Horned Frogs pulled out a win Saturday taking down No. 23 West Virginia, 31-24 in a back-and forth affair.

“They’re resilient,” TCU head coach Gary Patterson said. “Even when they tied it up 17-17 and 24-24, I didn’t see them panic.”

The Frogs built a 14-point cushion, 17-3, with six minutes left in the third quarter, only to see it evaporate in five minutes after Mountaineer signal-caller Will Grier threw a pair of touchdown passes: a 64-yard connection with David Sills V and a 76-yard bomb to Ka’Raun White.

Patterson said he called for a cornerback blitz a few times too many, which allowed Grier to hit wide-open receivers. Those plays accounted for 14 of West Virginia 24 points and 140 of its 508 total yards.
The Horned Frog defense forced the Mountaineers to kick a field goal in the red zone and only allowed WVU to convert on seven of its 18 third downs.

“First half, we limited them, made them kick a field goal, stopped them on third downs, and they missed a field goal,” Patterson said.

The defense demonstrated experience when Nick Orr intercepted Grier midway through the third quarter on a familiar play.Read More