Estimated read time: 9-10 minutes
Editor's note: Read the schedule preview of Southern Utah and Baylor in Part 1 here, Utah State and Oklahoma State in Part 2 here, and Arizona and Arizona State in Part 3 here.
SALT LAKE CITY — We continue down Utah's 2024 schedule with two more opponents — one that's very familiar to Utah from their days in the Mountain West Conference, and a new opponent the Utes have never beat.
Listen to a breakdown of these games weekly on the Utah Checkdown podcast.
TCU Horned Frogs
Date: Saturday, Oct. 19 (TBA)
Location: Rice-Eccles Stadium; Salt Lake City, UT
2023 record: 5-7 (3-6 Big 12)
Final AP ranking: N/A
Last meeting: Nov. 6, 2010, Salt Lake City; TCU won 47-7
Preseason win projection: 7.5 wins
What curse? Utah has never encountered a curse against the Horned Frogs of TCU. You must be crazy!
Utah and TCU are back together again — this time in a power conference with different (but similar) trajectories. So how will the reunion look? Probably another competitive and entertaining matchup between two programs that have been used as sort of the benchmark standard for teams making the jump from the Group of Five to that of a power conference.
Kyle Whittingham still leads the Utes, but the Horned Frogs are in Year 3 of head coach Sonny Dykes, who replaced longtime coach Gary Patterson. In Dykes' first season with the program, the former Cal coach got TCU to the NCAA national championship game. But last year, that same program fell back to the middle of the Big 12 standings.
So what could 2024 bring?
TCU returns a veteran team with a lot going for it after a down season. And any weakness or problem it had last season, Dykes mostly addressed in the transfer portal and with the hiring of former Boise State head coach Andy Avalos as his new defensive coordinator.
The Horned Frogs still have some questions entering the season, but this should be a team that will compete for a Big 12 title — maybe in tier 2 of the competitors this season. And to help matters against Utah, TCU enters Rice-Eccles Stadium off a bye; Utah is coming of a Friday night road meeting against Arizona State.
TCU is led by redshirt sophomore quarterback Josh Hoover, who is looking to take the next step in his progression after starting in the final six games of the season after Chandler Morris was injured. Morris is now at North Texas, so the leash shouldn't be short for Hoover, but progress needs to be made after throwing nine interceptions to 15 touchdowns last season.
Hoover, though, will have several weapons at his disposal this year — arguably, even better talent than last season. The Horned Frogs return their two leading receivers — Savion Williams (573 yds, 4 TDs) and JP Richardson (536 yds, 3 TDs), while adding former Boise State leading receiver Eric McAlister (873 yds, 5 TDs) and Notre Dame's Braylon James.
To add to the arsenal, former Baylor tight end Drake Dabney (552 yds, 5 TDs), the Bears' second-leading receiver last season, also transferred into the program and should be another weapon in a passing offense that ranked seventh in FBS last season with an average of 312.2 yards per game, and 11th in total offense (466.7 yards per game).
The biggest weakness last season was in the run game, and there's not an immediate answer here for the 2024 season. Leading rusher Emani Bailey (1,209 yds, 8 TDs) graduated to the NFL, and the remaining depth is a bit inexperienced — at least in comparison. But Cam Cook and Trey Sanders should be in the mix, as well as Arkansas transfer Dominique Johnson.
The offensive line also only returns two that have starter experience; that unit will need time to gel. Depending on how that goes, Utah could see an offensive line that is finally in sync and helping TCU's offense move the ball well, or it could be a major vulnerability. But there's too many unknowns to answer that question just yet.
Overall, though, the offensive side of the ball wasn't a major problem for TCU last season. The defense under former coordinator Joe Gillespie ranked 103rd (out of 133 teams) in total defense and 113th in passing defense — hence the change in coaching.
Avalos will mostly move away from Gillespie's 3-3-5 scheme to that of a system that features four up front and a single-high safety in coverage. This should put more pressure on the offensive line (and the QB), while changing the overall coverage in the passing game. That's the plan at least.
A shift in defensive schemes doesn't always go smoothly in the first season, but the Horned Frogs have a mostly veteran and experienced defense returning to help with the change — including former Utah corner JaTravis Broughton, who transferred in December.
Dykes believes this year's unit is the best defense he's fielded and his optimism is high, but considering his defense hasn't amounted to much the last few seasons tempers the excitement a bit. Still, this should be a defense that is improved from the last couple seasons.
The TCU defense loses their highest-graded defender in corner Josh Newton (Cincinnati Bengals) and their best defensive lineman in Damonic Williams to the transfer portal (Oklahoma), but returns a fair amount of experience and up-and-coming talent to help the Horned Frogs improve this season.
Offense (2023 stats)
Scoring: 31.3 points (32.0 five-year average)
Rushing: 154.5 yards (192.5)
Passing: 312.2 yards (242.7)
Total offense: 566.7 (435.2)
Defense (2023 stats)
Scoring: 27.8 points (28.5 five-year average)
Rushing: 154.7 yards (160.1)
Passing: 253.7 yards (233.2)
Total defense: 408.3 yards (393.2)
Houston Cougars
Date: Saturday, Oct. 26 (TBA)
Location: TDECU Stadium; Houston, TX
2023 record: 4-8 (2-7 Big 12)
Final AP ranking: N/A
Last meeting: Sept. 23, 1978, Houston; Houston won 42-25
Preseason win projection: 4 wins
The first season in the Big 12 was not kind to Houston — as could be expected. And with only two wins in conference play (West Virginia and Baylor by a combined 3 points) and four wins overall, it was time for a coaching change.
Houston did well by hiring away Willie Fritz from a very successful Tulane program under his stewardship. The Cougars hope to see a similar rise under Fritz, but a one-year wholesale change seems difficult (at best). The recruiting footprint is fertile, but it should take some time before the Cougars are truly competitive.
The Cougars will likely be picked to finish last in the conference this season, and for good reason — there are many questions surrounding the program — but it's a team that could be more competitive than expected, especially with Fritz now in charge.
Houston wasn't great on offense last season, but was even worse on defense. And with 33 players that entered the transfer portal and 27 that came in, there's a lot different about the 2024 Cougars — saying nothing of the different offensive and defensive schemes that will be implemented under a new coaching staff.
Fritz is known for his defense and special teams prowess, whereas his offense is usually tailored around whoever his offensive coordinator is at the time, giving them mostly full autonomy to do what they want so long as they put an emphasis on running the ball — the one rule he maintains.
At Houston, Fritz hired Kevin Barbay (previously Mississippi State) as his offensive coordinator. Barbay runs more of a pro-style offense that caters to the talents of his best players, while utilizing shifts and motions in an effort to get explosive plays.
It's what Barbay describes as "simple yet creative." How it all unfolds at Houston remains to be seen, though.
Under center is Donovan Smith, who led the Cougars last season with 2,801 yards and 22 touchdowns on 64.5% passing. But his 13 interceptions leave some reason for concern if not cleaned up (though some of those can be blamed, in part, to a shoulder injury late in the season).
Smith did not participate in spring after undergoing shoulder surgery, so his install with the new offensive playbook will be stunted, but his experience as a starter should help. Louisiana transfer Zeon Chriss had 1,222 yards, 11 touchdowns, five interceptions in eight games his freshman season and will serve as a worthy backup.
The receiver depth took a hit when three of the top five leading receivers transferred out of the program, including Samuel Brown (Miami), who led the team with 815 yards and three touchdowns, and Matthew Golden (Texas), who added 404 yards and six touchdowns.
Houston kept their second-leading receiver in Joseph Manjack (577 yds, 6 TDs) and Stephon Johnson (277 yds, 3 TDs), while adding Mekhi Mews (Georgia), tight end Maliq Carr (Michigan State), and a three other pass catchers from the transfer portal.
With the run game being an important part of the offense, Houston returns its leading rusher in sophomore Parker Jenkins. He managed only 464 yards and three touchdowns last season, but the offensive scheme change should help him have a more productive season. The Cougars bring back Stacy Sneed and Tony Mathis, while adding freshman J'Marion Burnette.
Smith, too, is a running QB and was the team's second-leading rusher, so watch for him to be a part of the ground game.
Though the running back depth is good, the offensive line is going through a big change and will be one of the biggest questions coming into the 2024 season. Houston is replacing almost the entire offensive line and brought in four players from the transfer portal to help with the change up front, but it will take time for this unit to gel.
By the time Houston plays Utah, enough will be known about how well (or not) the offensive line will be able to gel. Barring some miraculous connection, though, it will take some time for this offensive line to come together.
On defense, Fritz brought his defensive coordinator Shiel Wood over with him from Tulane. It's a defense that was stout against the run and was ranked inside the top 25 of run defense and in points allowed.
Wood's base defense is a 3-4, changing up what Houston has traditionally utilized, though he operates a multiple defense that could include some 4-3 schemes, as well, in an effort to take advantage of the personnel he has on the field.
The defensive line was gutted with three of their top-graded players moving onto the NFL (DE Nelson Ceaser) or the transfer portal (Jamaree Caldwell and Chidozie Nwankwo), but Fritz added a handful from the portal that should give the Cougars what they need to compete, including defensive end Keith Cooper (Tulane).
There's depth up front, and Fritz likes what he has, but it's going to be in rebuild mode.
Jamal Morris (64 total tackles) anchors a linebacker unit that lost two starters, while adding six others from the transfer portal. In the secondary, safety AJ Haulcy returns to provide some consistency and experience, but this unit is also being rebuilt through the transfer portal.
On paper, the defense should be better than last season, especially with Fritz's stamp on it, but there's enough change where Houston will likely remain at the bottom of the conference. Still, Houston should be improved and a road game for the Utes won't be a walk in the park.
Offense (2023 stats)
Scoring: 23.7 points (31.3 five-year average)
Rushing: 118.7 yards (146.9)
Passing: 241.5 yards (259.2)
Total offense: 360.2 (406.1)
Defense (2023 stats)
Scoring: 31.5 points (30.0 five-year average)
Rushing: 168.6 yards (153.3)
Passing: 255.3 yards (249.5)
Total offense: 423.9 (402.7)
