TCU finished 2022 with a magical 13-2 record, which included a National Championship appearance. The Horned Frogs did fall short in their conference title to Kansas State. Otherwise, they won every single game outside of Georgia. Predictably, FanDuel Sportsbook has opened the bidding on TCU’s win total at 7.5, with the over juiced to -144. TCU also is +2000 to win the Big 12, which ranks behind Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Texas Tech and Baylor. With all of that said, let’s dive into the TCU roster.
2023 TCU Football Season Preview & Predictions
TCU Football 2023 Season Preview: Coaching Staff
TCU fans have to be ecstatic after head coach Sonny Dykes brought the Horned Frogs to the College Football Playoff in Year 1. He returns as head coach, but he had to replace Garrett Riley as offensive coordinator this offseason. Dykes hired former Arkansas offensive coordinator Kendal Briles to fill this role. Briles is coming off a somewhat down season after a few sharp seasons with the Razorbacks. He has a strong offensive track record and should be solid enough. On defense Joe Gillespie returns for his second season. TCU ranked 70th in total defense last year, which hopefully takes a step forward in Year 2.
TCU Football 2023 Season Preview: Offense
Quarterback
At quarterback, TCU lost stud Max Duggan to the next level. It returns Chandler Morris and added Oregon State transfer Chance Nolan this offseason. Morris actually beat out Duggan to start last season before going down with an injury. Morris is 6-foot-0, 195 pounds, and now enters his third season of college football. He has completed 71 of his 108 career passes (65.7%) for 883 yards (8.2 yards per attempt), four touchdowns and zero interceptions. Morris does have solid mobility, with 151 yards on 36 career carries (4.2 yards per carry). Behind him, redshirt freshman Josh Hoover has allegedly impressed this spring. However, TCU still added Nolan, who started at Oregon State. He is 6-foot-3, 209 pounds, and completed 59.5% of his passes for 8.5 yards per attempt, seven touchdowns and eight interceptions last year. He was the third-highest-graded quarterback in the Pac-12 after ranking first in 2021, per PFF. Nolan also has solid mobility, with 508 yards on 116 career carries (4.4 yards per carry). This quarterback room has solid depth but may still take a step back due to Duggan’s elite 2022 season.
Running Back
TCU also loses its top two rushers in Kendre Miller and Emari Demercado. The pair had over 2,000 rushing yards and 29 receptions. Last year’s fourth leading rusher Emani Bailey returns after rushing 31 times for 250 yards. He is 5-foot-9, 200 pounds, and initially started his career with Louisiana Lafayette. He averaged 3.06 yards after contact and caught seven passes. Trent Battle and Corey Wren remain on the team after carrying the ball nine and six times apiece. Battle is a former quarterback, and Wren initially began his career with Florida State. With neither playing much to this point, a transfer could jump them. Trey Sanders comes over from Alabama after sparsely playing during his three years with the Crimson Tide. He is 6-foot-0, 214 pounds, and has rushed 115 times for 523 yards in his career. His 2.66 yards after contact and 27% forced missed tackle rate are around average. He only has nine catches to his name. Finally, TCU recruited a 4-star freshman in Cameron Cook, who will join the team this summer.
Wide Receiver
TCU’s biggest loss at the receiver position is first round draft pick Quentin Johnston. The team also lost role players Derius Davis, Taye Barber and Gunnar Henderson. On the outside it returns Savion Williams, who caught 29 passes for 392 yards. Williams is 6-foot-5, 215 pounds, and played out wide 91.1% of the time. His 1.14 yards per route ranked 41st in the Big 12 last year. From there, TCU will almost certainly rely on its five incoming receiver transfers. Alabama’s JoJo Earle is 5-foot-10, 177 pounds, and caught 12 passes for 153 yards last year. Earle began the season injured, but he ended up playing in the slot on 71.9% of his routes. He also logged 1.15 yards per route. Oklahoma State’s John Paul Richardson is 6-foot-0, 180 pounds. He caught 49 passes for 508 yards and four touchdowns. He played in the slot on 91.9% of his routes and logged 1.31 yards per route. Jack Bech comes over from LSU after catching 16 passes for 200 yards last year. He is 6-foot-2, 215 pounds, and played in the slot 95.7% of the time. He logged 1.52 yards per route in 2021, but that dropped to 1.29 last year. Ole Miss, UCF and Oklahoma transfer Jaylon Robinson will play for his fourth school. He never fully caught on at Ole Miss, but his best season came with UCF in 2020. He caught 55 passes for 980 yards. He has battled injury and crowded depth charts since. Finally, Minnesota’s Dylan Wright transfers in after catching 17 passes for 280 yards last year. He is 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, and played out wide 98.8% of the time. He has a solid 2.24 yards per route for his career. He may play more simply because TCU has a bunch of slot guys and lacks outside experience. Others remaining with the team include Blake Nowell, who caught six passes last year. Four-star freshman Cordale Russell is also the top recruit in TCU’s class and 100th overall player from 2023.
Tight End
The Horned Frogs return their starting tight end Jared Wiley after 505 snaps last year. TCU’s old offense did not always incorporate a tight end, but it should be expected to use one more often in 2023. Wiley is 6-foot-7, 255 pounds, and blocked on 63.6% of his snaps. He caught 24 passes for 245 yards as a receiver and his 1.39 yards per route were actually decent. This position has very little depth following the transfer of Geor’Quarius Spivey. Brent Matiscik and Alex Honig are the listed backups. Some people consider Bech a tight end, but he never plays in line. The tight end usage will be interesting with almost no depth behind Wiley.
Offensive Line
TCU’s offensive line lost left guard Steen Avila, center Alan Ali and right guard Wes Harris. It returns both of its tackles in Andrew Coker and Brandon Coleman. Lucky for TCU, these were two of the three best linemen on the team. Coleman now enters his third year starting and will play the left tackle position. Coker enters his fourth season as a starter, providing TCU quality protection on the boundaries. On the inside John Lanz should receive the nod at right guard after playing 412 snaps last year. Lanz has never started through a full season, but he has at least 313 snaps in three straight years. The new center should be Ezra Dotson-Oyetade after transferring in from Arizona State last year. He is a former 4-star recruit but has yet to make an impact on the field. The left guard position and even center could come down to a few transfers. Jackson State transfer Willis Patrick comes in after a strong 2022 season. He is 6-foot-4, 347 pounds, and previously played right tackle. However, TCU enters the season much weaker inside. TCU also added Alabama transfer Tommy Brockermeyer. Brockermeyer has yet to cement himself as a contributor, but he is a former 5-star recruit. Finally, Coltin Deery (55.4) transfers in from Maryland after 224 snaps last year. He played mostly center for the Terps but appeared at left and right guard as well. Ultimately, TCU has a solid offensive line foundation, but it still may be difficult for them to live up to its 28th overall ranking from 2022.
TCU Football 2023 Season Preview: Defense
TCU ranked 70th on defense in 2022. This included the 58th-ranked run defense, 123rd-ranked pass rush and 50th-ranked secondary. TCU plays a 3-3-5 defense, which often prioritizes coverage over pass rush. Looking to this year, TCU lost a few edge rushers, along with linebacker Dee Winters and corner Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson. This should be an experienced defensive group that could actually take a step forward into 2023.
Defensive Line
On the defensive line TCU lost edge defenders Dylan Horton and Terrell Cooper. Horton led the team with 10.5 sacks and 15 tackles for loss. Cooper played more of a rotational role, but his loss will still be felt. The one projected starter should be Caleb Fox after 392 snaps last year. Fox only generated 2.5 tackles for loss, but the team will now rely on him to start. The other end position is a complete question mark. Michael Ibukun-Okeyode is a name in the mix and Paul Oyewale allegedly played well this spring. The team added East Carolina edge Rick D’Abreu after multiple years of starting experience in the AAC. Ultimately, the edge group has more questions than any other on this TCU defense.
On the interior, the Horned Frogs return two of their top defensive tackles in Damonic Williams and Tymon Mitchell. Williams played 611 snaps last year and recorded 4.5 tackles for loss. Mitchell played 367 snaps, while recorded 3.5 tackles for loss and three sacks himself. Both players are well over 300 pounds and should have no issues clogging the interior for another season.
Linebacker
The linebacker position lost Dee Winters, who did some of his best work as a pass rusher. However, it returns two full-time starters in Johnny Hodges and Jamoi Hodge. Hodges played 834 snaps and led the team with 87 tackles. Interestingly, he also played well in coverage, allowing just 190 yards through the air. Hodge played 919 snaps and ranked second on the team with 82 tackles. The final linebacker starter looks like Shadrach Banks. He recorded 39 tackles last year on 339 snaps. Ultimately, this position should be stronger than most. Marcel Brooks looks like an up and comer at linebacker. Interestingly, 3-star freshman Jonathan Bax has also received rave reviews this spring.
Defensive Back
Even with Hodges-Tomlinson departing, the TCU secondary looks like a strength. Corner should be another strong position with Josh Newton and Bud Clark returning as full-time starters. Newton played over 900 snaps and logged 12 pass breakups and three interceptions. Clark primarily plays the nickel, but he recorded five interceptions and five pass breakups himself. The final corner spot will likely come down to Ish Burdine and Abe Camara. Burdine started the 2022 season for TCU, but unfortunately suffered a season-ending injury just two games in. Camara ended up playing 545 snaps and breaking up six passes himself. Avery Helm also transferred in from Florida, giving TCU excellent depth at the corner position.
At safety, the Horned Frogs return Mark Perry and Millard Bradford. Perry played 957 snaps and ranked second on the team with 84 tackles. Bradford played 566 snaps and broke up eight passes, along with 58 tackles. Finally, TCU retains strong depth here as well. Namdi Obiazor played 355 snaps at safety last season, logging 49 tackles in the process.
2023 TCU Football Schedule & Predictions
TCU Football 2023 Schedule
TCU plays a relatively difficult schedule this season. Its non-conference features an improving Colorado and a dangerous SMU sandwiched around Nicholls. In conference, it draws Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas State, Baylor and Texas Tech. This means its plays the top 5 projected teams within the conference. Unfortunately, those five games all come in a row at the end of the year. Three of them are on the road as well.
TCU Football Futures Bet & Prediction
Given the difficulty of this schedule, 7.5 wins seems reasonable for TCU. It will be a clear underdog in at least two games this year and possibly closer to five or six. The defense should improve, but a lot comes down to a remade offense. With the Big 12’s recent history of parity, longshots generally stand a greater chance in the futures market. For that reason, sprinkling TCU +2000 to win the Big 12 looks like the best bet on the board currently.
Best TCU Football Futures Bet: Win Big 12 +2000 at FanDuel
You can read the rest of Matt Gajewski’s 2023 college football season previews and predictions below!
- Alabama Season Preview & Predictions
- Arkansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Auburn Season Preview & Predictions
- Florida Season Preview & Predictions
- Georgia Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kentucky Season Preview & Predictions
- LSU Season Preview & Predictions
- Michigan Season Preview & Predictions
- Mississippi State Season Preview & Predictions
- Missouri Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma State Season Preview & Predictions
- Ole Miss Season Preview & Predictions
- South Carolina Season Preview & Predictions
- Tennessee Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas A&M Season Preview & Predictions
- Vanderbilt Season Preview & Predictions
- West Virginia Season Preview & Predictions
