FORT WORTH, Texas--The last time TCU's campus had this kind of buzz for a home game, the Frogs blew out Utah with a national audience watching and later that season, earned the once-unthinkable: a BCS bowl bid.
A year later, it earned another benchmark victory by beating Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl.
Saturday, with No. 7 Kansas State on the way to Cowtown, TCU could produce another unforgettable date in program history.
"We're 7-1 and have a chance to play for something truly special," TCU athletic director Chris Del Conte told Fox Sports Southwest in his office this week, with black cowboy boots boasting a purple TCU logo across the front poking out the bottom of his suit pants.
Joining the Big 12 is one thing. Winning it is another, especially after capturing just 11 victories in the Frogs' first two seasons as a member. A win Saturday for TCU would put the Frogs within three games--likely as a double-digit favorite in each--from a probable berth in the College Football Playoff.
It would also earn, at the very least, a share of the Big 12 title.
There's no better way to earn a big chunk of recognition from its new conference mates.
"Obviously, (we've been) able to prove to all those people who said TCU couldn't win in the Big 12," Patterson said. "We're not where we want to be yet. We have an unbelievable area as a team to grow our program here at TCU and in the metroplex. I think we're just touching the iceberg."
Last Saturday, when the team arrived home late from Morgantown after a comeback win over West Virginia sealed by a last-second field goal, a large group of fans were waiting at the airport to welcome them along with the band and cheerleaders.
High fives and backslaps on campus are commonplace now. A year ago, they were a rarity. Cornerback Kevin White couldn't stop smiling on Tuesday when he recalled getting congratulations in class from professors and classmates.
"It's a lot different. Fans are taking notice. It's a great feeling on campus," he said.
TCU hadn't tasted the top 10 since that magical Rose Bowl season in 2010, but the Frogs are back and at No. 6 are the highest-ranked team in their new conference.
"We're just trying to show it on any stage, any level," White said. "Guys were saying we could only play one big team a year. We're just trying to show we can do it every week."
The Frogs have done exactly that to set up Saturday's colossal clash, which bumped Oklahoma and Baylor, the game nearly everyone figured would decide the Big 12 title, from its sure spot in primetime.
This week will be TCU's fifth game against a top 20 opponent in six weeks. The Frogs are 3-1 in those games so far, with the lone loss coming on the road at then-No. 5 Baylor by a last-second field goal after the Frogs squandered a 21-point lead in just 11:38.
Patterson maintained from Day 1 in the league that adjusting to Big 12 membership would take 3-5 years. He had to acquire depth. He had to get used to a new batch of nine teams that required offseason homework.
Now, in Year 3, TCU has done exactly that.
"When we were in the Mountain West, we played big games, but they didn't have the same regional effect of playing Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Baylor and so on every week," Del Conte said. "Every game means something now. The energy is just crazy."
HOW WEST VIRGINIA SLOWED DOWN TCU AND BAYLOR
In three weeks, West Virginia was responsible for defending the nation's top two scoring offenses: TCU and Baylor.
The Mountaineers beat Baylor by two touchdowns and held the Bears to just 27 point, 23 below their average this season. Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty completed just 44 percent of his passes for 223 yards.
The Bears' offense averaged just 4.03 yards per play, well below their season average of 6.67.
Saturday, TCU scored just 31 points, 17 below their average of 48 this season.
Quarterback Trevone Boykin completed only 12-of-30 passes (44 percent) for 166 yards, all season lows. Only one team had held Boykin below 280 yards all season. The Frogs, Big 12 leaders at 6.7 yards per play, managed just 5.4.
How has West Virginia done it?
Look no further than the return of the 3-3-5 scheme made famous by Jeff Casteel during Rich Rodriguez's run at West Virginia from 2001-07 that included two BCS bowl wins, four Big East titles and three seasons with at least 10 wins.
"Our scheme is so different. It's like a defense preparing for an option offense," West Virginia defensive coordinator Tony Gibson told Fox Sports Southwest this week. "It's hard for people to prepare if you've only got a few days to do it."
Most teams across the Big 12 employ a 3-4, 4-3 or some mixture of the two. TCU built a rock solid defense around Gary Patterson's famed 4-2-5 alignment.
West Virginia, however, is one of the nation's only teams to employ the 3-3-5 alignment with three down linemen, three linebackers and five defensive backs.
Patterson admitted Tuesday that his offense's unfamiliarity with the 3-3-5 contributed to its offensive struggles, but also pointed to WVU's familiarity with his offense. The Mountaineers defend a spread in practice every day and had already beat Texas Tech, whose offense is a near carbon copy of what TCU runs.
Gibson took over this January and became the fourth defensive coordinator in four years, and when Casteel left West Virginia after the 2011 season to rejoin Rodriguez at Arizona, he took the 3-3-5 with him.
Joe DeForest (2012) and Keith Patterson (2013) attempted to transition the program to a 3-4 scheme, but the move was a ghastly failure Mountaineers ranked ninth in the Big 12 in yards per play in both seasons and went just 11-14, placing Holgorsen squarely on the hot seat. West Virginia was dead last in the Big 12 in scoring defense in 2012 and ninth in 2013.
West Virginia commitment and success in the 3-3-5 helped it build a proud program and earn an invitation to the Big 12. The transition away from it couldn't have come at a worse time.
Now that the Mountaineers are dancing with the girl that brought them, life is better in Morgantown.
"I love this scheme, and our kids have bought into it," Gibson said.
Petty and Boykin were clearly uncomfortable in the pocket for most of their dates with the Mountaineers, and their completion percentage and uncharacteristic inaccuracy showed it. Gibson made one thing clear when he game-planned for both: They better be ready for constant pressure.
"You have to contain (Boykin) because he hurts you so many different ways," Gibson said. "I wasn't going to be as reckless blitzing as I was with Baylor because he can escape it."
To counter Boykin's ability to scramble, he consistently brought six and seven-men rushes, playing a lot of Cover 0, with no safeties left to play centerfield. In addition to pressure up the middle, he wanted blitzers coming off the edge to prevent Boykin from flushing out either side and making plays with his feet.
Kansas State will face a similar task on Saturday and on the season's final weekend against Baylor.
Gibson avoided five-man rushes because he didn't feel confident they'd keep Boykin from escaping upfield and left the Mountaineers exposed downfield in the passing game.
To help confuse Boykin and Petty, Gibson mixed in a scheme with all 11 defenders in a two-point stance before the snap, a tactic he picked up during two seasons under defensive coordinator Greg Robinson on Rodriguez's staff at Michigan in 2009 and 2010.
Gibson estimated the Mountaineers used the wrinkle on 10-12 snaps against TCU this weekend.
"We dropped nine a couple times and brought seven a couple times," Gibson said. "It's hard to figure out where we're coming from because we've got all 11 guys on their feet."
Of course, none of this works without talent. Linebackers Nick Kwiatkoski and Wes Tonkery have emerged as a standouts for a linebacking corps missing Jared Barber, who is missing the season to rehab a torn ACL suffered in November.
True freshman safety Dravon Henry has had a breakout season in the secondary, making 28 tackles and intercepting two passes alongside stalwarts K.J. Dillon and Karl Joseph, who sealed their reputation on Saturday as two of the Big 12's hardest hitters.
"We were the more physical team the other night. I promise you, there's some sore kids on TCU right now," Gibson said.
Petty and Boykin looked like they were facing a defense they rarely see because, well, they were facing a defense they rarely see.
Gibson has been one of the Big 12's most impactful offseason coaching moves and helped West Virginia to the top 25 and the top half of the Big 12 after a disastrous start in its first two seasons as a Big 12 member.
"The scheme is so different and unique, but the key to any scheme is those kinds have to buy in and want to play. The kids have bought in 100 percent," he said. "Everybody knows what they've gone through the last couple years. I've never been more proud of a group of young men that I've ever coached."
LOCKETT BACK ON TRACK
Tyler Lockett topped 45 yards receiving just once in his first three games, but in his last four Big 12 games, the Kansas State receiver is looking more like his old self.
He's caught at least six passes in every game and averages 102 yards a game with four touchdowns in four games.
"I feel bad for some of the corners he goes up against," Kansas State cornerback Morgan Burns told Fox Sports Southwest this week. "He can be running full speed and go into run a route and break out as fast as he was running. His speed is the same all the time. Not many guys can come out of a route like he does."
Lockett's growth from a kick return specialist as a sophomore to the biggest weapon in Kansas State's offense has been equal parts impressive and unsurprising. The cornerstone of Snyder's program is daily improvement, and Lockett's personified that ideal during his three-plus seasons on the field. Workout sessions during the offseason with his dad, Kevin, and uncle Aaron, both former star receivers at Kansas State, helped too.
"He works very diligently. He's very competitive. He's one of those guys that's the last guy off the field every night, he continually works on catching punts and kickoffs with special teams players after practice to work on those things. He's always staying after to work on the JUGS machine."
Lockett entered the season with a case as the league's preseason Offensive Player of the Year. His first month brought that into question but those early struggles look far behind him after his performance in conference play.
WHO'S READY FOR WHOM?
Bryce Petty started it, but it's not taken on a life of its own.
And I love it.
Anyone who took offense to Bryce Petty repeatedly answering questions after Saturday's win over Kansas with one word before segueing into saying he was "ready for OU" probably takes themselves too seriously.
"I didn't mean to come off as rude or obnoxious," Petty told reporters on Monday. "Just excited for this week."
As well he should be. I mostly found it a little weird, but Oklahoma took notice and decided to play along.
"Sounds like Coach [Bill] Belichick," Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said. "I don't care. We're getting ready for Baylor, OK?"
As far as light-hearted storylines go, this might be my favorite of the season. Baylor coach Art Briles said he didn't have anything to do with it.
"I was surprised quite honestly," Briles said Monday. "I was kinda pleased. He's in a mode, where it's a kinda a no-nonsense mentality, so I appreciate that part of it."
Baylor fans will appreciate it even more if the Bears knock off Oklahoma in Norman for the first time ever on Saturday and earn their first road win over a top 25 team in more than two decades.
Don't be surprised if Saturday's press conference ends up being Petty's most memorable quote of his time in Waco, too.
FUN WITH NUMBERS
TWEET OF THE WEEK
Hey, Nebraska, you'd be welcomed back with open (but perhaps extremely self-righteous) arms if you wanted to go down that road.
Mad Chatter: How West Virginia football stole Nebraska's fun. And a message for those sugar-coating NU's schedule. http://t.co/uPFjxxS0g8
— Dirk Chatelain (@dirkchatelain) November 3, 2014
