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TCU press conference with Coach Sonny Dykes, QB Jaden Craig and Jamel Johnson after loss to #UNC
Aug 29, 2026
TCU press conference with Coach Sonny Dykes, QB Jaden Craig and Jamel Johnson after loss to #UNC
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0:00
snapped the ball over the punter's head.
0:03
You were one of five on fourth down.
0:06
You just look at those numbers right
0:08
there
0:09
and um
0:11
you just aren't going to win a football
0:12
game. Just make those kind of mistakes
0:14
in critical situations like we did,
0:17
you're just not going to win.
0:18
And and so obviously
0:20
we've got to get those things fixed.
0:22
Um
0:23
and we'll uh look at the tape and we'll
0:25
review the tape and make a lot of
0:26
corrections and get better.
0:28
But this was um a disappointing
0:30
performance. I thought our guys really
0:32
prepared well coming into this game. You
0:34
know, I'd like to sit here and say
0:36
you know, that we didn't prepare well,
0:38
but we did. Um thought our guys were
0:40
ready to play and when we got in those
0:41
situations for whatever reason we
0:43
shouldn't be making plays. And we've
0:44
done that all four games and didn't have
0:46
it tonight.
0:48
>> How surprised were you at the
0:50
penalties given that that was an
0:51
emphasis?
0:51
>> Yeah, disappointed at the penalties.
0:53
Yeah, very disappointed at the
0:54
penalties. Yeah, I thought
0:56
I wouldn't really press the penalty game
0:58
with the officials to start with
1:00
and uh certainly we [snorts] worked hard
1:02
on that.
1:03
>> Just speaking on the penalties, how do
1:04
you go about correcting that issue?
1:08
>> [sighs]
1:08
>> Well, I think not having issues with the
1:09
officials for one. Um
1:12
and then I think we've got to do a
1:14
better job of
1:16
um you know,
1:19
got to be more disciplined.
1:20
You know, we've got to be more
1:21
disciplined and we've got to
1:23
um
1:25
got to do a better job keeping our hands
1:28
inside. We had several holding penalties
1:29
and it was really, really critical. I
1:31
think it was one point in the game where
1:33
we had had lost three consecutive drives
1:36
to holding penalties.
1:37
Um that killed us. You know, we got into
1:40
a situation of long yardage situations
1:41
every time we got momentum. We had some
1:43
kind of penalty.
1:45
We had them backed up
1:46
um
1:47
and then a mouth and
1:48
we got a face mask penalty and then we
1:50
got a late hit on the quarterback
1:52
penalty and
1:54
you know, a blatant unsportsmanlike
1:55
conduct penalty uh from our running
1:57
back. We just I mean
1:59
stuff that is
2:00
not indicative not indicative of our
2:02
players and our program, but certainly
2:04
was tonight.
2:06
Yes.
2:07
>> Coach, four turnovers on downs, two of
2:09
them on fourth and two. Do you regret
2:11
going for the little situation? Is that
2:13
just the way you play? It's aggressive
2:14
and you
2:14
>> Yeah, I know. I mean, looking back now,
2:16
obviously, I wish we'd kicked the two
2:17
field goals, but at the time, you know,
2:19
it made sense to
2:22
to try to get both of those and make
2:23
them both, you know, and they're
2:25
probably both worth than any one,
2:28
you know, and and obviously the the last
2:30
one we needed to go for.
2:31
Um and then we had the one earlier in
2:33
the game, same thing. It's just you're
2:35
not you're not moving the football. You
2:36
got to try to keep the ball in the end
2:37
zone and score touchdowns. And um
2:40
you know,
2:41
we got to do a better job of doing that.
2:43
>> Coach, it may be day one. What is um
2:46
what is your biggest positive takeaways
2:48
and your biggest growths?
2:49
>> Well, I'd like to say there's a lot of
2:51
positives. I mean, I thought we like you
2:52
said, I thought our guys played hard and
2:53
we fought. We just you know, we got to
2:55
do
2:56
We uh
2:57
we made critical
2:59
penalties. We had a chance to get the
3:00
ball back there in the field.
3:02
Um
3:03
you know, right there in the game and we
3:05
we jumped offsides. I mean, it was just
3:07
again, things that
3:10
you know,
3:11
shouldn't happen.
3:12
>> Coach, how do you how do you evaluate
3:14
the the start of quarterback James
3:16
Black's debut in these conditions on
3:18
this sort
3:18
>> Yeah, I mean, I
3:20
Look, I I
3:21
you know, I've had the
3:26
You know, I've seen James practice and
3:28
then I know what it's looked like
3:31
and it didn't really look that way
3:33
today. And you know,
3:35
I'm sure North Carolina had something to
3:37
do with that and and
3:39
our lack of execution. Our guys we just
3:40
didn't do a good job of making the
3:42
routine plays like we needed to. Um just
3:46
didn't give ourselves a chance.
3:48
You know,
3:49
we We had a lot of drives that again
3:52
stalled out because of penalties,
3:53
stalled out because of uh
3:55
missed opportunities on fourth down.
3:58
Um
4:00
you know, in in those big moments you
4:01
have to execute.
4:03
>> What do you like about the way you
4:04
played up front, specifically on the
4:05
offense? Jeremy Rainey had a great day.
4:08
>> Yeah, I thought we did some good things
4:09
early. You know, disappointed again that
4:11
we couldn't make a less than a yard on
4:13
fourth down in a critical situation down
4:16
inside the
4:18
the 20-yard line.
4:19
Um
4:22
But I thought we did some good things.
4:24
You know what I mean? I this Look, this
4:26
is going to be a good football team.
4:27
We're going to have a good football
4:28
team. I have no doubt about that.
4:30
Um
4:31
we did not
4:32
do a good job of of playing coaching
4:35
tonight. We're uh we need to do better
4:37
and that's why it's that falls on me.
4:40
I've got to get these guys
4:42
uh ready better. Felt like we were As I
4:44
said, I felt like
4:47
coming out of fall camp this was this
4:48
team was prepared. And thought once we
4:50
got here we were prepared and we had the
4:52
right frame of mind and our guys
4:55
there was no
4:57
um
4:58
there was no signs of the
5:00
of the performance that we were going to
5:01
have tonight. You know, I didn't see it
5:03
coming.
5:04
Um but obviously there are a lot of
5:06
things we got to fix.
5:07
>> After the first quarter kind of felt
5:09
like things might be like wide open on
5:10
offense. What kind of adjustments I
5:12
guess did you see from from Carolina on
5:13
the defensive side that kind of limited
5:15
you?
5:15
>> Well, you know,
5:17
the the biggest thing was you know, when
5:19
we moved the football we didn't have
5:20
those mental mistakes. You know, maybe
5:22
we were able to run the ball. We were
5:23
able to uh
5:25
stay out of
5:27
you know, second long, third and long
5:28
situations.
5:30
Um
5:31
I felt like by playing penalty uh by
5:33
playing penalty free.
5:36
And so, you know, when we got in those
5:37
long yardage situations with the run
5:39
game was particularly good and
5:41
um
5:42
you know,
5:43
if we ran for Jeremy Rainey for 100
5:45
yards in the first half
5:47
not as much in the second half and
5:49
you know, I thought um I thought as the
5:51
game went on
5:53
you know, Carolina scratched and got
5:55
better. I thought the guys really played
5:56
hard. We didn't
5:57
protect as well as we needed to. Um
5:59
third downs at times.
6:01
Um and then again, the biggest thing was
6:05
you know, every time we tried to
6:07
did anytime we got anything going, we
6:08
had a penalty. Shot ourselves in the
6:10
foot. It just killed us.
6:12
>> What's up with the play by Jayden Hayes?
6:15
>> He rolled naked to the left and he
6:16
decides to pass into the end zone. Was
6:18
that not a call from him? Could he have
6:20
continued
6:21
>> Yeah, yeah, there's you know, we had a
6:22
guy I thought we had McCary in the flat
6:24
quickly. Thought he could have gotten to
6:25
him fast and then
6:27
he's got the option to uh run it there
6:30
as well.
6:31
You know, looked like if he had have run
6:32
it, it would have been close.
6:34
Um
6:35
but you know, look, that's
6:37
that was kind of indicative of our our
6:39
whole team. Just a missed opportunity.
6:40
We just missed a lot of opportunities
6:42
tonight across the board.
6:44
>> You guys have a lot of wide receivers.
6:46
What went into the decision to start the
6:47
guys that you did?
6:48
>> Yeah, we were we were Yeah, we were down
6:51
some receivers obviously. Um
6:54
you know,
6:55
best guys played. Just the guys that uh
6:58
that we felt like were there to help us
7:00
on the main.
7:01
>> How do you think they performed?
7:02
>> You know, we'll look at the tape and
7:03
see. You know, I
7:05
like I said, I didn't think we did a
7:06
good job making routine plays.
7:08
Across the board.
7:10
>> But the reality is everything you want
7:11
to accomplish is still in front of you.
7:12
>> Yeah, yeah, look, I mean
7:15
Yeah, I mean, I want to win every game.
7:16
Um
7:17
I told our guys afterwards
7:20
you know, we got to we have to
7:22
learn from this game. All of us coaches
7:23
we have to learn, players we have to
7:25
learn.
7:26
We just can't let this happen to us
7:27
again.
7:28
Um
7:30
very disappointing performance. Again, I
7:31
give North Carolina a lot of credit.
7:33
They played uh they improved.
7:37
You know, uh they did a good job
7:38
tonight. I thought they they
7:41
uh did what they had to do. And I
7:42
thought their defense really played
7:43
well.
7:44
Um
7:46
You know, as I just said, I felt like we
7:47
had opportunities to win the game.
7:50
>> You said you thought Carolina's
7:51
defensive front improved as the game
7:53
went on. What specifically do you think
7:54
worked for them so well? I think
7:56
>> Just, you know, I just thought they they
7:58
did a better job against against the
7:59
run, you know, early in the game we
8:01
actually saw
8:03
on the wide zone and just seeing how
8:04
they were getting more penetration and
8:06
getting playing across the gaps spaces.
8:08
As the wide zone is the main
8:11
And you know, our running backs were we
8:13
couldn't run the run and and uh
8:16
you know, just running this play this
8:17
was our
8:19
>> Coach, there was a good portion of the
8:20
fans that could not even see you guys in
8:22
America and
8:23
>> Yeah, disappointing for our fans. Yeah,
8:25
disappointing for our fans. They I
8:26
thought we had tremendous support.
8:28
Um
8:30
yeah, disappointed that we didn't that
8:31
we didn't play better
8:33
as a whole and and uh
8:35
you know, obviously appreciate them
8:37
coming over here and supporting us like
8:39
they do. They always do. We have the
8:40
best fans in the country.
8:42
Um
8:43
you know, I'm sure they're disappointed
8:44
now too.
8:45
>> Coach, I want to get back on that a
8:46
little. How does it mean to you to be
8:48
able to be out here in Dublin and
8:50
>> Well, it's a good experience, you know,
8:51
the thing I told our guys is that's
8:53
always the same. Doesn't matter where
8:54
you go.
8:56
Um you know, you have a good experience
8:57
if you win the game. You know, we were
8:58
here we were here to win the game. I I
9:00
never doubted our players weren't
9:01
focused and didn't pay attention and all
9:03
that. I wish I could blame it on that.
9:05
That's not the case.
9:07
You know,
9:09
everybody in Dublin was good to us and I
9:11
think everybody in Dublin was bigger our
9:12
fans.
9:14
You know, we just didn't uh I think we
9:15
just let them down.
9:17
>> Did you receive any explanation for why
9:19
that play didn't work in the first half?
9:21
>> Yeah, I mean, yeah, the exact So, what
9:23
happened?
9:25
So, we caught the first down.
9:28
I called the timeout.
9:31
Then, I wasn't sure if the ball was
9:37
one of the Somebody told me that the
9:38
ball was incomplete.
9:41
And so,
9:43
you know, we had two timeouts left. So,
9:44
we knew I mean, I called the first down
9:46
and we had a penalty that moved us back.
9:50
Um and I thought the ball was
9:52
incomplete. That pass was incomplete.
9:53
Normally, the officials will have a
9:55
conversation with you and tell you what
9:57
the ball is going to be put in play
9:59
live. Nobody told me that.
10:01
I was unsure of whether it was a catch
10:02
or whether it was an incomplete
10:04
Um
10:05
and the clock ran out, which is again
10:06
not a good thing, but
10:09
that's uh
10:10
I was not impressed again with that the
10:12
way that that play was communicated to
10:14
me
10:15
uh and what happened in that.
10:17
I was disappointed, quite frankly.
10:22
>> Coach, we've got Jamie Plunkett's on
10:23
Zoom there. Jamie, go ahead.
10:26
>> Hey coach, Jamie Plunkett, 24/7 Sports.
10:29
We've seen teams lose this Ireland game
10:32
and then struggle once they get back
10:33
stateside. What is your game plan to
10:35
ensure that this stays isolated and not
10:38
doesn't doesn't bleed into the next
10:40
couple weeks?
10:42
>> Uh yeah, good question, Jamie. Yeah, I
10:44
mean, you look at this game. I mean, I
10:45
think that favorites lost now four games
10:47
in a row.
10:48
Um
10:52
you know, we've just got to we've got to
10:54
go back and we have to to be very
10:55
critical of ourselves and we have to
10:57
improve again as coaches, as players, as
10:59
everybody. I think that
11:02
everybody in there is disappointed and I
11:03
think everybody in there believes in
11:04
this have a good football team.
11:06
Uh get everybody in there will give
11:08
everything they have to ensure that we
11:09
do and that we play well and reach our
11:12
potential because I don't think we did
11:13
that tonight.
11:15
Maybe it's pretty clear that we didn't.
11:17
Um
11:18
and really that's all we can do.
11:21
>> Coach,
11:22
how does playing a game overseas
11:25
change the way that you've had this
11:26
season and how you've been the rest of
11:27
the season?
11:28
>> Well, we have an open week this week. Um
11:30
Um,
11:31
so, you know, we have a lot of problems
11:33
to fix, which is a good thing. So, we're
11:34
going to have a lot of extra time to get
11:36
it fixed.
11:37
And I take a good long look at where we
11:39
need to improve, and our players look we
11:41
have great
11:42
young men
11:44
that that they care deeply, and they've
11:46
worked really really hard and prepared
11:49
really hard to get here. And we just got
11:52
to play cleaner. We'll do everything we
11:53
can to to ensure we do, and we got to
11:55
coach better. Again, that begins if you
11:57
don't play well, it's because you didn't
11:58
coach well.
12:00
So, we have to improve in in that
12:01
regard.
12:02
>> The last two on the Zoom, JD, go ahead.
12:06
>> Coach, you mentioned with the tight ends
12:08
we saw the tight end playing a lot of
12:10
double tight ends than usual. Our Ashley
12:13
and Griffin in the first quarter, were
12:14
they being used to block more as the
12:17
first round and the defensive front got
12:18
better throughout the game?
12:20
>> Yeah, yeah, we you know, we feel like
12:22
that our tight ends are our strength.
12:25
You know, we had a critical holding
12:26
penalty early in the game on on KP.
12:30
Something that have to get fixed, and
12:31
that was a drive killer.
12:33
Um,
12:36
you know, it's a talented room, it lacks
12:38
a little bit of experience. You could
12:40
tell that that
12:41
we played at times a little bit
12:44
inexperienced.
12:46
Um, but look, I love the guys. They're
12:48
they're I think they're very talented.
12:50
It's going to be something that we we
12:52
use. I think they're they're
12:54
it gives us
12:56
some capabilities to do different things
12:57
in our run game, and um,
13:00
you know, we should we'll we'll play
13:01
with some 11 personnel and a lot of 12
13:03
personnel as well, and and got to do a
13:05
better job I think of getting those guys
13:07
the ball. You know, Take me had to catch
13:09
early in the game
13:10
on the seam route, that was a big play.
13:13
Um, we just had a hard time getting it
13:14
to him again. We went for it on a fourth
13:16
down and and had an opportunity to get
13:18
him the ball and and
13:20
got a little bit out of sorts um,
13:22
later in the game, but but yeah, that's
13:24
a good group, and and they've got to
13:26
continue to grow and and and help us.
13:28
>> Jeremy, last one.
13:31
>> Hi coach, Jeremy Clark 24/7 Sports.
13:34
You mentioned earlier coach that James
13:36
did some things and Paul did some things
13:38
in practice that he didn't do
13:40
tonight.
13:41
What are those things? It didn't seem
13:42
like he was running coach. Did y'all
13:44
kind of tell him to try to run some more
13:46
or is that something you're going to
13:47
give down?
13:48
Have it down?
13:49
>> Yeah, yeah, he's got he's got the green
13:50
light to run. I mean I I we'll look and
13:52
see. I you know, I I'm not questioning
13:54
his decisions so I'm not whether or not
13:55
he ran the football at all.
13:58
Look, you know, James is a really
14:00
talented guy that again everybody in our
14:02
in our team 100% believes in. We know
14:07
how how talented he is. We know how hard
14:10
he prepares. We know what a great player
14:12
he's going to be.
14:14
Probably didn't play his best tonight
14:15
which again, I don't know that you could
14:17
say anybody in our team played their
14:18
best.
14:19
But I have no doubt that he'll, you
14:22
know, learn from this as we all will and
14:24
get better and
14:26
you know, and we'll perform better as a
14:27
additional ball game.
14:29
>> Thank you, coach.
14:32
>> Fellas, how did it feel being able to
14:34
put the pads on and play against a team
14:36
in a different colored jersey and be
14:37
able to
14:38
throw some stuff out there?
14:43
>> You want to state the question again for
14:44
me?
14:45
>> How does it feel to be able to go and
14:46
play against another team instead of
14:49
just your your teammates in practice?
14:50
>> Oh yeah, it's good. It's always good to
14:52
be back playing football again against
14:54
somebody else. So yeah, that's pretty
14:56
good.
14:57
>> Yeah, good to, you know, get the the red
14:58
jersey off in practice.
15:00
No more protection.
15:03
Yeah, football's fun so just getting hit
15:04
out there and you know,
15:06
playing against the you know, a real
15:07
team live was
15:09
was yeah, was a good experience.
15:11
>> James, do you have any regrets on that
15:12
fourth down again?
15:14
>> Of course, yeah. Um
15:17
Should have just trusted my eyes and you
15:19
know, use my legs.
15:22
That's a critical mistake that
15:24
you know, I won't make again.
15:28
>> Did you feel like you could have run
15:29
more throughout the game?
15:32
>> I feel like
15:34
there may have been some opportunities,
15:36
um,
15:37
you know, in our straight run game.
15:39
Uh, they weren't really giving me any,
15:41
you know, running lanes, but I think,
15:42
you know, in the pass game, you know,
15:45
just
15:46
taking like stepping up in the pocket
15:48
and taking off, um, I think would have
15:50
gotten us out of some situations. Um,
15:53
yeah, just learning learning moments.
15:56
>> Jayden, how was uh, USC defense compared
15:58
to you I mean defenses that you faced in
16:00
your career?
16:02
>> Yeah, they're better.
16:04
>> [laughter]
16:05
>> Um,
16:07
yeah, guys are bigger, faster, stronger,
16:09
um, but so is my team, so it's not
16:11
something I think about. You know, it's
16:13
just football at the end of the day.
16:15
So.
16:16
>> What adjustments did you see from your
16:17
line defensively? Cuz after 125 yards in
16:20
the first quarter, it felt like things
16:21
might be opening up, but what
16:22
adjustments did they make across the
16:24
rest of the way?
16:25
>> Yeah, I think just trying to keep keep
16:27
everything in front of them, you know,
16:28
playing a lot of shell defense, um,
16:31
you know, making us take the short
16:32
throws, not really allowing us to push
16:34
it down the field, um,
16:36
I think that definitely helped them out
16:38
a little bit and
16:40
you know, that was one of their main
16:41
adjustments.
16:44
>> As two leaders in the locker room, what
16:46
were your guys' messages to the guys
16:48
after
16:49
after the second half?
16:51
>> Uh, that we just we just can't break.
16:54
We know we like y'all on this special
16:55
team, but like I said, we beat
16:57
ourselves, so we got everything in front
16:59
of us that we still want, so we just got
17:01
to attack each and every day.
17:03
>> Yeah, pretty much what JJ said, um,
17:07
you know, still ton of talent, um,
17:10
and there were so many plays out there
17:11
that we just didn't make, um,
17:13
so we're all motivated just go back home
17:15
and get better and clean all the little
17:17
things up and I think we're we're going
17:19
to be a a really good team by the by the
17:20
end of the season.
17:30
One more time?
17:39
I don't really think
17:41
any type of impact, you know, um I'm
17:44
super confident in the guys we had out
17:45
there.
17:47
Um
17:49
yeah, and I trust them, they trust me.
17:51
So, it doesn't really change the game
17:52
plan. Just different guys out there.
18:05
>> I mean, it's not it wasn't hard at all,
18:08
man. We know we got to That's what we
18:09
got to do as a defense, bring energy to
18:10
wherever we play at, no matter it was in
18:12
the
18:13
uh the states or out here. So, just just
18:16
know what we got in front of us and how
18:17
we want to attack it. It's We always
18:19
going to bring energy.
18:28
Uh yes, most definitely. Like you said,
18:30
we still got everything in front of us
18:31
that we want to do. We just got to go
18:32
attack each and every day.
18:41
>> Anybody else in the room?
18:42
>> Uh
18:43
how does playing overseas for the first
18:45
time ever
18:46
uh feel about like the
18:47
how do the locker room feel about it?
18:52
>> So, you know, coming into it was a
18:55
really cool experience, you know,
18:56
getting to play out of the country. Um
18:59
so, the energy level was high,
19:00
excitement was high, and um
19:03
yeah, we were all just ready to go.
19:05
>> Uh on the Zoom, Jamie, go ahead.
19:08
>> Uh hey, guys. Jamie, this question's for
19:11
you. Do you feel like the weather and
19:13
the wet field had any impact on your
19:15
ability to throw the ball today?
19:18
>> No, I think it's it's football at the
19:20
end of the day. Um, things that I got to
19:22
clean up and, you know, just get better
19:24
with when we get back to, uh,
19:25
you know, Fort Worth. Um, but I feel
19:27
like that's kind of a cop-out excuse
19:29
and, you know, I refuse to make that, so
19:31
I just have to play better.
19:34
>> JD, go ahead.
19:36
>> Hey, Jamal, I got a question for you.
19:38
Uh, it looked like a few times
19:40
throughout the game there was
19:41
communication differences in the
19:42
secondary. Was it something North
19:44
Carolina was doing or what was just kind
19:46
of going on back there early in the
19:47
first half?
19:49
>> Uh, no, it was nothing they were doing.
19:50
It's it's about us and how we, um,
19:53
it's just how we just seen the
19:54
formation. You know, we got different
19:55
calls, different adjustments for it, so
19:58
we just all got to get on the same page
19:59
and just learn from what we did and
20:01
learn from that.
20:03
>> Bill?
20:05
>> All right, guys, thank you. Appreciate
20:06
it.
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