On Max Duggan and toughness

In the buildup to the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl between TCU and Michigan, one of the reasons to believe in the Horned Frogs was quarterback Max Duggan. Yes, Duggan was a Heisman Finalist, and he took home both the Davey O’Brien Award and the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, but there was another reason to believe in him.

His toughness.

The Washington Post wrote that Duggan had TCU in the playoff due to his “arm, grit and tears.” After TCU lost to Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship Game, Duggan was praised by media outlets and his head coach for his “gutsy” effort. That effort led at least one Heisman voter, Paul Kenney of The Eagle-Tribune, to turn in a ballot with Duggan’s name at the top, highlighting how Duggan’s effort in “running and willing his team from 8 points down in the final minutes” will stand the test of time in TCU football history.

Duggan’s story is one of toughness, and perseverance. After starting ten games as a true freshman back in 2019, including leading the Horned Frogs to a victory over Texas, his world changed the following year. During a medical examination prior to the shortened 2020 season, Duggan was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome, a rare heart condition.

This condition involves an extra signaling pathway between the upper and lower chambers of the heart, which can cause a fast heartbeat when the extra signal fires along with those already present. The most common symptom of WPW is a sudden onset of a heart rate greater than 100 beats per minute, which can last a few seconds, or even hours. The symptoms can arise during exercise, or even at full rest.

(Full disclosure, the author of this piece was also diagnosed with WPW a few years ago during a routine physical examination).

Treatment for the condition varies, and depends on the severity and frequency of the symptoms. In some cases, the symptoms are mild and infrequent, so medical intervention is not necessary (such as for the undersigned author). In more severe cases, a catheter ablation is performed, where a catheter is inserted through leg and into the heart as part of a surgery to block the faulty signal.

Duggan underwent that procedure, and endured a second surgery a few days later to remove blot clots. He told the Texas Monthly back in December about the ordeal. “It put catheters through my neck and groin,” he said. “I had a nine-hour procedure. And then two days later, I had a blood clot from the surgery, so I had to go into emergency surgery right after that. It kind of just puts a stop in your life.”

Duggan did not start the season-opening game for TCU that year, but came off the bench to throw three touchdown passes in a loss to Iowa State. During the 2021 campaign, Duggan battled a broken bone and a torn tendon in one of his feet, and the Horned Frogs struggled. Head coach Gary Patterson, who recruited Duggan to TCU, was fired after the eighth game of the year. Still, Patterson took to social media to defend his former QB after being let go:

2022 brought a new coach to TCU, in Sonny Dykes. Prior to the start of the 2022 campaign, Dykes and offensive coordinator Garrett Riley let the QB know that the new coaching staff had picked Chandler Morris as the starting QB for the season.

Duggan could have transferred.

He did not. And when Morris hurt his knee in the season opener, Duggan stepped back into the huddle.

And the rest is history.

Duggan’s toughness and determination is well-documented at this point, as are his results on the field. The quarterback completed 63.7% of his passes this season for 3,546 yards and 32 touchdowns, against just 6 interceptions. As noted he was a Heisman Finalist, along with the other awards he won this year.

But with the Horned Frogs on the cusp of a national championship, here is another way to look at his toughness: By looking at it from an on-field perspective.

Toughness at the QB position is a non-negotiable. Long-time coach Terry Shea, in his fantastic quarterback manual Eyes Up, wrote this about the position:

It can be argued that toughness — mental and physical — is as important as talent or self-confidence. One of the most challenging factors about Quarterbacking is adjusting to the mental and emotional pressure. The pressure can be enormous in games at all levels. As the game unfolds, a Quarterback’s mental toughness is keenly tested. To hang in there when you are worn down and your body hurts. To possess the nerve to release the ball with anticipation. To keep getting up after each hit. To keep coming back. To refuse to lose. This is how toughness is defined. A mentally tough Quarterback produces the poise to play well in pressure situations and that is a defining virtue of Quarterback play.

The sub-title to Eyes Up?

Coaching the men with the nerve to play the most challenging position in football.

Duggan’s play during his career, and certainly this season, is filled with moments like those described by Shea. Where the QB answers the questions posed of all quarterbacks. Plays like this third-down conversion against Texas Tech, where Duggan delivers a perfect nine-ball along the right sideline from a collapsing pocket, knowing a hit is coming:

Or perhaps this fourth-quarter touchdown against Texas, where Duggan again stares down pressure in the pocket before connecting with Quentin Johnston on the post route for the touchdown:

Duggan takes advantage of a coverage bust in the secondary, as the cornerback and the safety in Cover 4 both run with the out route from the inside receiver as part of a “post/out” combination. That leaves Johnston wide open on the post, but Duggan has to hang in the pocket an extra second to make the throw, leaving himself exposed to a hit.

That was the cases on this throw against Baylor, where Duggan hits on a wide-open corner route knowing a big hit is bearing down on him:

But perhaps the best examples of how Duggan’s toughness play out on the field come with him as a runner. TCU has used the QB in their run game throughout his career, and this season Duggan ran 127 times for 461 yards and 8 touchdowns. He is not the most explosive athlete on the roster, but he finds a way to get what he can, and often more.

Back in Week 6 against Oklahoma State, TCU was pushed to the brink. The Cowboys got out to a 24-7 lead early in the second quarter, and were up 30-16 late in the third quarter after a Tanner Brown field goal. As for Duggan, he was knocked out of that game briefly after a big hit, but sparked a fourth-quarter comeback for TCU, throwing the game-tying touchdown with under two minutes remaining.

Then, in the second overtime, TCU called his number.

This is competitive toughness at the quarterback position. The will to fight for every inch. Or in Shea’s words: “To keep getting up after each hit. To keep coming back. To refuse to lose. This is how toughness is defined.”

Duggan has defined toughness throughout his TCU career.

He will get another chance to display that on Monday night. In the biggest game he’s ever seen.