allowed in all of college football. Look it up. Florence may well turn out to be a decent college QB, but Griffin was a once in a lifetime, lightning in a bottle kind of player for a program like Baylor. Look at Texas, post Vince Young. That's a program that can out recruit any program in the country and they haven't exactly been able to crank things back up. Yes, I remember Colt McCoy. I also remember him crying like a woman in the locker room during the biggest moment of his career. Thanks for the input, though.

I'll give Baylor fans that Art Briles is a pretty good coach and good on them for locking him up for the next few years. But the worst thing that could have happened to Baylor were the events of this past fall when aggy jumped ship and the Big 12 extended an invite to TCU. The only reason Baylor was ever able to beat us for recruits was the Big 12 trump card. Now that it's gone, what are they going to play? Waco vs. FW? Come, now. Extended track record of success? Nope. Coaching staff? LOL. Facilities? Check the cameras. Good lookin' white women? Google "Baylor Line." I'll admit that Baylor has clearly embraced the slime by employing Scott Drew and having allowed FaceBreakius Dunn to play on their basketball team, so it's not like the whole creepy, overbearing Baptist thing is going to get in the way. But anyone familiar with Baylor has to understand that your brain has to be geared a certain way to enjoy your time spent in Waco because they're kind of like aggy, but with less touching. And probably no dancing. And definitely no over consumption. Like most schools in our region, Dallas area recruits are relied upon HEAVILY for success. TCU is never going to out-recruit the likes of Texas and Oklahoma for the cream of the crop, but when guys Baylor has on the line realize they can drive 30 minutes and still play in the Big 12 at a school with incredible intangible advantages? Fish in a barrel, man, fish in a barrel.

So naturally in times like this we take the lowest common denominator approach to schadenfreude and troll Baylorfans.com for some sour grapes. Unfortunately for us, it appears that the majority of the Waco elite recognize that they should be laying down their lives to wipe Griffin's ass for the things he did for their program based on where it was when he came in. Most are extremely gracious and congratulatory, completely understand the decision and realize that the things Griffin did for Baylor this season can never be put into words or replicated.

But, of course, that's not why you're still reading, so fear not, because there will always be a few bad apples to spoil the bunch. There were various posters saying they were, "Disappointed" that Griffin wouldn't be returning to finish out his career as a Bear. This would be akin to saying you were, "Disappointed" that Andy Dalton didn't turn down his drafting by the Bengals in order to return to TCU to be a grad assistant. Absolutely FOOLISH. But it gets better because they're also trying to spin it as Griffin's dad being this money hungry tyrant without an ounce of shit given for Griffin's education. Well... DUH!!!!!!!! If my unborn son is fortunate enough to shirk his family heritage and be really, really good at sports, F his education! You can always go back to school; you'll probably never be a top tier draft pick again. By all accounts Griffin is a smart guy and would've been in college regardless of athletic ability. Besides that, you don't think Baylor would do anything in their power to help him get his law degree should things not work out at the next level? Just silly. That's just disrespectful to the athlete to suggest they're letting their parents dictate perhaps the most important decision of their lives to that point. It's even more disrespectful to give off the impression Robert doesn't understand the extremely unique/lucrative position he finds himself in. It's not like he's being projected as a borderline 3rd round pick; he's, at worst, the #2 QB in a draft that's light on that exact position! The people that think Griffin should come back to school for the "love of the game" are the same people who are holding onto their Worldcom stock in hopes that it will rise from the ashes. I hate people.

S hoped you enjoyed the ride, Baylor, because when Scott Drew is finally exposed as John Calipari in sheeps clothing, you won't even have Basketball University to fall back on. But at least you have a good women's team because we all know that's the tail that wags the athletic department dog. SO ready for next season.

Morning Dump

2012-01-11T08:07:00.000-06:00

Football:

Seating Summit Recap gofrogs.com

TCU fans hoping to find ticket to good view at Amon Carter Star-Telegram

How TCU's season ticket prices compare to Big 12 foes Star-Telegram

Will TCU maintain poll position in Big 12? Star-Telegram

49ers switching Colin Jones to offense? CSN Bay Area

Basketball:

Frogs host UT Pan-American tonight at 7:00pm gofrogs.com

Lady Frogs tip off MWC schedule at San Diego State tonight gofrogs.com

Spit Blood Homework

2012-01-10T15:56:00.002-06:00

Instead of a daily discussion, I'm assigning you all homework for tonight. That's right, homework. Who ever said this blog was fun? As you've probably heard, the athletic administration is hosting a "Seating Summit" tonight to address topics surrounding seating assignments, ticket pricing and more in the soon to be completely-renovated Amon G. Carter Stadium. It's at 6:00 at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum for those of you in Fort Worth, or streaming online at gofrogs.com for those of you anywhere else in the world.

Obviously, not everyone can be there tonight, and I'm guessing a large contingent of you won't be in front of your computers at 6:00, either. Those of you that are attending or watching, though- please use the comments section on this post to give us a summary of what you've learned. It will be greatly appreciated.

Meet the Future Frogs: BJ Catalon

2012-01-10T12:31:00.002-06:00

If you're like me and watched as TCU lost young tailbacks Ethan Grant (to injury) and Dwight Smith (to academics) and then noticed that the three-headed monster from 2011 will consist of two seniors and a junior in 2012, you might be a little worried about depth at that position going forward. Here to help ease the transition once Ed Wesley and Matthew Tucker graduate, however, is BJ Catalon. A 5'8" 190lb Waymon James clone, Catalon will be enrolled this semester and take part in spring drills after graduating early from Houston's Westside High- the same school that produced Marcus Jackson.

As far as running back recruiting in Texas goes, most of the headlines went to Aledo's Johnathan Gray and Spring Dekaney's Trey Williams. And for good reason- those two will have successful collegiate careers, in my opinion. But I also think that the relative lack of attention paid to Catalon will be viewed as a tremendous oversight in retrospect. He ran for 2,269 yards this fall on just 186 carries- for an amazing average of 12.2 yards per carry! He also scored 32 touchdowns on his way to 1st Team All-State honors from the Associated Press.

Rivals gave Catalon three stars, which will only continue the tradition of TCU recruits being underrated. They do list him as the 9th-best all-purpose back in the nation, though, as well as the 57th-best overall recruit in the state. He was briefly committed to Colorado before pledging to TCU last year in May.

I couldn't find a full-length highlight tape for Catalon on youtube, but if you search for him on there you'll find dozens and dozens of individual plays uploaded by someone named "spenglas3". For those of you too lazy to do that, here's just a little taste:

TCU's Place in the Final Polls

2012-01-10T09:45:00.002-06:00

With the college football season over, the pollsters did not waste any time in getting their final rankings out. If you were hoping for a split national championship, Nick Saban and his sociopathic defense put that idea to rest last night. TCU, riding an eight game win streak that saw them capture their third consecutive Mountain West championship and their third overall Poinsettia Bowl championship, end the year ranked #14 in the AP pol l and #13 in the Coaches' Poll.

Morning Dump

2012-01-10T09:36:00.002-06:00

Football:

TCU to hold 'seating summit for football fans Star-Telegram

TCU recruiting, signing elite athletes Star-Telegram

Carder and Fobbs selected for All-Star Games gofrogs.com

7-0 in Bowls: Break up the Southwest Conference! ESPN

Basketball:

Amric Fields named MWC Player of the Week gofrogs.com

D Presents : SpitBlood 2012-13 Concept Helmet

2012-01-09T18:38:00.006-06:00

After months of painstaking research done by my super top secret market research team here at SpitBlood, this could be the helmet most all can agree on.

If y'all want to push the envelope even further by building a whole uniform to go with it, take it to the comments.

Spitblood's BCS Title Drinking Game

2012-01-09T17:20:00.002-06:00

Probably what several of our readers will look like when the 4th quarter rolls around...

I'm sure plenty of the degenerates who read this site would love an excuse to get fitshaced on a Monday night, especially with this dumpy weather that seems to have most of Texas covered, and what better excuse than a national championship game that has the potential to have a final score that looks like a soccer match? So, let me be all of your enablers and attempt to create our very own drinking game for tonight's game. As usual, feel free to throw any other ideas/ways to get blindingly drunk on a Monday into the comments section...

Any references to Hurricane Katrina or BP...drink 5 seconds.
Oklahoma State mentions...drink 5.
T. Boone Pickens mentions...finish your drink.
Any outside shots of the French Quarter...drink 5.
Comments about Jordan Jefferson's face kicking preseason bar fight...Drink 10 seconds, then punch your nearest friend.
Anytime Les Miles is called "The Mad Hatter"...drink 5.
If Les Miles tries to eat any of the artificial Superdome grass...Finish your drink.
Defense/Special Teams touchdown...Shotgun a beer.
Any points other than a field goal...drink 10.
Brent Musburger references to either the Over/Under or the point spread...drink 10.
Any siting of a hot chick in a houndstooth fedora...drink 5 (there will probably be a lot of them.)
Harvey Updyke, the infamous Toomer's trees poisoner, reference...finish your drink then yell "Roll Damn Tide!"
Musburger saying "Honey Badger"...drink 5.
Any shots of Tyran Matthieu's nasty yellow hairdo...drink 10.
If the camera finds Nick Saban smiling at any point during the game...shotgun your beer, load up another, and shotgun it as well. If he smiles after the game...shotgun 1 beer.

Last but not least, if you're feeling really adventurous, finish your drink every time you see the "Bama bangs" haircut, AKA the Frat Flop or The Georgia Swoop.

Hope everyone enjoys themselves tonight, and we currently are working with the Spitblood lawyers to make sure we are not legally responsible if any of you drunks get alcohol poisoning tonight. Remember, the game is in New Orleans, so just pretend you're there for one evening, and then enjoy work in the morning...

Meet the Future Frogs: Keivon Gamble

2012-01-09T12:31:00.000-06:00

Another future Horned Frog that will be on campus this semester to take part in off-season workouts and spring practice is Keivon Gamble, a 5'10" 190lb cornerback from Dallas' Lincoln High School by way of Trinity Valley Community College.

Gamble was a 1st Team All-District 12-4A corner in his senior year at Lincoln in 2008, was given 2 stars by Rivals and signed a letter of intent with SMU after having previously been committed to Tulsa. He redshirted at SMU in 2009 before academic problems forced him to transfer to Trinity Valley.

During his time at TVCC, Gamble honed his coverage skills and became a master at disrupting opposing passing games and was among the nation's JUCO leaders in pass break-ups and interceptions. He also earned a third star from Rivals and was ranked the #8 JUCO corner in the nation by JCGridiron.com. With his upgraded recruiting pedigree, he upgraded schools by committing to TCU in early September.

Since he'll be joining the program nine months before they kick off their first Big 12 season, look for him to be a key contributor and possibly even a starter next fall.

Daily Discussion: The BCS Championship

2012-01-09T10:14:00.002-06:00

We were all pretty grumpy during last year's BCS National Title Game, watching two programs that cheated to get there instead of the deserving Horned Frogs. Whether or not LSU and Alabama are playing by the rules (I doubt it), and whether or not you think both teams deserve to be there (I'm on the fence), even those of you out there indignantly telling your friends and coworkers that you're not going to watch...are probably going to tuned in to see the rematch between the Tigers and Crimson Tide tonight.

So our daily discussion today deals with the game tonight- what are your thoughts? Should Oklahoma State be there instead of Alabama? Who (if anyone) are you rooting for, and why? Who do you think will win, and why?

Sunday Afternoon Dump

2012-01-08T12:50:00.004-06:00

Football:

Patterson receives high praise from The Sporting News gofrogs.com

Tank Carder invited to NFL Combine gofrogs.com

Anson Kelton to play in postseason All-Star Game gofrogs.com

Alumni:

Hometown kid Andy Dalton has disappointing result Houston Chronicle

Playoff loss doesn't diminish Dalton's rookie season Star-Telegram

Tomlinson contemplating retirement New York Daily News

Marcus Cannon wins Ed Block Award for Courage Boston Globe

Recruiting:

Ethan Perry gives his All-American Bowl effort high marks San Antonio Express-News

Westside's Catalon moving to Fort Worth next week Houston Chronicle

Skyline WR Thomas Johnson decommits from Texas, will visit TCU ESPN Dallas

Basketball:

TCU women struggle on offense in another loss Star-Telegram

Lady Frogs lose to Harvard, 56-44 gofrogs.com

DCTF catches up with Dalton

2012-01-06T13:49:00.002-06:00

As he prepares for the first playoff start of his young NFL career, Andy Dalton took some time to sit down with Dave Campbell's Texas Football to talk about the whirlwind 21 months he's experienced since posing for the cover of their 2010 summer magazine:

Standing Dall Texasfootball.com

Meet the Future Frogs: Tyler Matthews

2012-01-06T10:53:00.002-06:00

The third of the three future Frogs playing in tomorrow's US Army All America Game is Tyler Matthews, the 6'3" 205lb quarterback from McPherson, Kansas. While Tyler ends our run of looking at recruits playing in All-Star games this week, he is the first of the four TCU commits we'll profile that will be enrolled this semester to take part in spring practice.

Matthews, who started for two and a half years at McPherson, threw for 6,541 yards in his high school career. His touchdown to interception ratio was a staggering 62 to 8. Rivals gave him four stars, ranking him as the 164th-best overall recruit in the nation, the 7th-best pro-style QB in that nation and the #1 overall recruit in the state of Kansas. Despite all-out efforts by Kansas and Kansas State to keep him in state (including Charlie Weis' first in-home visit after he took over in Lawrence), Matthews never wavered from his commitment last February 12th to become a Horned Frog.

If you're into putting pressure on a kid by comparing him to previous TCU quarterbacks, just keep in mind that Casey Pachall also ignored a scholarship offer from Charlie Weis, who was at Notre Dame at the time. And if you take a peak at ESPN's scouting report on Matthews, it reads like a description of a certain #14 who wears tiger stripes on his helmet these days.

You'll get a chance to see him on TV tomorrow in the All-Star game, as well as at the TCU spring game in a few months...but I think you'll enjoy this little sneak preview:

Morning Dump

2012-01-06T09:19:00.002-06:00

Football:

West Virginia, TCU make Big 12 stronger Tulsa World

Dalton misses practice with the flu Cincinnati Enquirer

Dalton has familiarity on his side in playoff debut USA Today

Dalton a finalist for NFL Rookie of the Year Award Cincinnati Enquirer

Basketball:

Jeff Mittie's milestone game ends in disappointment Star-Telegram

Lady Frogs lose to UT Pan-American gofrogs.com

Meet the Future Frogs: Ethan Perry

2012-01-05T14:37:00.000-06:00

Another future Frog you'll be able to watch in Saturday's US Army All-America Game is Ethan Perry, a 6'4" 220lb punter from Smithson Valley, just outside of San Antonio. I guess you've got to get a punter that big to fill Anson Kelton's shoes, huh?

As a junior in 2010, Perry averaged 42.8 yards a punt on his way to being named the 1st Team All-State punter for 4A. He was able to improve on that figure this past fall, averaging 43.6 yards a senior- although that was only good for being named Honorable Mention All-State. Maybe it was a good year for punters in 4A football this season?

He also played some tight end for Coach Larry Hill at Smithson Valley, and caught 10 passes for 165 yards and 2 TDs as a senior. Some might be intrigued at the possibility of a punter who can moonlight as a pass-catcher, but I'm just happy to see that we'll have a versatile athlete booming the ball down the field in the hopefully-rare occurrence that the offense stalls out in the next 4-5 years.

Here are his junior-year highlights:

Daily Discussion: Frogs in the NFL Playoffs

2012-01-05T11:18:00.002-06:00

The NFL Playoffs begin on Saturday, and there are six former Frogs vying to win Super Bowl XLVI, which will be played in Indianapolis on February 5th. Andy Dalton has quarterbacked the Bengals into the postseason as a rookie and will face the Texans in Houston on Saturday, while the other five are on teams with first-round byes: Marcus Cannon and Malcolm Williams of the Patriots, Marshall Newhouse and Herbert Taylor of the Packers, and Colin Jones of the 49ers.

So today's daily discussion is, essentially, just asking you for your predictions on the NFL playoffs- albeit in terms of the TCU alumni participating in them. How far do you think each of the former Frogs will make it in the postseason, and which of them have the best chance to put a Super Bowl ring on their finger?

Morning Dump

2012-01-05T09:40:00.002-06:00

Basketball:

TCU men rewrite script in win over Rice Star-Telegram

Frogs come back to beat Rice, 78-74 gofrogs.com

Lady Frogs host UT-Pan American tonight at 6:30pm gofrogs.com

Athletic Department:

Chris Del Conte's Notes on a Scorecard gofrogs.com

Seating Summit Information:

Meet the Future Frogs: Edward Pope

2012-01-04T15:17:00.001-06:00

Edward Pope, the 6'3" 170lb athlete from Carthage, is another future Frog you'll be able to watch with your own two eyes this week when he's one of three TCU commits participating in the US Army All-America Game in San Antonio on Saturday- which will be broadcast on NBC.

It should be noted during the process of profiling these recruits before Signing Day that their commitments are verbal and thus non-binding, so there is a possibility of one or more of them switching their intended college destination before pen hits paper. Because Ed is not hiding the fact that he has visits planned to schools like Missouri, Arkansas and A&M, he is one to keep an eye on in regard to whether or not the Frogs can hold on to him. It should also be noted, though, that he committed fairly early in the process (last February 27th) and that he's the younger brother of former TCU corner Jason Teague. So I feel pretty good that he'll end up in Fort Worth.

This kid did it all at 3A powerhouse Carthage, but made his biggest impact at wide receiver- racking up 1,150 yards on 69 receptions and scoring 16 touchdowns. But most recruiting services tend to agree that he projects as a safety at the college level, and we all certainly appreciated his brother's efforts on the defensive side of the ball- didn't we?

Rivals has Pope listed as a four-star athlete, and the 30th-best overall recruit in Texas. Dave Campbell's Texas Football named him one of the 10 best athletes in the state. Whether it's at receiver, safety, or corner like his brother- I think the TCU coaches will be able to find a place on the field for someone as athletic as Ed. Check it out:

Daily Discussion: Fan Experience

2012-01-04T12:11:00.000-06:00

The Prop Joe side of the stadium is now torn down, and by the end of the summer we'll have realized the dream of having a completely new football stadium. The plans for the building are most likely completely done, but the fan experience once it's built is mostly a blank slate at this point.

A "Seating Summit" is being held next Tuesday evening at Daniel-Meyer, at which school officials will discuss with fans the new pricing structure for football tickets amongst other things. The big rumor, for a while, has been that the student section will be moved to approximately where Section V was in the old stadium.

So here's your daily discussion for the day. How much do you plan on having to pay for season tickets next year and going forward? Where do you think common folk like us will be sitting in the new stadium? What other fan experience features would you like to see incorporated in the new Amon G?

Meet the Future Frogs: Devonte Fields

2012-01-04T10:07:00.001-06:00

Devonte Fields is the first recruit we're profiling in our lead up to National Signing Day, because he's the first of them that you'll be able to see in action as he'll take part in the Under Armour All-America Game Thursday night on ESPN. But he may also be one of the first of the Class of 2012 to hit the field in game action for the Frogs.

Fields, a 6'4" 240lb defensive end who's been clocked running a 4.6 forty, follows directly in the footsteps of Deryck Gildon from Bog Wager's powerful program at Arlington Martin to TCU. This year Fields helped guide the Warriors deeper into the playoffs than they've ever been, and was named 1st Team All-State by the AP.

Rivals awarded Fields four stars, and ranks him as the 12th best defensive end in the country, the 22nd-best overall recruit in Texas and the 165th-best overall recruit in the country. He committed to TCU back on April 29th and never really wavered from there despite acquiring scholarship offers from several Pac 12, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC programs.

On paper, Fields may be the best defensive end prospect to ever come to TCU. But as we've learned over the years, a recruit's potential doesn't mean anything unless he fulfills it at the next level. This is one "paper tiger" that I'm pretty excited about, though. I couldn't find a free highlight tape of his on youtube, but here is his Q&A session from the Under Armour Game:

Morning Dump

2012-01-04T09:23:00.002-06:00

Football:

Glasgow returning to TCU staff Star-Telegram

Basketball:

TCU men searching for better defensive effort against Rice Star-Telegram

TCU-Rice preview gofrogs.com

It's your time of year, recruitniks!

2012-01-03T14:08:00.000-06:00

We've received a number of emails throughout the last year, mostly in the past few weeks, telling us that we need to have more recruiting content on our blog. Well, for those of you hungry for more content about Coach Patterson & his staff's efforts to woo the next wave of talent to Fort Worth, I've got some good news and some bad news for you.

First, the bad news: if you're REALLY into recruiting, we're not going to be of much use to you. With a completely unpaid staff, even an award-winning one such as ours, just doesn't have the time or the resources to track down any kind of inside scoop on the decision-making process of high school kids. If you want that kind of stuff, I highly suggest purchasing a subscription (or at least signing up for a free seven-day trial) on purplemenace.com. Jeremy Clark and Jeremiah Glenn do a pretty outstanding job of keeping us all informed of what's new in the world of TCU recruiting over there. I guess we could just steal their content and post it for free over here, but we don't consider ourselves to be THAT big of assholes.

The good news is that we do have a whole lot of recruiting content on the way between now and Signing Day, which falls on Wednesday, February 1st this year. One by one, we'll be introducing you to the players currently committed to TCU. We'll start with the guys slated to play in some high-profile All-Star games this week and weekend, move on to the guys who'll be lacing it up with the Frogs in spring practice, and then the rest of the bunch that'll be joining the team next fall. These profiles will mostly be written for those of you that haven't been following recruiting on a daily basis for the past 12 months, but even you die-hards might learn a thing or two.

Daily Discussion: Basketball Attendance

2012-01-03T11:38:00.002-06:00

I don't want to accuse anyone out there of being a fair-weather fan, because it's only natural that a highly successful program (like TCU football) will be supported more than a struggling one (like TCU basketball). And unless you don't have a job, live next door to the arena and can get in for free, you've probably got a number of excuses why you haven't been going to TCU basketball games this year. I know I do.

This brings me to today's daily discussion question. The Frogs have nine remaining home games, including one tomorrow night against Rice. Based on your personal situation in terms of time constraints, geography and budget- how many of those games are you likely to attend in person?

If the basketball program were as successful as the football and baseball programs, how would that change your answer? And what about the remaining home games on the women's basketball schedule?

Wisconsin loses another Rose Bowl

2012-01-03T09:45:00.002-06:00

Hmmmm, maybe it's a Big Ten thing?

After having to listen to the overconfident and overweight Badger fans telling me how the Frogs had zero chance before last year's Rose Bowl, and then reading their excuses for months afterward on the Wisconsin message boards, I have to say I wasn't sorry to see them go down again in Pasadena yesterday, 45-38 against Oregon.

Hey Brett Bielema, maybe instead of fussing with that ridiculous hair gel and running up the score against Indiana or Purdue, you should learn your clock management skills from someone other than Jason Garrett. Your team played a pretty good game, but calling a timeout to challenge a meaningless call and then not understanding that 2 seconds isn't long enough to spike the ball cost them victory.

And hey, with LaMichael James heading off to the NFL, maybe Wisconsin can attempt a measure of revenge by asking Oregon to cancel an already-scheduled game to come play the Badgers in Madison without a return trip to Eugene? If the Ducks decline, your dough-faced, nasal-voiced fans can all claim that they're scared!

In all seriousness, though, congratulations to Oregon. Knowing how big a deal it is to win in Pasadena- especially to those west coast schools- it was cool to see the Ducks celebrate their first Rose Bowl victory since 1917.

Daily Discussion: The Rose Bowl

2012-01-02T11:31:00.003-06:00

A new feature that we'll hopefully be bringing to you every day in 2012- or at least most days- is a daily discussion question. It'll just be something short and timely to satisfy the cravings of some of you to have your silly little opinions heard in the comments section. If you've got a good idea for a question, please feel free to email us and we might use it.

Anywho, today's daily discussion question deals with the Rose Bowl, being played later this afternoon between Oregon and Wisconsin. Who are you rooting for...and why? Since TCU beat Wisconsin in Pasadena last year and many of us had a chance to interact with Badger fans, this ought to be an interesting debut of the daily discussion segment.

Morning Dump

2012-01-02T10:33:00.002-06:00

TCU's AD: Thanksgiving game at Texas likely ESPN

Defensive POY's: Martin's Fields (TCU commit), Ryan's Edwards ESPN

Dalton in the playoffs

2012-01-01T18:20:00.002-06:00

Despite his comeback effort coming up just short against the Ravens, Andy Dalton has led the Cincinnati Bengals to the NFL Playoffs in his rookie season as they finish with a 9-7 record on the year. The full playoff schedule isn't yet available, but the Bengals will be the #6 seed in the AFC and will play against the Texans in Houston next weekend.

This brings up a dilemma for those of you Frog fans that hail from the Bayou City. On one hand, your Texans have finally made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, even after suffering from one of the worst injury bugs in league history. On the other, you must be more proud of Dalton than even most TCU fans, with him having grown up in the Greater Houston area.

So what do you say, Houston Frog fans? Does Dalton's homecoming have you torn at all, or will you find yourself rooting for JJ Watt to take #14's head off and get some Rose Bowl revenge?

One Year Ago

2012-01-01T10:00:00.000-06:00

Exactly 365 days ago, many of us were out in Southern California to witness the crowning jewel (so far) of the Gary Patterson Era of TCU Football. Even a year removed, it's still pretty surreal and still difficult to wrap one's brain around the fact that our beloved, tiny private school in Fort Worth, Texas...WON THE ROSE BOWL!

There have been numerous moments over the past decade or so that have helped put Frog football where it stands today, but none of them even compare to the effect that the Rose Bowl victory made for TCU in the court of public opinion. We all already knew how good this program was and had the potential to be, but last January 1st made that reality also the national perception.

I really couldn't afford to go out to the game last year, but I'm so glad I found a way to scrounge for airfare, a hotel room, game tickets, etc for it. We all have fantastic memories of 1-1-11, but the greatest part is that those memories aren't likely to fade any time soon.

New Year's Day Dump

2012-01-01T07:11:00.002-06:00

TCU's comeback bid falls short against Tulsa Star-Telegram

Lady Frogs roll past Texas Southern, 66-38 Star-Telegram

Frogs vs. Tulsa tonight

2011-12-31T12:59:00.004-06:00

After an eight-day layoff that followed their win over Grambling State on December 22nd, Jim Christian's Horned Frogs hit the hardwood tonight with a home game against Tulsa at 6:00pm. The Frogs are 8-4 on the season, and will be looking to avenge a heart-breaking 3-point road loss against the Golden Hurricane last season.

One of the major challenges for TCU tonight will be finding their rhythm after such a long break. They had an eight day break for final exams earlier in the season, which was punctuated by a 24-point loss to USC that featured a very flat effort by the Frogs. Even for those exhibiting the most patience for Coach Christian, a repeat of that pattern will not be acceptable.

As has been the case much of the year, the Frogs will have their work cut out for them on the boards tonight. Tulsa ranks 61st in the nation in rebounding, while the Frogs are currently tied with Tennessee Tech and Sacramento State at 241st in the country. This predicament is intensified with the fact that Tulsa sports two 6'11" players in their starting line up, so they (like many Frog opponents) will have a size advantage.

Tonight's game, which is the second half of a double-header which will also feature the Lady Frogs taking on Texas Southern at 2:00pm, will be televised on CBS Sports Network.

A New Year

2011-12-30T13:04:00.003-06:00

I'm sure a lot of you are making ridiculous promises to yourself about eating healthier, gaining some arbitrary achievement at work or spending more time with your family in 2012, but I really don't care to hear about it. That being said, 2012 is going to be another big year in the lives of TCU fans- so let's make some new year's resolutions specifically for how we'll support the Frogs going forward.

As we did with the Christmas wish list, I'll start us off and then the rest of you can chime in with your two cents in the comments section:

-No more lame fandom. Being in the parking lot while the game is going on is pretty unacceptable. I'm not as severe an offender as most, but I will admit being a bit late to get back to my seat after halftime at a few games this year. It's time for all of us to quit acting like SMU fans.

-Invite non-TCU people to attend TCU events. Things have been getting better in this regard for years now, but there are still SO many sports fans in the Metroplex that haven't been let in on the secret of Horned Frog sports. Buy a few extra tickets and invite that neighbor, co-worker, or brother-in-law to come tailgate and go to the game with you.

-Tell a friend about Spit Blood. We started this site a few years ago with the purpose of keeping conversations about TCU sports going 365 days a year. We had just about a dozen readers at first- but we're easily up to, I don't know, two dozen by now. My guess is you know someone who is as obsessed with the Frogs and being a smart ass as the rest of us, and that they'd be a nice addition to the Spit Blood family. Get them reading and commenting ASAP!

-Expand your fandom beyond football. Like many schools in Texas, TCU has a lot of September to December fans. But depending on your own athletic upbringing, you probably have a passion for at least one other sport in which TCU offers a great spectator experience. Both the soccer and volleyball programs are setting attendance records left and right, and Lupton is fast becoming one of the best venues in all of college baseball. When there is eventually (hopefully) something to cheer for on the hardwood, it doesn't take a whole lot of energy to turn Daniel-Meyer into a hornet's nest for opposing teams. Heck, college tennis- I promise- is actually a lot more fun than you'd think.

End of Season Position Grades: Defense/Special Teams

2011-12-29T10:53:00.002-06:00

After doing the offensive grades, shockingly enough most of those who commented seemed to agree with me to a certain extent. I think when analyzing the defensive performance this year, there may be a little more dissension since this defense was not what we've come to expect from the Frogs of year's past. Anyways, let's get to it, and again, I encourage the readers to pick apart my grades in the comments section, but like every teacher/professor you ever had, I will not change the grades because I have all the power and I am in charge.

Defensive Line: B-

This grade could be lower, but it was completely saved by the greatness that is sophomore DE Stansly Maponga and the semi-unexpected breakout season of redshirt freshman/ginger successor David Johnson. Maponga had 9 sacks, 13.5 tackles for loss and a ridiculous 5 forced fumbles, and for the first couple months of the season it felt like he forced or recovered a fumble in every single game. He was a flat out monster all year, but I think we all kind of knew that was coming. David Johnson, who emerged as a starter in the last 8 games at defensive tackle, had 7 tackles for loss and 3 sacks, good for 2nd and 3rd on the team respectively. Not only that, but he seemed to blow up several plays in the backfield and seems to have that ginger-fire that helped make Andy Dalton a superstar at TCU. Those numbers were good enough to garner 2nd team freshman All-American honors from Yahoo!, so not a bad season at all from David Johnson.

As far as the rest of the D-line goes, it seemed to be a pretty or uninspired season for the rest of the guys. None of the other guys had more than 3 sacks (DJ Yendrey, Johnson), and too often we saw QB's with plenty of time to throw. The breakout season we had all been waiting for from Braylon Broughton for a couple years now failed to materialize again, as he was eventually replaced by Ross Forrest in the starting lineup. The season-ending knee injury to projected starting DE Matt Anderson in fall camp definitely hurt, and hopefully he comes back healthy and provides a pass rushing threat opposite Maponga. True freshmen DT's Jon Lewis and Chucky Hunter showed flashes of playmaking ability at times, especially in the BYU game if I remember correctly. I think it's safe to say that we are going to alright on the defensive line going forward considering how young we are, but I'd like to see a playmaker emerge not named Maponga by next September. Oh, and what the Hell happened to Jeremy Coleman? Yikes...

Linebackers: B

Obviously last season, but totally awesome still.

Man, this group went through a lot this year. From losing Tanner Brock for the season in game 1 to a foot injury, to Tank Carder playing with pins in his hand and whatever else weird injuries he accumulated, to Kenny Cain not making the trip to San Diego and missing 2 games due to injury. This group fought through a lot. Despite what most would consider to be a down year for Tank coming off of that ridiculous Rose Bowl, he still was the MWC Defensive Player of the Year for his 2nd time and even made some All-American teams somehow. He still is one of the better coverage linebackers I've seen in a while, and he showed that ability with 2 more pick-six's this season. He was also 2nd on the team in tackles with 70 despite having to switch positions when Brock went down with an injury. Kenny Cain, who became a starter due to the Brock injury, was quiet early on but came on strong and had arguably the best year out of any of our linebackers. He led the team with 72 tackles despite missing 2 games and is far and away the most athletic linebacker on our squad. Just another GP running back recruit turned defensive stud. Ho hum. Senior Kris Gardner played in all 13 games and ended his career on a high with a pick 6 on Senior Day. He was a more than serviceable backup for his whole career and filled in nicely this season when injuries plagued the other LB's. Freshman Deryk Gildon, the next great TCU linebacker in line, was a standout on special teams and had 21 tackles on the year and also blocked 2 kicks. I look forward to seeing what he'll do next year in what will most likely be the #1 backup behind Brock and Cain. It'll be interesting to see who else emerges next season to shore up the depth at the LB position.

Secondary: C

This was obviously the toughest grade of all, and perhaps I'm being harsh here considering our youth at the back end of our defense, but this unit just didn't get it done this season. Being torched by RGIII in week 1 hurt, but after seeing him do that to every defense he faced certainly eased the pain. The pain that can't be eased nor explained is letting JJ McDermott and a lousy SMU team pass all over us and steal a victory in Fort Worth. I'll try to get through this without being too harsh of a critic of any particular players since I've been accused of that before, but I think we all know who and what I'm referring to when I say I am sick and tired of watching incredibly fast defensive backs get burned on deep balls. I'll leave the negativity alone now and go into positive for all of these guys since most are young and will do nothing but improve in the future, hopefully putting together a tremendous Big 12 secondary in the next few seasons.

Jason Verrett- Rough start, but he definitely came on strong at the end of the year after losing his starting job for a couple of weeks. Seems to be the most sure tackler of all of our corners. Sweet hair as well.

Greg McCoy- Led the team in passes defensed (9) and a huge INT in the Poinsettia Bowl. Has been a productive player in the secondary for years and will be missed. Will get to him more in Special Teams.

Johnny Fobbs- Didn't know what to expect with him taking over for the legendary Tejay Johnson, but man this guy can hit. Forced 3 fumbles mostly from just blasting the shit out of ball carriers. Had a couple bullshit personal foul calls too when he destroy WR's that came across the middle. Sorry you had to suffer from the wussification of football on those.

Tekerrein Cuba- tied for second on the team with 70 tackles and was seemingly always around the ball. We are going to miss him for sure, although I won't miss looking up how to spell "Tekerrein" every time I write about him.

Jonathan Anderson- In my opinion, the next great TCU defensive back. Tackles like Stephen Hodge, but has more of a safety's build than Hodge. Had a great interception against BYU. Let's not forget he forced the fumble against Boise that gave us the opportunity to go down for the winning score. Well done, Jonathan. Also, awesome hair.

Devin Johnson- Where the Hell did you come from?!?! The walk-on was perhaps the bright spot in the secondary this year. Don't think he'll start next year, but he earned it. His 8 tackles for loss was second on the team. If it wasn't for his emergence, we might have been really, really screwed back there.

I realize there are plenty more players in the secondary, but I don't feel like highlighting those guys.

Kick/Punt Returns- A-

If I left this strictly to kick returns, it'd be an A+ even with that McCoy fumble against SMU. We took 3 back for a touchdown this year, 2 from McCoy, who has been doing this for years, and 1 from Waymon James. Replacing Jeremy Kerley proved to be even tougher than we imagined, with Skye Dawson and Brandon Carter both having their moments, but also their struggles at the position. Dawson got blown up several times, and a few times I didn't think he'd ever get up. Brandon Carter will be a great one back there, but he's got to learn how to hang on to the ball before that can happen. Ed Wesley was back there for a couple of weeks and he also showed flashes, but then somehow lost that spot in favor of Carter for the bowl game.

Greg McCoy will probably go down as the greatest kick returner in TCU football history. He earned some All-American honors at that position as well, and they were well deserved. He was definitely a game-breaker and momentum-swinger from that spot. He was 7th nationally in yards per return at 30.59 and tied for second with his 2 TD's. Did you know he was second on the team in all-purpose yards behind only Waymon James this year? That came as a shock to me.

Punting: B-

This one may get some argument, because for whatever reason Anson Kelton was a very polarizing figure. Kelton avergaged 40.2 yards per punt, which was good for 59th in the country. Not great. However, he did drop 14 of his 47 punts inside the 20, so that's not too shabby. I give him a pass because of the outstanding Rose Bowl he had, even though that's not this season. Also showed up pretty big in the Poinsettia Bowl. He may be harder to replace than we thought.

Kicking/Kickoffs: I

Our best kicker. It was either this, or Ross Evans's mugshot...

I won't touch this grade because I feel like my analysis might be out of bounds. Y'all can have at this in the comments section since the readers don't get hate emails when they go off...

End of Season Position Grades

2011-12-28T09:15:00.000-06:00

As you all know, football season (at least for the Frogs) is long gone and we really have nothing athletically to look forward to until baseball season. Yes, I know there's basketball, but to steal a line from NFL Primetime- "Come on, man!". Maybe this year will be different, but I'm not betting on it, and I'm currently trying to figure out a way to Austin Powers cryogenically freeze myself until late August and come back without losing my Mojo. I've already started slowly sinking into a deep, dark post-football depression and having my TV flooded with pre-March college basketball games and whatever floptastic Euro-trash soccer league they show on ESPN is about to cause me to toss a plugged in toaster into a bathtub with me. Yeah, there are still the occasional bowl games, but currently I'm watching Purdue and Western Michigan. Who gives a shit about that game? The only thing good to come out of either one of those schools was Drew Brees's birthmark, and I'm pretty sure he carved that off of himself with a Bowie knife a couple years back. I have taken some pleasure in watching the Mavs get their asses blasted by nearly 30 on consecutive nights, but really I don't care about basketball yet and won't until March, and by then I probably won't have a team competing that I have a rooting interest in. So yeah, FML.

So to combat my lack of meaningful football depression, and to kick start the site again after the holidays (thank you to Lyle for literally single-handedly keeping this site going for the past few days), I've decided to give a grade, position by position, to each unit on the team. Keep in mind, these aren't just the starters grades, but the entire unit as a whole. For discussion's sake, please feel free to disagree and give your own grades in the comments section. I'll start with the offense today and get to defense later in the week.

Quarterback: A+

Okay, so I probably lose what little credibility I have by throwing out a complete homer grade in my very first position breakdown, but bear with me here. Just think about all of the offseason tension and paranoia surrounding our quarterback position, most of which obviously centered around our favorite sleeve-tatted bad ass with a tin foil helmet and superman undies. Well I'd say he laid those fears to rest in week 1 with his near heroic performance leading a huge comeback against Baylor despite cramps coursing through his legs seemingly the entire second half. Casey Pachall didn't stop there, though, and his win against Boise State on the Smurf Turf was one of the greatest single game performances by a TCU QB ever. As a first year starter, he broke Andy Dalton's single season records of passing yards (2,921) and completion percentage (66.5%) as well as throwing for 25 TD's to just 7 INT's. He wasn't quite the rushing threat we had imagined, netting only 50 yards and 2 TD's, but without his full extension lay out on the 2 point conversion against Boise State, we probably don't win that game. And who needed him to run anyways? That's what the Matt Brown package was for. Brown amassed 118 yards and 6 TD's on the ground, as well as finishing 3-5 passing for 90 yards. I no longer fear the backup QB situation like I did before the season, especially with the studs we have waiting in the wings in the future.

So assuming you thought Andy Dalton was an A+ QB last season, I think you'd have to give the QB's this year the A+ as well. The passing numbers were pretty much identical, and considering the expectations were way lower I'd say I was thrilled with the outcome.

Running Backs: B+

This grade could've been higher, but I had to knock them down a peg for one reason: fumbles. Ed Wesley, who didn't play much early in the season but accounted for 726 yards and 6 TD's, ended with 6 fumbles. Way too many. Waymon James, our leading rusher with 875 yards, 6 TD's, and a ridiculous 7.2 yards per carry, ended up with 3 fumbles. Matthew Tucker, the red zone beast who scored 12 TD's and had 702 yards, only fumbled twice. I do have to deduct some points from Tucker for trying to leap into the end zone from the 5 only to come up a yard short. Maybe next time, Carl Lewis. Between our 3 leading rushers, a total of 11 fumbles is way more than you should have. Not to mention so many of these fumbles seemed to come at horrible spots on the field and were incredibly untimely (Wyoming comes to mind). I'm pretty sure Trent Richardson has fumble once in like, ever, at Alabama, be more like Trent when handling the ball next season and we will be giving this group an A+ next winter for sure.

Oh, and Luke Shivers. You will be missed. You were loved. Great career for the touchdown machine.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: B

This group was 2 Josh Boyce yards away from getting upgraded to a B+, but that 998 total receiving yards kills me. He looked like a lock for 1000 after the first few games, but I wouldn't necessarily blame him for that. The emergence of Brandon Carter mid-season took some catches away from Boyce, and also the bore the shit out of your fans mentality of running the ball into the ground against lowly MWC competition took away from some of his potential production. Shouldn't be an issue next year, and I bet he cruises past the 1000 yard mark. Boyce's 9 TD catches were great and the Pachall/Boyce connection is something we will all enjoy again at least next year, but the play of the year by Boyce was definitely when he made the Boyce DB his bitch, stole his ball, and waltzed in for the go-ahead 2 point conversion. And how can you talk about receivers and Boise without mentioning true freshman/future superstar Brandon Carter? I still think that one cornerback's panties are laying on blue turf after BC shook him right out of his drawers on his way to a 75 yards TD. Seriously, it looked like someone shot that guy in the leg the way he came up limp after getting his ankles broken on that hitch and go. Then later on he outdid himself by leaping over a DB and hauling in the TD that led to the Boyce 2 point conversion.

So after all that gushing, you'd have to wonder how this group gets a B? Simple- it's the drops and the other guys. Carter had a game ending drop against SMU, but the real issue with that game is how we put ourselves in that situation in the first place. Skye Dawson, despite being the bowl game "offensive MVP" dropped a sure 90+ yard TD that Pachall put perfectly into his hands. Obviously he redeemed himself later on in that game and the speedy Junior was 2nd on the team with 500 yards and 5 TD's. Many of us were hoping for a season of redemption from Senior Antoine Hicks, but it wasn't meant to be. He was third on the team with 347 yards, but only had 1 TD and a truly disappointing end to his TCU career by not being able to play in the Poinsettia Bowl. After his Sophomore season I thought we had a superstar in the making. Tight End Logan Brock was a nice red zone threat, hauling in 3 TD's and his blocking helped paved the way for our dominating rushing attack. We also saw a nice glimpse of the future from David Porter III, who caught 2 early season TD's and got his first career start in the Poinsettia Bowl. It'll be exciting to see if he and Cam White can progress and become bigger cogs in next season's offense.

Offensive Line: A

If we thought the panic level was high at QB prior to the season beginning, I'd say it was equally as high if not higher along the offensive line. With the loss of All-American's Jake Kirkpatrick and Marcus Cannon, nobody had incredibly high hopes for this group this fall anyways. Then the drama with projected starting Left Tackle James Dunbar being ineligible came down, and word was that we had a former walk-on Tight End, Robert Deck, moving over to start at Tackle. At this point, the oh-shit meter was through the roof. The lone returning starter on this year's offensive line was Kyle Dooley, a veteran we all knew could be counted on, but the rest was a complete uncertainty to all of us and probably to the coaching staff as well. Well, mad props to OL coach Eddie Williamson and anyone else who works with those guys, because this was without a doubt your finest job yet. Starters Jeff Olson, Kyle Dooley, James Fry, Blaize Foltz and Robert Deck all need to be commended for a job incredibly well done, as well as backups like Brady Foltz, Ty Horn, and Spencer Thompson, just to name a few. This group paved the way for a whopping 2,712 yards rushing (16th in the nation) at a 5.1 yards per carry clip (18th) on the season, 38 rushing TD's (5th) and allowed only 13 sacks in 13 games. Not too shabby for a group of 4 new starters that include 2 former walk-ons.

Coming up next, your defensive and special teams grades...

Morning Dump

2011-12-28T08:55:00.002-06:00

Former TCU golfer JJ Killen prepares for the PGA WFAA

TCU women headed to take on future Big 12 foe Star-Telegram

Patriots sign Williams to the practice squad ESPN

Dalton Likely to Play in Pro Bowl.

2011-12-28T08:53:00.002-06:00

Yes, Mrs. Dalton, looks like you'll be able to escape beautiful Cincinnati, at least for a weekend.

Not a bad week for Frogs in the NFL, as long as those Frogs don't play for the Jets. Marshall Newhouse, who has been a starter for weeks now, and Marcus Cannon saw extensive action for their Playoff bound teams in wins. Plus, after connecting on one of the most incredible touchdowns you will ever see to Jerome Simpson, Andy Dalton topped it off by being named the first Pro Bowl alternate for the AFC under center - yes, over team Tebow, an upset in itself based on the media slob he receives. It didn't come without its hiccups, though, as Dalton was left off the initial roster pretty unfairly in lieu of Phillip Rivers, the most overrated QB at any level. However, the league saved some face with this move and Dalton is next in line should Tom Brady, Ben Rape or Rivers back out.

So what are the chances of this happening? A few years ago Dalton would've had a slim hope outside of one of those guys just up and deciding they didn't want to spend the last NFL weekend of the year in Hawaii tossing a few passes and sipping Mai Tai's. But now, with the game being moved to the week in between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl and remaining on the mainland, that has all changed. If a selected player is on a Super Bowl team, they will choose to sit out the Pro Bowl. Rivers' Chargers are going to be sitting at home come January, but I'd bet my life either the Patriots of the Steelers make the Super Bowl this year, thus eliminating one of those guys from the roster and moving Dalton into their spot. Sorry, Texans fans. But even if neither of those teams make it, Rape has been insanely banged up this year and it's likely he would choose to sit out the game for the sake of his brain and body. So I'm not just saying there's a chance he'll join teammate and safety net AJ Green in the Pro Bowl, I'm saying it's gonna happen.

So I think we should all give Red a standing ovation at our desks this morning on doing something that would've been deemed absolutely had you posed the question last off season. A rookie QB playing for the BENGALS of all teams in the Pro Bowl? Hell, frozen over, it has. That probably won't help Frogs recruiting in the slightest bit. It's likely Cam Newton is going to get the nod for Rookie of the Year - and, as first alternate for the NFC, perhaps he'll get to face Dalton to settle the matter one way or another - but if Dalton is to get the once hapless Bengals into the playoffs AND make the Pro Bowl? There will have been worse award season crimes, but, statistics be damned, I can't think of any off the top of my head. So congratulations to Andy and thanks for giving us all a reason to care about the NFL this weekend, since the Cowboys are going to lose, and to care about the Pro Bowl for the first time ever.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T07:00:00.000-06:00

All I want for Frog Christmas...

2011-12-24T10:32:00.000-06:00

I'm not certain of the naughty or nice status of most of us here at Spit Blood- but nevertheless, it's Christmas Eve so we're going to set out some cookies and milk and let Santa know what we as Frog fans are hoping to find under the tree tomorrow morning...or in the next year or so. I'll start us off:

1. A strong finish to the basketball season. It's been a while since the Frogs were competetive all the way through the conference season, oh what I'd give for just one big, meaningful Saturday night conference game in a packed Daniel-Meyer. TCU is still the only team that has defeated Virginia this year, but they've also had some really ugly double-digit defeats. Hopefully we see more efforts like the one against UVA as the season goes on.

2. More quality football recruiting. GP & his staff have been assembling better classes every year, and this year's is certainly no different. With the few spots they have open for the Class of 2012, I hope they're able to go out and get a few top-notch future superstars.

3. Football season tickets that don't cost and arm and a leg. We've all been impressed with the renovations of Amon G. Carter Stadium, but have also been quietly concerned about the potential price increase once they are complete. I realize success comes at a price- figuratively and literally- but I'm also not made of money. I'd hate to see some passionate Frog fans be priced out of going to games next year.

4. A bounce-back year for the baseball team. It does sound kind of silly to say this after a year in which the Frogs won 43 games, another conference title and hosted an NCAA Regional for the third consecutive season...but last year's baseball season was a bit of a let-down based on the enormous potential of the team. I'd like to see the 2012 squad get back to the over-achieving ways of the 2010 team.

5. A time machine to take us to July 1st. Being future Big 12 members is pretty cool, but I'm about ready for this thing to be official!

Now it's your turn, person who is reading this blog instead of spending time with their family on Christmas Eve. Fill up the comments section with what's on your TCU sports wish-list.

Last-minute shopping?

2011-12-23T13:58:00.000-06:00

If you're like me and never get your Christmas shopping done until the last minute, you can probably get a good chunk of it done with our friends (and paid sponsors) at The Varsity. They've got all kinds of TCU gear and other purple stuff in their shop on Bluebonnet Circle like shirts (the one above being my favorite), hats, jackets, ties, YETI coolers and even women's apparel. I don't know what their holiday hours are, but even if you can't make it to the store you can always order online through The Varsity's website.

Gracious Winner/Sore Winner: Poinsettia Bowl edition

2011-12-23T11:18:00.000-06:00

"I think I was trying to suggest something about the duality of man, sir"

This was a feature that we debuted, to a mixed response, after the Boise game. I had originally planned on getting this posted the day after the game. But I, much like Sir Wesley, got a little rambunctious watching the game and was thus not feeling 100% yesterday.

The gracious winner says:

Whew. I think that was just about every TCU fan's reaction to the Frogs' 31-24 victory over the Bulldogs out in San Diego. We do not like losing bowl games, but that looked like it was a distinct possibility for much of Wednesday evening. Louisiana Tech was definitely a worthy adversary.

As much as we complain about the casual fan in our state not appreciating the achievements of teams outside of the big state schools that sell millions of T-shirts, it is definitely worse in Louisiana. In a state where a majority of the public don't support anything but LSU, Louisiana Tech has a pretty steep uphill climb to respectability in the football world. Add in the fact that they are still marooned in the far-flung WAC, and you get the sense that Ruston might be the most difficult place in America to field a winning football program. And yet, Louisiana Tech does it. As fans of a team that has succeeded despite the cards being stacked against us, we here at Spit Blood definitely respect what Sonny Dykes and his Bulldogs have accomplished.

In the game out in San Diego, the Bulldogs gave the Frogs all they could handle- and for much of the night, looked as if they might just pull off the upset. Colby Cameron kept the chains moving with the help of a tremendous offensive line that kept his jersey clean for most of the night and opened up hole after hole for the over-achieving walk-on tailback Hunter Lee. As any team bidding for an upset must do, they took advantage of every Horned Frog error.

Despite the loss, the future looks bright for the Louisiana Tech program. Sonny Dykes is an outstanding coach, and his Texas connections should pay off in recruiting for years to come. Much like Patterson's influence has helped the Frogs gain promotion to better conferences over the years, you can envision Dykes (with some help from the La Tech administration) gaining the Bulldogs a spot at the CUSA table now that SMU and Houston are departing. Beyond that, who knows...

The sore winner says:

Give me a break. You are still Louisiana Tech. Athletically, you are known for having a good women's basketball team before anyone else even halfway cared about doing so, a bumbling quarterback who appeared nude in a movie in which he played Kathy Bates' husband and a ringless power forward who once impregnated a 13 year-old while a sophomore at your school! Academically, well, let's just say Louisiana Tech would be a nice place to go to college for someone who didn't get into Texas Tech, and even the densest of the empty-headed mouth-breathers at my high school were able to do that.

As for the game, congratulations on coming up short in your Super Bowl against a team that barely even attempted to sound motivated for the leering press. The Frogs lacked energy, they lacked focus. They fumbled the ball and threw interceptions and missed tackles and racked up the kind of penalties that generally signal to an observer that they're just going to the motions. And yet, they simply flipped the switch in the fourth quarter and won the game. I'm the youngest in my family, so I played the part in many a 1-on-1 basketball game with the same dynamic as the Poinsettia Bowl. As I got older, though, I realized that celebrating moral victories is something that losers do.

Enjoy your time with Sonny Dykes, because it's not going to last. Once Tubberville finishes running the Red Raiders into the ground- which probably won't be long- Sonny is on the first flight home to Lubbock. Which is an upgrade on Ruston. Can you even fly out of Ruston? Much like the Horned Frogs have recently alligned with a more geographically-fitting conference, I suggest the Bulldogs do the same. I'm sure Sun Belt commissioner Wright Waters would take your call.

Frogs roll past Grambling

2011-12-23T09:07:00.002-06:00

Jim Christian and the TCU men's basketball team began the process of shaking off the disappointing losses against Nebraska and at USC by dominating Grambling State last night at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum, 85-53. Senior Craig Williams had a career-high of 25 points, while junior Garlon Green had a career-high 24. At 8-4, the Frogs now have eight days off before facing Tulsa at home on New Year's Eve.

Read all about last night's win:

Star-Telegram game story

gofrogs.com game story

First Annual Spit Blood Live Blog Morning After Round Up.

2011-12-22T10:00:00.000-06:00

Well that certainly escalated every bit as intoxicatingly useless as I imagined it would. Sorry guys, that's likely the first and last alcohol infused spitblood live blog that will ever grace these interwebs as I'm pretty sure my marriage and my liver can't handle another one. Also, I went back and did a TEENCY bit of editing to a few of the postings; adults who know my mother read this site, after all. Plus, just a little reward for those who followed this thing live. You know who you are.

From what I can tell, though? I was puuuuuuurdy angry and had some interesting insight on the coach/player relationship between Sonny Dykes and Colby Cameron, a sentiment that was necessarily redacted this morning. Oh, and apparently I completely turned against my own race in the fight to stop Hunter Lee. Reverse Xenophobia... it happens. One of the commenters suggested that this was the ugliest TCU win of all time... and I can't disagree. Partly because it's true, but mostly because I don't really remember a whole lot, if you couldn't tell by the lack of lucidity in my later posts.

But, a win is still a win, right? And I think we can all agree that Louisiana Tech was a much better team that we gave them credit for. Despite my incoherent rantings, I always internally maintained we were going to win the game, and it really never felt out of our grasp... but WHOO they made it a little too interesting, didn't they?

Statistically, it was EXTREMELY even outside of TOP, which we dominated, and penalty yardage, which we also, unfortunately, dominated. Casey Pachall did not dominate, but would've done more had his receivers made a few more catches, although he short armed some throws as well. When all was said and he done he set the school records for completion percentage and yardage and his game winning pass to Skye Dawson helped redeem an early drop that potentially would've gone for another 6.

Can't say I'll be sad to see our graduating members of the secondary go. Colby Cameron tossed for 264 yards, but would've had significantly more was he not in the habit of throwing 10 yards over the heads of his receivers for most of the night. I'm not sure if losing Chad Glasgow had anything to do with the decline, but if there's even the slightest chance BRING HIM BACK! I hear he's looking.

I'll be honest - a recap is not in me right now, by any means, as my soul is circling a toilet bowl right now. The bottom line is we gutted out a win in a game we probably didn't deserve and made just enough plays to enter the Big 12 on an 8 game win streak. It's all we could really ask for. Plus, I took Louisiana Tech and 10.5 points! Wins all around!

You guys recap it in the comments.

Bowl Victory Dump

2011-12-22T09:31:00.004-06:00

Frogs tune up for Big 12 with another fourth-quarter comeback Star-Telegram

TCU wakes up in time to smell the Poinsettia after stinky start Star-Telegram

Breaking down TCU's Poinsettia Bowl victory Star-Telegram

TCU fights off pesky Louisiana Tech in Poinsettia Bowl ESPN

TCU not sharp, but good enough to win CBS Sports

Let sleeping Frogs lie SI.com

TCU wins Poinsettia Bowl, 31-24 gofrogs.com

Stats! gofrogs.com

Highlights:

Frogs win 31-14

2011-12-21T22:45:00.000-06:00

tell me about it. im xfunk

Poinsettila bwl

2011-12-21T22:23:00.001-06:00

discussion. vicotrry

fINAL PUSH TO THE SUM.

2011-12-21T22:15:00.002-06:00

WE WILL WIN BUT ITIWLL NT BE RETTY NO BULLE PONTS\

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH TD PASCAHL

KJ i AO SUAWE SEUKNK YOIU SUFYA Xn por o youe oqn,

fOURTH wUARTER, PART 1

2011-12-21T21:50:00.003-06:00

NT=HING UNTL WE TIE THE GAME.
EXCEPRTIO TO RULE!!!!! WHY DID YOU JUMP FROM THE 5 YO9U ASHOLE HATTHEW MTUCKER????

THIRD QUARTER, PART 3.

2011-12-21T21:29:00.013-06:00

SO MUCH ASS. IM GLAD I TOOK LOUISIANA TECH AND THE POITS.
OH EAT SHIT PATTN ON THAT PI CALL. THS ISNT BOISE.
ATTHEW TUCKER. OUT SECOND BESTHANDSMAN. THROW A FLAAG!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HOW DOES THAT STAND/????
F W ARE SGOIG T LOSE AGIN TS O SDLKFALKSDFKLASDFBLE.
MISERABLEPASS BY PACHALL. JUS TERRIBBLE
NO MORE LIVE BLOG TILL WE HAVE THE BALL BACK.

ThirD Wuarer, Part 2.

2011-12-21T21:11:00.014-06:00

Ryan denuccii kicks like a girl. Tere, a isaid it.
how did i miss lt stealing our signals? power to them.
zck gailifriankis was so much beter before he was n the naogover
the av lu said louei was the best hw on tv. they wer wrong.
gp looks like hes put onweight since unlv. prestigue?
does anyone else see how awesome my durnk spelling is? about as awesome as colby camerons passing
wh doesnt the referree get a hat tha fits? cause hes fat?
KILL BRANDOM CARTER!!! ALL CAPS ARE BACK!!!!
THESE MOFOS ARE GETTING 50K A YEAR TO CATCH A FOOTBAL!!!!
TD BULLDOGS. I AM GOING TO SERIOUSLY MURDER 6 HOOIKERS TOUPSTAGE CRAIG JAMES.
HUNTER LEE IS WHITE!! WHITW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 HES WASPY AS F!!!!!!!!!! DIE!!!!!!!!! YAEGH!!!!!!!!!!1
GO SURF A WAVE WITH KEAUN U FREEVES AND PATRICK SQQAZES CROPSE, BORHAH!!!
WHY DOES BOIST TECH KEEP TRYIG TO CHEAT????
OUR PLAY CAOLLING IS LIKE WATCHING COLONEL SANDERS DIRECT A PORN VIDEO

Third Quarter, Part 1.

2011-12-21T21:00:00.008-06:00

Stand up, Josh Boyce!!!!!!!!!
THese flags are INSANE!! how can they all be legit???
YARRGHHH!!!!
seriously, the craigs thomspon and james are fisting us right now
THANK YOU, SKYE!! WHERES THE FLAG, ASSHOLE ZEBRA???
tough catch for a tight end. not fullers fault. we will score here, for REAL.
Casey pachall runs like imagine kate upton poops... slow an dcaluculated.
GREAT call. lke shivers. all he does is catch first downs.
TD TUCK!!!!! that's back on track. it will be a runaway from this point. 17-10.

SECOND QUARTER, PART 3.

2011-12-21T20:20:00.013-06:00

I WOULD JUST LIKE TO BE THE FIRST TO OFFER MY CONDOLENCES FOR TRHIS LOSS AND CONGRATULATE LOUISIANA TECH ON A JOB WELL DONE.
PACHALL LOOKS LIKE A BYX INTRAMURAL QB AFTER DRINKING TOO MUCH JESUS JUICE.
KEEP IN MIND WE ARE BEING OUTSMARTED BY A TEAM THAT ONCE EMPLOYED TERRY BRADSHAW BECAUSE HE WAS TOO DUMB TO GET INTO LSU AND LSU IS FOR RETARDS.
RED SOLO CUP... I FILL YOU UP...DIE!!
FOBBS IS ACTUALLY PLAYING LIKE HE HASN'T SIPPED 2 QUARTS OF LEAN. ITS A CHRISTMAS MIRACHLE!!
BY THE WAY, SPELLING ERRORS ARE MANDATORY FROM NW ON. <----SEE!!
KEEP IN MIND, GRAMBLING STATE IS NEARISH TO RUSTON... WE ARE SO TOAST NEXT YEAR.
AGAIN, WE ARE WAY FORTUNATE THAT COLBY CAMERON HAS ABOUT AS MUCH TALENT AS... SOMETHING THAT SUCKS.
TERRIBLE CALL!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE SO TOAST FOR REAL GUYS. GO AHEA D AND START DRINKING EVEN MORE HEAVILY. HORRIBLE CALL.
VERRET'S BEST HIT OF THE YEAR... CAME ON JOHNNY FOBBS., ITS THAT KID OF NIGHT.
GERG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CUE THE CARS "JUST WHAT I NEEDED"
WHO IS WHITE BOY #20? HE NEEDS TO GET CUT.
MILLER LITE VORTEX IS LIKE FLUSHING A TOILET INTO YORU BLOODSTREAM... AND I MEAN THAT POSITIVELY
TD WESLEY!!! GAME OVER. MIND CHANGED. caps off.

halftime... what does everyone think? 10-10. What changes need to be made? other than hrign an entirely new secondary? personally, we just need to stop playing like feces. frogs get ball first to start the sedcond half. go them.

Second Quarter, Part 2.

2011-12-21T20:12:00.007-06:00

Seriously, we are getting gashed by a walk on RB from FLOWER MOUND!!!!! Again, i hate everything. So much that i'm not even capitalizing proper pronouns.
OH MY GOD HUNTER LEE!! SERIOUSLY!??!?!?!? THIS IS KILLING ME!!!! TRUE FRESHMAN. ALKSJDLFJASLDFJLKASDFLASDF.
EXECUTIVE DECISION: ALL CAPS FROM NOW ON. JUST LIKE ZODIAC MF WOULD WANT IT.
WIDE LEFT, FINKLE!!! LOSER!!!! KILL HIM!!!
t\THAT TRAINER SHOT WAS TOTES SOFTCORE PORN. GET A BETTER FLY COVER, JACKWAGON!!
WHY ARE WE THROWING TO JONATHAN JONES? TOWEL, THROWN.

Second Quarter, Part 1.

2011-12-21T19:53:00.014-06:00

Whoops! Was there a banana peel in the backfield?
Ugh, Kriminal Kicker... I want to root against him. 3-3. So much for my all TDs prediction.
Toby Keith commercial????????? Is that what America thinks of us? Hopefully that was directed towards Ruston...
Levander Liggins is clearly Tim Riggins Chinese cousin.
Phenomenal catch... I don't even know what to say. McCoy had the coverage. Also, Tessitore just called McCoy our best CB... is he testing me?~??!
I love Colby Cmaeron... cause he's not gud.
F, he totes caught that... phenomenal catch by Patton. Earning his reputation. 10-3 Bulldogs.
My wife is watching Kardashian reruns instead of the game. WHERE DID I GO WRONG?
Nice short kick, IDIIOTS. TAKE THAT COCKINESS TO HEART, GP!!
UNREAL! HOW DO YOU NOT JUMP ON THAT BALL!! I hate everything right now. Nursefrog, back me up.
Remember when I said that the refs didn't really decide the SMU game and it wouldn't happen again. I WAS WRONG!!!!!! Shitty calls.
Is anyone else yelling "KILL HIM, HE'S WHITE!!" everytime LT runs the ball?

First Quarter, Part 3.

2011-12-21T19:42:00.005-06:00

Soft coverage...we has it. my tum tum hurts right now.
FOBBS!!!!!! PERFECT!!!! We really needed that, and it was a long time coming for a walk on white RB. Huge momentum shift.
SO MANY FLAGS!! UUGGGHHHH!!!! I haven't seen this many flags since Justin Battle was in SMUs backfield.. oh wait, that Flag is missing a letter.
BOYCE! Lou Holtz said that was a tremendoush catsh.

End of first quarter. Not inspiring, but Fobbs saved our asses there. Pachall looks great but needs his receivers to bail him out. Run game looks like it is going to go a lot smoother than initially anticipated. Defensive secondary is as bad as ever. How is everyone liking the live blog format? Should we just have one long running post per quarter? ADVICE!!!