TCU’s Offense in Crisis After Opening Loss | North Carolina Tar Heel Football News

TCU’s 2026 season started with high hopes but crashed hard after a 15-10 loss to North Carolina in Dublin, dropping them to 15th in early Big 12 power rankings. The offense went cold after a promising first quarter, producing just 281 total yards and no touchdowns — quarterback Jaden Craig threw for 175 yards without scoring. Jeremy Payne shined on the ground with 142 rushing yards, while defense stood strong with Max Carroll’s nine tackles and two forced fumbles, plus Ansel Din-Mbuh’s two sacks. But penalties cost them 89 yards, and the team’s struggles are already raising alarms. With an open week ahead, head coach Sonny Dykes has a chance to reset before facing Grambling State — a game that’s more about proving they can fix their issues than winning. The Big 12 is heating up, and TCU can’t afford another slow start. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/6ba1d5b38ff2a234