ABILENE – Quarterback Brandon Kelsey ran for 141 yards and four touchdowns, the last with 1:27 to play, to help 12th-ranked Midwestern State University overcome Abilene Christian University in an offensive shootout, 35-31, at Shotwell Stadium.
Except for one crucial fourth-down play late in the contest, ACU had few answers for the Mustangs' ground game, ranked fifth in the nation at 305.2 yards per game. MSU rolled up 389 yards rushing but had little success stopping the Wildcat passing attack. ACU quarterback Mitchell Gale completed 26 of 38 passes for 335 yards and three TDs.
MSU improved to 6-1 overall and 5-1 in the LSC South Division, while ACU fell to 5-3 overall and 2-4 in the LSC. Next Saturday, the Wildcats travel to Commerce to play Texas A&M-Commerce University for the 69th time, the opponent they have faced in football more than any other since 1919. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.
Still stinging from being shutout 36-0 last Saturday for the first time in 11 years, ACU put on an inspired performance but fell short of its upset bid. Two of the top scoring offenses in the LSC showed the ACU Homecoming crowd their strengths in the first half, although ACU's defense forced two turnovers in the second quarter that helped the home team forge a slim lead in the tense, back-and-forth contest.
ACU opened the game by moving the ball downfield with its running game, but scored on Gale's 10-yard pass to wide receiver
Taylor Gabriel with 10:08 remaining. MSU answered right back when Kelsey ran 2 yards for a TD at the 6:10 mark.
A 46-yard pass from Gale to Gabriel set up the next ACU score, a 3-yard TD run by
Charcandrick West that put the Wildcats back on top, 14-7 with 2:49 left in the quarter. Kelsey's 30-yard run on the next drive knotted the game at 14-14 with half a minute left.
Both teams misfired on their first drives of the second quarter. ACU's
Morgan Lineberry missed a 49-yard field goal and MSU wide receiver Keiven Swanson fumbled the ball following a catch at the Wildcat 19-yard line.
ACU junior placekicker
Ryan Owens booted a 32-yard field goal with 4:04 left in the half, and the Wildcat defense held when defensive back
Steven Ford intercepted Kelsey's pass at the ACU 45-yard line with 2:40 left. The Wildcats, however, could not capitalize on MSU's second turnover of the quarter – Owens' 49-yard field goal attempt was blocked with just under a minute remaining – but took a 17-14 lead into halftime.
Kelsey drove the Mustangs to a TD in their first possession of the third quarter, scoring his third rushing TD of the game with a 6-yard run up the middle at the 9:23 mark. ACU countered with a scoring drive of its own, with Gale throwing a 20-yard pass in the right corner of the end zone to Gabriel with 5:24 left, restoring ACU's lead at 24-21.
But the Mustangs' kicked their ground game into high gear, marching back downfield on an 82-yard drive, capped by LSC rushing leader Keidrick Johnson's 8-yard scoring run that made the new score 28-24 with 1:48 left.
An MSU punt by Greg Saldino – only his first of the day – pinned ACU on its 1-yard line with 11:08 left in the game. The Wildcats could only advance to their 8-yard line, and were forced to punt. The ACU defense held, stopping the Mustangs on a fourth-and-inches attempt at the Wildcat 44 with 7:50 left.
Gale drove the Wildcats downfield, tossing a 5-yard TD pass to freshman tight end
Jamie Walker with 5:43 left that helped ACU regain the lead, 31-28. MSU responded with a 12-yard drive that consumed 4:16 of time, capped by Kelsey's fourth rushing TD of the game with 1:27 left that restored the Mustang advantage, 35-31.
ACU's final-chance drive began on its own 35 following MSU's kickoff. It ended when a Gale pass on fourth and 4 at the Mustang 49 landed out of bounds.
MSU totaled 510 yards of offense, and ACU had 429, with less than minute separating the two teams in possession time and both teams scoring each time they entered the red zone. The Mustangs' Jackson gained 197 yards on 23 carries, and Chauncey Haris added 60 on 10 carries.
West led ACU in rushing with 63 yards on 18 carries. Gabriel snaggedd nine catches for 116 yards,
Darrell Cantu-Harkless caught 7 for 94 yards and
Darian Hogg had four for 66.
