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NCAA Football

TCU Secures Future of QB Position with Transfer Kenny Hill

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kenny hill

Tim Heitman – USA TODAY Sports

The TCU Horned Frogs are poised for big things in 2015. After winning the Big 12 co-championship in 2014 and returning a ton of talent, including Heisman Trophy candidate Trevone Boykin at quarterback, TCU is poised to make a run at the College Football Playoff this season. And with the news that Kenny Hill will be transferring to the school this summer, the Frogs appear poised to stay in contention for years to come.

There’s no question that TCU is Boykin’s team in 2015 after a breakout junior season for the dual-threat signal caller. After struggling to find a role in the offense his first few seasons on campus, he took immediately to the new Air-Raid style offense of co-coordinators Sonny Cumbie and Doug Meacham in 2014 accounting for 4,661 yards of total offense and 42 total touchdowns while completing 61.2 percent of his passes. He ranked No. 4 in the nation in total offense averaging 354.5 yards per game, just ahead of Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota.

But TCU is going to have consider a future without Boykin as the quarterback enters his final season of eligibility. The team currently has three other quarterbacks on the roster in Grayson Muehlstein, Foster Sawyer, and Zach Allen but only Allen has even attempted a pass at the college level (2-for-2 for 17 yards) and none of them have a start to their name. Gary Patterson didn’t exactly give the group a vote of confidence during the spring, either, saying he felt he only had one QB (Boykin) who could win the Big 12.

Enter Hill who comes from the similar offensive playbook of the Texas A&M Aggies with arm talent to spare and starting experience. Through the first five games of the 2014 season, there was nobody better than Kenny “Trill” as he averaged 349 yards through air with 17 touchdowns and just two interceptions. In his final three starts before losing the starting job to Kyle Allen, however, Hill ran into some trouble and struggled to protect the football, throwing six touchdowns and six interceptions in three straight losses. He was benched then later suspended for violating team rules leading to his eventual transfer from Texas A&M.

At TCU, Hill will be able to learn for a year before being asked to carry the offense and won’t have to deal with playing out of the shadow of a figure like Johnny Manziel at A&M. That pressure seemed to get to Hill as the season wore on and he began pressing to try and make plays that weren’t there. If he can stay within himself and play to his strengths, though, Hill has the raw talent to be a Heisman contender in his own right and carry the TCU offense in his final two seasons of eligibility.

With Kenny Hill in the fold, TCU has their quarterback position squared away for the next few years. Will that key a run at another Big 12 title and possibly a berth in the College Football Playoff in 2016?

You can follow Tyler Brett on Twitter @ATylerBrett, on Facebook and on Google.

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