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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Game Primer: OU at TCU
September 29, 2016 | Football
Oklahoma
21 TCU
October 1 / 4 p.m. CT / Amon G. Carter Stadium / Fort Worth, TX
OPENING KICK
• Oklahoma begins pursuit of its 10th Big 12 championship under 18th-year head coach Bob Stoops when it plays its first true road game of the season against No. 21/19 TCU on Saturday at 4 p.m. CT at Amon G. Carter Stadium (capacity 45,000) in Fort Worth.
• OU has won nine Big 12 titles in the league's 20-year history, with no other program during that span winning more than three. All nine of OU's Big 12 titles have come in Stoops' 17 years, with no other program winning more than two during the span. TCU has won one Big 12 championship (shared with Baylor in 2014) in its four years as a league member.
• Oklahoma is 55-30 (.647) vs. AP Top 25 teams in the Stoops era. The win percentage and win total are the second best in the country during the span behind Ohio State (.658) and LSU (57), respectively.
OU has won nine Big 12 titles in the league's 20-year history, with no other program during that span winning more than three.
• This will mark just the 10th time under Stoops that the Sooners will be unranked when facing an AP Top 25 team. OU is 5-4 in such games with wins in four of its last five contests. The last time it happened in the regular season was Nov. 28, 2009, when OU beat No. 11 Oklahoma State, 27-0.
• Among all active FBS head coaches with at least 10 years of experience, Stoops (.789) and Gary Patterson (.753) rank third and fifth, respectively, in career winning percentage.
• The Sooners are coming off one of their two bye weeks this season. In their last game they were outgained by Ohio State by just 40 yards, but two turnovers and missed opportunities in the red zone plagued them in a 45-24 home loss. Baker Mayfield was 17 for 32 for 226 yards passing and threw a pair of TDs, but his two interceptions matched his total in his first seven home games as a Sooner.
• TCU improved to 3-1 last Friday night when it posted a 33-3 win at SMU. The Horned Frogs outgained the Mustangs 589 yards to 320, mainly on the strength of the passing game. Texas A&M transfer Kenny Hill was 31 for 45 through the air for 452 yards and two TDs while throwing one interception.
TV INFORMATION
• Saturday's game will be televised by Fox, with Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Joel Klatt (analyst) and Shannon Spake (reporter) announcing.
FIVE TOP STORYLINES
Amon G. Carter Stadium (capacity 45,000) in Fort Worth, Texas. Oklahoma will play its first true road game of the year on Saturday at 4 p.m. CT vs. TCU.
• Oklahoma has not lost back-to-back regular season games since Oct. 2 and 9, 1999, Bob Stoops' debut season as head coach. OU has won 35 consecutive regular season games following a regular season loss.
• The Sooners have won each of their last seven true road games (and 18 of their last 20), with their last such loss coming to TCU (37-33 in 2014). Oklahoma has outscored its last seven true road opponents, 351-132 (50-19 average). OU has scored at least 30 points in each of its last 12 true road contests. Five of those 12 opponents were ranked.
• OU and TCU have met four times since the Horned Frogs joined the Big 12 prior to the 2012 season and all four of those contests have been decided by a touchdown or less. The average winning margin in those contests has been 3.8 points. The Sooners have won three of those four matchups (30-29 last year in Norman, 20-17 in 2013 in Norman and 24-17 in 2012 in Fort Worth). TCU's lone victory during the stretch was a 37-33 outcome in 2014 in Fort Worth.
• In five true road games as a Sooner, quarterback Baker Mayfield has completed 68.2 percent of his passes (107 of 157) for an average of 260.4 yards with 17 touchdowns against three interceptions. OU is 5-0 in those contests and has averaged 50.0 points.
• Oklahoma is averaging a stout 6.91 yards per play through three games, which is more than last year's Big 12 champion Sooners averaged for the season (6.80). In fact, the 6.91 yards per play are more than all but one of Bob Stoops' previous 17 OU teams averaged for an entire campaign.
OU HAS DOMINATED BIG 12 ERA
• Oklahoma's performance in the Big 12 Conference since Bob Stoops took over as head coach in 1999 has been nothing short of dominant. The Sooners have won nine Big 12 titles in Stoops' 17 seasons, with no other program during that span winning more than two.
• Since the first year of the Big 12 in 1996, OU has claimed nine league titles and is followed by Texas (three), Baylor, Kansas State and Nebraska (two each), and Colorado, Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas A&M (one each).
SCOUTING TCU
• TCU is off to a 3-1 start in 2016 after posting wins over South Dakota State, SMU and conference foe Iowa State. The Horned Frogs' lone setback was a 41-38 home double-overtime loss against Arkansas (9/10).
• In his 16th year at the TCU helm, Gary Patterson is the third-longest tenured head coach in the FBS, trailing only OU's Bob Stoops and Iowa's Kirk Ferentz. Patterson also ranks third among active FBS coaches in wins at his current school with 146 (Kansas State's Bill Snyder ranks first with 195; Stoops ranks second with 180).
• The Horned Frogs have been most dangerous on the offensive side of the ball so far in 2016. TCU ranks fourth nationally in total offense at 576.0 yards per game, thanks in large part to its 380.0 passing yards per game (sixth nationally). The Horned Frogs rank 50th nationally with 196.0 rushing yards per game.
Junior RB Kyle Hicks has been a dangerous weapon for Patterson's offense. Hicks leads the Horned Frogs in rushing with 52 carries for 314 yards (6.0 ypc) and five TDs, and in receiving with 20 catches for 221 yards and one score.
• Texas A&M transfer QB Kenny Hill has led TCU's potent air attack. Through four games he ranks fourth nationally and second in the Big 12 with 1,487 passing yards on 66.1-percent passing (119 of 180). Hill has thrown six touchdowns against four interceptions and has added six TDs and 166 yards (5.0 ypc) on the ground. He has spread the ball effectively for TCU, which has five receivers with at least 10 receptions.
• Junior RB Kyle Hicks has been a dangerous weapon for Patterson's offense. Hicks leads the Horned Frogs in rushing with 52 carries for 314 yards (6.0 ypc) and five TDs, and in receiving with 20 catches for 221 yards and one score.
• A bit uncharacteristically, TCU ranks 62nd nationally in total defense so far this season, giving up 384.8 yards per contest. The Horned Frogs' opponents are averaging 26.3 points per game (T65th nationally) and are converting on third down at a clip of 41.4 percent. TCU's defense has been strong in the pass rush, notching 14 total sacks (T14th nationally).
• Similar to their receptions, the Horned Frogs' sacks have been spread evenly so far in 2016. Seven different TCU defenders have logged at least 1.0 sack this season and none has more than 2.5. Sophomore LB Ty Summers paces TCU in tackles with 39, and also has 3.0 tackles for loss and two pass breakups. Senior DT Aaron Curry is a disruptive force for Patterson's unit, logging 17 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and a forced fumble.
SERIES WITH THE HORNED FROGS
• The Sooners are 10-5 all-time against TCU, but only one of those losses has come in Fort Worth. Oklahoma is 5-1 at TCU, with the lone defeat coming two years ago (37-33). OU is 4-4 vs. the Horned Frogs in Norman and 1-0 in Oklahoma City. Under Stoops, it is 4-2 in the series (1-1 in Fort Worth; won 24-17 in 2012).
• Last year in Norman, Steven Parker batted away Bram Kohlhausen's 2-point conversion attempt with less than a minute left and the seventh-ranked Sooners survived a late comeback attempt to beat No. 11 TCU 30-29 on Nov. 21. After trailing 30-13 in the fourth quarter, TCU had a chance to tie the game after Kohlhausen's 14-yard touchdown pass to Emanuel Porter with 51 seconds remaining. Instead, the Horned Frogs went for the win by attempting the 2-point conversion but were turned away by Parker. Samaje Perine ran for 188 yards and a touchdown and Heisman Trophy contender Baker Mayfield completed 9 of 20 passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns for Oklahoma before leaving with a head injury after the first half. Without injured offensive stars Trevone Boykin and Josh Doctson, TCU turned the ball over four times, leading to 24 Oklahoma points.
• In the last meeting in Fort Worth, TCU's Paul Dawson returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown and TCU made a huge fourth-and-1 stop with just over 3 minutes left as the 25th-ranked Horned Frogs handed No. 4 OU a 37-33 loss on Oct. 4, 2014. Dawson's pick for TCU came with 14:12 left to make it 37-31. The Sooners got two points when Jordan Phillips blocked the extra point and Zack Sanchez returned it to the end zone. Sterling Shepard had seven receptions for 215 yards, including a 53-yard catch to set up the first of Samaje Perine's three TD runs. Perine finished with 25 carries for 87 yards, while Trevor Knight was 14 of 35 passing for 309 yards and a TD pass to Shepard.
MIXON MAKING THE MOST OF HIS CARRIES
• Redshirt sophomore running back Joe Mixon has amassed 235 yards on just 28 carries this season. Among players who are averaging at least 50.0 rushing yards per game this year, Mixon leads the Big 12 with his 8.4 yards per carry. Only one of those other players (Baylor's JaMycal Hasty; 6.8) is averaging more than 6.0 yards per rush.
• For his career, Mixon is averaging 7.01 yards per carry, the most in the 18-year Bob Stoops era among players with at least 100 attempts. Following Mixon in the top five are Alex Ross (6.39 average; 123 carries), Samaje Perine (6.15; 522), Dominique Whaley (5.72; 152) and Trevor Knight (5.65; 151).
• On OU's all-time chart, Mixon ranks seventh with his 7.01 career rushing yards per carry (minimum 100 attempts). He ranks fifth among running backs, trailing only Greg Pruitt (7.40 average; 1970-72), Marcus Dupree (7.24; 1982-83); Buck McPhail (7.06; 1950-52) and Leon "Mule Train" Heath (7.03; 1948-50).
• Mixon needs just 12 rushing yards to reach 1,000 in his OU career. He has three career 100-yard rushing games, one this season (117 vs. ULM).
MARK ANDREWS: TOUCHDOWN MACHINE
• As a redshirt freshman last year, receiver Mark Andrews scored seven touchdowns on his 19 receptions (37 percent TD rate). That TD-to-catch ratio has actually increased through three games this season, as Andrews has registered four more scoring grabs (64 and 25 yards against Houston; 39 yards vs. ULM; 5 yards vs. Ohio State) on nine total receptions.
• The 6-5, 250-pounder from Scottsdale, Ariz., now has 11 TDs on 28 career catches (39.3% TD rate), which equates to 2.4 points per total reception. He recorded his 10th career TD catch on his 23rd reception, making him the fastest player to reach double-digit receiving TDs.
• Andrews' 11 TD receptions rank as the second most in OU history through the first 16 games of a career (All-American and former Detroit Lion Ryan Broyles caught 12 TDs passes in his first 16 games).
• Of all active FBS players with at least 10 career TD receptions, Andrews has the best TD-to-catch ratio at 39.3 percent. The next closest players are Toledo's Michael Roberts (11 TDs on 35 catches; 31.4%), North Carolina's Mack Hollins (19 on 73; 26.0%), Michigan State's Josiah Price (17 on 74; 23.0%) and Washington's John Ross (10 on 50; 20.0%).
• Among players averaging at least three receptions per game, Andrews leads the Big 12 and ranks third among Power Five players this year with his 23.4 yards per catch.
EXTRA POINTS
• This is the first matchup ever between OU and TCU where the Horned Frogs are ranked in the AP poll but the Sooners are not. Oklahoma is 3-1 all-time against the No. 21 team, including three straight wins. All four games have come under Bob Stoops.
• Stoops is 54-16 all-time in the month of October. He's won three straight October games dating to last season and four his last five. OU is outscoring teams 36-20 (2,492-1,413) in the month.
• OU linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo is tied for the Big 12 lead with his 0.67 sacks per game (two sacks in three games).
• The Sooners have yet to record an interception this season. Last year, they ranked second in the Big 12 and eighth nationally with 20 interceptions (1.5 per contest).
• Oklahoma has registered more than 500 yards of total offense in eight of its last 10 regular season games (averaging 558.6 yards in those 10 contests).
Players Mentioned
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