Frogs possible replacement in Classic
BCA officials seek opponent for No. 10 Virginia Tech
By Matt Stiver
Skiff staff
Georgia Tech’s loss could soon become TCU’s gain.
Wednesday’s announcement that Georgia Tech would not reschedule the Black Coaches Association Classic, which was canceled Aug. 27 because of a lightning storm, left both Virginia Tech and the BCA scrambling for an opponent to fill the schedule.
That scramble has left both considering TCU.
TCU, which doesn’t have a ranked opponent on its schedule, could
have a date with No. 10 Virginia Tech on Dec. 1 in Blacksburg, Va. The
game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.
Mike Flanigan, director of operations for the Gavelle Group, which organizes
the BCA Classic, said TCU is currently on a list of six “quality
opponents” under consideration. A final announcement will come tomorrow,
he said.
Athletics Director Eric Hyman said TCU would gladly accept an invitation
to participate in the Classic.
“You can’t put a dollar figure on the exposure for this program,
TCU or the city of Fort Worth,” Hyman said. “If it were to come
to fruition, we would be on national television against a premier opponent
in a great time slot with no competition. It will be huge.”
TCU head football coach Dennis Franchione said he had little difficulty convincing his players to participate in the Classic.
“It was pretty much unanimous,” Franchione said. “I told the team I wasn’t going to make the decision and our administration would not make the decision. It would be up to them, and they want to play this game.”
If selected, TCU would receive a minimum of $600,000 plus a portion of gate receipts.
A TCU-Virginia Tech matchup could potentially affect voting for the Heisman Trophy. Both Virginia Tech’s sophomore quarterback Michael Vick and TCU’s senior tailback LaDainian Tomlinson will enter the season listed by many publications as candidates for the award.
The announcement comes at a time when Hyman said TCU is finding scheduling football opponents increasingly harder.
“In the last five years, TCU has moved from the Southwest Conference to the 16-team Western Athletic Conference to the eight-team WAC and to Conference USA next year,” Hyman said. “Scheduling opponents has become a nightmare.”
Hyman said TCU’s struggle to find non-conference opponents stems from back-to-back bowl championship seasons.
“There was a time everybody wanted TCU to be their homecoming opponent,” Hyman said. “That’s not the case anymore. This is a tremendous reflection on coach Franchione and the football program.”
Matt Stiver
mrstiver@student.tcu.edu
Paving the Way
Offensive line clears way for Tomlinson by working together
By Matt Welnack
Skiff staff
The highlights are numerous. Senior running back LaDainian Tomlinson in
the open field, faking to his left, cutting to his right and with an explosion
of speed, he beats the opposing secondary for one of many long yardage
touchdowns. But what you don’t see is the dirty work up front that
put Tomlinson in that position.
After
Tomlinson recorded his NCAA-record 406 rushing yards against UT-El Paso
last season, the first thing he did was hug his offensive line. It is
these guys, the “Big Uglies,” that paved the way for Tomlinson
to become the nation’s rushing leader last season and a Heisman Trophy
candidate this year. But what sets this season’s offensive line apart
from others is the fact that all five starters are returning and they
have already been playing together for much of their collegiate careers.
“That’s a big plus,” head coach Dennis Franchione said. “It’s always a slow development period. Offensive linemen don’t always just happen when they are freshmen. These guys have a lot of seasoning and a lot of starts behind them.”
They also have Tomlinson, who thanks his offensive line after almost
every game.
“I figured he would say it once, but he says it nearly every time,”
senior tackle Mike Keathley said. “It just feels good knowing that
he recognizes us, because he knows what’s going on. For him to say
it out loud and in public to the people who see the game but don’t
know what is happening is a good feeling.”
The same five starters return with another honor on the horizon —
a Heisman Trophy.
“To tell you the truth, I haven’t really thought about it,” Keathley said. “I’m sure it would be a goal, but we don’t think about that. He definitely deserves to be mentioned like that, though.”
Senior tackle David Bobo said the play of the offensive line is as important
as Tomlinson’s performance.
“I think he needs for us to do really well for him to have a chance,”
Bobo said. “We just need to keep a good work habit and study our
film.”
As with the rest of the team, the offensive line has gotten stronger.
Franchione said the linemen are bench pressing an average of 485 pounds.
He said the offensive line is good, but they can always get better.
“I don’t think they have reached their potential yet,”
Franchione said. “They can get better and I think they know that,
and they know that I expect them to get better. They are going to have
to go out there and improve on their technique.”
Bobo, who led the team with 197 knockdowns last season and was a first-team All-Western Athletic Conference selection, said the offensive line shares a special bond.
“We can just say one word and we know what each one is thinking,” he said. “There is respect amongst us all. We pretty much control ourselves.”
Bobo and Keathley make up one of the top pairs of tackles in the nation, but the rest of the line, including senior center Jeff Garner, senior guard Jeff Millican and junior guard Victor Payne play an integral role in the success of the offense. Sophomore quarterback Casey Printers usually can rely on the experience of his linemen during critical moments of the game.
“It is a big positive for Casey,” Bobo said. “It gives Casey more confidence and time to throw the ball. Our experience factors in more mentally for him.”
In the past three seasons, the strong point of the Frogs’ offense has been the running game. Although their names do not make it into the box scores, the linemen know that whatever success Tomlinson has, they have played a part in getting him there.
“It’s
nice knowing that (Tomlinson) has got the gifts and he credits us,”
Bobo said. “Anytime I see his name, I know I have helped.”
When Tomlinson received a plaque from the NCAA for his rushing title, he turned around and presented it to the offensive line and let them hang it up in their meeting room.
“After the sixth or seventh game last season, we started thinking about the title and how we wanted to get it for him,” Keathley said. “I just can’t believe he let us hang (the plaque) up in our room.”
Last season, Tomlinson took the offensive line out for dinner — buffet, of course — but Bobo said he doesn’t know what to expect if Tomlinson should win the Heisman.
“There’s really no price on that,” he said. “Just knowing that I helped him get there would be enough.”
Matt Welnack
mgwelnack@yahoo.com
Volley Frogs open season this weekend
Team will rely on veterans, newcomers this year
By Colleen Casey
Skiff staff
Preview
Despite the loss of Stacy Olson, Jill Pape and Jessica Rangel, TCU’s volleyball team is prepared to show what they are capable of at the Miami JustBalls.com Tournament on Sept. 1 through 2.
Head volleyball coach Sandy Troudt said the squad is looking forward to surprising people this weekend and taking the little steps that will result in major strides toward raising their quality of play.
“We’re strong underdogs, but that’s a good thing,” Troudt said. “Our advantage is that people really don’t know how good we are.”
The determinant of how good the team will play can be based on the strong leaders and the team’s good chemistry since the beginning, Troudt said.
Seniors Amy Atamanczuk and Bethany Toce have proven their leadership, especially to a talented group of five newcomers.
“These two girls have really stepped up and I believe the whole team is looking better than ever because of it,” assistant coach Barbara Kovacs said.
Troudt said freshman outside hitter Brooke Worthington has given TCU something to be excited about. Worthington is considered the strongest freshman signed, Troudt said.
Although Troudt will put any player in the game she feels deserves playing time, the starting lineup for the upcoming tournament will be made primarily of six of the nine veterans.
Hayes will assume the starting setter position along with freshman defensive specialist Tori Barlow. Both Atamanczuk and sophomore Jennifer Cuca will be hitting outside of junior middle blockers Allison Lynch and Jennifer Sebastian.
Troudt said she has tried to put together a more disciplined middle and right side compared to last year’s squad.
She added that the JustBalls.com Tournament will refine the player’s basic skills such as making the offense click and elevating the level of defensive aggression, along with preparing for Western Athletic Conference play.
“We’re going to try to be disciplined and try to get the other
teams to play at our pace,” Kovacs said.
Although it’s too early to tell much from practices, Troudt said
the team could finish with the best conference record in school history.
She said the team has responded well to game-like scenarios in practice
while preparing for the upcoming tournament play.
Face-off
Kovacs said TCU’s level of play against the University of Miami, Ohio is a match of discipline vs. athleticism. TCU will also face Tennessee’s dominant hitters. In response to the many minor injuries the starting players have been facing, it’s just a matter of getting everyone to put it all together, Kovacs said. The team does not have much experience against Miami, the University of Tennessee or the University of Denver, yet this can serve as an opportunity for getting comfortable in game-like situations.
Colleen Casey
c.m.casey@student.tcu.edu