In the first game of the season for both teams, TCU beat Stanford 34–27 on Friday. Josh Hoover completed 28 of 42 passes for 353 yards and two scores. There were 3:13 left in the game, and Horned Frogs receiver Jack Bech had caught six passes for 139 yards and the winner.
Savion Williams had 11 catches for 85 yards and a score, and JP Richardson had six catches for 107 yards. Ashton Daniels played quarterback for Stanford most of the time. Out of 35 passes, he made 17 for 163 yards, scored a touchdown, and picked off one pass.
Daniels also ran 17 times for 87 yards, which was the most on the team. As the fourth quarter came to a close, Stanford had a 24–20 lead thanks to a touchdown on Justin Lamson’s only pass and a score on a 1-yard run. After that, Hoover threw a touchdown pass to Bech that went for 4 yards and put the Horned Frogs back ahead 27-24.
The Cardinal were stopped on downs deep in their own territory. With 1:51 left, Cam Cook scored on a 7-yard run to make the score 34–24. Cook ran 20 times for 81 yards in the end. There were 36 seconds left, and Emmet Kenney made a 45-yard field goal to cut the Cardinal’s lead to 34-27. However, the Horned Frogs recovered the onside kick to seal the win.
Stanford scored on its first drive with the help of three personal fouls against TCU. TCU was penalized seven times for 100 yards. Daniels scored on a 3-yard pass to Jackson Harris to end the drive and make it 7-0 with 7:57 left in the first quarter.
TCU scored on its first drive as well. It went 75 yards in 13 plays and tied the game at 7-7 with a touchdown pass from Hoover to Williams from 5 yards out with 1:16 left in the first quarter. As the second quarter began, Mitch Leigber forced a fumble for the Cardinals.
His partner Jay Green recovered it at the Stanford 30 yard line and returned it 10 yards, giving the Cardinals great field position. When Stanford had a short field, Lamson took over at QB and hit Ismael Cisse with a 2-yard touchdown pass.
This put the Cardinal ahead 14–7 with 9:19 left in the first half. With 4:09 left in the half, TCU’s Kyle Lemmermann kicked a 22-yard field goal to make the score 14–10.
With 1:36 left in the second quarter, Kenney made a field goal from 35 yards out to make the score 17–10. With 9:11 left in the third quarter, Lemmermann kicked a 42-yard field goal. With 2:22 left in the third quarter, Hoover scored on a 1-yard sneak to give TCU its first lead, 20–17. –Media for Field Level