2014 Season Countdown: 12 Samford

We are now officially 11 weeks from the opening weekend of college football season so it seems appropriate to start the official PurpleMenace.com countdown. I am counting down TCU's 2014 schedule from the least interesting to the most interesting game of the season. It is hard to choose which game should be number one on the list, but it was easy to choose number twelve…that would be the opener against Samford…No, not Stanford…Samford.

The Samford Bulldogs are led by Head Coach Pat Sullivan. That name should sound familiar to Frogs fans as Sullivan coached TCU from 1992-1997. Sullivan has also had stops at Auburn as their quarterbacks coach and UAB as the offensive coordinator.

The Bulldogs were 8-5 overall and 6-2 in conference play during 2013. Although most people look at Samford as just an FCS team, they are not to be taken lightly. Samford was Southern Conference co-champions last season and had some big wins and close losses. The Bulldogs took down Georgia Southern, Wofford, and Chattanooga who were ranked at the time of the games and barely lost to Arkansas by 10 points in Little Rock.

The Bulldogs will be breaking in a new starting quarterback and running back this season as well as replacing their top receiver. They do have some playmakers returning though. WR Karel Hamilton averaged 50 receiving yards per game and caught seven touchdowns. Running back D'Morrise Bledsoe rushed for 415 yards and 3 touchdowns. Samford also returns their second leading tackler on defense Bobby Wilson who recorded 100 tackles and 1 interception in 2013.

I am looking forward to this game from a TCU perspective for a couple of reasons. One, it is the home opener for the Frogs which is always fun since it's at night and the first game of the season. How can you not be excited? I need football!! Frogs fans will be able to fit in a full day of tailgating before packing into The Carter to kickoff the season.

Secondly, it will be our first look at the new offense. I'm not expecting the playbook to be wide open but we should get a small glimpse of how this offense will operate in 2014. Could there be a new starting quarterback under center or will Trevone Boykin take all the snaps? How fast paced will the offense be? Those are all questions I can't wait to see answered.

This is the least interesting game of the 2014 season but there is still a lot to look forward to. The Frogs need to come out determined, start the season on the right foot, stay healthy, and get the season started on the right foot. Football is right around the corner and I cannot wait!