14 straight losses set record
Mustang fans who made the drive to TCU left disappointed.
Although a lot of the fans stayed for most of the game, thefootball team never got on track in a 44-0 thrashing at the handsof the Horned Frogs.
TCU scored on their opening drive and would score four out offive times in the first half. The Frogs opened the night with a13-yard play that led to an 80-yard drive capped by running backLonta Hobbs’ 2-yard dash.
On offense, the Mustangs could not piece together a drive intheir opening set.
Late in the first quarter, with TCU back in control of the ball,quarterback Tye Gunn led his team down the field for a touchdown.The 69-yard drive lasted 13 plays.
The Mustangs struggled offensively for the rest of the half,while TCU put up 14 more points in the second quarter.
Backup quarterback Brandon Hassell took over for TCU replacingGunn who left the game with sore ribs.
But TCU did not miss a beat as Hassell led the team to a21-point advantage midway through the second quarter.
The Mustang defense could not stop the Frogs and allowed them tomarch down the field quickly. Hassell completed a 23-yard pass toReggie Harrell to finish an 8-play, 93-yard drive.
Less than five minutes later, Hassell hooked up with CoryRodgers for a 1-yard touchdown pass to give the Frogs a 28-0 leadheading into halftime.
With SMU trailing, Head Coach Phil Bennett gave quarterback TonyEckert a chance after starting quarterback Chris Phillips struggledin the first half.
Phillips completed six passes on 14 attempts for 51 yards in hisouting. He also ran eight times for -9 yards.
Despite a new quarterback, the Mustangs still could not find theend zone.
The defense played more consistently in the third quarter,limiting TCU to a field goal that put them up 31 points on theMustangs.
Early in the fourth, with TCU back in SMU territory, the Frogsput together a 3-yard play, 38-yard drive to go up 38-0.
After Eckert’s second interception of the game, the Frogsgot their final score of the night when TCU’s third-stringquarterback, Jeff Ballard completed a 9-yard pass to Marcus Brock.After the missed extra point, the Frogs reached a 44-0 lead thatstayed intact until the end of the game.
In the second half, Eckert fared better than Phillips completing8-of-15 passes for 113 yards. Eckert had two interceptions in thegame.
SMU running back Foy Munlin ran seven times for 10 yards.
On offense, the Mustangs accumulated 170 yards. The twoquarterbacks threw for 164 yards while SMU’s running game andquarterback scrambling yielded only six yards. SMU averaged 2.9yards per play.
The Mustangs also had three turnovers in the game, a fumble andEckert’s two interceptions.
The defense that looked promising against Texas Tech allowed TCU562 total yards of offense, 397 through the air and 165 on theground. TCU also had the ball for nearly 10 minutes more than SMUwith a 34:45 to 25:15 advantage on the game clock.
TCU’s Hassell finished the game with 264 passing yards on17 completions and two passing touchdowns.
TCU’s victory over SMU marks the sixth time in a row thatthe Frogs have won the Battle of the Iron Skillet, the longest winstreak against SMU in TCU school history.
SMU’s loss sets a new school record for longest losingstreak. With the teams 0-12 record last season and thisseason’s 0-2 start, the Mustangs have lost 14 in a row. Thelosing streak is second longest in the nation for a Division Ischool behind Army’s losing streak of 16.
The 44-0 loss was the first shutout loss SMU has endured since a41-0 loss in 2002 to North Carolina State.
The Mustangs take on the Oklahoma State Cowboys at 6 p.m.,Saturday in Stillwater, Okla.
14 straight losses set record
14 straight losses set record
