TCU LB Johnny Hodges: Horned Frogs Are 'Laughingstock' of CFB After Colorado Loss

After Saturday's upset loss against Colorado, TCU's players are feeling the weight of the disappointment this week.

"I guess you could say it's a wakeup call. I don't know how losing in the national championship by 60 isn't a wakeup call, but right now we're definitely the laughingstock of college football," junior linebacker Johnny Hodges told reporters on Tuesday.

Hodges, who was last season's Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year, was referring to TCU's 65-7 loss to Georgia in the College Football Playoff National Championship. The Horned Frogs put forth a better effort in Saturday's 45-42 loss, but it was still a demoralizing way to start the 2023 campaign nonetheless.

TCU surrendered 565 yards of offense to Colorado and 510 passing yards to quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Hodges, who lamented the team's "22 missed tackles," defended defensive coordinator Joe Gillespie, saying he had the team properly prepared despite the lack of execution.

"It's very, very upsetting that our defensive coordinator has to take all this slack when he did nothing but tell us exactly what was going to happen and put us in situations in practice that mocked the game and we weren't able to take what he told us and bring it on the field on Saturday," Hodges said.

The Horned Frogs fell from No. 17 to unranked in the AP Top 25 following Saturday's loss. Hodges said he plans to ensure the TCU defense doesn't perform that poorly again.

"I don't think it's too hard to go find videos on social media of people just not willing to put their bodies on the line," he said. "That's something that we will not let happen again at the school as long as I'm here."

The Horned Frogs will look to bounce back on Saturday night against Nicholls.