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TCU Scores in Final Minute, Avoids Halloween Scare From Kansas 22-16
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- TCU Scores in Final Minute, Avoids Halloween Scare From Kansas 22-16
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
TCU mounted a furious comeback and locked down on defense to avoid a hometown Halloween scare from Kansas in a 22-16 thriller over the Jayhawks in Fort Worth.
It began as a sluggish afternoon from both teams, as Kansas attempted to find its rhythm with backup quarterback Cole Ballard under center for his first start.
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The vaunted Horned Frog defense did not make it easy, forcing a punt and a missed field goal on the first two Jayhawk possessions.
But TCU did not have a much easier time on offense, with the Horned Frogs forced to punt on both of their initial drives.
In the defensive stalemate, it was Kansas that broke through first with a successful field goal in the final minutes of the opening quarter.
That lead would double in the later stages of the second quarter after another made kick from the Jayhawks.
But the Horned Frogs were not willing to surrender much more than field goals in the early portion of the pivotal Big 12 showdown.
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However, they could not get any help from their offense to take advantage of the mere 6-0 deficit.
TCU would punt two additional times before halftime and gave Kansas a chance to stretch the lead even further.
The Jayhawks would turn it on following the second of these Horned Frog punts and go 73 yards in only three plays to punch in the game's first touchdown.
That score would come courtesy of a 29-yard throw and catch from Ballard to Cam Pickett, which turned the score from manageable to dangerously close to becoming out of hand at 13-0.
Following the massive swing from the Jayhawks, the Horned Frogs seemed to finally wake up and mounted a 13-play, 80-yard drive led by quarterback Jaden Craig and a committee of rushers in the absence of Jeremy Payne.
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Even with the higher stakes, TCU could not get out of its own way and turned the ball over on downs in the closing moments of the second quarter and went into the locker room trailing by the aforementioned mark of 13-0.
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In the first half, TCU managed only 134 yards on offense compared to 270 from the Jayhawks.
The intermission was the best thing that could have happened for a TCU squad with its back against the wall.
Out of the break, the Horned Frogs found its edge on defensive once again and forced the Jayhawks into a punt and a turnover-on-downs on their first two series of the second half.
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But the offense from TCU took a step back from its successful drive and returned the merits of the defense with two straight punts of its own.
TCU was finally able to get a break in its favor, and as fate would have it, it came courtesy of the Horned Frogs on defense.
Linebacker Max Carroll would hawk a pass from Ballard and return it all the way to the end zone for a 60-yard score that brought TCU back within a single score with under five minutes to play in the third quarter.
The newfound life seemed to invigorate the entirety of the Horned Frogs, as another forced punt from Kansas turned into the best offensive showing of the afternoon from TCU.
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Craig caught fire with a 36-yard strike to Kari Ashley that set the tone for the entire drive. The Horned Frogs would power it on the ground the rest of the way, as Ace Theus rushed 28 yards for the go-ahead touchdown with just 26 seconds left in the period.
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After trailing all game long, TCU took a narrow 14-13 lead into the decisive fourth quarter.
Kansas threatened on its first drive playing from behind, getting all the way down to the 27-yard line of TCU.
Another defensive game-changer killed off the potential point from the Jayhawks, as Ballard was strip-sacked and the ball was recovered by Markis Deal.
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TCU could not turn the turnover into points and the Jayhawks picked up right where they left off. Ballard led them all the way back down the nine-yard line of TCU before settling for a short field goal to reclaim the lead at 16-14.
It was a position that was all too familiar for TCU this season, as the Horned Frogs suddenly trailed by one-score with the ball in their hands with a chance to take the lead.
Every other time that situation had happened, TCU ended up on the wrong side of the result.
But this time Craig commanded a masterful drive that went 84 yards in 13 plays and saw the Horned Frogs not be denied on a touchdown run from Craig himself to back in front 22-14 after a successful two-point try with just over a minute to play.
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The Horned Frogs made one final stop on the Jayhawks and for the first time this year, TCU emerged victorious in a one-score contest by a final score of 22-16 over Kansas.
TCU improved to 4-4 overall and 2-3 within the Big 12 after the massive win for Sonny Dykes and the Horned Frogs.
After a two-game homestand, the Horned Frogs will hit the road next weekend to take on No. 22 Arizona in Tucson, which lost to No. 13 Texas Tech in Lubbock earlier on Saturday.
