D-II's best on 2003 slate
3/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
ACU opens 2003 slate at Central Arkansas
Some of top offensive players in D-II on Wildcats' schedule
ABILENE -- The dramatic improvement of the ACU defense in 2002 was one of the reasons the Wildcats were able to claim a share of the Lone Star Conference South Division championship, the program's first title of any kind since 1977.
That unit will have to be even better in 2003 if the Wildcats are to win their first outright title since the 1977 season and advance to the NCAA Division II playoffs.
ACU's 2003 schedule is full of nationally ranked and regionally ranked teams that feature some of the best offensive players in Division II football.
The Wildcats will play host to Fort Lewis College (Colo.), Tarleton State, Eastern New Mexico, Midwestern State and Texas A&M-Kingsville in an attractive home schedule.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats will play Central Arkansas, Central Oklahoma, Angelo State, Texas A&M-Commerce and West Texas A&M on the road.
"It seems as if our schedule gets tougher every year," said ACU head coach Gary Gaines, who led the Wildcats to a 6-4 record in 2002. "This conference just keeps getting better and better, and those are the teams we have to be able to beat if we're going to win anything or get anywhere.
"We've got an attractive home schedule with five very good ballclubs coming to Shotwell Stadium," he said. "And none of those road trips will be easy ones."
The Wildcats will open their season on Thursday, Sept. 4, when they take on Central Arkansas in a 6 p.m. at Estes Stadium in Conway, Ark. The game is the third of a three-year deal between the Wildcats and Bears that has seen UCA win the first two games.
The Bears, who finished 29th in the American Football Coaches' Association poll last year, will be led by senior quarterback Zak Clark, who directed the nation's third-leading passing offense (310.5 yards passing per game) and was a finalist for the Harlon Hill Trophy, the Division II equivalent to the Heisman Trophy.
Following that game, ACU will play three straight at home, starting Sept. 13 with a 2 p.m. game against Fort Lewis. The Skyhawks finished 3-8 last season but will return quarterback Andrew Webb and receiver Chris Brewer, a combination that clicked for 85 receptions, 1,274 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Webb directed the nation's top-ranked passing offense (373.5 yards per game) and led the nation in passing with 4,109 yards to go along with 37 touchdowns. He had the nation's top two total offensive yardage games (660 vs. Mesa State and 610 vs. Western New Mexico) and the top two single-game passing efforts (638 vs. Mesa State and 560 vs. Western New Mexico). In the game against Western New Mexico, he had 41 completions and another 40 against Mesa State.
However, the Skyhawks' defense gave up 537.5 yards and 51.5 points per game. The Skyhawks did not hold a single opponent to less than 30 points during the season, and seven times gave up more than 50 points, including 75 in a 75-41 loss to Central Washington in the season-opener on Aug. 30.
Following the Fort Lewis game, ACU will take on Lone Star Conference powerhouse Tarleton State in an LSC crossover game. The Texans, who were 9-2 last year, finished the season ranked 19th by the AFCA. ACU still holds a 13-8-4 series lead over the Texans, but TSU has won five straight over the Wildcats.
Eastern New Mexico then makes only its second visit to Abilene since 1998 on Oct. 4 in the LSC South Division opener for both teams. ACU garnered its first win of the 2002 season last Oct. 5 when Eben Nelson drilled a 49-yard field goal on the game's final play to give ACU a 20-19 victory. The Greyhounds, who finished 8-3 and ranked ninth in the NCAA Division II West region, will again be picked to finish in the top half of the LSC.
ACU then hits the road for a pair of games, the first an LSC crossover contest at Central Oklahoma (Oct. 11) and the second an LSC South Division game against rival Angelo State (Oct. 18).
The Bronchos will be playing under new head coach Chuck Langston, who took over for longtime head coach Gary Howard, who was fired after going 5-6 in 2002. Langston returns all-America wide receiver Dee Dee Carter (49 catches for 1,093 yards and five touchdowns) and welcomes transfer quarterback Aso Pogi from Oklahoma State.
Pogi, a 6-4, 245-pound junior from Lawton, will go through spring drills with the Bronchos and has one year of eligibility remaining. He was a two-year starter for the Cowboys and ranks fifth in career passing at OSU with 3,673 yards after hitting 335-of-583 attempts with 18 touchdowns.
Pogi redshirted in 1999, then took over as the starter midway through the 2000 campaign when Tony Lindsay went down with injury and hit 139-of-247 passes for 1,550 yards and six touchdowns.
He started all 11 games in 2001, completing 179-of-296 passes for 1,854 yards and 11 TDs. Pogi came back after suffering severe hand and arm injuries in an automobile accident in December 2001 to serve as OSU's main back-up last season, hitting 17-of-40 passes for 269 yards and one score for the Houston Bowl-champion Cowboys.
Angelo State was 2-8 in 2002, the Rams' first losing season in 19 seasons, but head coach Jerry Vandergriff will most certainly have his team back near the top of the LSC in 2003. ACU knocked off the Rams last year, 30-29, for just its second win over the Rams since 1987.
ACU will then return home on Oct. 25 to host Midwestern State in the annual Homecoming contest. ACU went to Wichita Falls last year and rallied to knock off the Indians, 21-20, eliminating MSU from post-season contention. The Indians return quarterback Philip Boggs, who was a Harlon Hill finalist and second team all-LSC South Division honoree in 2002.
ACU then returns to the road on Nov. 1 for a game at Texas A&M-Commerce. The Wildcats, who lead the series over the Lions by a 35-26-1 count, hammered A&M-Commerce 47-6 last year at Shotwell Stadium.
The Wildcats then get NCAA Division II semifinalist and LSC champion Texas A&M-Kingsville at home at 2 p.m. on Nov. 8. Last year ACU went to Kingsville with a chance to win the LSC crown, but came up short in a 22-16 loss that gave each team a share of the LSC South Division title.
ACU will close out the regular season on Nov. 15 when it goes to Canyon to take on West Texas A&M. The Buffaloes went 0-11 in 2002 under first-year head coach, but gave the Wildcats a scare in a 35-31 ACU win in the season-finale.
Last season the Wildcats rallied from an 0-3 start to finish 6-4 overall and 5-1 in the LSC South Division, tying Texas A&M-Kingsville for the division championship. ACU finished No. 8 in the West region poll and No. 30 in NCAA Division II in the American Football Coaches' Association poll. The last time an ACU football team won any sort of championship prior to 2002 was in 1977 when the Wildcats won the NAIA Division I national championship.
The Wildcats will return 16 of 22 starters from the 2002 season, including nine on a defense that allowed 185 points less in 2002 than it did in 2001. All-conference linebacker Shawn Taylor and defensive backs David Jones and Kendrick Walker will return, as will most of a defensive line that should be among the best in the LSC. ACU should be bolstered by the addition of freshman redshirt defensive backs Danieal Manning and Kendrick Muckelroy, as well as transfer defensive end Joe Edwards.
Seven starters will return on offense, including quarterback Colby Freeman, who last year as a junior led all LSC South Division quarterbacks in passing yards with 2,093 to go along with 12 touchdowns. Also returning will be wide receiver/kickoff return specialist DaRay Sims, who was named second team all-LSC South Division at wide receiver before being named to several all-region teams as a kickoff return specialist.
2003 WILDCAT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Date
Opponent
Site
Time
Thur., Sept. 4
at Central Arkansas
Conway, Ark.
6 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 13
Fort Lewis College (Colo.)
Abilene
2 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 20
# Tarleton State
Abilene
6 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 4
* Eastern New Mexico
Abilene
6 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 11
# at Central Oklahoma
Edmond, Okla.
TBA
Sat., Oct. 18
* at Angelo State
San Angelo
7 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 25
* Midwestern State (Homecoming)
Abilene
2 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 1
* at Texas A&M-Commerce
Commerce
2 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 8
* Texas A&M-Kingsville
Abilene
2 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 15
* at West Texas A&M
Canyon
2 p.m.
# Lone Star Conference crossover game
* Lone Star Conference South Division game
Home games in bold
