Greedy TCU keeps ball, gets 10th win

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Dec 3, 2006 | by Associated Press

TCU didn't overlook its regular-season finale, even with a bowl berth already in hand and another Mountain West Conference title out of reach.

The Horned Frogs instead played keep-away and completely dominated Air Force. And it started with the opening coin toss.

After winning that toss, TCU took the ball to start the game instead of deferring as it normally would do. The Frogs scored on that opening drive -- and all four of their first-half possessions - - and beat Air Force 38-14 on Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas, for their seventh straight victory.

"Fortunately for us, it turned out OK," TCU coach Gary Patterson said. "We went out, scored and we stayed up."

Jeff Ballard completed all 12 of his passes and ran for a touchdown in the first quarter to put TCU (10-2, 5-3 Mountain West) up 14-0 when Air Force had run only seven plays with one first down. The Horned Frogs held the ball for nearly 20 1/2 minutes while building a 24-0 halftime lead.

SAN DIEGO ST. 17, COLORADO ST. 6: At San Diego, Atiyyah Henderson and Kevin O'Connell each ran for a touchdown to lead San Diego State. Henderson scored on a 2-yard run early in the second quarter to give the Aztecs a 7-0 lead. O'Connell, who struggled throwing the ball, iced the win on a 14-yard TD run with 7:05 left in the game to put the Aztecs ahead 17-6.