2014 SoCon Football: An Early Look At Non-Conference Matchups (Samford at TCU)

SUMMER INSTALMENT NO. 1

In a few weeks, the World Cup will start and it is the perfect way to take up my time while I prepare for the 2014 football season.

With that said, it’s time to fill you in on some non-conference matchups and take a very early look at what the 2014 season might look like in the Southern Conference.

In the first instalment this summer, I will be taking a look at one of those early-season non-conference games.

Non-Conference Games To Watch:

Aug. 30 Samford at TCU–If you’re looking for interesting matchups in the league between FCS and FBS competition, then one of those has to be Samford’s trip to TCU to open the campaign. The Bulldogs and the Horned Frogs have never met on the gridiron, and it will be a rebuilding season for the Bulldogs, who lose the likes of Fabian Truss–one of the top return men in the history of the Southern Conference, as well as quarterback Andy Summerlin, who had a big yea as a senior last fall, garnering Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year accolades, leading the Bulldogs to their first Division I conference title last fall.

One of the things most Samford fans as well as just fans of the SoCon in general are looking forward to is seeing Arizona State transfer Michael Eubank in action. The 6-5, 245-pound signal-caller is purported to be better than his predecessor, and his “toughness” is not a question mark, which remains to be seen when he gets on the field against the Horned Frogs of course, assuming he wins the starting job.

TCU on the other hand, has been one of those programs that has seemingly been knocking on the door of now defunct “BCS Bowls”prior to making the move to one of the nation’s elite football conferences a couple of years ago. Under the direction of one of the nation’s top head coaches Gary Patterson, TCU has had a very “blue-collar” rise to the elite status as being one of the Top 20 programs in college football programs over the past 10-15 years.

Patterson, who has coached legends of the college game such as LaDanian Tomlinson and Andy Dalton, can appreciate the plight of Samford, which is a small private school battling to try to put itself in position to potentially win a national title, as the Horned Frogs continued to fight their way to respectability, making back-to-back BCS Bowl appearances in 2009 and 2010.

Last season was the first step in that process, as the Bulldogs returned to the postseason for the first time in two decades after winning eight games during the regular-season. The Bulldogs would falter down the stretch, however, losing three of their final five games of the season. After lighting up opponents over the first-half of the schedule, the significant injuries affected the balance of the offense, and it started with the setback at The Citadel.

On thing is for certain, which is that Samford has proven a tough out against FBS opponents the past few seasons, and went 1-1 against FBS foes last season, defeating Georgia State (31-21), while dropping a (31-21) decision to Arkansas, which was a game Samford was able to put a scare into the Razorbacks, taking a 21-17 third-quarter lead before eventually seeing the Brett Bielema-led Hogs come back and get a 31-21 win.

TCU is a program that, like Boise State, has made a niche for itself as being one of those programs that plays with a proverbial chip on its shoulder. After all, the Horned Frogs have the best record in the Lone Star state since 2005, having posted an 88-27 record in the past nine seasons. The 88 wins ties the Texsas Longhorns for the most wins, however, the Horned Frogs have two less losses during that time frame.Samford need consult only Wofford to find out what happens when things go wrong in the Lone Star
State, as the Terriers opened the season with a 69-3 loss in Waco to eventual Fiesta Bowl qualifier Baylor.

TCU’s tradition is unquestioned, as it hasn’t only produced great players, but has also done things not accomplished by many of those

programs trying to knock down that proverbial door and prove itself to be worthy of inclusion into conversations when mentioning theFBS elite. The Horned Frogs went on a magical ride in 2010, losing just once en route to getting a dramatic, 21-19, Rose Bowl win as a result of stopping a Badgers’ two-point conversion attempt late in the game.Since that win on Jan. 1, 2011, it has been tough to re-establish that type of momentum for Patterson’s Horned Frogs, and that was apparent last season, as the Horned Frogs continued to find both injury problems and consistent play under center plague them once again last fall.While I mentioned a pair of offensive players above, it’s been Patterson’s defenses that have been a staple of the TCU tradition over the years, and with the offenses struggles last season, the unit had to work overtime, which in large part led to the 4-8 finish. Despite defending a short field or being overworked due to the offensive ineptitude of the Horned Frogs’ offense last season, Patterson’s defense once again showed its pedigree, as it still managed to rank 24th nationally (356.4 YPG) in total defense at season’s end.

One of the more remarkable things that TCU’s defenses have been able to do in Patterson’s 17 seasons as an assistant or head coach is record takeaways, and over the past 37 games, the Horned Frogs are 35-2 when recording three or more takeaways in a game.

Interestingly, TCU and Samford shared an opponent last season, as both teams faced the Southeastern Louisiana Lions. The Bulldogs fell behind by three scores in the game against the Lions, but would come back to nearly steal a miraculous win, only to lose 34-31 at Seibert Stadium. TCU, which caused Southeastern to hit that magic mark of three turnovers, and despite holding just a 17-14 lead at the half, that Patterson Horned Frog defense would hold the Lions out of the end zone the entire second half, out-scoring Southeastern, 21-3 in the second half to come up with the 38-17 win.

Eighteen starters are back for TCU in 2014, and despite finishing with just four wins, there were some bright spots for the Horned Frogs, who faced one of the nation’s most difficult schedules last season. The Horned Frogs lost a pair of heartbreakers to ranked foes, with losses to No. 10 Oklahoma (20-17), No. 9 Baylor (41-38, OT).

On offense, the Horned Frogs will need to get a big season from quarterback Trevone Boykin, who is the Big 12’s version of former Georgia Southern quarterback Jayson Foster, who could seemingly play ever position on the offensive side of the ball, save offensive line, back in the mid-2000s. After all, Boykin was the only player in the nation to record a 100-yard rushing game, a 100-yard receiving game, and record a 200-yard passing game for the Horned Frogs last fall.

Boykin is quite possibly the best athlete TCU has had in its offensive backfield since Tomlinson in the late 1990’s, and he might just be the best athlete in college football heading into 2014. He’ll battle Tyler Matthews and Zach Allen for the starting job in fall camp, but the consensus is that Boykin will get the starting nod.

The key for the TCU defense, which returns nine regulars, will be the defensive line. In many ways, I think TCU and Virginia Tech are two very comparable programs in terms of what the two schools respective traditions says about each.

Both programs value the defensive side of the football, and where it starts for the boys in Blacksburg as well as the boys in Fort Worth is the defensive line. And when you think Virginia Tech and TCU, you think about those greats, such as Bruce Smith, Corey Moore or Darryl Tapp come to mind, or with TCU, former greats such as Matt Blake and Jerry Hughes immediately come to mind.

The 2014 season will likely see the Horned Frogs rise back to the elite of college football, and it will be due in large part to having one of the top defensive lines in the nation, with three starters return, which does not include sophomore defensive end Devonte Fields, who fought through to become one of the nation’s top defensive ends in 2012, posting an impressive 18.5 sacks and 10 sacks in 2012. Fields’ season was cut short in 2013 as a result of an injury, which limited him to only three games last fall.

If this game could have come last season, I sincerely believe Samford could and would have been very competitive against TCU, however, I believe the Horned Frogs will be among the most improved teams in college football next season, and will have something to prove. That, combined with Samford’s inexperience at running back, quarterback and receiver on offense, could very well lead to an ugly result in the Bulldogs’ debut off their Southern Conference Championship of last season.