TCU toppled Texas football to make a huge statement in Big 12 play. What does this upset defeat mean for the Longhorns as they head into November?
TCU entered their Week 9 showdown at home against Texas as just a one-point underdog. That spread set up a potential upset special, as Vegas proved far less confident in the Longhorns than the AP voters that had boosted Tom Herman’s crew all the way up to No. 15 in the most recent AP Top 25 despite two losses on their record.
After a third loss, that is going to be harder and harder for pollsters to justify. The Horned Frogs lived up to the billing, dismantling the Longhorns 37-27 on Saturday afternoon to earn a conference tiebreaker and move closer to bowl eligibility.
While Texas will likely cling to a spot on the fringes of the Top 25 this week, they no longer look like a team that could be a potential spoiler in the New Year’s Six hunt. Instead, they are clinging to fast-fading dreams of a spot in the Big 12 championship game as the Longhorns regressed to the mean in a huge way at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
Gary Patterson’s team fielded one of the top defenses in the country, and while Texas was able to score on the Horned Frogs they were also unable to stop TCU when they had the football. What did we learn from the second Big 12 upset of Week 9? Here are three takeaways from the Longhorns loss on Saturday afternoon.