Photo from GoFrogs.com
Frog fans had every reason to be nervous last Saturday, playing without a starting quarterback and top running back. But TCU not only delivered, but delivered big, beating Texas Tech 27-3 in Lubbock.
The game taught us a lot about TCU’s depth, and especially backup quarterback Shawn Robinson. Here are five takeaways from the game.
1. Shawn Robinson — he’s pretty good.
This was Robinson’s first start, so here’s what we know after seeing a full game with him: First off, he’s athletic and churned out a couple big runs for first downs. In fact, he led the team in rushing with a total of 84 yards.
He’s also got a great arm. Perhaps among the most memorable moments of the game, in the second quarter Robinson sent a deep pass to wide receiver Jalen Reagor that could have been a touchdown had Raegor not been out of bounds. The two later redeemed themselves in the third when Robinson completed a 12-yard pass to Reagor to bring the score to 17-3. The play had many wondering if “Robinson to Reagor” would be the dynamic duo of the future. We’ll just have to wait and see.
2. Get this — TCU’s defense hasn’t allowed second half points in five straight games.
Certainly TCU gave up 38 points against Oklahoma, but that’s Oklahoma. The Texas Tech game showed that TCU's defense is still playing at a very high level.
3. Cornerback Jeff Gladney’s pick six is everything.
The dagger play. The Frogs need more of these. Just saying.
House call for Gladney! #BeatTech pic.twitter.com/E4CUj3JAfK
— TCU Football (@TCUFootball) November 18, 2017
4. The backup kicker is not bad either.
Shout out to kicker Cole Bunce for stepping up, with starter Jonathan Song out with injury. He made both his field goals on Saturday, including a 43-yarder, thankfully avoiding situations like this one.
5. Beat up, but not broken.
Kenny Hill, out. Darius Anderson, out. Travin Howard, out. And still, the Frogs won in Lubbock with a backup quarterback and a defense that held the high-flying Red Raiders to three points. A 24-point road win over a now 5-6 team was everything TCU needed.