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Fiu Thoughts 
– That’s two. Oregon has earned its spot into the playoff with its dominant performance against Arizona in the Pac-12 championship, and now TCU has to be in based on the CFP committee’s rankings. No, the Big 12 isn’t that great, and no, TCU doesn’t have the overall schedule or body of work to deserve a top four spot, but it’s No. 3 coming into the weekend, had all the pressure on its shoulders to look amazing, and it won 55-3. Don’t dismiss how hard it is to win by 52 when you’re supposed to. 

– Okay, okay, okay, so blowing out the worst team in the Big 12 really isn’t any big deal, but TCU did it. The team turned it on when it had to, it was never really threatened, and when it was time to make a statement, boom. If the committee didn’t punish TCU for a bad performance against Kansas a few weeks back, it’s not fair to drop it out of the top four after a 55-3 win. 

– The first half was fine. The Horned Frogs didn’t look that great, but they came up with a 17-3 lead and had command. The second half, though, was necessary. The whole idea behind this game wasn’t just to win; it was to hold off Baylor and Ohio State. Coming out roaring with a brilliant play call and execution to hit Aaron Green for a 54-yard touchdown ended the fun, and then it was on. The 31-point third quarter showed that, yeah, it’s ready to get its shot in the big four. 

– There were a few misfires, and there was a pick, but Trevone Boykin was almost flawless, completing 30-of-41 passes for a career-high 460 yards and four scores with a pick, running eight times for 44 yards, and catching a pass for a 55-yard score. He’s not going to win the Heisman, but he might have cemented his spot as the No. 3 man. 

– It also helped that Iowa State played this like it was a regular game. Without receiver E.J. Bibbs, and the already banged up corps suffering some more bumps and bruises, there was nowhere for QB Sam Richardson to go. There were chances to go for it on manageable fourth down situations, but Iowa State didn’t do it. The team needed to come out guns blazing, but it didn’t have any bullets.