NCAA Football Lines: Texas Christian at Virginia Preview

If one team laid more of an egg last week than Virginia, please let me know which one. (Wikimedia Images)"]

The Cavaliers lost by 12 points at home to William & Mary. I'm guessing the Cavs were the Division I team to fall to a I-AA team with a girl's name in the school. Didn't research that, but I feel confident saying so. The Tribe forced seven turnovers in Virginia's new "spread" offense and got their first win against a I-A school since 1998. It was UVa's first loss to a lower-tier school in 23 years.

Surprisingly, Cavs coach Al Groh still has a job today.

And now No. 16 TCU comes to Charlottesville, and the Horned Frogs got to prepare for that inept Virginia offense all summer because they haven't played yet. Oh, and did I mention TCU is annually one of the best defensive teams in the country (No. 1 last year) and didn't allow more than 16 points in any of its final eight games of 2008? And three of those opponents were top-10 teams in BYU, Utah and Boise State.

The Frogs, who have won their past six openers, are 11-point Bodog favorites for Saturday's matchup. It's their first game against an ACC team in 12 years.

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Even TCU coach Gary Patterson expects the Cavs to come out firing after last week's embarrassment. And Virginia obviously isn't that bad. But the scary thing about the Horned Frogs is that they seem to have found an offense to go with the defense. Last year's team set school records for points scored (437) and touchdowns (56) behind returning QB Andy Dalton. It led the nation in time of possession.

So what chance does Virginia have of even covering? Obviously you have to expect seven turnovers was a fluke. Expect the Cavs to try to run the ball more than last week's game, if only because the three quarterbacks who played last week could only muster 137 passing yards on 33 attempts.

In the last 21 years, Virginia has lost its season-opener 11 times. It came back to win its second game in all but one of those seasons. So there's that.

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