FORT WORTH -- If Gary Patterson were picked up for shoplifting, he'd be his own worst witness. No need to play good cop/bad cop with the TCU coach, no sir. Just let him vent. By the time he finished, he'd be up for the Lindbergh kidnapping and the Lufthansa heist.

Consider, for example, the 20th-ranked Horned Frogs' 56-36 win Saturday over SMU before 44,489 at Amon Carter Stadium.

Before anyone could ask Gary if he'd like a glass of water, he pretty much pooh-poohed the merits of a 20-point win over an old rival.

"We're bigger, we're more physical, we're more experienced," he said of his 3-0 crew, as compared with the 2-1 Mustangs.

"Should have been 80."

Yes, well, but ...

"We acted a little bit like the nail today instead of the hammer," he said, and that was at the tail end of an answer about the 38-yard Hail Mary from Kenny Hill to Jalen Raegor before halftime, the play that turned the game in TCU's favor at last.

Of course, poor-mouthing your play and players is old stuff. Bear Bryant was king of the genre. Keeps your players' heads from swelling.

The thing is, no one disagreed with Gary after Saturday's game. Certainly not yours truly, who has eyes, after all.

What we've come to expect from Patterson, now in his 17th season at TCU and creeping up on the ghost of Dutch Meyer, is defense. Frankly, no one coaches it better these days. Other coaches may have better players, and usually do. But no one drills it in like Gary.

Going into Saturday's game against SMU, the Frogs were fourth nationally in total defense at 166.5 yards per game. But that stat came with a couple of caveats: namely, Jackson State and Arkansas. One's an FCS school; the other claims the World's Biggest Offensive Line, which mostly appears to be a show title.

SMU, aiming for its best start since 1984, had piled up 112 points in its first two games. Never mind that it was Stephen F. Austin and North Texas. The Mustangs came out Saturday like it was the Fourth of July.

Not three minutes into the second quarter, the Ponies were up 19-7. Chad Morris left no trick unturned.

"He shifted on about every snap, which was really smart," Patterson said. "That was their chance to do what they needed to do, and they did it. They got two trick plays."

One beat ... two beats ...

"The funny thing is, we worked on both of them," he added. "I might have been able to cover it."

We could debate the latter point, probably, but, otherwise, he gets no argument. The type of effort the Frogs turned in Saturday, as well as the week before in a 28-7 win over the Razorbacks, will not cut it against the likes of Oklahoma State, West Virginia and Kansas State, the next three games on TCU's schedule.

If you thought SMU got off to big lead quickly Saturday, here's a fast start for you: Oklahoma State's Mason Rudolph hung 423 yards and five touchdowns on Pitt in the first half. If Patterson's secondary looked confused at times Saturday, trying to keep up with all of Morris' misdirection, think how dizzy it'll seem in Stillwater next week once Mike Gundy lets his mullet down.

The Frogs are 0-4 in Stillwater since 1991, when Pat Jones pulled an 0-fer. These aren't those Cowboys. The good news for TCU is, the Horned Frogs aren't the same, either.

Patterson blamed Saturday's letdown of sorts on the fact that everyone keeps telling the Frogs they should beat SMU, and the Mustangs take it personally.

"This is their Super Bowl," Patterson said. "They tried everything. We got their A-game."

One beat ... two beats ...

"To be honest, we didn't play very well," he added. "Not bad if you don't play very well and score 56."

Which is true, without a doubt, but they can't keep this up if they want to be a factor in the Big 12. As it is, only TCU looks like a legitimate contender outside the state of Oklahoma, and the Frogs get the Cowboys at their place and the Sooners in Norman.

If you were wondering, Gary's message seems to be getting through.

"Today wasn't very good," defensive end Ben Banogu said. "When you're playing teams like Oklahoma State and Kansas State, you can't be stagnant."

Stagnant was a good word for it, at least for a half. Will it do against Oklahoma State, Gary?

"Oh, no," he said, then went off on a long, meandering thought before concluding that the big games take care of themselves.

The big games start next week for TCU. Three in a row, in fact. Coming out of that stretch, we'll know how bad it really is.