LOS ANGELES — TCU starting running back Kendre Miller remains questionable for Monday night’s College Football Playoff Championship game between the Horned Frogs and No. 1 Georgia at SoFi Stadium.
Miller hurt his knee in the second quarter of the Fiesta Bowl national semifinal Dec. 31. TCU coach Sonny Dykes said Miller, while sore, felt better Saturday.
“We’re still optimistic that he’s going to be able to play,” Dykes said.
Emari Demercado would carry the load in Miller’s absence, as he did against Michigan. He ran for 150 yards on 17 attempts against the Wolverines.
Duggan appreciates Bennett’s success
The quarterbacks in this game have similarities. TCU quarterback Max Duggan opened the season as a backup before an injury forced him into the first game. He took off from there, becoming a Heisman Trophy finalist and leading TCU to this point.
Bulldogs quarterback Stetson Bennett’s fairy tale is well-known, from no-name recruit to scout-team quarterback to transfer to backup to starter to national champion. It’s no surprise that Duggan, who spent time with Bennett in Manhattan when the two were Heisman finalists, appreciates how he’s persevered.
“I think there’s so many similarities of just belief in yourself and continuing to work hard and believe in the guys around you and the support staff that you have,” Duggan said. “I think that’s the biggest thing that you see amongst us, and it’s pretty special to see what Stetson has done in his career and the position that he’s been able to be in, playing for two national titles, the success that he’s had as a player, so it’s pretty special.”
Familiar faces
TCU has one player who is more than a little familiar with the Bulldogs.
Tymon Mitchell, a junior defensive lineman from Nashville, Tennessee, transferred from Georgia to TCU after last year’s spring game. The reason: He said he didn’t think he was going to get enough playing time.
Perhaps Mitchell knew what many others didn’t. The Bulldogs were having to completely overhaul their defensive line after all three starters were drafted in the first round of the NFL draft. Nose guard Nazir Stackhouse, defensive tackle Jalen Carter and defensive end Tramel Walthour have logged the majority of starts in their stead, with Zion Logue, Warren Brinson and freshman Mykel Williams also rotating in regularly.
The 6-foot-3, 315-pound Mitchell played in five games for the Bulldogs during the 2021 season, recording six tackles. He has played in 14 games for the Horned Frogs this season. With one tackle against Michigan in the Fiesta Bowl, he has nine solo tackles and 10 assisted tackles.
“I’ve really enjoyed the season,” he said.
Mitchell said he chose TCU because he enjoyed the people and the atmosphere. He said he likes TCU’s defensive system because it gives the players freedom.
“It’s fun to watch our linebackers fly around,” he said. “I feel like I fit in, for sure.”
Mitchell said he reached out to Logue after the teams advanced to the championship, “just to say, ‘see you in L.A.’”
Also, TCU will be a familiar foe for Georgia outside linebackers coach Chidera Uzo-Diribe. The Bulldogs’ first-year assistant coach has gone against the Horned Frogs as a coach at Kansas and at SMU. Then, he was briefly on the TCU staff before accepting the position at Georgia.
Containing Carter
Ohio State did a nice job preventing Carter from wrecking their offense. Perhaps the best defensive player in the country, Carter has single-handedly altered games when he tears through an offensive line.
“You know how special he is,” Duggan said. “You see everything that he’s done and where he’s projected right now. You know he’s such a stud, and he causes so many troubles for opposing offensive lines and teams because he’s so impactful, whether it’s him actually making plays and causing disruptions or him taking on double teams and allowing one-on-ones for other guys on his defensive line.
“The dude is so powerful, he’s so big. He’s fast. He’s twitchy. He just causes so many issues for a lot of teams, and we’ve got to make sure we’re aware where he’s at and make sure that we have him kind of dialed in because we know it’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
This likely will be Carter’s final game as a Bulldog. There’s no official announcement yet, but he plans to enter the NFL draft. Carter is a projected top-five pick and might be the first defensive player taken. The top three picks currently belong to Houston, Chicago and Seattle (via Denver).
“My mom last night, she was like, ‘Oh it’s your final game. I remember when we first came here,’” Carter told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It’s just a crazy experience. Just have to play my hardest and give it all I can.”
-Staff writers Chip Towers and Doug Roberson contributed to this article.
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