Deseret News | BYU football: Dreams can be dashed at TCU

BYU football: Dreams can be dashed at TCU

By Jeff Call
Deseret News

Published: Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008 12:34 a.m. MDT

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PROVO — In recent years, Amon G. Carter Stadium, home of TCU, has been a place where long winning streaks end — and BCS dreams die — on Thursday nights.

It happened in 2005 to Utah, a year after earning a BCS bid. The Utes were riding a nation-leading 18-game winning streak before falling to TCU in overtime.

It happened in 2006 to then-No. 15 TCU, which boasted a nation's-best 13-game winning streak. The Horned Frogs lost to BYU, 31-17, dashing their BCS hopes.

That was a breakthrough victory for the Cougars, marking the program's first road win over a ranked team in nine years and serving as a springboard to its first Mountain West Conference championship since 2001.

When BYU and TCU meet Thursday night in Fort Worth, the No. 9 Cougars, who have BCS aspirations, will put their nation-leading 16-game winning streak on the line.

In a way, the two programs have switched places from where they were two years ago.

"It's funny. I've actually thought about that a few times. We've completely changed roles," said Cougar linebacker David Nixon. "Now we've got the target on our chest. I don't think they're going to back down one bit. They're one of the top dogs in the Mountain West Conference race. So are we. It's going to be a showdown. I don't expect them to come out tentative. Knowing their coach and their guys, they're going to come out swinging. We're going to have to resist the blows and come right back at them. I expect a great game ... I think this winning streak, that's one of the best things about this team — we know how to win."

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BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall noted the importance of that 2006 victory at TCU. "I don't remember a single play of the game. But I remember the feeling of gratification after the game. I think I was standing on a chair (in the locker room), holding up my hand and the players were excited. I was really happy for them because it was a lot of work to a pretty significant win at that time in the program as we were trying to re-establish ourselves."

The Cougars have also won 18 straight MWC games.

COLLIE HONORED: Junior wide receiver Austin Collie earned MWC offensive player of the week honors after catching nine passes for 155 yards and a touchdown last Saturday in a 21-3 victory over New Mexico.

Collie accounted for more than half of the Cougars' 285 receiving yards, with six of his final seven catches leading to first downs. Collie has recorded four consecutive 100-yard receiving games. He ranks No. 2 in the nation in yards per game (112.7), No. 5 in receptions per game (7.8) and No. 5 in total receiving yards (673).

"He is such a dynamic player and such a strong personality," Mendenhall said of Collie. "The concern now is that we don't focus too much on getting the ball to him. We actually become easier to defend when any one player is having statistical greatness, so there's a unique interplay there between continuing his statistical influence on the game and helping us win, but also not becoming predictable that in all the critical situations that all our points don't come from that one spot. We have to do a better job of distributing the ball effectively, even though he's having such a fine stretch here."