TCU gets a bye this weekend, but the Big 12 slate still has plenty for Horned Frogs fans to watch. With the Frogs trying to reset after back-to-back conference losses, the KillerFrogs staff turned its attention to the rest of the league and made picks across five Big 12 games, plus Arizona State’s nonconference matchup with Hawai‘i.
The week’s most divided call came in Provo, where Iowa State visits BYU. One staff member is taking the Cyclones, pointing to the way they have handled two ranked opponents already this season and noting that BYU could be without star running back LJ Martin.
The rest of the group stayed with the Cougars. Martin’s absence matters here, especially after TCU saw how BYU adjusted once he left last Saturday’s game.
Oklahoma State was a much easier decision. UCF heads to Stillwater after blowing a 17-0 lead in a 27-17 loss to Houston, while the Cowboys return from their bye and look to keep rolling in their second Big 12 game. The staff was unanimous on the Cowboys, with nobody backing the Knights on the road.
Arizona and West Virginia drew a closer split. The Wildcats come in off a 34-7 win over Cincinnati, while the Mountaineers are still chasing their first Big 12 victory after a 45-42 loss to Iowa State.
The staff leaned Arizona, but just barely. It shapes up as one of the more interesting games on the board.
Kansas State also landed on the right side of a staff vote, though this one was tighter than the final tally might suggest. The Wildcats are back from their bye and still looking for their first Big 12 win after dropping their conference opener to Cincinnati.
Houston, meanwhile, is trying to build on its comeback against UCF and improve to 2-1 in league play. The staff took Kansas State, but not without acknowledging that the Cougars have already shown they can rally from a slow start.
Arizona State’s trip to Hawai‘i was the easiest pick of the bunch. Everyone on the staff backed the Sun Devils to handle business at home.
Arizona State is coming off a loss to Baylor, and that result matters to TCU fans because Baylor is next on the Frogs’ schedule. The game won’t affect the Big 12 standings, but it does give the Sun Devils a chance to get back on track.
The final game drew a little more intrigue than the unanimous vote suggests. Kansas heads to Salt Lake City to face Utah, and one staff member admitted the Jayhawks could make things interesting.
Still, the Utes got every vote. Kansas is looking for its first Big 12 win, while Utah is trying to stay unbeaten.
With the staff picks in, TCU fans can spend the bye week tracking how the conference race unfolds and keeping an eye on opponents still left on the Frogs’ schedule. The Horned Frogs also have work to do of their own, including finding more steady production from players like tight end Kari Ashley.
In Other News...
BYU Just Picked Up A Backfield Concern TCU Fans Will Notice
BYUs backfield took a hit this week, and it is the kind of development TCU fans will file away when looking ahead on the schedule. Running back LJ Martin is expected to miss four to six weeks because of a lower-body injury, according to ESPNs Pete Thamel, and that leaves the Cougars without one of their most reliable contributors as they move deeper into the season.
For BYU, the timing matters because Martins absence will ripple through several upcoming games and force the staff to reshuffle touches in a hurry. Freshman Journee Tonga is expected to see a bigger workload during Martins recovery, which adds another layer of uncertainty to a position group TCU will be watching closely if the teams meet with the Cougars still adjusting on offense. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Women Already Have A Big 12 Doubt To Answer
TCU womens basketball enters the 2026-27 season with a strong bit of respect already attached to it, even if the leagues coaches stopped short of putting the Horned Frogs at the top. In the Big 12 preseason poll, TCU landed second behind Oklahoma State, a tight result that says plenty about how the league views the Frogs after a strong enough offseason impression to keep them near the front of the conversation.
The individual honors followed the same theme. Center Clara Silva earned a place on the preseason All-Big 12 team, while guard Jessie-May Hall was voted preseason Freshman of the Year, giving TCU a mix of proven talent and fresh buzz before the games even begin. For a team already carrying expectations, the bigger question is no longer whether it belongs in the upper tier, but how quickly it can turn those votes into something more tangible once the season starts. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Mourns A Coach Who Helped Change Horned Frogs History
Dennis Franchione, whose run in Fort Worth helped reshape TCU football, has died at 75 after his cancer returned. The veteran college coach also led programs at New Mexico, Alabama, Texas A&M and Texas State, but for Horned Frogs fans he remains tied to a stretch that brought real momentum to a program looking for a breakthrough.
TCU joined Alabama and other schools in mourning his passing, noting the mark he left on the sport and on the places he coached. For TCU, the news is a reminder of how much one coach can alter a programs direction, and why Franchiones name still carries weight around Fort Worth. [Read more 🡒]