Trevor Knight's Poor Play a Cause for Concern in Oklahoma's Loss vs. TCU

Oklahoma's title aspirations took a shot to the stomach during its 37-33 loss to TCU. Although Trevor Knight has never displayed much accuracy during his career, but his inefficiency was put on full display on Saturday.

During a crushing defeat that will slide the Sooners down the rankings, the sophomore completed just 14 of 35 passes. His 309 passing yards on those few completions could not offset the two interceptions that made a mighty difference in this tight contest.

He got outplayed by rising star Trevone Boykin, who now has 10 passing touchdowns to two interceptions on the season, compared to Knight's five scores and picks apiece.

If not for Sterling Shepard, his day could have gotten much worse. He reeled in half of Knight's successful attempts for 215 yards and a 75-yard touchdown pass that saved Oklahoma's aerial assault from a much glimmer outlook.

Knight refuses to let one loss derail the Sooners' 2014 campaign, per the Associated Press, via ESPN.com.

"This isn't the defining moment of our season. There's a lot of football left," Knight said. "Who knows what's down the road. It's early in the season, a one-loss team can still make it."

Justin K. Aller/Getty Images

He's not wrong, as the amount of undefeated teams shrank drastically following an upset-filled Saturday. Should the Sooners defeat Kansas State, Baylor and Oklahoma State en route to an 11-1 season, their championship hopes will remain well and alive.

Yet with such an erratic quarterback at the helm, it's hard to envision such a perfect stretch affording Knight and Co. no margin for error. Through five games, Knight is posting a ghastly 54.5 completion percentage, lower than his 59.0 percent clip from his freshman year. 

GP	CMP %	Pass YDs	YPA	Pass TDs	INTs
5	54.5	1,374	8.3	5	5

To properly gauge that mark, 71 FBS passers entered Saturday with a completion percentage of 60 or higher. Knight will have to labor to maintain a spot in the top 100.

That's not to say he ranks that lowly as a college quarterback, as his deep-play potency offsets some of his inconsistency. His 8.3 yards per attempt puts him on much better footing, yet that's a dangerous formula to sustain on a living basis.

Big plays are tougher to replicate given their tougher nature, so he can't count on escaping inaccuracy every week with long bombs. Eventually he must find a way to routinely move the chains on short strikes.

Knight is still a promising quarterback with a strong arm, but he's not steady enough to lead a premier club to glory. Not yet, at least.