Ducks Remain Wary Of TCU Offense Without Boykin
by Rob Moseley
Editor, GoDucks.com
SAN ANTONIO — Through injuries and other personnel changes, the UO football team has long preached a “next man up” mentality. The Oregon defense is expecting the same attitude from Texas Christian in Saturday’s Alamo Bowl.
Hours after TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin was suspended following an incident at a local bar, Oregon defensive coordinator Don Pellum said the Ducks “aren’t expecting any letdown” from the Horned Frogs in the absence of their prolific starting quarterback.
“I don’t think it changes our preparation at all,” sophomore safety Charles Nelson said. “It’s very unfortunate for him, but the show must go on.”
Boykin has orchestrated the nation’s No. 3 unit in total offense (564.3) and No. 8 scoring offense (41.7). He entered the postseason second in the FBS in individual total offense at 397.3 yards per game, and was averaging 441.1 prior to an ankle injury in November — on pace for third in FBS history.
With Boykin as the trigger man, TCU’s offense has scored at least 50 points in nine games over the past two seasons. That’s tied with Oregon and Boise State for second-most in the nation, one behind Baylor.
Now, the Horned Frogs figure to turn to senior Bram Kohlhausen, who didn’t have a touchdown pass in his career prior to this season, but who nearly led TCU to a win over College Football Playoff semifinalist Oklahoma while Boykin was injured. The other option would be redshirt freshman Foster Sawyer, who started against the Sooners before being replaced by Kohlhausen.
“We’re expecting a more fiery team,” Pellum said. “Sometimes when you’re injured or you lose someone, when the troops rally you can come back stronger.”
Boykin was injured in the first quarter of a mid-November game against Kansas, and both Kohlhausen and Sawyer helped the Horned Frogs hold on for a 23-17 win. The next week at Oklahoma, Sawyer got the start, and went 8-of-18 for 107 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions before being pulled.
Kohlhausen entered with Oklahoma up 30-13 and helped TCU scored 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. His second touchdown pass, with 51 seconds left, pulled the Horned Frogs within a point, but a two-point attempt was knocked down by a defender who was charging toward Kohlhausen.
“It’s just one little pass,” UO defensive end DeForest Buckner said. “The DB came up on him in coverage, and all he really had to do was dump it over and they win the game. So they’ll be ready for us. We’re still preparing every day. We’re not taking it lightly.”
Boykin was also TCU’s second-leading rusher, with 612 yards per game, and averaged 5.0 yards per carry. The averages aren’t as high for Sawyer (3.8) or Kohlhausen (2.9), but Pellum said the Horned Frogs will used Wildcat elements to free them up.
While TCU may lose some “dynamicness” at quarterback, and is also without all-America receiver Josh Doctson due to injury, Pellum is wary of other skill players. KaVontae Turpin reached the end zone on eight of his 40 pass receptions, and is also a talented returner. And Kolby Listenbee averaged 20.6 yards on his 29 regular-season receptions.
“Our players have seen the film,” Pellum said. “These guys are really good. You miss a tackle, it’s a touchdown, regardless of which guy it is. We’ll have to play a great game on defense, and that’s our goal.”
Boykin and Doctson had teamed with running back Aaron Green as the first TCU trio ever to give the Horned Frogs a 3,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard rusher and 1,000-yard receiver in the same season.
Now they’ll be without two of the three. As is the case at quarterback, Pellum doesn’t expect major changes with Doctson sidelined, given TCU’s play in two regular-season games without him.
“I think their offense is going to operate the same way, and we’re going to approach it that way,” Pellum said. “I didn’t notice a lot of different routes, scheme changes. I noticed them running a lot of the same patterns.”
Adding to the factors keeping Oregon’s defense on alert regardless of Boykin’s status was the Ducks’ disheartening finish to the regular season. The Civil War featured a rousing second-half comeback by Oregon State, with coverage breakdowns and tackling issues that plagued the Ducks much of the season.
Saturday is a chance to fix those issues one last time, regardless of who is across the line at quarterback.
“We’ve really been focusing on finishing the season off the correct way,” senior linebacker Rodney Hardrick said. “We’re going to put our faith in the coaches, and trust the game plan so we can finish this right.”
