FORT COLLINS — A lot of it was simply hard to watch today.
Colorado State coach Steve Fairchild slammed his clipboard and chased down referees, yelling at an uncalled pass interference penalty in the third quarter. Many fans left the cold, blustery conditions at halftime, causing a bit of a traffic jam leading out of Hughes Stadium.
They didn’t miss much.
Colorado State’s home winning streak this season was stopped at three in a 13-7 loss to Texas Christian. It was CSU’s first Mountain West Conference loss this season, and stopped a five-game home winning streak dating back to last season.
The Rams (3-3, 1-1 MWC) started well, taking the opening drive 78 yards in nine plays, culminating in a Gartrell Johnson 4-yard touchdown run.
TCU marched the ensuing drive for a touchdown, going 76 yards in 14 plays, but the extra point was blocked.
The only other touchdown TCU needed came in the second quarter on a nine-play, 85-yard drive. Joseph Turner’s 3-yard touchdown run gave TCU a 13-7 lead.
Missed opportunities early severely hurt Colorado State — most memorably tight end Kory Sperry’s drop in the end zone that could have padded an early CSU lead.
Later, TCU’s defense stiffened. The Horned Frogs entered the game with the nation’s top-ranked defense, and it showed why in shutting down the Rams in the second half.
Colorado State barely moved the ball, had minus-49 yards rushing in the second half, gained just 11 yards on 28 carries for the game, and even a quarterback switch from starter Billy Farris to freshman Klay Kubiak didn’t help much. Colorado State mustered just 199 yards total offense and turned over the ball three times.
Kubiak was rushed relentlessly, sacked five times and fumbled twice. The Rams last chance ended with 23 seconds left when Kubiak was intercepted as he threw a pass as he was being brought down.
The Rams travel to face No. 14 Utah next weekend.
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
