TCU is about to get a familiar playmaker back just as Big 12 play begins, while UCF is bracing to move forward without the quarterback it planned to build around.
Horned Frogs wide receiver Jordan Dwyer is expected to return Saturday against UCF after missing the first three games of the season with a foot injury, TCU head coach Sonny Dykes said after the win over Arkansas State. It would be Dwyer’s 2026 debut, and it gives a 3-0 TCU offense another dangerous option as conference play opens in Orlando.
Dwyer was one of the Big 12’s most productive receivers in 2025, finishing with 54 catches for 730 yards and seven touchdowns. Those seven scores led TCU, while he ranked second on the team in receptions and receiving yards.
In his absence, Ed Small has carried much of the load at receiver. He broke out for 164 receiving yards in TCU’s latest win, and the Horned Frogs as a group threw for 337 yards.
UCF, though, is dealing with the opposite kind of news. Starting quarterback Alonza Barnett III will miss Saturday’s game against TCU because of a hamstring injury and is also expected to sit out the Knights’ next game against Houston, according to CBS Sports. There is optimism that Barnett could be back in the weeks that follow.
Barnett transferred to UCF after a breakout season at James Madison, where he earned Sun Belt Player of the Year honors. His absence leaves the Knights without one of the biggest additions they made this offseason as Scott Frost’s offense heads into Big 12 play.
UCF is expected to turn to Keyone Jenkins at quarterback in Barnett’s place. Jenkins joined the Knights after previously playing at FIU.
So while TCU is preparing to add a receiver who topped 700 yards and scored seven times last season, UCF will be trying to navigate its conference opener without the quarterback it brought in to lead the way.
In Other News...
Former TCU Quarterback Suddenly Faces A Tough Question At Colorado State
Hauss Hejnys return to game action for Colorado State hit an early snag against BYU, when the former TCU and Aledo quarterback left in the first quarter with a hamstring injury. Rams coach Jim Mora said the move was not precautionary, adding that Hejny did not have the mobility to keep playing once the issue surfaced.
The encouraging part for Colorado State is Mora did not describe it as a major injury, but the rest is still unresolved. How long Hejny will be out, and how quickly he can get back to full speed, is now the question hanging over a quarterback situation that had only just started to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Has A Big 12 Problem Starting To Look Very Real
Early-season games around the Big 12 have already offered a useful scouting report for anyone tracking TCUs path through the league. Georgia States offense has shown how a steady ground game can keep pressure on a defense, while UCF and BYU have each flashed the kind of quarterback-driven wrinkles that force opponents to account for more than just the dropback pass. West Virginia has also provided another reminder that turnovers and special teams swings can tilt a game quickly, especially when teams are still sorting out their identity in September.
For the Horned Frogs, the bigger concern is how many different ways league opponents can stress a defense. Mobile quarterbacks change the math on the edge, while special teams mistakes can turn a tight contest into one that feels out of reach in a hurry. TCU does not need a full overhaul to handle that, but the recent tape makes it clear the margin in the Big 12 is thin, and the matchups ahead are shaping up to demand cleaner execution than the Frogs have shown so far. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Is Improving Fast But One Big 12 Concern Still Looms
TCU finished the first quarter of its season with a 31-7 win over Arkansas State, a result that pushed the Horned Frogs to 2-1 and offered a pretty clear snapshot of where they are right now: improving, but still a work in progress. Sonny Dykes didnt try to oversell it. He said the group is not yet at the level required to chase a Big 12 title or a College Football Playoff spot, even as the early signs around the program have been encouraging.
Jaden Craig has continued to move forward at quarterback, Ed Small and Kari Ashley have both shown growth at receiver, and the run defense has held up well despite NFL departures from last seasons group. The concern, though, is the one that tends to separate good September football from the kind that matters in November: TCU still has to prove it can keep climbing fast enough to stay in the league race once the conference schedule starts to sharpen. [Read more 🡒]