Frogs need offensive boost

The offense has to pick up the pace for the Frogs to win Saturday against Colorado State. Even though the Rams have lost 10 straight and are 0-3 this year, they have managed to put up some impressive point totals. And they have a better team than SMU, whom TCU beat 21-7 last week. TCU will be without Tommy Blake, who will miss at least two more games. But the Frogs are good enough without him to beat the Rams.

Frogs need win before resuming conference play

The Frogs are at a crucial point in the season as SMU prepares to visit Amon Cater Stadium on Saturday. It's not that they could not afford a third loss. Their chances of a BCS game disappeared after a disappointing overtime loss to Air Force. This TCU team will probably lose another game or two along the way, anyway.

What TCU cannot afford is a third straight loss, especially after playing so poorly down the stretch at Air Force. The season would not be ruined with a loss Saturday, but a win certainly will make the resumption of the conference schedule next week easier.

Frogs fall out of rankings

The Frogs fell out of the Top 25 after their 34-13 loss in Austin. Although I was not surprised, it certainly does not seem right that a team not in a power conference can go to the No. 7 team in the land, play a good half of football and still fall out of the rankings. Gil LeBreton explained Gary Patterson's disappointment in his column this morning.

It's almost as if TCU and its Mountain West brethren should return follow the lead of some of their counterparts in the big conferences and schedule cupcakes. The media will still talk about them, just not very positively. but at least the result on Saturday will be a "W.'

Good press from Austin

The Austin American-Statesman has done some great work leading up to the TCU-Texas game. This piece on Gary Patterson is among the best I've read. The American-Statesman deserves credit for what it has written about the Frogs, even if they are considered the enemy this weekend.

TCU and the Big 12

Jim Reeves wrote today why he doubts the Frogs will end up in the Big 12. With a big game at Texas -- and all the positive things being written about TCU football these days -- it's nice to revisit the issue. At this point, TCU won't be asked to join the Big 12 unless an existing member leaves for another conference. Reeves focuses only on the issue of money and does not mention possible defections. If, say, Missouri or Iowa State were asked to join the Big Ten, a spot would open up for TCU. Although this scenario has been discussed in the media and by fans in recent months, it does not appear to be imminent. Another possibility is Utah and BYU joining the Pac 10, another conference that needs to add teams in order to hold a championship game. With two teams of this magnitude leaving the Mountain West, another round of conference shuffling would likely begin. But don't expect the Pac 10 or Big Ten or Big 12 to make any sudden moves. For now, everyone appears happy with the current alignments. And that's not what TCU wants to hear.

Frogs rise, 'Horns fall in polls

the Frogs moved up three spots to No. 19 in both major polls after defeating Baylor. But Texas, their opponent Saturday, was not so fortunate. A sluggish performance against Arkansas State knocked the Longhorns back to No. 7. Still, a win in Austin this week will be no less impressive than it would have been when Texas was in the top 5.

Frogs look good, await Texas

The Frogs looked solid on defense Saturday night during their 27-0 season-opening win over Baylor. I'm not sure what the voters will think of TCU's latest win over a Big 12 opponent, but next week is Texas, the most important game for TCU in many years. If TCU hopes to make it to a BCS game, a competitive game is required. I'm not saying the Frogs should go into Austin expecting to just play a close game against the Longhorns. With a defense as stout as theirs and a freshman quarterback as cool as Andy Dalton, the Frogs have a solid chance to shock the college football world similar to how they did in 2005 in Norman, Okla. Hopefully, Tommy Blake will return to the team. He was held out of the opener, but appears close to being ready to play.