Ian Napetian, Zion Trammell, and Carson Wersal break down TCU’s 41-6 victory over Nicholls State, and look ahead to their matchup against the University of Houston.
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00:00 Hello everybody and welcome to the Killer Frogs Fan Nation post game show.
00:03 My name is Ian Impiccion and tonight I'm joined alongside by Zion Trammell and
00:06 Carson Wurstall as we're finishing up here at Amon G Carter Stadium after TCU
00:11 took care of business against Nicolls State winning 41 to 6.
00:15 Guys, it was a solid performance offensively,
00:18 definitely much better on the defensive side.
00:20 Just simply, what are you guys' general thoughts after this game?
00:23 >> Well, yeah, I would say for Chandler Morris,
00:26 I think he felt a lot more comfortable after the game.
00:29 He said he felt a lot more decisive with his reads and
00:32 I think he did a pretty good job in that area.
00:35 And I think any win, regardless of who it's against,
00:38 feels good, especially to get that first win of the season.
00:41 And I think there's a lot of improvement as the coaches and
00:45 players indicated after the game.
00:47 But I think overall it feels good to get that first win.
00:50 And for Chandler Morris, I think he looked good out there,
00:53 utilized his legs a lot more, which was good to see.
00:56 And yeah, overall it was a good win.
00:59 >> Yeah, I feel like the story of tonight was kind of how intense both the offense
01:05 and defense were to come out.
01:07 I think Sonny Dykes summarized it pretty well whenever he talked about how
01:12 the defense only did not let the opponent score, really.
01:18 Two field goals, when you can keep a team out of the end zone like that,
01:23 that's hard to do for really any team.
01:26 So I'm very excited to see that.
01:30 I mean, the press conferences from Chandler Morris and
01:35 the other two defenders, or sorry, wait.
01:39 >> Mark Perry.
01:40 >> Mark Perry, yes, sorry, sorry.
01:42 Mark Perry summarized it really, really well, where some of the teams or
01:47 some of the guys really have to kind of keep the intensity.
01:51 But overall, I'm happy with what I saw from the defense tonight.
01:55 >> Now one thing I kind of just want to touch on briefly is the offensive line.
02:00 It was something that from the last game against Colorado to start off the college
02:04 football season, it was probably the only bright spot that any TCU fan would
02:08 reasonably walk away with as being a bright spot.
02:12 What were you guys' thoughts on it tonight?
02:13 I know Sonny was kind of disappointed with kind of the one on one matchups and
02:17 the fact that they weren't really able to establish their running game and
02:20 kind of forced Chandler Morris to really use his legs.
02:24 >> Yeah, I mean, I think as far as the offense.
02:28 >> Offensive line.
02:29 >> Yeah, yeah, I mean, the offensive line I think could have given Chandler Morris a
02:32 little more time in the pocket.
02:33 And of course, you had to see him utilize his legs a little bit more.
02:37 And I think that could be a little bit of a challenge going up against Houston next
02:40 week.
02:41 But I think they need to be a little bit more cohesive and
02:45 kind of develop their chemistry a little bit more.
02:46 As certainly you would hope to see this be more of a strong point and
02:50 a focal point of this offense.
02:52 And I think there's plenty of season left and there's still time to grow.
02:56 And I think Sonny indicated that and we'll see how that goes moving forward.
03:00 >> Concerning the offensive line,
03:04 one thing I kind of want to touch on is picking up blitzes against Colorado.
03:10 The TCU offensive line actually did that really well.
03:13 I think they've sent pressure of more than four guys probably 10 to 12 times.
03:18 I think the TCU offensive line picked it up almost every time against Colorado.
03:22 But it seemed like some of the formations that Nichols was showing TCU on defense
03:27 kind of tripped us up tonight.
03:29 I mean, I think it was four or five times that Chandler Morris had to actually use
03:32 his legs and utilize that part of his game.
03:36 Which I mean, you can kind of look at that two ways where, no,
03:43 he's getting under pressure quite a bit from a team that shouldn't be getting
03:47 pressure on him, but then you can kind of look at it as, okay,
03:52 he knows how to use his legs still.
03:54 That's a very good thing going down the stretch,
03:56 especially against these big 12 defenses.
03:58 They're gonna come after you almost every play.
04:01 >> Yeah, and just kind of, I guess, continuing with that thought in the post
04:06 game press conference, Chandler Morris definitely talked about how there was
04:10 a mental block in terms of him trying to get over staying in that pocket.
04:13 And especially against Colorado, we noticed that he didn't run as much, but
04:16 that was also because the running game got established a little more efficiently and
04:19 effectively.
04:20 Whereas tonight, offensive line wasn't really there for
04:22 the full 60 minutes of football, forcing him to get out of the pocket and
04:25 use his legs.
04:26 Kind of switching gears now, talking about the defensive side of things.
04:30 The defensive line definitely got a little more pressure tonight.
04:32 They had two, maybe three sacks, but in general,
04:35 it was a much more better showing from them.
04:37 What did you guys like from the defensive line and
04:39 kind of how did that set up the rest of the defense for linebackers and
04:43 safeties and corners?
04:45 >> What I saw from the defensive line was more energy and enthusiasm, really.
04:49 I mean, when you look at this defense last week,
04:52 I think they just got gassed pretty early and often.
04:55 And obviously, it was a really hot week last week.
04:57 Tonight, it cooled down a little bit.
04:58 Maybe that had something to do with it, but there was definitely more energy and
05:02 excitement and confidence around this defense, and especially the defensive line.
05:07 And that translates to the secondary and the linebackers and
05:11 all that moving forward.
05:12 So I think it really starts with your defensive line and
05:17 Joe Gillespie has high expectations for them.
05:20 And hopefully, you can get more pressure moving forward.
05:24 But I think for me, seeing that energy and
05:26 confidence really reflected on the rest of the defense.
05:30 And overall, I mean, it could have been better, but I was pleased with it overall.
05:38 >> Yeah, for the most part, I agree with what both of you guys said.
05:42 The defensive line, they did a very good job at forcing
05:47 the Nichols quarterback to get rid of the ball quickly.
05:50 I would like them to contain him a little bit more.
05:54 I think he, I mean, it was sparing attempts at rushing.
06:00 But every time he did, he would usually get about seven or eight yards.
06:03 That would extend drives and it was usually on third or fourth down.
06:08 That he was able to convert those and keep those Nichols drives going.
06:12 I'm not sure if any of those drives led to points.
06:16 But especially when we go, there are multiple quarterbacks in the Big 12
06:22 that can use their legs efficiently.
06:25 That's what scares me about this defensive line is because while we can get after
06:29 the quarterback, if he gets outside the pocket, we seem to struggle.
06:34 And that's been two games in a row now that we've struggled with that.
06:36 So that's something to keep an eye on.
06:40 I don't necessarily think that that will be game breaking.
06:43 But I do think it is something to raise concern for now, right?
06:48 >> Now in terms of just looking ahead next weekend,
06:52 TCU travels away for the first Big 12 season game.
06:56 And that's gonna be down at the University of Houston.
06:59 What do you guys wanna see from this team?
07:01 What do you guys wanna see them build off of after this win?
07:05 >> Yeah, I just wanna see the offense continue to emphasize the running game.
07:09 I think that's really where their strength is.
07:12 And hopefully, Savion Williams will be 100% healthy because we didn't see him
07:18 really at all tonight.
07:18 So, hoping with him and Jared Wiley, they can get involved in this offense.
07:23 And Chandler can find them because they're gonna be very important for
07:27 this team down the stretch.
07:28 But yeah, this is a challenge with Houston going on the road for
07:32 the first time this season.
07:34 Any away game is that much more challenging.
07:36 So, TCU's gonna have their work cut out for them.
07:38 And we'll see how this week progresses and looking forward to next Saturday.
07:42 >> Yeah, I think this Houston game, I think,
07:47 is gonna be won by the offensive and defensive line.
07:51 Houston has playmakers, TCU has playmakers.
07:54 Houston has a decent quarterback, TCU has a good quarterback.
07:58 I mean, across the board, these two teams are fairly evenly matched.
08:02 But it's the offensive line and
08:03 defensive line where TCU seems to have the upper hand.
08:07 That's how we need to dominate this game.
08:10 It's a night game.
08:12 And I mean, it seems like in this night game, we had more energy.
08:16 We need to keep that same energy, especially on the road.
08:20 Cuz it's very tough to win on the road in a night game.
08:23 Doesn't matter who you're playing, especially in this conference.
08:27 >> Well, TCU will look to extend their winning streak now to two after
08:32 getting back to 500 after tonight's 41 to 6 victory over Nickel State.
08:37 Well, for Zion Trammell and Carson Wurstel, my name's Ian Apician.
08:41 That was the Killer Frogs Fan Nation post game show.