Texas Christian @ UNLV preview
Sam Boyd Stadium
Last Meeting ( Oct 31, 2009 ) UNLV 0, Texas Christian 41
Fourth-ranked TCU has insisted all week it won’t overlook a one-win UNLV team. Still, it’s hard to imagine that the Horned Frogs (8-0, 4-0 Mountain West) aren’t already eyeing seventh-ranked Utah next week.
But as the TCU coaches and players have said, UNLV (1-6, 1-2) has its full attention. After all, this has the makings of a potential trap game for TCU. UNLV has had two weeks to prepare and it’s the type of upset victory that could jump start the Rebels program under first-year coach Bobby Hauck.
Nobody sees that coming, though. TCU is a five-touchdown favorite, and rightfully so. The Frogs have a 7-1 record in the all-time series, dating back to 1996 when both schools were in the Western Athletic Conference.
They are coming off an impressive 38-7 victory over Air Force last week, and have allowed only one touchdown to conference opponents so far this season.
Offensively, TCU did a lot of damage on the ground last week, rushing for a season-high 377 yards on 51 carries. Sophomore running back Ed Wesley had a career-high 209 yards on 28 carries with touchdown runs of 8 and 13 yards.
TCU senior quarterback Andy Dalton also rushed for a career-high 93 yards on seven attempts. He also surpassed 9,000 career passing yards with a 21-yard completion to Jimmy Young in the second quarter.
Defensively, TCU has played well in October, holding all of its opponents to single digits. The Horned Frogs are the top-ranked scoring defense (9.0 points per game) and pass defense (117.9 yards per game), and are second in total defense (219.9 yards per game).
Sophomore linebacker Tanner Brock has shined in his first year as a starter and leads the team with 59 tackles, including 3 ½ for loss.
UNLV, meanwhile, should pose a deep threat with junior wide receiver Phillip Payne returning to the starting lineup. Payne missed the last two games because of critical comments he made about the program on his Twitter page before the team faced West Virginia on Oct. 9.
Despite missing those two games, Payne still leads the Rebels with 389 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
UNLV has scored only 10 points in each of its last two games. In its game against Colorado State on Oct. 16, UNLV gained only 274 yards of total offense, including 125 passing yards.
Defensively, the Rebels didn’t fare much better, giving up 43 points and 492 yards to Colorado State.
Finally, it’s worth noting, TCU is the highest ranked team to ever visit Sam Boyd Stadium.