West Virginia’s Week 8 trip to TCU now has a kickoff time and TV window.
The Big 12 announced Monday afternoon that the Mountaineers and Horned Frogs will play on Saturday, October 24 at 12 p.m. ET, with ESPN2 carrying the broadcast.
TCU heads into Week 7 at 2-3, with wins over Grambling and Arkansas State and losses against every Power Four opponent it has faced so far: North Carolina, UCF, and BYU.
The Frogs’ defense has carried them. TCU is giving up just 255 yards of total offense per game, which ranks among the best numbers in the Big 12.
It has been especially strong against the pass, allowing 155.4 yards per game through the air, the conference’s second-best mark. That stingy unit has also kept points off the board, with TCU surrendering only 13.4 per game, second-fewest in the league.
The problem has been on the other side of the ball. Sonny Dykes’ team has not been able to match that defensive production with enough offense. Jaden Craig has helped TCU move the ball through the air, but the run game has been a major issue, sitting last in the Big 12.
That makes TCU something of a mirror image of West Virginia. The Frogs can slow people down, but they struggle to score. The Mountaineers’ issue has been the opposite end of the game - defense.
The series between these two has gone through several different phases since they joined the league together in 2012. The first four matchups were a back-and-forth stretch of tight games, then each team posted a blowout, and West Virginia eventually found more consistent success.
West Virginia leads the all-time series 8-6 and has won six of the last nine meetings. TCU has taken two of the last three, though, and the Mountaineers have actually done better in Fort Worth, where they are 4-2 in six games.
In Other News...
Sonny Dykes Just Put TCU's Biggest Baylor Week Concerns In Focus
With Baylor coming up next, Sonny Dykes used his media availability to sketch out where TCU stands after the bye week and what the Horned Frogs still want cleaned up. He was joined by Jamel Johnson and Jeremy Payne, and the conversation touched on the teams progress, the offensive direction the staff wants to keep pushing, and the challenge Baylors offense presents as the rivalry game draws closer.
Dykes also spent time on individual performances and the general confidence level around the program, which has been a useful theme for TCU as it turns the page from the break to game week. What he would not do, at least publicly, was spell out every detail of the staffs self-scouting from the bye or get too specific about the receiver room picture, leaving a couple of the most interesting personnel questions still hanging as the Frogs move into one of their most watched weeks of the season. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Comes Out Of The Bye Facing A Big 12 Gut Check
Baylors visit with TCU arrives with both teams rested and plenty on the line, but the tenor is different on each sideline. The Bears are trying to keep their conference start clean after a strong opening stretch, while the Horned Frogs are looking to steady themselves after a shaky first month and make the most of a bye week that gave them time to reset. It has the feel of a true early Big 12 measuring stick, with one team trying to protect momentum and the other trying to get back on track before the league race starts to tilt.
For TCU, the matchup carries extra weight because the Frogs need a sharper showing against a Baylor team that has looked comfortable in recent weeks. Coaches on both sides have already addressed their teams' performances and the challenge ahead, and the setup suggests a game that will say plenty about where TCU stands after its open week. A win would help change the tone quickly; another stumble would only deepen the questions heading into the heart of conference play. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Has Every Reason To Take This Baylor Rivalry Personally
TCU is getting ready for a rivalry game that has already carried a different kind of edge inside the building. Players have made it clear this one means more than the usual Big 12 week, with the Bluebonnet Battle trophy in play and both teams bringing defenses that can make every snap feel like it matters. For a roster that includes several transfers, the matchup has also become a chance to prove they understand what this game means to the people around the program.
The Horned Frogs know Baylor has had the upper hand recently, and that alone gives this meeting a sharper tone than most. There is a sense of unfinished business in the way TCU is talking about the game, along with a quiet confidence that contributions can come from all over the lineup when the moment arrives. Against a rival like this, even the subplots feel personal, and the Frogs seem intent on treating it that way. [Read more 🡒]