Gameday
ABILENE – The 11th-ranked ACU?Wildcats return to Shotwell Stadium for Saturday night's non-conference game against Western Oregon, looking for back-to-back wins for the first time in 2011.
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. and the game can be heard locally on Mix 92.5 FM.
The Wildcats improved to 2-0 in the LSC and 2-1 overall last week with a 31-17 win over longtime rival Angelo State at Shotwell Stadium. The Wildcats are tied for first place in the LSC along with Midwestern State and West Texas A&M.
In his first start of the season, senior running back
Daryl Richardson had the biggest impact on last week's game for the Wildcats, finishing with 127 yards of total offense and his first two rushing touchdowns of the season.
Richardson finished with 84 yards and two scores on 18 carries, and added three catches for 43 yards in the passing game. With his three touchdowns in 2011 (two rushing, one receiving), Richardson has scored 28 career touchdowns, which is good for fourth in ACU history behind Wilbert Montgomery (76 touchdowns from 1973-76), Bernard Scott (34 from 2007-08), and
Edmond Gates (32 from 2007-10).
ACU junior quarterback Mitchell had his best day of the 2011 campaign, completing 18 of 32 passes for 234 yards and two scores, but, more importantly, no interceptions. Gale – who threw just three interceptions in 2010 – had thrown two interceptions in each of ACU's first two games.
Western Oregon enters Saturday's game at 3-1 on the season and the winner of three straight games. The Wolves dropped a 44-20 decision to Grand Valley State in the season-opener, but have since beaten Simon-Fraser, Central Washington and Dixie State to improve to 3-1.
The Wolves are giving up 348.0 yards per game defensively (125.5 on the ground and 222.5 through the air), while putting up 358.5 yards per game themselves (157.0 on the ground and 201.5 through the air).
Western Oregon's offense is led by quarterback Evan Mozzochi, who has completed 59 of 106 passes for 752 yards and seven touchdowns. Wide receiver Trevor Gates leads the team with 21 catches for 356 yards and two touchdowns.
Defensively, Scotland Foss leads the team with 38 tackles, including six tackles for loss and three sacks. The Wolves have 14 sacks and 30 tackles for loss through four games, and they've already picked off eight passes.
