LARAMIE, Wyo. -- Senior running back Joseph Turner couldn’t explain the turnaround of TCU’s running game, he just knew that early on, the running game felt like it wasn’t holding up its end of the bargain.
“We all know that the running game is a big part of this offense,” Turner said. “We know that if we don’t get the running game started, nothing’s going to work.”
Several of the Horned Frogs slow starts earlier in the season were partly because the running game wasn’t able to find much room. But during the past four games, the TCU running game has been dominant, which in turn has allowed the Horned Frogs to be dominant on offense.
In each of the last four games, the TCU running game has amassed at least 312 yards. Against Wyoming on Saturday, the Horned Frogs finished with 339 yards.
The most intriguing thing about the Frogs’ rushing attack is that there is no dominant rusher. The carries are split between Turner, true freshman Matthew Tucker and redshirt freshman Ed Wesley, and each has a similar amount of total yards.
Tucker led the effort on Saturday with a career-high 134 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries. It was Tucker’s first 100-yard game and the second consecutive game a TCU freshman has posted at least 100 yards. Last week, Wesley had 137 rushing yards against Utah.
“Our whole goal, and we had this planned before the season, was to keep Joseph Turner healthy,” coach Gary Patterson said. “The surprise has been Ed Wesley and Tucker because Tucker is a freshman and then you have Ed Wesley, a redshirt freshman, you could never tell where they were going to be.
“This could be the best backfield we’ve ever had here at TCU.”
Turner said sharing carries has helped him stay healthy and so he’s done his best to help coach up the younger players in practice. During the past couple months, Turner said the practices have become more intense as the competition has increased.
“The rotation really helps us stay fresh,” Turner said. “I got into the freshman during two-a-days and they haven’t stopped working at all. Some days, I might miss a few periods in practice and they pick up the slack. They don’t stop. They know we’ve got something.”
“We all know that the running game is a big part of this offense,” Turner said. “We know that if we don’t get the running game started, nothing’s going to work.”
P Photo/Andy CarpeneanTCU running back Joseph Turner is part of a three-pronged Horned Frogs rushing attack.
In each of the last four games, the TCU running game has amassed at least 312 yards. Against Wyoming on Saturday, the Horned Frogs finished with 339 yards.
The most intriguing thing about the Frogs’ rushing attack is that there is no dominant rusher. The carries are split between Turner, true freshman Matthew Tucker and redshirt freshman Ed Wesley, and each has a similar amount of total yards.
Tucker led the effort on Saturday with a career-high 134 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries. It was Tucker’s first 100-yard game and the second consecutive game a TCU freshman has posted at least 100 yards. Last week, Wesley had 137 rushing yards against Utah.
“Our whole goal, and we had this planned before the season, was to keep Joseph Turner healthy,” coach Gary Patterson said. “The surprise has been Ed Wesley and Tucker because Tucker is a freshman and then you have Ed Wesley, a redshirt freshman, you could never tell where they were going to be.
“This could be the best backfield we’ve ever had here at TCU.”
Turner said sharing carries has helped him stay healthy and so he’s done his best to help coach up the younger players in practice. During the past couple months, Turner said the practices have become more intense as the competition has increased.
“The rotation really helps us stay fresh,” Turner said. “I got into the freshman during two-a-days and they haven’t stopped working at all. Some days, I might miss a few periods in practice and they pick up the slack. They don’t stop. They know we’ve got something.”
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