If there’s one reason to be optimistic about TCU football’s chances of upsetting No. 10 BYU, it’s the return of senior wide receiver Jordan Dwyer.

The former Idaho transfer missed the first three games of the season, but made his return with five receptions for 100 yards in the Horned Frogs’ 21-13 loss to Central Florida last week.

“It felt great to be back out there with my brothers playing football. There’s nothing better than that,” Dwyer said. “Definitely hurt the first couple weeks not being out there, but it felt really good.”

A big day from Dwyer would be a huge boost to TCU (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) as it tries to knock off BYU (3-0, 1-0) at 6 p.m. Saturday at Amon G. Carter Stadium.

It’s always tough for athletes to not be able to play the sport they love, but the pain was especially deep for Dwyer. After posting 730 yards and seven touchdowns in his first season at the Power Four conference level, Dwyer entered 2026 with the expectations of being the next 1,000-yard receiver at TCU.

Since head coach Sonny Dykes arrived in 2022, that list includes Quentin Johnston, Jack Bech and Eric McAlister. — not to mention Savion Williams and Derius Davis, who didn’t get to 1,000 yards but developed into NFL draft picks like Johnston and Bech.

Dwyer is fully capable of joining that list and is grateful to be back on the field.

“It was tough. This is my last year, my senior year. Obviously you want to be out there every single day with your guys,” Dwyer said. “Especially after all the work that’s been put in during the offseason. So, it was definitely tough, but it is what it is. I’m blessed to be back out there now.”

Though the Horned Frogs lost to UCF, Dwyer’s impact was immediate and hard to ignore. Despite missing so much time, he was able to instantly reconnect with senior quarterback Jaden Craig.

Dwyer provides Craig a deep ball target who attacks defenses vertically while also being able to win in 50-50 situations. He’s the type of receiver who can help elevate the play of a quarterback.

“He had a limited snap count and still got 100 yards. A guy like that is always gonna find a way to get open,” Craig said. “It adds life to the offense. It’s definitely good to have him back.”

Dwyer said his strong relationship with Craig was a result of the work the two put in during the offseason.

“We just got a good connection. Like, that’s my guy off the field as well,” Dwyer said. “We go out to eat. We do things like that. So we just got a good feel for each other and both trust each other.”

That trust will be necessary against a veteran BYU defense loaded with preseason All-Big 12 defenders that is allowing under 16 points per game.

The key for TCU is finding a way for Dwyer to make a similar impact against BYU while not rushing him back from his foot injury. Dwyer was so effective against UCF that he played over his intended snap count. TCU would like to avoid that happening again Saturday, but Dwyer’s desire to play and his value to the offense could complicate that.

“We’ve got to be careful,” Dykes said. “He hadn’t practiced in about six weeks. We played him a little bit more than we wanted to on Saturday. I think we were shooting for about 20 plays, I think he ended up playing over 30. We’re going to have to be careful with him as we get him back and into football. It’s going to be important that we keep him healthy.”

Having Dwyer for the remainder of the season is essential, but so is finding a way to upset BYU and potentially save a season that has been filled with disappointment.

Dwyer understands how big the moment is for the program, and whether he’s playing 25 snaps or 55, he’s ready to do what is needed to give TCU a chance.

“It would mean a lot. We know what kind of team are. We know what kind of organization this is,” Dwyer said. “I think everybody around here knows we should be 4-0 right now, and [a win] would mean a lot. It would be good for us.”

Game schedule dates, times, locations Sept. 22 New York Mets 6, Rangers 3 Sept. 23 New York Mets 7, Rangers 2 Sept. 24 Rangers 3, New York Mets 1 Sept. 25 Minnesota 10, Rangers 2 Sept. 26 Rangers 6, Minnesota 2 Sept. 27 Minnesota 6, Texas 4 Season complete WNBA playoffs First-round series (Valkyries win 2-1) Game 1: Sept. 27 Golden State 104, Wings 80 Game 2: Sept. 30 Wings 108, Golden State 100 (OT) Game 3: Oct. 2 Golden State 77, Wings 73 Sept. 13 N.Y. Giants 28, Cowboys 20 Sept. 20 Cowboys 37, Washington 20 Sept. 27 Baltimore 34, Cowboys 31 Oct. 4 Cowboys 34, Houston 30 Oct. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, 7:15 p.m., Amazon Prime Video Oct. 18 at Green Bay, 7:20 p.m., NBC Oct. 26 at Philadelphia, 7:15 p.m., ESPN, ABC Nov. 1 vs. Arizona, 12 p.m., Fox Nov. 8 at Indianapolis, 12 p.m., Fox Nov. 15 vs. San Francisco, 3:25 p.m., Fox Nov. 22 vs. Tennessee, 12 p.m., Fox Nov. 26 vs. Philadelphia, 3:30 p.m., Fox Dec. 7 at Seattle, 7:15 p.m., ESPN, ABC Dec. 20 at L.A. Rams, 3:25 p.m., CBS Dec. 27 vs. Jacksonville, 7:20 p.m., NBC Jan. 3 vs. N.Y. Giants, 12 p.m., Fox Jan. 9 or 10 at Washington, TBA Aug. 29 North Carolina 15, TCU 10 Sept. 12 TCU 63, Grambling State 7 Sept. 19 TCU 31, Arkansas State 7 Sept. 26 Central Florida 21, TCU 13 Oct. 3 BYU 17, TCU 10 Oct. 17 at Baylor, TBA Oct. 24 vs. West Virginia, TBA Oct. 31 vs. Kansas, TBA Nov. 6 at Arizona, 9:15 p.m., ESPN Nov. 14 vs. Kansas State, TBA Nov. 21 vs. Utah, TBA Nov. 26 at Texas Tech, 7 p.m., ESPN Sept. 5 Indiana 52, North Texas 16 Sept. 12 North Texas 44, UNLV 6 Sept. 19 Texas State 49, North Texas 35 Sept. 26 North Texas 63, Houston Christian 14 Oct. 1 North Texas 45, Tulsa 44 (OT) Oct. 10 vs. Charlotte, TBA Oct. 24 at Navy, 2:30 p.m. CBSSN Oct. 29 vs. Florida Atlantic, 6:30 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2 Nov. 7 vs. Rice, TBA Nov. 14 at UTSA, TBA Nov. 21 at Tulane, TBA Nov. 28 vs. UAB, TBA All home games at Crowley ISD Multi-Purpose Stadium Aug. 27 Central Oklahoma 59, Texas Wesleyan 7 Sept. 5 McNeese State 52, Texas Wesleyan 0 Sept. 12 Texas Wesleyan 56, Texas College 20 Sept. 26 Texas Wesleyan 41, Nelson 16 Oct. 3 at Arkansas Baptist, 2 p.m. Oct. 10 at Louisiana Christian, 2 p.m. Oct. 17 vs. Mary Hardin-Baylor, 1 p.m. Oct. 24 at Langston, 2 p.m. Oct. 31 vs. Oklahoma Panhandle State, 2 p.m. Nov. 7 at Ottawa (Arizona), 6 p.m. Nov. 14 at Wayland Baptist, 2 p.m. Preseason Oct. 9 vs. Houston (at Macao), 7 a.m., MavsTV+, NBA TV Oct. 11 vs. Houston (at Macao), 5 a.m., MavsTV+, NBA TV Oct. 14 vs. New Orleans, 7 p.m., KFAA, MavsTV+, NBA TV Oct. 16 vs. Atlanta, 7 p.m., KFAA, MavsTV+ Regular season Oct. 21 at Houston, 7:30 p.m., TBA Oct. 23 at Indiana, 6 p.m., TBA Oct. 24 vs. San Antonio, 7 p.m., TBA Oct. 26 at Miami, 6:30 p.m., NBA TV Oct. 28 vs. Oklahoma City, 8:30 p.m., ESPN Oct. 2 vs. St. Louis, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV Oct. 3 at Nashville, 7 p.m., Amazon Prime Video Oct. 5 vs. San Jose, 7 p.m., Amazon Prime Video Oct. 8 at Buffalo, 6 p.m., Amazon Prime Video Oct. 10 at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m., Amazon Prime Video Sept. 5 FC Dallas 4, Kansas City 3 Sept. 9 FC Dallas 2, Minnesota 1 Sept. 12 FC Dallas 2, Portland 1 Sept. 19 FC Dallas 0, Austin 0 Sept. 26 FC Dallas 1, LAFC 0 Oct. 10 at Charlotte, 6:30 p.m., Apple TV Oct. 14 vs. Seattle, 7:30 p.m., Apple TV Oct. 17 at Houston, 7:30 p.m., Apple TV Oct. 24 vs. San Jose, 7:30 p.m., Apple TV Oct. 28 vs. Columbus, 7:30 p.m., Apple TV Oct. 1-3 Dirt Track Championship Oct. 2-3 Goodguys Lone Star Nationals Oct. 14 Tony Stewart Bowling Tournament Oct. 16-17 High Limit Racing Championship Oct. 29-31 POWRi Racing
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