Sonny Dykes. What is there to say? Was this type of performance expected? Absolutely. The only surprising thing about the 2022 NCAA Football season that it took so long for the TCU Horned Frogs to get blown out.
That is what is more typical of a Dykes led team. Also, Los Angeles has been a nightmare for the Horned Frogs head coach. Here is a look at his teams performances in the first half in those games.
2013: UCLA 24, California 10
2014: USC 31, California 9
2015: UCLA 26, California 10
2016: USC 28, California 10
2023: Georgia 38, TCU 7
Overall that means Dykes’ teams have been outscored 147 to 46 in those games.
Even more interesting though is what will come of TCU after Dykes becomes the primary recruiter for the institution? The players currently on the Horned Frogs roster are from a tremendous coach, Gary Patterson who won 181 games in 22 seasons for the school, he also won 11 bowl games.
Patterson is the only reason to explain the success of the Horned Frogs in 2022. With Dykes taking over when it is all said and done, TCU fans will look back on this season and realized that it was a complete fluke.
Dykes’ own history proves this from the start of his coaching career at Louisiana tech, to getting hired at California, and his last stop before being hired at TCU, SMU, his teams have always struggled defensively.
Those who have never seen Dykes coach saw that from the start against Georgia. At the end of the first quarter of the national title game TCU’s defensed allowed 11.7 yards per play.
Overall Georgia’s offense compiled 589 yards of total offense (335 passing, 254 rushing).
Offensively, the Horned Frogs were over matched by the Bulldogs defense. Max Duggar only threw for 152 yards while getting intercepted twice, and early in the game Derius Davis fumbled. The one thing an offense cannot do is turn the ball over.
Davis did make up for his turnover on the only scoring drive, the Horned Frogs had. He came through with a 60 yard reception, which set up a two-yard touchdown run by Duggar. Offensively, the Horned Frogs managed only 188 total yards. The aforementioned 152 yards from Duggar and only 36 rushing yards.
TCU will certainly wind up in bowl games with Dykes, the expectation of making another college football playoff run is highly unlikely.
Defense is key, it is something that the Horned Frogs will lack with Dykes. The only question then is how long will it take for fans to turn on him? The national title game was a specialty of his. Blown out and not competitive.