TCU vs. Oklahoma: Game Grades, Analysis for Horned Frogs and Sooners

Mayfield threw two touchdown passes before leaving the game and giving way to backup Trevor Knight, the former Sugar Bowl MVP who lost the starting job to Mayfield. After the Horned Frogs’ initial 97-yard drive, TCU managed only 60 yards the rest of the half, just 17 passing.

With that, let’s check out the game grades for each team’s positional units.

The numbers from Oklahoma’s aerial attack aren’t gaudy by any stretch. He entered the TCU game with the second-best pass efficiency rating in the country, averaging 308.2 yards with 31 touchdown strikes.

Check in with Oklahoma State, where an unbeaten record got shattered and Playoff hopes were punctured by a Baylor team down to its third-team quarterback (who of course can still throw the football very, very well; Art Briles just plugs ’em in and plays on).

While TCU certainly has the talent to take on a dynamic Oklahoma team, it will all come down to whether or not Trevone Boykin will be able to suit up. A touchdown pulled the Horned Frogs within 23-13. It was a decision that TCU fans will criticize in the coming week, seeing that OU safety Steven Parker made a tremendous play and batted down the Kohlhausen pass to prevent an epic OU collapse.

Seconds after the hit, the quarterback reached up to grab his head. Kohlhausen hit Ke’Vontae Turpin for an 86-yard touchdown and found Emanuel Porter for the 14-yard near game-winning touchdown. Zack Sanchez, who had a terrific game, had two. Set up exactly where you’d want them to be with an outright Big 12 title and CFB playoff spot both there for the taking. The Sooners were blanked in the last period, despite impressive advantages in total yardage (536-390) and first downs (29-16).

Sawyer clearly wasn’t the answer, but Bram Kohlhausen almost was when it came to finding a solution for the absence of Boykin. Perine had a leg issue, and yet after Mixon went out, he returned to break off a crucial 72-yard touchdown run in the third quarter after a bad interception by TCU’s Foster Sawyer. Again, a handicap is fair here since these guys aren’t the usual starters.

TCU committed a whopping three turnovers before halftime that Oklahoma efficiently turned into 17 points. Giving up 333 yards on the ground is inexcusable and shows perhaps the Horned Frogs’ biggest weakness defensively.

While Mayfield looked like a joystick in the first half, that masked his actual performance statistically. But none of that will matter unless Mayfield is ready to go for Oklahoma State next weekend.

West Virginia at KansasFinal Score: West Virginia 49, Kansas 0Pick: West Virginia 52, Kansas 20 Line: West Virginia -28, o/u: 59.5 Three Mountaineers ran for over 100 yards with Wendell Smallwood and Rushel Shell each running for two touchdowns, and Terrell Chestnut came up with a 32-yard interception return for a score on the way to the easy win.