Fort Worth, Texas – Colorado State quarterback Justin Holland was having a wonderful senior season.
The former Bear Creek High School star was ranked fourth nationally and No. 1 in the Mountain West Conference with a passing efficiency rating of 166.1.
He was supplying a lot of offense, 272.8 total yards per game.
No. 20 Texas Christian, however, wanted Holland to leave town with some less than stellar numbers Saturday night.
The Horned Frogs’ defense stifled CSU, forcing Holland into four interceptions in their 33-6 victory that clinched the MWC title. It was a tough night for Holland, who completed 22-of-38 passes for 194 yards and had his first game this season without a touchdown pass.
TCU coach Gary Patterson said Holland was a savvy quarterback, and TCU’s defensive decisions reflected that.
“We had to change up some coverages,” Patterson said. “We didn’t really ever play something twice in a row because he does such a great job reading it.”
Senior defensive tackle Ranorris Ray said the Horned Frogs watched a lot of game film.
“We tried to stay focused all week,” Ray said. “It really wasn’t that hard after a while. Once you break down the information, there’s only a certain amount of plays they can run. It was hard, but after you got to know the offense, it was pretty easy.”
TCU sophomore safety Brian Bonner, who picked off Holland twice, gave most of the credit to Ray and the rest of the line.
“Coach told us that, even if you’re not blitzing, show that you’re blitzing,” Bonner said. “A couple of times I came down the line and he made some checks. That’s our job, to make him check and don’t give him what he wants.”
The Frogs tempered any celebration of their first outright conference title since ruling the Southwest Conference in 1958.
The MWC championship trophy was in Fort Worth on Saturday, but TCU is holding it until next Saturday when it hosts Nevada-Las Vegas and honors former Horned Frogs running back and NFL star LaDainian Tomlinson. Patterson said he wanted to celebrate the MWC title and Tomlinson’s career on the same day.
CSU tried the same thing three years ago, when the Rams won the MWC title prior to the regular-season finale. The Rams waited, then lost to UNLV 36-33.
Asked if he was concerned the Horned Frogs could have a letdown next weekend, Patterson said, “not from what I saw (in the locker room). This group understands what they need to do to accomplish things.”
