2016 TCU Horned Frogs Betting Predictions

The TCU football team opened last season at No. 2 in the nation, the Big 12 favorite and with a top Heisman contender in quarterback Trevone Boykin. However, Boykin missed one key game due to injury and top receiver Josh Doctson missed a few. So TCU was “only” 11-2 and second in the Big 12. Can the Frogs reach the College Football Playoff this year? It has a wins total of 9, with the under a -140 favorite on NCAA football lines.

Taking a Closer Look at the 2016 TCU Horned Frogs Betting Predictions

Boykin Not Replaceable

Good luck replacing Trevone Boykin, maybe the best all-around player in school history and now trying to make an NFL roster in Seattle. He finished his career ranked first in TCU history in career passing yards, passing attempts, pass completions and touchdown passes. Boykin threw for 10,728 yards in 48 career games with 40 career starts. He completed 830-of- 1,356 passes in TCU career for a 61.2 percent completion rate, ranking him third in the TCU record books for a career and just the fourth player in program history to finish career with a 60.0 percent mark for a career. Boykin averaged 300.0 yards passing or better as both a junior and senior and compiled 12,777 yards of total offense during career.

Neither Is Doctson

Doctson might go down as the best receiver in school history and was a first-round pick this year by the Washington Redskins. Docston had one of the most prolific campaigns by a wide receiver in TCU history last year despite missing the final three games. He caught a school-record 79 passes for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdown passes. Doctson was named a consensus First-Team All-American. Doctson finished his TCU career with a school record 2,785 receiving yards and 29 touchdown catches. His 180 receptions rank second in TCU history, one behind the 181 by Kelly Blackwell. The 2,785 yards receiving broke Mike Renfro’s TCU mark of 2,739, while the 29 scoring grabs shattered Josh Boyce’s record of 22.

The Offense Will Still Be In Good Shape

Not only are Boykin and Green gone, but so is leading rusher Aaron Green. He saw action in all 13 games for TCU with 10 starts. Green finished seventh in program history for single-season rushing yards with 1,272 yards on the year to go with 11 TDs. Yet I still think the offense will be among the better ones in the Big 12. Kenny Hill, a transfer from Texas A&M, is battling sophomore Foster Sawyer for the starting job but Hill should win that. Hill burst onto the scene in 2014 when he broke a Texas A&M single-game passing yards record with 511 on 44-of- 60 attempts in his starting debut at South Carolina, becoming the first player in school history and sixth in the SEC to post a 500-yard passing game. His 44 completions and 73.3 completion percentage (minimum of 40 attempts) set school records. Overall, Hill passed for 2,649 yards with 23 touchdowns for the Aggies before deciding to leave the program. KaVontae Turpin is the team’s top returning receiver with 45 catches for 649 yards and eight touchdowns last season.

The Defense Will Be Better Than People Think

Coach Gary Patterson knows what he has on this side of the ball: four starters whose 2015 seasons were cut short by injury are expected back to join seven other returning starters. Patterson’s best defenses have been his most experienced defenses, and this group is experienced. Returning linebackers Travin Howard, Ty Summers and Montrel Wilson ranked first, third and fifth, respectively, on the team in tackles. That’s the strength of this team.

The Oklahoma Game Will Determine TCU’s Season

Right now, I’d lean under that nine-win total on NCAA football lines. But TCU could at least tie it and perhaps win 10 games if it can upset Oklahoma on Oct. 1 in Fort Worth. TCU should be 4-0 entering that game. Other potential losses are at West Virginia, at Baylor and vs. Oklahoma State.