Here's a recap of everything that happened in Week Four of Texas college football to prepare you for the Sunday dinner and Monday water cooler conversations.

1. Don’t tell people the play call that didn’t work has a name touting how well it will work

Dave Aranda’s defense got after Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders for eight sacks, but his final defensive stunt, a play dubbed ‘Victory Cigar’  did not go as planned. The rusher on Sanders’s left-hand side performed an ‘up-and-under’ rush when he should’ve been ‘contain’ rushing, and Sanders had free run to the sideline for a Hail Mary heave.

2. College coaches can be ejected too

TCU head coach Sonny Dykes received a warning heading into halftime of the Iron Skillet for jawing at the officials, then blew through the yellow light on the first play of the second half. TCU had a kickoff return called back for holding, and Dykes picked up two consecutive unsportsmanlike conduct flags, resulting in an ejection. 

TCU ended the Iron Skillet, and Dykes left the Hilltop as TCU’s head coach for the final time with his fists pumping.

3. So that’s why TCU doesn’t want to go to Dallas anymore

And it’s not just to guarantee a seventh home game for their season ticket holders. Now that SMU is in a Power Four conference, there’s so many other ways to lose than on the scoreboard. A 66-42 loss will affect TCU’s College Football Playoff hopes and recruiting battles.

4. TCU has misread its football team in fall camp three years in a row

TCU twice selected Chandler Morris to start the season at quarterback, only to roll with the backup once Morris returned from injury. This year, Dykes said he believed TCU would be a solid rushing offense in fall camp if nothing else. Through four games, the Horned Frogs are 121st in the nation with 88.5 rushing yards per game, forcing quarterback Josh Hoover to play perfectly to give them a chance, which he did not do on Saturday. 

5. A win is not just a win for Mike Elko

While I was watching Mike Elko’s postgame press conference after Texas A&M’s 26-20 win over Bowling Green, my partner who didn’t watch the game looked over and asked me if Texas A&M lost. Elko was not happy to escape a Bowling Green team that took Penn State to the wire. He lamented his defense for allowing tight end Harold Fannin Jr eight catches for 145 yards and a touchdown. Elko said his offense was too choppy and didn’t finish enough drives in the red zone, kicking three field goals.

“So many levels of frustration,” Elko said.

6. Texas Tech’s secondary wins most improved unit

After surrendering over 500 passing yards to Abilene Christian in Week One, Joey McGuire loosely compared top cornerback Bralyn Lux’s impact to NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders on the Dallas Cowboys, saying one player’s absence does indeed make that much of an impact.

Texas Tech aced their second go around without Lux on Saturday against undefeated Arizona State. Aside from a 66-yard swing pass to running back Cam Skattebo eerily similar to the North Texas screen pass touchdown from last week, the Red Raider secondary limited explosive plays and forced the Sun Devils to drive the length of the field. 

Maurion Horn and Chapman Lewis both made backfield tackles in run support on 4th down. Brenden Jordan had a pass breakup on 3rd and 9 on Arizona State’s second-to-last drive, and Lewis had another on the two-point conversion attempt that could’ve cut the lead to six points. 

Arizona State did have some unforced errors (the incomplete pass to Jake Smith, who leaked behind the entire secondary, comes to mind) and the Texas Tech secondary did suffer three penalties on the Sun Devils’ second drive of the game. But this unit has vastly improved from Week One.

7. Texas Tech RB Tahj Brooks is the most impactful player in Texas

We ranked Brooks as the most impactful player in Texas heading into the 2024 season, and that prediction is holding true through the first four weeks. Brooks enjoyed his 14th-consecutive 95-yard or better rushing output and proved this Red Raider offense runs through him. In the one game he missed this season, Texas Tech’s offense floundered in a 37-16 loss to Washington State in which quarterback Behren Morton pressed, throwing two interceptions. With Brooks in the offense, he can be more of a game manager, and win football games.

8. Fried Rice

Outside of a 69-7 drubbing of Texas Southern, Rice is averaging 11.66 points per game against FBS competition. More concerning for head coach Mike Bloomgren, however, is the lack of progress on the defensive side. Outside of the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Rice has ranked inside the top 80 in scoring defense just once. Four times they’ve ranked in the triple digits. 

Rice got bullied by the future troops Saturday. They were losing 30-0 shortly after the second half kickoff after a muffed punt snap resulted in a safety. Army quarterback Bryson Dailey, an Abernathy alum, put up 252 total yards while blood gushed from his nose. 

9. Houston is who we thought they were

Willie Fritz’s inaugural season in Houston was always going to be a rebuild. The Cougars were selected 15th in the Big 12 Preseason Poll and are arguably less talented than Dana Holgorsen’s final team after Transfer Portal attrition. 

After hanging tough in a 16-12 loss to Oklahoma and stomping Rice 33-7, Houston had an opportunity against Cincinnati to launch themselves into the sneaky competitive Big 12 teams conversation along with Arizona State. A 34-0 drubbing proves Houston has a lot more work to do. The Cougars might catch a couple heavy favorites sleeping, but a winning streak is unlikely.

10. UTEP has to answer a quarterback question over the bye week

UTEP went into the halftime break down 14-3 to Colorado State and inserted Cade McConnell at quarterback for a spark. McConnell finished 19-of-29 for 220 yards and completed touchdown passes of 28 and 56 yards to Kenny Odom. UTEP went on a 10 play, 41-yard drive attempting to tie the game but turned it over on downs, and Colorado State sat on the ball to ice it.

UTEP is 0–4 entering the bye week and needs to decide if McConnell or Skyler Locklear will be their quarterback for conference play.