TCU Blows Early Lead, Fumbles Away Win in 29-28 Loss to No. 22 Arizona
· Yahoo Sports
TCU let a for-sure win over a ranked opponent slip through its hands, literally, as a late turnover handed No. 22 Arizona a 29-28 in Casino Del Sol past midnight on Friday night.
Possibly due to the late kickoff, TCU came out of the gate sluggish in the faraway deserts of Tucson.
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The hometown Wildcats roared out to a 10-0 lead before the opening quarter drew to a close.
Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita got the Wildcats onto the scoreboard first, as he tossed a scoring strike to Isaiah Mizell from 20 yards out.
However, the Horned Frogs picked themselves off the mat in hostile territory.
Down two scores, TCU quarterback Jaden Craig commanded the offense on an eight-play, 61-yard drive that was capped off by himself on the ground for a seven-yard rushing touchdown.
Then, the much praised defense from the Horned Frogs made yet another pivotal play, as Hudson Hooper hawked a pass from Fifita and returned it 93 yards for another touchdown.
In the blink of an eye, TCU rallied out to a 14-10 lead at halftime.
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The wild west shootout continued in the second half, with the Wildcats going back on top off a rushing touchdown of their own from Fifita.
In the closing minutes of the third quarter, Craig would add a passing touchdown to his stat sheet. He found Jordan Dywer on a six-yard touchdown that finished off a lengthy 11-play, 75-yard series.
Heading to the final frame, TCU clung to a narrow 21-17 lead on the road in Tucson.
But all chaos would break loose from then on out in true Big 12 fashion.
Arizona tacked on a field goal in the opening second of the fourth quarter to slice the Horned Frogs' lead to one.
With six and half to play, Craig powered into the end zone again to cushion the lead back to 28-20 and respond to the late threat from the Wildcats.
Facing one final hope, Fifita connected with Quincy Craig on a 26-yard throw on 3rd-and-goal to draw within two with under two minutes left to play.
TCU stepped up and denied the Wildcats the two-point conversion and seemed to have the game all locked down once and for all.
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However, disaster would strike for the Horned Frogs, as Ed Small bobbled the ensuing kickoff and gave Arizona a chance at redemption from the missed two-pointer.
The Horned Frogs were not able to hold them off this time around after Arizona drilled the go-ahead field goal with just around 30 seconds on the clock.
With hope not entirely extinguished, TCU set up needing only a field goal to secure what should-have been a long established win.
Instead, Craig threw a interception on the first play of the drive to guarantee another one-score loss for the Horned Frogs.
In a season full of heartbreaking losses, the one on Friday night may be the worst offense to date. TCU is now 4-5 overall and an abysmal 2-4 in the Big 12.
No matter how crushing the defeat to the Wildcats may be, TCU will attempt to regroup by returning home and facing Kansas State next Saturday.