Refusing to settle with their 2-1 start, the Horned Frogs head to Orlando as Sonny Dykes challenges his roster to evolve before facing UCF’s potent rushing attack.
TCU enters Big 12 play with momentum, but Sonny Dykes is making sure his team does not confuse a couple of convincing victories with having everything figured out.
The Horned Frogs are 2-1 heading into Saturday's conference opener against UCF after responding to their season-opening loss to North Carolina with consecutive victories over Abilene Christian and Arkansas State. TCU closed out its nonconference schedule in impressive fashion, defeating Arkansas State 31-7 last weekend behind a strong performance from quarterback Jaden Craig and the offense.
Craig threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns in the victory, while receiver Ed Small enjoyed a career day with seven catches for 164 yards and a touchdown. Those performances have given the Frogs plenty of reasons to feel encouraged heading into conference competition.
Still, Dykes isn't looking at the team's 2-1 record and treating it as evidence that TCU has reached its ceiling.
In fact, his comments suggest the opposite.
"We’re 2-1 — we’re disappointed that we’re not 3-0," Dykes said. "There’s nothing we can do about that. We just have to continue working and getting better and improve. We’re nowhere where we need to be. And I’m confident we’re nowhere near where we’re gonna be."
That mindset could be important as TCU begins a Big 12 schedule that will provide a much clearer indication of where the program stands.
The first test comes against UCF, which is also 2-1 entering conference play. The Knights are coming off a 44-30 win over Georgia State and will have home-field advantage when TCU travels to Orlando. UCF has also already demonstrated its ability to make things difficult for the Frogs, rallying from a 21-point deficit to beat TCU 35-34 in 2024.
UCF has found success on the ground this season, rushing for 304 yards against Georgia State. Duke Watson accounted for 177 of those yards and scored twice, meaning TCU's defense will have an immediate challenge to slow down the Knights' rushing attack.
For TCU, Saturday represents the beginning of the part of the season that ultimately matters most.
The Frogs have shown signs of improvement since their disappointing opener, but Dykes' message is clear: There is still plenty of work left to do.
Rather than celebrating where TCU is at 2-1, the coaching staff appears focused on where this team can go from here. With Big 12 play finally arriving, the Frogs will get their first opportunity to show just how much progress they can make.
