No. 4 TCU earns share of Mountain West
November 21, 2009
LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP)—Matthew Tucker and Joseph Turner each ran for twotouchdowns, and No. 4 TCU routed Wyoming 45-10 on Saturday for the Horned Frogs’best start in 71 years.
The win keeps TCU (11-0, 7-0) in the thick of BCS contention and clinches atleast a share of the Mountain West Conference crown. TCU last went 11-0 in 1938,capped off by a win over Carnegie Tech in the national championship game.
This wasn’t the most polished victory TCU has turned in this season, theteam turning the ball over four times. But the Frogs broke open a tight gamemidway through the second quarter by scoring 35 unanswered points, and have nowoutscored opponents 278-63 over the last six games.
Wyoming (5-6, 3-4) had just 52 yards of total offense in the second half.The Cowboys remain a win from becoming bowl eligible in coach Dave Christensen’sfirst season.
Tucker rushed for a career-high 134 yards, while Turner, who was dinged upearly in the first half, finished with 66 and scored on a pair of 5-yard runs.
Andy Dalton had a solid day, finishing 10 of 19 for 168 yards. He also threwa 45-yard TD strike to Jeremy Kerley that helped the Frogs begin to pull awayfrom the pesky Cowboys.
Dalton was even more effective with his feet. Wyoming left the middle of thefield wide open, allowing Dalton to run quite a few quarterback keepers andfinish with 88 yards.
Dalton then got to sit back and watch the action in the fourth quarter. TheFrogs will wrap up the regular season next week against New Mexico.
The quietly confident Dalton showed his school pride, etching “TCU” intothe side of his flame-red hair. The junior then carved his name deeper into theTCU history books, too. His 28 wins are one shy of matching the school recordthat Slingin’ Sammy Baugh set from 1934-36.
Austyn Carta-Samuels finished 4 of 10 for 83 yards and threw aninterception. He eventually gave way to Robert Benjamin, who couldn’t move thesputtering offense, either.
In a flash, the Frogs turned a potential scare into some breathing room.
TCU found itself tied at 10 after Wyoming’s Chris Prosinski picked up afumble and raced 98 yards for a score midway through the second half. But thetie lasted all of 16 seconds as Greg McCoy returned the ensuing kickoff 81 yardsfor a score.
Then, minutes later, Dalton found a hole in the Cowboys zone and hit Kerleyin stride. He took it from there, sprinting 45 yards for a score and a 24-10lead.
The Cowboys played one of the top teams in the nation tough for a half, justlike they did earlier in the season against Texas, who led 13-10 before pullingaway for a 41-10 win.
TCU wasn’t clicking on offense early. Coming off an emotional win over Utahlast weekend, the Frogs turned the ball over twice in the first half. Dalton waspicked off by Alex Toney at the Wyoming 2—thwarting one drive—while Ed Wesleyturned over the ball near the goal line, leading to Prosinski’s 98-yard fumblereturn.
Tucker had touchdown runs of 3 and 48 yards for the Frogs, while Ross Evansadded 28-yard field goal.
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