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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for 243
yards and two touchdowns as TCU (No. 21 ESPN/USA Today, No. 20 AP) earned a 41-14 victory over Northwestern
on Saturday, but all anybody could talk about after the game were
the yards he didn't get.
|  | | Northwestern vowed to shut down tailback LaDaimian Tomlinson, but the Heisman candidate racked up 243 yards rushing in TCU's romp. |
TCU's senior tailback had a 34-yard touchdown run nullified by a
holding penalty near the end of the first half. He also had a
74-yard touchdown run negated by a holding call. At the game's end,
Tomlinson lost three rushes for 100 yards and two touchdowns to
penalties.
"I could have had 350, but I feel I still played well,"
Tomlinson said. "It was like I ran all that way for nothing. In
the end, people saw the game. It was nationally televised. They saw
what I did."
What Tomlinson did was wear out a Northwestern defense that was
on the field for almost 40 of the game's 60 minutes. His longest
official run of the game went for 25 yards.
"Our offensive line can feel when the defensive guys up front
are getting tired and getting lazy," Tomlinson said. "We were
ready and wore them down."
TCU (2-0) won its seventh game in a row, its longest winning
streak since 1984. Northwestern dropped to 2-1.
TCU's defense, which recorded a school-record 15 sacks against
Nevada last week and finished ranked fifth in the nation last
season, also lived up to its preseason hype.
The Horned Frogs held Northwestern to 258 yards of offense and
11 first downs.
The Wildcats turned the ball over four times and only crossed
midfield twice. Northwestern's offense entered the game averaging
37 points and 442 yards of offense a game.
"That wasn't us out there today," said Northwestern coach
Randy Walker. "Football isn't too fun when your offense is going
three-and-out."
Northwestern quarterback Zak Kustok, who completed 12 of 20
passes for 132 yards and one touchdown. Kustok also tossed three
interceptions, was sacked three times and fumbled once.
"They put a lot of pressure on me without doing a lot of
blitzing," Kustok said. "They definitely lived up to their
advance billing."
TCU got off to a quick start after Cedric James returned the
opening kickoff 42 yards to the TCU 45. After a 6-yard pass
completion, Tomlinson rushed for 45 yards on the next four plays.
Two plays later, TCU's Chris Kaylakie kicked a 26-yard field
goal to give the Horned Frogs a 3-0 lead.
TCU did all the scoring in the second and third quarters. TCU's
Casey Printers led the charge, throwing touchdown passes of 53 and
16 yards. Printers finished 8-of-12 for 101 yards and two
touchdowns. He also rushed for 74 yards on 12 carries and a
touchdown.
But with Tomlinson hammering away at Northwestern's defense in
second half, TCU didn't even attempt a pass for the rest of the
game.
"We were doing a good job of being physical with them," TCU
coach Dennis Franchione said. "I think we played a little bit of
their brand of football."
Walker said he was impressed with Tomlinson, but was even more
dazzled by TCU's offensive scheme, which relied heavily on the
option.
"They did a great job controlling the perimeter of the field,"
Walker said. "Their players are awful solid, but their coaches did
a great job today.
"Not to take anything away from (Tomlinson), but I might have
been able to get 200 yards out there in that scheme."
TCU will play Arkansas State next week while Northwestern will
travel to face No. 4 Wisconsin.
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ALSO SEE
COLLEGE FOOTBALL Scoreboard
Northwestern Clubhouse
TCU Clubhouse
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