Three KillerFrogs writers - JD Andress, Nathan Cross, and Carson Wersal - give their thoughts on the outcome of the TCU and Colorado game, what they think went well and what they think went wrong
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 Welcome back. This is the kind of a killer frogs podcast slash
00:06 summary of what happened yesterday against the game in
00:08 Colorado. Colorado did end up taking the win against TCU 4542.
00:14 And this is kind of just a podcast to dump our thoughts
00:19 about it. And any big things that we saw throughout the game.
00:23 Yeah, it'll be a short 510 15 minute recap of what we saw
00:29 yesterday and just kind of how we're feeling about everything.
00:31 Carson, you want to go to get started about your thoughts on
00:35 the game yesterday?
00:36 Yeah, after the game, obviously, it's never, it's never fun to
00:42 lose. In any regard, doesn't matter if you're playing
00:45 Colorado doesn't matter if you're playing Georgia. But
00:50 straight after the game, obviously very sad. But the more
00:54 I keep on thinking about it, and the more I keep looking back at
00:59 kind of how the game went, the more I realized how skilled
01:03 Shador Sanders and Travis Hunter actually are. Because those are
01:09 two guys on that Colorado team that quite literally were the
01:12 difference in that game.
01:14 Yeah, Nate, do you have anything?
01:17 Yeah, I mean, like Carson said, I mean, it's never fun to lose.
01:24 But I feel like we have something to work with here. So
01:27 it's like not 100% depressing, but like, to give it at all. I
01:32 mean, Shador Sanders and Travis Hunter are the real deal. And I
01:36 think either of them could be Heisman contenders. So I am
01:39 thinking people are underestimating what Colorado has
01:43 to offer. And I really think TCU defense needs to really step it
01:48 up a little bit. But I think our offense, the fact that they
01:52 could put up I mean, over 40 points, that's impressive. So I
01:57 mean, people may be calling out brows, but I mean, his offense
01:59 seemed to be working without even when we made mistakes. So
02:03 I'm really pleased with the way our offensive calling went. I
02:07 would like to see our defense step it up. But I don't know if
02:10 that's something we can do. But we'll see.
02:12 Yeah, I mean, I'm pretty much in the same boat. I have found a
02:16 small coping mechanism and the fact that with the new rules,
02:20 it's like 13 less plays a game. Without that our offense might
02:23 not have been as rushed at the end. I have coped with that a
02:27 little bit. But I mean, like you guys touched on. I mean, Travis
02:31 and Shador, they're legit and props to Deion Sanders. I mean,
02:35 he gameplanned he knew what to attack. And I mean, he took it.
02:39 I mean, Shador took advantage of the soft coverage or secondary
02:42 was giving them which I don't know if that's part of the game
02:44 plan, which allows you or you know, what was exactly what was
02:47 talked about with that regards. But I mean, yesterday in Sunny
02:52 Ducks press conference, he touched on an important thing
02:54 that I think kind of is going unnoticed is I mean, Amani
02:58 Bailey wasn't there for the last drive because he cramped up. But
03:01 Travis Hunter is playing both sides of the ball all game and
03:04 was just fine. And they're not used to the heat like our
03:07 players are supposed to be, which is what Sonny had
03:09 mentioned before the game was, well, they're not going to be
03:11 used to Texas heat. Well, they seem really used to it going
03:13 into the game. And their players look really well adjusted to
03:17 the heat. They were playing fast, physical and you know,
03:20 it's like Sonny also touched on is they look like they wanted to
03:23 win TCU. And I think that showed throughout the entire game.
03:26 Yeah, I think so too. One thing I want to touch on you, you
03:33 mentioned kind of a soft coverage. And I do mention that
03:37 in my kind of like TCU student fan experience article. You guys
03:43 can go check that out at Killer Frogs calm. And I did kind of
03:46 touch on the secondary giving them so much respect. But at the
03:51 end of the day, I think you kind of have to give them that
03:54 respect. Because that the TCU secondary is going up against, I
04:00 think three or four five star receivers. I mean, I'd like I
04:06 get it. For players with over 100 yards of receiving is hard
04:10 to defend. But when when you have a TCU secondary that is
04:15 fairly young, I think that's to be expected, especially for the
04:18 first game. And especially especially against a team that
04:22 you know absolutely nothing about. See now teams have film
04:27 on Colorado, due to the TCU game now. And so I'm imagining that
04:32 people are going to prepare for Travis Hunter and the Colorado
04:37 quarterback more accordingly from here on out.
04:41 Yeah, I think I think a part of that too, is I mean, we were
04:45 giving self coverage, but there was a third and 19 play where
04:49 Avery Helm was up in press coverage. And he got burned. And
04:53 it was like, why are we running press now whenever we're gonna
04:56 which 3019 I just didn't understand some of the decision
04:59 making that was going on. Yeah, I agree.
05:03 I mean, I feel like I mean, I just feel like our decision
05:08 making was just, I feel like we came into the game thinking we
05:12 had it already, because of all the hype and stuff that
05:16 happened. And I feel like we weren't prepared. And I feel
05:19 like Sonny Dykes summed it up. I mean, even the athletic
05:23 director, I mean, even the players weren't even out there
05:27 at the end with everybody. Which I mean, the mistakes, it's a
05:33 mistake that happened, but we weren't prepared for anything. I
05:36 mean, I feel like TCU as a whole family, weren't prepared. I mean,
05:41 the speakers in the stadium weren't up to par. I mean, I
05:45 feel like things were just not right. And I feel like the
05:48 players were just were down because of Wes and prayers up to
05:52 his family and everything. But I feel like everything was just
05:57 not in our way going our way. And I feel like Chandler Morris
06:01 was, he hasn't had this experience before. He's a
06:04 talented quarterback, and you saw spurts of it. But he has
06:08 not had that preparation that somebody like Duggan had had in
06:11 the past. So like Chandler will continue to get better. I mean,
06:15 he threw the ball pretty decent when he wasn't trying to go
06:18 quick. The line kept the line kept him safe most of the game.
06:22 So I think he'll learn that. And I think you'll start to see him
06:25 going up from here. But I just think preparation was not there.
06:28 Yeah, I mean, I, that was a major part of if you go to
06:34 Killer Frogs, you'll also see my key takeaways of yesterday's
06:37 game. And part of what I wrote is that the offensive line
06:40 coming into the season was going to be a big question mark
06:42 replacing three of the five starters. And I think, you know,
06:45 you look at yesterday's game and no sacks on Morris, he had two
06:50 quarterback hurries and both of them happened on the last drive
06:52 of the game, whenever the defense knows, hey, in your
06:54 ears back, go after we know they're throwing. And I think
06:57 that was not part of what allowed TC to thrive as much.
07:03 But I think when you have Chandler Morris, who was hurt
07:06 all year, then he had dug and take his spot. I mean, obviously
07:09 his confidence, no matter what he says, took a hit. And for him
07:12 to be able to play the full game, you kind of saw him get
07:15 more and more adjusted to the situation as it went on. And I
07:18 think, you know, he kind of saw that Jared Wiley missed throw in
07:21 the second quarter that led to the red zone interception. I
07:25 mean, that you know, you run that play in the fourth quarter,
07:27 that doesn't happen. The interception that he threw to
07:30 when he was targeting Wiley again, that Travis Hunter just
07:33 made one of the greatest plays I've ever seen a defensive back
07:36 make. And he just I mean, that's just all credit to him. He's a
07:40 great defensive back. He's taught by one of the best
07:42 defensive backs of all time. And I think you know, Morris really
07:45 kind of settled in as the game went on. And you kind of, you
07:49 kind of have to realize that this goes for like all fans is
07:52 he isn't maxed out and he's not going to run the ball. When a
07:54 play breaks down. He doesn't. He's not going to scramble. He
07:57 can't he's not as physical, not as big as maxed out. It is. And
08:00 that's part of the knock on Morris is he needs to be able to
08:03 stay healthy all year. And if you have a run like Duggan did,
08:06 he's not going to stay healthy all year.
08:07 Yeah, I, I kind of would would go along the same lines of what
08:14 you just said. Because I remember there was a play
08:16 towards the end of the second quarter. It was TCU's final
08:20 drive in the first half, where he's Chandler's rolling out to
08:24 his right. He's under pressure by like, I think two guys kind
08:28 of in his vicinity. And I had a little flashback after he tried
08:33 to throw the ball, because he had about three or four yards of
08:37 space to at least make the second down more manageable. And
08:42 he threw the ball and went incomplete. And I kind of
08:45 thought to myself, I was like, Wait, why didn't he just run it
08:47 right there? And sure enough, I, you just took the thought right
08:53 out of my mind. He's not maxed out. He's not the same
08:56 quarterback. And I do agree with Nate where I do think that
09:01 he will get better as the season goes on. Absolutely. Because I
09:06 mean, he's what is it I think about a year and two months
09:09 since he's played in a football game. I mean, that's that's
09:13 very hard to come back from. It's very hard to actually go
09:16 beat a team that you have no film on, even with that
09:20 pressure, you know, added on addition. So that's, that's, I
09:26 mean, those are all the thoughts that I had about the game.
09:28 Yeah, I saw I agree with you. I mean, there was hardly any film
09:36 on this team. I mean, there may be film on players. But you
09:41 can't get a film on a whole team and what Deon does because
09:44 Deon's gonna switch it up. He's switching it at every level.
09:47 When we when I saw him in high school, he switched it up from
09:51 when he went to FCS level. Then when he went up to this high
09:54 level of playing style, he's changing it up every time based
09:58 on his players that he has. And to give Deon the respect he
10:02 deserves. He's a great playmaker and designer. And I feel like he
10:06 does a great job keeping teams on their heels. And I think TCU
10:11 did a good job as well. Like that time that Chandler took off
10:13 for a run, made it to the end zone got scored. That looked
10:17 like Duggan type of play. And I think we should do more of that
10:21 keeping teams on their heels not expecting it. But I feel like
10:26 Chandler will continue to evolve as a quarterback and as a player
10:30 and a leader that this team needs. And they said it
10:33 yesterday on big noon kickoff show. Chandler needs to be that
10:38 leader that Max was for this team to be successful because
10:41 it's a newer team. And they need that leader to get them going.
10:45 So I think I think he'll be ready for next game.
10:48 Yeah. Did you Carson and I were just talking about this right
10:53 before we started to was that I think by the end of the season,
10:56 into the season rolls around, we're gonna look at that
10:58 Colorado game and just be like, Colorado was a lot better than
11:01 we predicted Vegas has them as three and a half wins. And I
11:04 think at this point with how they look yesterday, they're
11:06 gonna smash that. I mean, they get Nebraska this week, with how
11:09 Nebraska look against Minnesota, that's a win. I mean, the
11:12 outlook on Colorado at this point is very positive. And I
11:15 think by the end of the year, we're gonna be like, you know
11:17 what, Colorado? I mean, they have a chance to finish top 25.
11:21 And we look at them at the end of the year and be like, you
11:22 know what, we played them really well, considering how far we've
11:25 come throughout the year.
11:26 Yeah, I think so, too.
11:29 So yeah, I agree with that. Um, I, I had originally said they
11:37 would win only like two games. I'm thinking, like seven to
11:40 eight games now winning. I think they have that potential and
11:44 that level. Because Shadour throws that ball well, and he
11:48 takes care of that football. And it doesn't matter if you're the
11:51 best team out there. You if you take care of the football, you
11:54 win games. And I think Deion loves each one of them, like his
11:59 son, each one of his players. And I, I think that's truth. I
12:03 mean, the way he talks about them, and he gets excited about
12:05 each one of them. I mean, I may not like everything he says, but
12:08 he's a feels like a good coach and a leader for his team. And I
12:12 feel like Shadour is the same way. He didn't seem to be
12:15 gloating about everything. He looked like he wanted to come
12:17 and win a football game. And I think that's what's what it's
12:20 going to take to be at that level. So I hope for the best
12:23 for them. And it will look better if TCU can get on a roll
12:27 and they keep winning. So this loss will mean less. So
12:30 I think it's a I think this week, they have a big, you know,
12:34 a big chance to come out, then you play nickel state. I mean,
12:37 if you come out and you beat nickel state by three
12:39 touchstones, all right, maybe start in the panic button,
12:42 because the week after that you get SMU, what could be the last
12:44 game, you know, at A&G Carter, and I think, you know, you come
12:47 out, you laid nickel state, you know, I'm sorry, that's what we
12:51 draw, but you've run up a score, you know, you win 6314 or
12:55 something, I think it kind of sends a message, hey, all right,
12:57 we got, you know, our heads on, right, we flush it all down the
13:00 toilet, but they come out looking sluggish. I mean, they
13:03 had all offseason to kind of drain what happened to national
13:06 championship, it's retooling a lot of new players that didn't
13:09 even eat in that. And for them to come out looking sluggish
13:12 already, I think it's just not a good look. And I think they need
13:15 to come out next week and, you know, pedal to the floor and
13:18 kind of give it to them.
13:19 Yeah, I, I completely agree with what both of you guys said. Do
13:27 you guys have anything else about the game yesterday or
13:30 about the game against nickel state next week?
13:33 I think I do at some point, we'll hope to hear why we got
13:37 away from the run a little bit. I do think when with our new
13:40 high tempo fast offense, I think part of why our defense was
13:44 getting burned as much as when you run a high tempo offense and
13:47 we go on three and outs or we shoot ourselves in the foot with
13:49 penalties. And then you get off the field, your defense has no
13:52 time to rest. And when you know, like you said, Carson, you're
13:55 going against five four star five star receivers, you got to
13:58 give them rest, they got to be able to recover because we can
14:01 recover because we can't rotate those guys that you know, our
14:04 secondaries are secondary, we don't really, our depth really
14:07 isn't there. It's mainly in the linebacker position. So I think
14:10 that's kind of part of why I kind of just want to have an
14:13 understanding of why we moved away from running the ball when
14:15 I mean, Imani Bailey was averaging 13.7 yards a rush
14:18 yesterday.
14:19 Yeah, I, I mean, I kind of looked back. And Imani, Imani
14:25 Bailey, he left pretty much right at the start of the fourth
14:29 quarter. But it was very early in the second half that we just
14:34 stopped running the ball. I remember multiple drives where
14:37 we would end up getting the first down. But it would take
14:41 Chandler Morris and Jared Wiley connecting to actually get there
14:47 always on third down because we were throwing short passes or
14:51 deep bowls every single time. I mean, I think if we had, I mean,
14:57 the type of receiving core that Colorado has, I think we would
15:02 be able to do that. But you have to remember there is no QJ this
15:07 year. There is no Darius Davis. You're not going to have guys to
15:12 throw to every single play. Yeah, plain and simple.
15:16 Yeah, well, I think a lot of it was just like, trying to get
15:22 Chandler experience, throwing the ball feel more comfortable.
15:26 And I think it was another thing like them saying, we're not
15:28 going away from you, even though you're struggling kind of deal.
15:31 We're going to continue to get that level. So I don't know.
15:33 Yeah, I think next week is kind of going to be a more important
15:38 game than we anticipated going into the season. Let's see how
15:41 they respond. So yeah, yeah, absolutely. We'll see. Yeah, I
15:46 guess we have nothing else. We'll see you guys next week
15:50 covering the game afterwards. Yeah, thank you guys for joining
15:53 me. Thank you guys for watching. Those of you seeing this on
15:57 KillerFrogs.com and we'll see you guys next week. Yeah,
16:02 everyone have a good one.