Underappreciated TCU looks to make statement vs. UT

DE Tommy Blake headlines an imposing TCU defense that boasts nine returning starters. James D. Smith/Icon SMI

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If ever there was a case study in just how drastically the 9-year-old BCS has changed the face of college football, look no further than the game taking place Saturday in Austin, Texas.

In theory, it is a high-powered matchup between two top-20 teams, No. 7 Texas and No. 19 TCU. In reality, nary a soul outside of Fort Worth views those two teams in the same light.

As Appalachian State proved against Michigan last weekend, not to mention Boise State against Oklahoma last January, college football's classification labels are becoming increasingly obsolete. Yet if the Horned Frogs knock off the Longhorns this weekend, the story will undoubtedly be that of a "non-BCS" team "stunning" a "BCS" team, and how the victory might help little 'ol TCU "crash" one of the major bowls.

Never mind that the two schools played in the same conference for 72 years. Or that TCU, which opened its season last week with a 27-0 rout of Baylor, currently carries a longer winning streak against Big 12 teams (five games) than its Big 12 adversary. Or that the Horned Frogs' defense held Texas Tech's notoriously high-octane offense to 28 fewer points last year (in a 12-3 win) than did the 'Horns (35-31). Or that TCU has had nearly as many 10-win seasons this decade (five) as Texas (six).

"For the old timers like me, I think [the non-BCS label] sticks in some peoples' craws," said John Denton, a placekicker for TCU in the early '80s who now serves as the Frogs' radio analyst. "We don't think of ourselves as chopped liver."

By no means would Denton or any other sane individual suggest TCU's program is on the same level as the Longhorns, what with Texas' staggering $60 million budget and still-glistening 2005 national championship trophy. The competitive gap, however, isn't nearly as cavernous as you might think.

"I really feel like college football hasn't been fair to TCU," Texas coach Mack Brown said this week. "If you look at their record [64-21 this decade], they have earned the right to be considered one of the best teams in the country."

Frogs fans undoubtedly appreciate Brown's recognition of their accomplishments -- which, in seven years under coach Gary Patterson, includes the aforementioned five straight wins over Big 12 foes (including a 2005 season-opening win over Oklahoma when the Sooners were coming off consecutive BCS title-game appearances) and a 9-1 record against BCS opponents since 2002.

That said, Brown's employer is arguably the biggest reason that TCU -- the once-fabled school of Sammy Baugh and Davey O'Brien -- is relegated to second-class status to begin with.

When Texas and Texas A&M decided to bail on the crumbling Southwest Conference in the mid-'90s to join what would eventually become the Big 12, it set in motion a chain of events that left the Frogs -- along with fellow SWC leftovers SMU, Rice and Houston -- to fend for themselves in the college football wilderness. Saturday will mark the first meeting between Texas and TCU since the SWC's final season in 1995.

Though the two schools were rarely on the same footing competitively even before the BCS era -- Texas holds a 60-20-1 advantage over the Frogs all-time -- at least they were considered colleagues for the better part of a century.

"I remember when we'd go to Austin and everyone would have a good time, but it wasn't that big a deal," said Denton, who, as director of the TCU Frog booster club, says that tickets to Saturday's game are the school's most sought-after in two decades. "This is almost like a bowl trip for some people. They were getting there [on Wednesday.]"

The last time the 'Horns and Frogs met as ranked opponents, on Nov. 17, 1984, the two teams were playing for the same stakes -- a shot at the Southwest Conference title and accompanying berth to the Cotton Bowl. (No. 10 Texas wound up beating No. 12 TCU 44-23, though neither ended up taking home the conference crown.)

The rules have changed, however, so much so that the Frogs almost have to beat the 'Horns on Saturday -- and possibly win the rest of their games as well -- to be assured a major bowl bid. A loss, meanwhile, will have no such disastrous effect on Texas, which is still guaranteed a BCS berth if it wins the Big 12.

"For us, it's a measuring stick game," said TCU coach Patterson. "Everyone wants to play in this type of game."

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