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It was more difficult than it needed to be, but TCU football did enough to defeat West Virginia 23-17 Saturday night on the road to become bowl eligible.
“We made plays. That’s the bottom line,” head coach Sonny Dykes said. “We did what we had to do to win the game. We made field goals. Nate McCashland did a tremendous job kicking field goals. He had to step up. We were a pretty banged-up football team, and our guys had to gut it out.”
The Horned Frogs (6-2, 3-2 Big 12) led wire to wire, but could never completely pull away from the Mountaineers (2-6, 0-5), who were energized by an impressive home crowd.
TCU didn’t deliver the apparent knockout blow until less than five minutes remained in the game. The Horned Frogs used a 13-play drive to set up a 41-yard field goal for McCashland, and the backup kicker nailed it to put TCU ahead 23-10 with 4:48 remaining.
The game wasn’t over yet, though, as West Virginia scored a quick touchdown when Scotty Fox Jr. threw a 28-yard TD pass to Jeff Weimer with 3:15 remaining.
After nearly allowing West Virginia to recover the onside kick, TCU needed to pick up a first down to clinch the win. Quarterback Josh Hoover hit wide receiver Eric McAlister for the first down, but a West Virginia player knocked the ball loose. Wide receiver Major Everhart ended up being the hero, as he was there to recover the fumble, and TCU was able to end the game in victory formation.
“The last two road games we found a way to lose, and tonight we found a way to win,” Dykes said.
The Horned Frogs have a bye next week before a grueling four-game stretch to finish the regular season. They host Iowa State on Nov. 8, then play at BYU and Houston before hosting Cincinnati.
Here are four takeaways from the win:
Which Josh Hoover showed up?
After struggling in the past two Big 12 road games, Hoover had a better showing against West Virginia. He still wasn’t as sharp as he’s been when playing in Fort Worth, but the junior did enough to help the Horned Frogs avoid a devastating upset.
Hoover helped TCU take a 20-7 lead at halftime after completing 12 of his 20 passes for 114 yards while tossing a 4-yard touchdown to McAlister. It took awhile for the offense to find its rhythm in the second half, as the Horned Frogs went scoreless in the third quarter. At the beginning of the fourth quarter TCU was just 2-of-10 on third down.
Hoover helped the offense convert two pivotal third downs on the decisive drive late in the fourth quarter as the Horned Frogs took over six minutes off the clock before McCashland’s field goal.
It wasn’t Hoover’s best game, but he avoided costly turnovers that led to TCU falling at Arizona State and Kansas State. He ended up completing 24 of 39 passes for 247 yards and a touchdown.
“I thought we did a good job of taking care of the football,” Hoover said. “There weren’t many negative plays. We played clean football and did a good job of staying ahead of the sticks. I thought we did a good job, and I think coach called a good game.”
Trent Battle steps up
TCU starting running back Kevorian Barnes exited the game after just one carry with an unknown injury, forcing the Horned Frogs to rely on their depth. They were already playing without Jeremy Payne, meaning it was senior Trent Battle’s turn to be the lead back.
The veteran rose to the occasion with a strong performance in the first half. Battle had 66 yards on 11 carries, including a 1-yard touchdown and a 46-yard run that helped TCU extend its lead to 20-7 right before halftime.
Battle has shown he can be a change-of-pace back this year, but his effort against Mountaineers also showcased that he can handle the workload. He finished with a career-high 89 yards on 19 carries.
Barnes returned and got most of the workload in the fourth quarter.
Major impact
Playing without its two top slot receivers, Ed Small and Joseph Manjack, the Horned Frogs needed somebody in the wide receiver room to step up, and it was Everhart who answered the call. The junior has missed most of the season with an injury, but it didn’t take long for him to showcase his explosive speed against the Mountaineers.
The Horned Frogs mostly used Everhart in the RPO (run-pass option) game, letting him attack the flat with a full head of steam. Everhart took one short pass from Hoover 26 yards to set up TCU’s first score, a 35-yard field goal from McCashland.
Everhart had two more pivotal plays for the Horned Frogs midway through the second quarter. First, he drew a defensive pass interference on third down after beating his man on a slot fade. Later in the drive, Everhart took another short pass 18 yards to eventually set up a McAlister touchdown that increased TCU’s lead to 17-7 with 6:12 remaining in the first half.
On the final drive, he made the game-saving fumble recovery on McAlister’s clinching catch for a first down. Everhart finished with four catches for 45 yards.
“We knew Major was going to have a great opportunity to make some plays tonight,” Hoover said. “I love the way he’s been practicing. He was in my class coming in here, so we’ve had a good relationship, and there’s something I love about the way he plays, the way he practices and just who he is as a person.”
Defensive delivers
After playing some of the country’s best offenses the past few weeks, TCU had a much simpler task facing a heavily hobbled West Virginia offense. Playing without starting quarterback Nicco Marchiol and its top two running backs, the Mountaineers were limited offensively, and TCU’s defense did a tremendous job of not giving the West Virginia offense confidence.
The Horned Frogs held West Virginia to just 3.5 yards per play in the first half and excelled at getting off the field. The Mountaineers were just 2-of-9 on third down in the first half and 1-of-5 on fourth down. The physicality of TCU’s defense shined on fourth down, as most of those conversion attempts were fourth-and-short, including a few attempts at the tush push.
Despite how well the defense played, the Horned Frogs’ offense continued to give West Virginia chance after chance as they failed to deliver the knockout blow until the fourth quarter.
Linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr led the way defensively with 16 tackles as he became the first Horned Frog to record 15-plus tackles in consecutive games since 1995. Safety Bud Clark also had 13 tackles.
This story was originally published October 25, 2025 at 8:28 PM.
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Steven Johnson
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