LAWRENCE, Kan. – Two Big 12 programs whose promising starts have turned sour meet Saturday afternoon when Kansas hosts TCU. The Jayhawks won two of their first three games but have since dropped four straight while the Horned Frogs have lost four of their last five after a 2-0 start.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1. LINE: TCU -13.5
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The off-field headlines, though, are far worse for TCU this week as senior wide receiver KaVontae Turpin was dismissed from the team Tuesday, two days after his arrest on charges of assaulting his girlfriend. According to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, Turpin was charged in similar incident in March involving the same woman, and coach Gary Patterson said Tuesday that he and TCU officials were unaware that the March incident included a battery charge. Turpin, though, is now gone after leading the FBS with a 19.4-yard punt-return average and ranking second on the team with 410 yards and three touchdowns on 29 receptions. Overall, it’s been quite a tumble for TCU, which has climbed as high as 14th in the coaches’ poll before a hard-fought, 40-28 loss to then-No. 4 Ohio State on Sept. 15 started the Frogs’ slide.
ABOUT TCU (3-4, 1-3 Big 12)
The Horned Frogs’ latest loss – a 52-27 home defeat vs. Oklahoma last Saturday – was their worst yet as the eighth-ranked Sooners outscored the hosts 24-3 in the second half. Sophomore quarterback Michael Collins, a Penn State transfer, took over from injured and ineffective starter Shawn Robinson in the second quarter Saturday and led TCU to 17 points on his first three drives before the Sooners took command in the second half. On Monday, it was announced that Robinson, also a sophomore, will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, leaving Collins as the new starter.
ABOUT KANSAS (2-5, 0-4)
The Jayhawks entered the season having won only three games in their previous three seasons but routed Central Michigan (31-7) and Rutgers (55-14) after a season-opening loss to FCS-member Nicholls (26-23). Kansas, though, has opened Big 12 play with a familiar four straight losses, including a 48-16 rout at Texas Tech on Saturday, upping its conference losing streak to 14 games and giving the Jayhawks a 1-33 mark in their last 34 Big 12 contests. Kansas finished with 319 total yards Saturday as head coach David Beaty took over the offensive play-calling duties from fired offensive coordinator Doug Meacham, but freshman tailback Pooka Williams, ranked fifth in the conference in rushing, was held below 97 yards for the fourth straight game.
EXTRA POINTS
1. TCU is 6-0 vs. Kansas since joining the Big 12 in 2012, but prior to last season’s 43-0 home shutout, the previous five meetings had been decided by a total of 35 points.
2. This will be the Horned Frogs’ first game outside of the state of Texas this season after playing in Dallas, Arlington and Austin in addition to their four home dates in Fort Worth.
3. Kansas leads the Big 12 with a plus-14 turnover differential, including a conference-leading 12 interceptions, while TCU is last in the Big 12 with 10 interceptions thrown and a minus-10 turnover differential.
PREDICTION: TCU 26, Kansas 23