This Saturday (31), the Fiesta Bowl took place at State Farm Stadium. The semifinal between #3 TCU and #2 Michigan was very busy, with great emphasis on the defense of the Horned Frogs. The team, which was considered an underdog, dominated from start to finish and secured the first university final in this playoff format with a 51-45 victory.
Max Duggan wasn’t brilliant, but he managed good plays, finishing with 14/29, 225 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs, in addition to 15 carries for 57 yards and 2 TDs. JJ McCarthy saw the ground game disappear, and alternated good and bad moments, finishing the game with 20/34, 343 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs, as well as 10 carries for 52 yards and TD.
(Photo: Reproduction Twitter/TCU Football)
The game
The duel started with TCU’s defense dominating: it raised the wall and prevented a 4th for the touchdown. Soon after, he got an interception and returned to the end zone to open the scoring. It didn’t take long for Duggan to appear and managed to gain the last remaining yard to expand: 14 to 0.
The Wolverines got a field goal to go short. Duggan tried to go farther down the field, but ended up being intercepted. The Wolves advanced to the one-yard line, but fumbled and lost the ball. Before the break, it was time for Duggan to find Taye Barber for 6 yards and TD, as well as for Jake Moody to hit a 59-yard field goal, leaving the score at 21-6 for the Horned Frogs.
In the halftime return, the attacks appeared very well, managing to reach more than 40 combined points. The Wolverines got a field goal, intercepted Duggan and turned the pick into a 34-yard pass for Ronnie Bell to cash: 21 to 16. But TCU started hitting big plays. After a 46-yard pass, the team worked well in the red zone and left it to Emari Demercado to score the one-yard TD.
The Horned Frogs looked to put an end to the game when McCarthy threw the second interception, which was also returned for a TD. The score was 34 to 16, after failing to convert two points, and the BIG 12 team dominated. On the next drive, McCarthy took it all in with his legs and finished it off on a 20-yard TD run, also missing the 2-point conversion.
Soon after, with a 69-yard big play, Demercado only stopped at the one-yard line. Which didn’t help much, as he got the touchdown on the next move: 41 to 22. Michigan returned to the game with a land TD by fullback Kalel Mullings, 1 yard, and McCarthy ran on the conversion, leaving the game at 11 points.
Then, the first big turnaround chance began. Demercado fumbled near his end zone, putting Michigan in great position. Roman Wilson ran a reverse, gained 18 yards and entered the end zone. Again, the two-point conversion was good: 41 to 38. Then came the move that seems to have decided the game.
TCU was seeing Michigan approaching on the scoreboard, had no margins for errors and, in a 3&7, the defense’s failure to mark allowed the great Quentin Johnston to gain 76 yards and write down the TD. Soon after, TCU scored a field goal, seeming to end the game.
QUENTIN JOHNSTON OH MY GOODNESS!!!
— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 1, 2023
However, McCarthy managed a good pass for Wilson to gain 5 yards and write down the TD. Jim Harbaugh’s team managed to regain possession of the ball, with just under a minute on the clock and the field to advance and try to turn it around. On 4th down, however, the center snapped before the hour, eliminating any chance of victory and putting an end to the dream of the BIG 10 champion.
The grand final opponent will be #1 Georgia, defending champion, who beat #4 Ohio State in another game decided only on the last possession of the ball.
