Showdown in Cowtown: No. 4 Frogs host No. 16 Utah in most important game of Patterson era

The fourth-ranked TCU Horned Frogs host No. 16 Utah Saturday night. The Frogs look to stay undefeated and keep their BCS hopes alive. The winner will also have the inside track on a MWC championship. TCU has not lost a game since last year's game at Utah, and has not lost a home game since the 2007 Utah game.

By Tony Eierdam / KillerFrogs.com Staff Writer

For 53 long weeks, fans of No. 4-ranked TCU have been waiting for the Horned Frogs' rematch with the Utah Utes.

Utah (8-1, 5-0), ranked No. 16, comes into the game as a 20-point underdog. The game will be televised nationally on CBS-College Sports.

Frog fans recall last year's 13-10 loss to the Utes where TCU (9-0, 5-0) missed two short field goals and dropped what would have been a certain touchdown pass. Utah went on to blowout an unsuspecting Alabama team in the Sugar Bowl.

Saturday's game, however, has taken on a carnival atmosphere even before the 6:30 p.m. kickoff at Amon Carter Stadium. Nike will outfit the Frogs in new uniforms, and ESPN GameDay, considered the top show in its field, will be making its first-ever appearance in Fort Worth. It will be the second time this year TCU will play a game at the site of the GameDay broadcast, the other being three weeks ago at Provo for the BYU game.

With all of the hype, TCU head coach Gary Patterson dismissed the 20-point spread and feels the game will take on its annual struggle.

"Every year when we play Utah, it has been a close, physical game with two very athletic teams,” he said. “It's exciting to be at this point where we get to play them for something that matters. That is what you try to get to. We are fired up to be playing at home and to play in front of a sellout crowd. Like we always say, you get them ready for the games you are supposed to win, and games like these take care of themselves."

Patterson isn't concerned about the distractions, particularly with the new uniforms.

"The changing of the uniforms isn't something that started two weeks ago,” he said. “It started all the way back to last spring with Nike. This is not something about Utah. This is about telling the story of TCU. That's what this uniform is about and nine other schools across the country will do the same thing. We were hoping that this would be a big game and that it would be played for something, and I think our kids are really excited about it. I'm excited because my kids are excited. It's kind of like when you're a parent. When your kids are happy and they are excited about something, you can get them to do things you couldn't get them to do before. It's a one-game change. It's not going to be here next week.

“When you see GameDay,” Patterson continued, “you will see the traditional TCU helmet. That's what TCU is. You will see the other helmet when we run out on the field Saturday. That's as close as I get to having fun at a football game, changing up the uniforms. I really appreciate Nike that they asked and chose TCU to be one of those schools to try this. I take it as a compliment. It will still come down to the fact that you have to tackle, run, block and do the things you need to do. If our kids feel like that's a Superman suit, then great."

Patterson hopes the Frogs will remember the feeling they had shortly after the upsetting loss at Utah that basically cost the school millions of dollars in BCS bowl money, not to mention the loss national attention and respect gained by playing in a BCS bowl.

“I have never been in a locker room that had a hundred people with tears in their eyes,” Patterson recalled. “You understood that this really means something. You have guys that you have been with for four years who won 41 ball games, and this hurt. That's where you want to get your program. When you play these kinds of ball games and when it doesn't go your way, it hurts.

“For me, as a leader, you put it on your shoulders. It's my job to find a way to get it done. It's my job to get that extra third down. It's my job to make sure that our kids are growing up. It's my job to make sure we stop them on the last drive. That's what head coaches are supposed to do. You can't look at anyone else until you look at yourself.”

Patterson pointed to a past TCU opponent when trying to rate Utah's defense.

“Clemson was very good, and they are very comparable,” he said. “They are both big, physical, very fast and aggressive. They will come at you. They are not going to give you anything. You have to go take it. They are going to come at you like every other Kyle Whittingham defense that I have had to face. They will hit you in the mouth.

Whittingham played down the 20-point spread, but most feel the huge spread will naturally motivate the Utes.

"We really don't pay a lot of attention to that at this point in time,'' Whittingham scoffed. “We are more focused on TCU. Their roster is solid from top to bottom at every position. If you look at the stats, they are at or are near the top in all three phases of the game. Coach Patterson has done a great job assembling talent and I think they do a great job coaching them. There is no question that this is the best football team we have faced from them to this point. Their run game is the best in the conference if you look at yards per carry.

“Andy Dalton is a talented kid, he feels comfortable in the scheme and when the running game is in high gear, it opens up the throw game. Jeremy Kerley is a terrific returner and a good receiver. He is a dangerous guy and they did not have him last year for this game. Jerry Hughes is a very good football player. He is a productive guy and you have to be aware of that and have to get him taken care of.”

Patterson expects the Frogs to “get down to business” and worry about their play on the field as opposed to the pomp and circumstance of the game, which has turned into a national media event if not the most important game that day in college football.

"We understand that every ball game we have played against Utah has been very close,” he said. “They have never played us here when we have had this kind of crowd, so it'll be interesting. It's like I told my kids: It doesn't matter about uniforms or crowd size, you've got to go play. A lot of people across the country play in front of 85,000-90,000 people every week and get beat. If history repeats itself, we will play at a very high level, because we have done that when we have had a big crowd here.

“We've got the ultimate respect for both programs in Utah, both Utah and BYU. We understand the historic part of how many games they have won, how they've played and how they are coached. This year is no different. They have only lost one game this year and only a couple the last few years. They know how to win. They know how to play in big games. We know how to win, and we know how to play in big games. Every year, it's a title fight. Like I said when I was coming off the field Saturday, it's going to be a showdown in Cowtown. That's where we are at."