ACU falls to Central Arkansas in WAC/ASUN Challenge game

Box Score ABILENE – Abilene Christian University twice took two-touchdown leads in the first half, only to have Central Arkansas roar back with four scores of its own in the second to take a 42-21 win Saturday night at Wildcat Stadium.
 
ACU (3-2, 0-1) and UCA (2-3, 1-1) met in the Wildcats' first WAC/ASUN Challenge series of games this season. The Bears were a familiar rival from both teams' days in the Southland Conference. ACU is in its first season in the Western Athletic Conference and UCA is a newcomer to the Atlantic Sun. 
 
Quarterback Breylin Smith, a junior, threw for 358 yards and a career-high five TD passes for the Bears, and Lujan Winningham caught eight passes for 211 yards. Chris Richmond added three receiving scores for UCA. Wildcat redshirt freshman Stone Earle countered with 215 yards and two scoring passes, and was his team's leading rusher with 49 yards on nine carries.
 
The win snapped Abilene Christian's three-game winning streak but the game saw junior wide receiver Kobe Clark move past Arthur Culpepper, who starred from 1983-86, and into fourth place on the Wildcat career receiving list with 169 catches. Culpepper is a new member of the university's Board of Trustees.
 
ACU scored on its first three drives of the night, and UCA did the same on its final three. The game turned in the third quarter, when Central Arkansas outgained the home team 143-31 in yardage, recovered two fumbles and scored two unanswered TDs.
 
Abilene Christian forced UCA to punt on the Bears' first drive of the game, then matched its longest drive of the season with a 90-yard mix of quarterback play between starter Earle and Peyton Mansell. The latter ran 31 yards on his first rush from scrimmage, adding to his gaudy yards-per-play average (13.8 entering the game) for the season. 
 
After a TD run was called back by holding penalty, Earle found wide receiver Alex Spadone with a pass, and the redshirt junior spun out of a tackle and scored his first touchdown of the season, a 36-yarder with 7:52 left in the opening quarter.
 
It was the only complete drive of the first quarter for ACU, which scored on the first play of the second quarter as well, on another pass play when Earle found Denver Holman on a 9-yard TD pass to put the home team ahead 14-0.
 
Both teams countered with five-play scoring drives: the Bears with one capped by a 57-yard TD pass from Smith to wide receiver Winningham, and ACU with another ended by running back Anthony Smith's 4-yard TD run. The Wildcats' score, which restored a 14-point lead at 21-7, was powered by a 55-yard field-flipping pass from Earle to tight end Remington Lutz.
 
On UCA's next drive, Smith found Chris Richmond on a 3-yard TD pass with 7:25 remaining in the half to pull the Bears to within 21-14.
 
Central Arkansas embarked on its longest drive of the night midway through the third quarter, an 11-play series capped by Richmond catching his second TD pass of the night – and Smith's third – on an 11-yarder that tied the game at 21-all with 9:59 left on the clock.
 
On the ensuing drive, UCA forced ACU's first turnover in two weeks when Earle fumbled while scrambling and defensive back TaMuari Wilson recovered it at the ACU 39-yard line. The Wildcat defense stood tall, however, forcing a Central Arkansas 39-yard field goal try by Hayden Ray that veered wide left.
 
The Bears took their first lead of the game, 28-21, with six seconds remaining in the third quarter on Richmond's third TD pass from Smith, this time a 12-yarder.
 
On ACU's next drive, a fumbled snap on 3^rd-and-1 from the Wildcat 28-yard line and the the Bears quickly pounced on the turnover. They were in the end zone three plays later, thanks to Smith's fifth TD pass of the game, a 10-yarder to tight end Austin Eldridge that put UCA ahead, 35-21.
 
UCA sealed the win with a 97-yard drive that consumed more than half the fourth quarter and gave the Bears their final margin 42-21 margin, thanks to a 24-yard TD run by running back Darius Hale with 55 seconds remaining.
 
Trysten Smith led UCA in rushing with 87 yards on 13 carries, and Hale added 86 on 22 carries. Tyrese White ran four times for 39 yards for ACU, and Lutz caught three passes for 80 yards. Clark totaled five catches and 36 yards.
 
Strong safety Elijah Moffett had a career game on defense for ACU totaling six solo tackles and 14 overall. Free safety Brian Bullock added 9 and linebacker Greg Green had 7. The Wildcats had 11 tackles for loss on the night.
 
ACU plays its next WAC/ASUN Challenge series game on the road against Eastern Kentucky next Saturday. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. CST at Roy Kidd Stadium in Richmond.
 
PLAYS THAT MATTERED
1Q – Stone Earle threw a 36-yard TD pass to Alex Spadone with 7:52 left in the opening quarter, and Blair Zepeda's successful PAT kick put ACU on top, 7-0. Scoring drive: 7 plays, 90 yards, 2:23
2Q – Earle threw a 9-yard TD pass to Denver Holman on the first play of the second quarter to make ACU's lead 14-0. Scoring drive: 10 plays, 80 yards, 4:26
2Q – Luj Winningham caught a 57-yard TD pass from Breylin Smith and Hayden Ray's successful PAT kick drew UCA closer, 14-7, with 12:20 left in the first half. Scoring drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 2:33
2Q – Anthony Smith ran 4 yards for a TD with 8:22 left to restore ACU's two-score lead, 21-7. Scoring drive: 5 plays, 72 yards, 2:52
2Q – Chris Richmond caught a 3-yard TD pass from Smith with 7:25 left to tighten the ACU lead to 21-14. Scoring drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 1:57
3Q – With 9:58 left in the quarter, Smith threw his third TD pass of the game, an 11-yarder to Richmond to tie the game at 21-21. Scoring drive: 11 plays, 78 yards, 4:04
3Q – Richmond caught his third TD pass of the night, a 12-yarder from Smith with six seconds left. Scoring drive: 6 plays, 76 yards, 2:24
4Q – Austin Eldridge caught a 10-yard TD pass from Smith with 13:09 left to put the Bears ahead, 35-21. Scoring drive: 3 plays, 28 yards, 1:05
4Q – Darius Hale ran 24 yards for a TD with 55 seconds left to give UCA a 42-21 lead, the game's final margin. Scoring drive: 15 plays, 97 yards, 8:08
 
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

• ACU opened the game with its 18^th scoring drive of less than 2:30 this season.
• The Wildcats were aiming for their fourth straight game of 200 or more yards rushing, but fell 30 yards short of that mark.
• An ACU quarterback – for the first time this season, Stone Earle – led his team in rushing tonight for the third time in five games. 

 
STAT CORNER

• This season, Kobe Clark has leapfrogged several Wildcat all-time greats on his way from ninth to fourth place on ACU's career pass receptions list. Still ahead of him: Josh Fink (188, 2016-19), Taylor Gabriel (215, 2010-13) and Jerale Badon (235, 2004-07). Clark is the university's single-season reception leader with 87 catches in 2019.
• After one quarter, ACU led in total yards (153-65), rushing yards (75-51), passing yards (78-14), first downs (8-4) and on the scoreboard (7-0).
• At the half, ACU led in total offense (295-275), first downs (13-11), rushing yards (134-71) and on the scoreboard (21-14). UCA led in passing yards ((204-161).

 
NOTABLE

• The Wildcats are playing in their 100^th season in 2021. Abilene Christian did not play football from 1943-45 because of World War II. 
• Central Arkansas moved to a 10-2-1 all-time record against ACU, including wins in the last six games. Its offensive coordinator is former Wildcat head coach Ken Collums, who played and now coaches at UCA.

·       Central Arkansas is in its first season in the Atlantic Sun Conference and Abilene Christian is in its first in the Western Athletic Conference. UCA and ACU were co-members of the Southland Conference from 2013-21.

• The WAC/ASUN Challenge this season is a scheduling alliance pitting games between teams from both conferences so they, together, can have an automatic qualifier for the NCAA FCS playoffs. The alliance features Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin from the WAC and Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State from the ASUN. WAC members Dixie State and Tarleton will participate in the joint schedule but will not be eligible for the group's automatic qualifier because they will be in their second year of NCAA reclassification to Division I.
• The Wildcats play six regular-season home games in 2021, including three (Louisiana College, Texas-Permian Basin and Central Arkansas) of its first five and its final two (Tarleton State and Sam Houston State) on their schedule.