Helmet hits TCU assistant Jerry Kill vs. SMU, Gary Patterson investigating

An unknown SMU player hit TCU assistant Jerry Kill with a helmet following the Mustangs’ victory Saturday, and Gary Patterson isn’t having it. The Horned Frogs coach said after the game he intends to find out which player is the perpetrator.

“I do need to find out who the player is that hit coach Kill with a helmet is,” Patterson told the Forth Worth Star-Telegram. “I will find that out.”

The loss was the second straight against SMU for TCU. The Mustangs attempted to pull a Baker Mayfield and plant their flag in the middle of the field, which resulted in a scuffle between the teams. That is when the helmet hit Kill.

Patterson also said he didn’t approve of the way SMU handled itself after victory, but added his team “shouldn’t have acted that way.”

“Here’s the thing, I didn’t talk. I saw coach [Dykes] fry frog legs in the skillet when we couldn’t play them,” Patterson said. “I’ve been here 24 years. There’s one way that you handle things — you have class doing that. I’m not going to call people out and tell them they’re scared. I’m not doing all of that stuff. There’s a way to win and there’s a way to lose. Doing that? Just because Baker Mayfield did it at Ohio State?

“They can keep acting that way. Just like they put grass seed on the field. To me, that tells me they still hold us in high regard. Simple.”

SMU took a 23-21 lead into halftime and never trailed again on its way to a 42-34 victory. Oklahoma transfer quarterback Tanner Mordecai continued to impress as he finished with 245 yards and four touchdowns. He also threw three interceptions.

SMU coach Sonny Dykes issued an apology for his players’ behavior after the game.

“I’ll talk to them about that,” Dykes said. “We don’t want to do something like that. There’s nobody in the world that has more respect for TCU or for Gary Patterson and how they run their program, the longevity he’s had here, there’s nobody in the world that has more respect for him than I do. If that happened, that shouldn’t have happened. I feel bad for that. I apologize for that.”

It will be interesting to see if Gary Patterson can actually find out which SMU player threw the helmet and whether they will receive any punishment. The Horned Frogs open Big 12 play Saturday against the Texas Longhorns.