Sonny Dykes on TCU's offensive line: 'Love the competition we have'

After a disappointing season in 2023, failing to follow up on a highly successful 2022 campaign, TCU and head coach Sonny Dykes are eying a return to form in 2024. And Dykes is confident in one key group for the planned rebound for the Horned Frogs.

Speaking at Big 12 Media Days, Dykes raved about the depth and the competition of the TCU offensive line room. With fall camp closing in, Dykes is excited to have competition at all five spots.

“Love the competition we have in that room. I think that’s been the biggest thing that, to me, has improved us,” Dykes said. “We’ve got some young players that have developed and now starting to reach their potential. We’ve got a carryover, Mike Nichols, who we think has a chance to be a really good — one of the better offensive linemen in the Big 12. And we have competition at every spot. That’s what I love. I love the fact that those guys know they have to show up every day, roll their sleeves up, they’ve got to go to work. It’s a tough-minded group, it’s a physical group. Just love their approach.”

The TCU offensive line, in a few baseline stats, was quite passable in 2023, if not dominant. The Horned Frogs were tied for 38th nationally in sacks allowed, giving up 19 across 12 games. And TCU ranked No. 70 in rushing offense, churning out 4.57 yards per carry to a 154.5 yards per game and 19 total touchdowns on the year.

With a blend of some new talent and returning experience, Dykes is evidently bullish on how the group has come along so far in the offseason, and where it could lead the TCU offense when the games get played.

Dykes shouldered the blame for TCU’s poor 2023 showing

Dykes spoke about the Horned Frogs’ struggles in 2023 during an interview while at Big 12 Media Days on Tuesday. He said the blame starts with him for not doing enough earlier on in their offseason before kickoff ever came.

“It all starts with me,” Dykes stated. “I mean I did a really poor job last year of recognizing some issues that we had early and not getting them addressed.”

For one, Dykes said TCU didn’t get their spring efforts going until later on than he thinks they should have. That apparently set them back to the point where they tried to get themselves adjusted all season long. For two, Dykes also said the program didn’t go enough to stop some of the privilege that came from the year prior when they played for the national title and finished at 13-2.

“You know, we felt like we were playing catch up the whole time,” explained Dykes. “We got back from the national championship late and gave our players some time off. All of a sudden, we’re in the middle of February and we’re just now starting conditioning. Really, we spent 12 games last year trying to get caught up. It just starts with a mentality – showing up every day, competing, and fighting. When you have success like we did in year one, I think you have to battle entitlement and we obviously didn’t do a very good job of fighting it the way we should have.”