#14 TCU Defense Collapses, TCU Comes Back, but Baylor Still Wins 50-48

Wow, that was a great thriller.

It was amazing for TCU to come back from a 23-47 deficit to lead 48-47.  With TCU's history of stout defense it seemed it was over for Baylor.  But Baylor had one last drive in them.  Tough runs.  Short passes.  A trick play which took Robert Griffin from QB to receiver, catching the ball for a 15 yard gain in heavy traffic, taking brutal hits.  So many lead and momentum changes.  Finally Ross Evans hit his second field goal to retake the lead.  Again it looked like TCU would march down the field and score.  But then TCU ran out of time, as the pass defense stiffened and switched to a zone.  TCU got desperate, and Casey Pachall excellent debut at quarterback ended with a bad throw and an interception by Mike Hicks. 

There's a lot to take away from this game.  

1)  Casey Pachall will be a great QB, despite the last gasp interception to end the game.  He also hit 25/39 for 252 yards and 4 touchdowns.  He showed strength, patience, and moxie, playing hurt.

2)  TCU made some good fourth quarter zone adjustments, but there man-to-man coverage did not cut it most of the game.  This did not not look like the amazing TCU defenses that have led college football the last few years.  Gary Patterson is a good coach, but it looks like there's some rebuilding to do.

3)  Baylor QB Robert Griffin III has shown flashes of brilliance prior to tonight.  He really brought it on tonight though.  The junior threw 21/28 for 359 yards and 5 TD's - against TCU.  Let that sink in.  He also caught a 15 yard pass on the final drive, in traffic, to help seal the win, showing grit and courage.

4)  Baylor Senior WR Kendall Wright had 12 receptions for 189 yards and two TD's receiving.  But he also came up big on the screens throwing the ball.  First was his 40 yard TD throw.  His second attempt, turned out to be the 15 yard pass to Griffin that kept the winning drive alive.

5)  Could Baylor, which made a bowl game for the first time in ages last year be a player in the Big 12?  Maybe not with preseason #1 Oklahoma, #8 Texas A&M, #9 Oklahoma State, #21 Missouri, and Texas to contend with.  Still, it gives pause.  Certainly Baylor proved it can put up points in a big way. 

Okay, so TCU has a lot of new defensive faces.

But TCU it's pretty rare they give up 20 points to anyone for a whole game.  So for them to give 50 up to Baylor?

I am sure TCU will recover this season, but that is a serious rocky start.  A third BCS game in a row is not likely at this point, no matter how well the rest of the season goes.  The defense will recover its moxie and improve.  The offense picked itself up in the fourth quarter and came up just short.  Casey Pachall will be great - in time.

TCU near the two-minute mark...

Wow!