Texas A&M returns home from their Midwest swing for a lone star showdown on Thursday night. The Aggies face off against TCU at 7PM at Ellis Field.
TV: SEC+
Audio: 12th Man
A 3-2-1 record might not be the most impressive record in this early season, but this TCU team has shown that they are dangerous as they've worked through a tough non-conference schedule. There is one game in particular that shows that TCU attack can just EXPLODE. See if you can spot it.
TCU tied the borderline top 25 team of Wisconsin 0-0 to open the season, then beat Minnesota 2-1. The next game was against then 16th ranked Santa Clara. TCU won 7-0. After that, they defeated UTRGV 5-0, then had consecutive losses at USC (0-3) and against #2 Duke (1-3).
Sure, that 0-3 loss to USC is a bad look. But that Santa Clara game… We're talking a perennial powerhouse. The team that won the 2020 National Championship and was in the College Cup last year. Teams of that stature just don't just lose by that magnitude. Santa Clara dropped a couple more games since that match, but those were both 0-1 losses and those came against #11 Penn State and #1 UCLA. That's respectable. But a 7-0 beatdown at the hands of TCU… I know it's just one result, but that result alone frames the Horned Frogs as a scary (albeit inconsistent) team.
Let's take a look at their two losses. In that 0-3 loss to USC, TCU actually outshot the Trojans 17-11. They also had 7 corner kicks to USC's 1. In the 1-3 loss to Duke, TCU was narrowly outshot 13-12, but was even on Shots on Goal (6). This was another game where TCU had the bulk of corner kicks (11-1).
This is an aggressive team. And a team that can score in bunches. The Aggie defense had better be ready as it's unlikely the offense will see many goals.
I'll dig into personnel a bit here. TCU has three players on the Mac Hermann Watch List: 5th year senior forward Messiah Bright, senior midfielder Gracie Brian, and junior goalkeeper Lauren Kellett. TCU is tied with Pepperdine and Tennessee for the most Mac Hermann Watch List selections with three.
If you know one player for TCU, it's probably Messiah Bright and not just because she's been at TCU forever. She was an All-American last year after scoring a school record 17 goals. Bright is also the all-time leader for TCU in career goals (39) and points (92). She also played with the US U-23 team this summer. She has a team high 4 goals this season along with 2 assists. She's also doubling up her individual teammates in shots (22) and shots on goal (10) this season.
Gracie Bryan is 2nd on the team in goals with 2 along with 1 assist. She has 10 shots and 5 shots on goal this season. The team captain left the UTRGV game early and has not reappeared for the Horned Frogs. TCU is 0-2 without her.
Goalkeeper Lauren Kellett has tallied 21 saves this season while allowing 7 goals.
Now, speaking on history, A&M and TCU have some. TCU went 19-2-3 last season and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA Tournament. Last season also marked TCU's 14th match against the Aggies and their first ever victory over them. The Aggies are 13-1 against the Horned Frogs all-time, but dropped their match in Fort Worth by a score of 1-2. That match was TCU's highest attended soccer game until this past week's match against Duke broke that record.
TCU has become a powerhouse in the Big 12, claiming the last 2 regular season championships. But they're now a player on the national scene with 6 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances including an Elite Eight appearance in 2020 and a Sweet Sixteen berth in 2021.
TV: SEC+
Audio: 12th Man
A 3-2-1 record might not be the most impressive record in this early season, but this TCU team has shown that they are dangerous as they've worked through a tough non-conference schedule. There is one game in particular that shows that TCU attack can just EXPLODE. See if you can spot it.
TCU tied the borderline top 25 team of Wisconsin 0-0 to open the season, then beat Minnesota 2-1. The next game was against then 16th ranked Santa Clara. TCU won 7-0. After that, they defeated UTRGV 5-0, then had consecutive losses at USC (0-3) and against #2 Duke (1-3).
Sure, that 0-3 loss to USC is a bad look. But that Santa Clara game… We're talking a perennial powerhouse. The team that won the 2020 National Championship and was in the College Cup last year. Teams of that stature just don't just lose by that magnitude. Santa Clara dropped a couple more games since that match, but those were both 0-1 losses and those came against #11 Penn State and #1 UCLA. That's respectable. But a 7-0 beatdown at the hands of TCU… I know it's just one result, but that result alone frames the Horned Frogs as a scary (albeit inconsistent) team.
Let's take a look at their two losses. In that 0-3 loss to USC, TCU actually outshot the Trojans 17-11. They also had 7 corner kicks to USC's 1. In the 1-3 loss to Duke, TCU was narrowly outshot 13-12, but was even on Shots on Goal (6). This was another game where TCU had the bulk of corner kicks (11-1).
This is an aggressive team. And a team that can score in bunches. The Aggie defense had better be ready as it's unlikely the offense will see many goals.
I'll dig into personnel a bit here. TCU has three players on the Mac Hermann Watch List: 5th year senior forward Messiah Bright, senior midfielder Gracie Brian, and junior goalkeeper Lauren Kellett. TCU is tied with Pepperdine and Tennessee for the most Mac Hermann Watch List selections with three.
If you know one player for TCU, it's probably Messiah Bright and not just because she's been at TCU forever. She was an All-American last year after scoring a school record 17 goals. Bright is also the all-time leader for TCU in career goals (39) and points (92). She also played with the US U-23 team this summer. She has a team high 4 goals this season along with 2 assists. She's also doubling up her individual teammates in shots (22) and shots on goal (10) this season.
Gracie Bryan is 2nd on the team in goals with 2 along with 1 assist. She has 10 shots and 5 shots on goal this season. The team captain left the UTRGV game early and has not reappeared for the Horned Frogs. TCU is 0-2 without her.
Goalkeeper Lauren Kellett has tallied 21 saves this season while allowing 7 goals.
Now, speaking on history, A&M and TCU have some. TCU went 19-2-3 last season and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA Tournament. Last season also marked TCU's 14th match against the Aggies and their first ever victory over them. The Aggies are 13-1 against the Horned Frogs all-time, but dropped their match in Fort Worth by a score of 1-2. That match was TCU's highest attended soccer game until this past week's match against Duke broke that record.
TCU has become a powerhouse in the Big 12, claiming the last 2 regular season championships. But they're now a player on the national scene with 6 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances including an Elite Eight appearance in 2020 and a Sweet Sixteen berth in 2021.
