The West Virginia Mountaineers travel to Amon G. Carter Stadium Thursday night to face the undefeated TCU Horned Frogs. The Horned Frogs have won 15 straight games dating back to last year, and look to pick another big conference win against the Mountaineers. West Virginia has struggled this season, and is looking to turn its season around after losing three straight conference games.
Quarterback Skyler Howard leads the Mountaineers offense, and is having a great year despite the three game losing streak. The junior quarterback is originally from Fort Worth, Texas, and will be trying to pull off the upset win over the university near his home town. Even though West Virginia lost to Baylor in their last game, Howard passed for 289 yards with four touchdowns. He has 1,566 passing yards this season, and has thrown 15 touchdowns. He can also take off on his feet - he has rushed for 188 yards with two rushing touchdowns.
Mountaineers head coach Dan Holgorsen will look to put his quarterback in positions in which he can succeed Thursday night, as they know they are facing an uphill battle. The Mountaineers defense will try to contain the Horned Frogs offense, as that will be a key factor for West Virginia to stay in this game.
Holding TCU's offense is easier said than done, and quarterback Trevone Boykin has yet to be stopped this season. Boykin is clearly in the Heisman discussion and is putting up ridiculous numbers this season. The senior quarterback has 2,539 passing yards with 25 touchdown passes, and is a dual threat, having rushed for 440 yards and scored five touchdowns with his feet.
Boykin will look to target senior wide receiver Josh Doctson, who is also having a huge season for the Horned Frogs. Doctson already has more receiving yards than last season with 1,067 yards and has caught 12 touchdown passes. The 6-foot-3, 195 pound receiver could be a first round pick the 2016 NFL Draft, and is showing this season why he is such a coveted talent.
TCU head coach Gary Patterson will want to have his players up for Thursday's night game, and he likely knows this could be a trap game. The fifth-ranked Horned Frogs play the undefeated Oklahoma State Cowboys next week, and Patterson will want his team's focus solely on West Virginia.
The Mountaineers will try to steal one on the road, but face arguably their toughest challenge of the season in TCU. The game starts at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time, and you can watch the live broadcast here. To listen to the Horned Frogs' radio broadcast, click here, and for the Mountaineers' radio broadcast, go here.
