Boykin leads TCU to win over West Virginia
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Trevone Boykin leaped over defenders and threw from the hip for touchdowns, breaking TCU's career record for total offense while leading the fifth-ranked Horned Frogs past West Virginia 40-10 on Thursday night for their 16th consecutive victory.
Boykin was 32 of 47 for 388 yards and three touchdowns and ran 11 times for 83 yards, with a 2-yard keeper for a score when he hurdled a defender at the goal line and several nifty scrambles that left the Mountaineers tackling at air.
When Boykin avoided a sack late in the third quarter, making a move that had linebacker Jared Barber flailing to the ground, he gained 11 yards before running out of bounds on the West Virginia sideline and slapping hands with coach Dana Holgorsen.
The Mountaineers coach could only smile and was shaking his head when he appeared to say, "I've never seen ..." before the television shot cut away.
In their last game before the first weekly College Football Playoff rankings of the season, TCU (8-0, 5-0 Big 12) made quite an impression. As did Boykin and Josh Doctson (11 catches for 183 yards and two touchdowns) on Heisman Trophy voters tuning into a midweek game.
All the losses for the Mountaineers (3-4, 0-4) have been in consecutive games against the Big 12's four ranked teams. They previously lost to No. 14 Oklahoma, No. 12 Oklahoma State and No. 2 Baylor -- all teams TCU has to play in November.
TCU and West Virginia entered the Big 12 together in 2012, and their previous three meetings had been decided by a combined five points. There were two overtime games before Jaden Oberkrom kicked a 37-yard field goal on the final play of regulation last year for a TCU victory.
Oberkrom kicked four field goals Thursday night, including a 57-yarder to end the first half and put TCU up 23-10.
Boykin has 12,041 total yards, breaking the previous record 11,925 held by Andy Dalton, the Cincinnati Bengals quarterback who led TCU to an undefeated season and Rose Bowl victory during the 2010 season.
The Frogs, whose winning streak is second only to top-ranked and defending national champion Ohio State's 21 in a row, went ahead to stay after scoring on each of their three drives in the first quarter for a 17-0 lead.
Boykin threw a 17-yard pass to Doctson for the first touchdown, and had his hurdling keeper to make it 14-0. Both drives were kept alive when the Mountaineers were penalized for pass interference on third-and-long plays -- twice on the opening drive.
TCU also scored on its first two drives after halftime, going ahead 37-10 when Boykin had a defender charging at him and threw a side-arm sling to Doctson for a 9-yard TD. Boykin was knocked down by the hard shot, but popped right back up to join the celebration for the touchdown.
Wendell Smallwood ran for 113 yards for West Virginia. Skyler Howard, who went to high school about 15 miles from the TCU campus, was 16 of 39 for 160 yards with a touchdown and an interception, there were also several dropped bases on deep balls that could have been scores.
Attending the game was one of Boykin's biggest fans, a 7-year-old Iowa State fan photographed wearing a Cyclones jersey in her wheelchair with the quarterback kneeling to speak to her in a touching image that went viral after the Frogs' 45-21 win there in their last game Oct. 17.
A TCU donor provided a private jet for Abby Faber and her family to travel to Thursday's game. The young girl was wearing a No. 2 Boykin jersey when shown on the large video screens at the end of the first quarter, and got a huge ovation.
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