Safety duo makes TCU secondary a no-fly zone

TCU typically has a solid defense, but a top safety duo has pushed their pass defense to a high level.

In the high-flying Big 12, the TCU Horned Frogs have generally stood apart on the defensive side of the ball. That was no different in 2019, as they were No. 2 in the conference in total and pass defense (behind Oklahoma in both) before postseason play.

When it was all said and done, TCU finished with the 27th-ranked pass defense in FBS last year (199.7 yards per game) and 16 interceptions (tied for ninth). Nine of those interceptions came from the safety duo of Ar’Darius Washington (five) and Trevon Moehrig (four), which was more than a lot of teams last year.

Moehrig (61 total tackles, 11 passes defended) was the highest-graded safety by Pro Football Focus last year, and per 247 Sports he had the third-best grade among safeties since the site started grading college players. But Washington was not far behind him, and duo set themselves apart.

With Moehrig and Washington leading the way, the TCU secondary as a whole kept some lofty company in one category. LSU and Ohio State, who secondaries produced a total of four picks in the first two rounds of this year’s draft, did not have a forced incompletion rate better than TCU’s last year.

Cornerback Jeff Gladney, who was a first-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in April, made it a top-notch secondary trio for the Horned Frogs in 2019.

Moehrig and Washington will be back this year, for their senior and redshirt sophomore seasons respectively. As such, naturally, they are each considered a top prospect for the 2021 NFL Draft.

Gladney won’t be easy to replace at cornerback, and there will be an experience downgrade at minimum. But as long as Moehrig and Washington are on the field, the TCU secondary will be very good for Gary Patterson again in 2020.