College Football Game Lines – TCU Tries To Straighten Things Out Against Wyoming

The TCU Horned Frogs are unbeaten, but they’re not playing well at all. They are still a huge favorite on the college football game lines as they host Wyoming.

Wyoming Cowboys @ TCU Horned Frogs

Saturday, October 9th – 3:30 PM ET
Amon Carter Stadium, Forth Worth, TX
Broadcast: CBSCSN

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College Football Game Lines:

Wyoming +34, TCU -34

It’s hard to imagine a team winning a game 27-0 and looking bad in the process. It’s even harder to imagine a team winning a game 27-0 and taking a big hit in the race for both a BCS bowl game and the national championship.

Yet, that’s the set of realities staring the TCU Horned Frogs in the face after a sleepy Saturday in the college town of Fort Collins, Colorado.

Yes, TCU did shut out the homestanding Rams this past weekend to notch a Mountain West win, but quite frankly, it’s hard to see any positive developments for the Horned Frogs after a foggy and groggy showing against a very bad opponent.

First of all, TCU quarterback Andy Dalton continued to struggle. Dalton, a senior, has regressed from his far more impressive junior season. His 2010 campaign has been a few notches below his 2009 body of work, and this outing against Colorado State affirmed as much.

Dalton completed fewer than 50 percent of his 24 passes, hitting just 11 targets for 109 yards.Dalton has eliminated himself from the Heisman Trophy race despite his team’s unblemished record. Yet, that’s the least of TCU’s problems.

The Horned Frogs are making it very easy to dismiss them in the chase for a plane ticket to Glendale, Arizona, on January 10, 2011. TCU’s schedule was never really hefty to begin with, so coach Gary Patterson’s team needed to max out on the field and deliver style points to the masses.

College Football Game Lines: What Wyoming Has To Do To Win

Because Dalton and the rest of the TCU offense have been so shaky and vulnerable this year, coach Dave Christensen’s club needs to take risks on the defensive side of the ball. If corners or linebackers can read Dalton’s eyes and step into passing lanes, Wyoming could get not just turnovers, but pick-sixes to score points and put TCU in an early hole.

The Horned Frogs could panic, and an upset could happen. Think this is impossible? Recall the huge upsets that have occurred in college football since 2006. Stanford beat USC as a 41-point underdog. Syracuse beat Louisville as a 36-point dog. It could happen.

College Football Game Lines: What TCU Has To Do To Win

One week prior to their sluggish effort against Colorado State, the Horned Frogs struggled against SMU. Two straight ho-hum wins, without any "wow" factor whatsoever, have already turned out much of the nation.

This is just not a team that’s ready to make a BCS bowl game, even if other ballclubs stumble in the coming weeks. Boise State is clearly outclassing TCU in the race for a premium bowl bid.

How lackluster was TCU against Colorado State? The Horned Frogs scored only six points in the entire first half. Despite the fact that the Frogs’ defense smothered CSU all afternoon, holding the Rams to a mere 161 yards of total offense, TCU couldn’t generate any consistent production before halftime.

That’s actually somewhat embarrassing. TCU needs to play and act like a championship-caliber team against Wyoming. There’s just no other way to say it.

College Football Game Lines: Outlook & Pick

TCU has to be pretty mad about its level of play in recent weeks. The view here is that the Horned Frogs will vent their frustrations on the Cowboys and cover the large number this time around.

College Football Game Lines Pick: TCU -34