Entering the 2015 season, most observers thought tonight’s Baylor-TCU game would be for all of the Big 12 marbles. Instead, that honor will fall to tomorrow’s night Bedlam matchup.
In some of the wettest conditions you’ll see this side of Noah’s ark, the Horned Frogs and Bears slogged their way through a scoreless second half before two TCU overtime touchdowns to BU’s one handed the homestanding Frogs a 28-21 win in double overtime.
Both teams scored on their initial overtime possessions, TCU on Trevone Boykin‘s one-yard touchdown run and BU on Devin Chafin‘s four-yard touchdown reception from first-time quarterback starter Chris Johnson; that was the Bears first completed pass since the first half. Boykin’s eight-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin in the second overtime, with the defense turning out the biggest stop of the game on the Bears second overtime possession. On a fourth-and-1 from the 16-yard line, Chafin was stuffed for no gain as the rain-soaked TCU faithful stormed the field.
The story of the game for nearly 60 minutes, though, was the weather.
21 of the points in this game were scored prior to the heavens opening and a downpour of Biblical proportions commenced for essentially the last three-and-a-half quarters, with the other seven in regulation coming on a fumble return for a touchdown. The last offensive points prior to overtime were scored with 7:28 left in the first quarter; the last non-overtime points were scored with 12:55 remaining in the second.
If you were unable to watch, there’s one statistic that sums up just how borderline unplayable the conditions in this game were: 210. That’s the number of passing yards for which both teams combined to throw. The Horned Frogs came into the game averaging 363.5 yards per game, fifth in the country, while the Bears were 14th at 350.7. Or how about this: the teams combined for nearly as many turnovers (seven) as third downs converted (eight, on 38 tries).
Or this: There were a combined 23 punts, which were only slightly trumped by 25 pass completions. Johnson accounted for just seven completions -- on 24 attempts -- for 62 yards, the lowest aerial output of the Art Briles era in Waco.
It was a night fit for neither man nor beast, but in the end it was the Horned Frogs that made just enough plays to knock the Bears out of not only Big 12 but playoff contention as well.
With the loss, BU joins TCU as being officially eliminated from the Big 12 title race. Instead, the winner of tomorrow night’s Oklahoma-Oklahoma State matchup will be crowned conference champions.
