Box Score NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS – Quarterbacks Trae Self of Stephen F. Austin and
Peyton Mansell of Abilene Christian University combined to throw eight touchdown passes in a Western Athletic Conference shootout Saturday, but SFA prevailed 41-27 over the Wildcats in Homer Bryce Stadium.
Self completed 32 of 29 passes for 346 yards and a career-record five TDs for SFA (5-3, 1-2) to down longtime rival ACU (4-4, 1-3). Mansell, known for his running ability, threw for 215 yards and three TDs. The two teams totaled 900 yards of offense.
SFA scored on all four of its clock-eating first-half drives – two field goals and two TDs – in building a decisive 20-6 halftime lead.
The ACU defense rebounded to limit SFA to five drives of three or fewer plays in the second half, but the Lumberjacks scratched together another 21 points to keep the Wildcats from gaining ground on the scoreboard.
In a pandemic-shortened season last year, ACU and SFA played the first college football game at Globe Life Park, down the street from a 2020 neutral-site World Series game between Los Angeles and Tampa Bay. The football game was a barn-burner featuring 854 yards of offense, with the Lumberjacks taking a 35-32 overtime win.
The year before, ACU took a 31-24 win in double overtime in a game with 837 yards of offense.
Today's showdown began wearing a far different Halloween weekend costume.
The early going amounted to two teams trading first-quarter field goals on their initial drives of the game: a career-long 52-yarder from ACU's
Blair Zepeda and a 29-yarder from Chris Campos.
The Wildcats added another Zepeda scoring boot on the first play of the second quarter, a 41-yarder to put the visitors up 6-3.
SFA broke the game's field goal fest with a 15-yard scoring pass from Self to wide receiver Darryle Simmons that gave the Lumberjacks a 10-6 lead with 8:04 left in the first half.
The home team went to the air again on its next drive, thanks to a 30-yard scoring pass from Self to Xavier Gipson – the wide receiver's seventh TD of the season – to put SFA up 17-6 just before halftime.
With a little over a minute left to play in the second quarter, an errorless game saw turnovers on consecutive plays, and more SFA points.
With a 1:07 remaining, a muffed punt return by the Lumberjacks gave ACU the ball at the 16-yard line and a golden scoring opportunity. But the Wildcats gave the ball right back to SFA on the ensuing play when a handoff miscue created a reciprocal turnover.
The Lumberbacks took advantage, driving back downfield for a 26-yard Campos field goal with three seconds left that pushed their Homecoming lead to 20-6.
ACU forced SFA's first punt of the afternoon on the initial drive of the second half, then elbowed its way right back into the game.
A broken play by Abilene Christian paid big dividends for the Wildcats in wrapping up a short (37-second) ensuing drive. ACU covered 73 yards in just two plays: a 37-yard pass from Mansell to wide receiver
Denver Holman, followed by a 36-yard TD pass to wide receiver
Kobe Clark after the quarterback dropped the shotgun snap from center then recovered quickly to find Clark over the middle, cutting the home team's lead to 20-13.
SFA answered ACU's TD with its own, a third scoring pass of the day from Self and his second to Simmons. The 7-yarder with 9:12 left made the new score 27-13.
The Wildcats caught a huge break with 6:49 left when tight end Keshon Williams appeared to score on a 5-yard TD pass, following an interception of Mansell deep in ACU territory, but fumbled into the end zone, where Abilene Christian recovered.
ACU advanced to the SFA 33-yard-line before its next drive stalled and the Lumberjacks rebounded for another Self TD pass, this time an 8-yarder to Larry Jones III and a 34-13 lead.
Four plays and 53 yards later, ACU cut the SFA advantage again to a two-score deficit when speedy wide receiver
Davion Johnson caught a 15-yard TD from Mansell and make the new score 34-20.
It only took one play for the Lumberjacks to get back in the end zone: a 73-yard pass from Self to Gipson that made it 41-20. But Mansell rallied the Wildcats to another fourth-quarter TD, capping it with a 10-yard pass to Johnson, and cutting the lead to 41-27 with plenty of time left.
ACU forced SFA to punt and appeared to be headed for more points until Mansell was intercepted at the goal line with 5:56 left, and the Lumberjacks kept the ball – and their lead – the rest of the way.
SFA outgained ACU in total yards, 568-332.
Abilene Christian entered the game averaging 192.1 yards per game on the ground but could only manage 117 against SFA, led by
Tyrese White's 57 yards on eight carries.
Clark caught seven passes for 104 yard and one TD, and Johnson totaled 24 yards on two catches, both of them good for TDs.
Jones III, a wide receiver pressed into service as a running back after injuries decimated the SFA backfield this season, ran 11 times for a game-high 108 yards. Gipson caught eight passes for 136 yards and two TDs and Simmons caught five for 48 yards and two scores.
The Wildcat defense was led by 11 tackles (five solo) from safety
Elijah Moffett, and eight each from safety
Brian Bullock and linebacker
Greg Green.
Abilene Christian plays its final regular-season road game next Saturday at Jacksonville (Alabama) State in a WAC/ASUN Challenge series game. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. CST in JSU Stadium.
PLAYS THAT MATTERED
1Q –
Blair Zepeda kicked a 52-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead with 11:47 remaining. Scoring drive: 10 plays, 40 yards, 3:13
1Q – Chris Campos kicked a 29-yard field goal to tie the game 3-3 with 5:34 left. Scoring drive: 11 plays, 59 yards, 6:08
2Q – Zepeda kicked a 41-yard field goal to put ACU back on top, 6-3, with six second expired in the quarter. Scoring drive: 13 plays, 51 yards, 5:40
2Q – Darryle Simmons caught a 15-yard TD pass from Trae Self, and Campos' successful PAT kick gave SFA a 10-6 lead with 8:04 left. Scoring drive: 75 plays, 13 yards, 6:50
2Q – Self threw a 30-yard TD pass to Xavier Gipson to grow the SFA lead to 17-6 with 1:53 left. Scoring drive: 80 plays, 10 yards, 6:50
2Q – Campos kicked a 26-yard field goal to extend SFA's lead to 20-6. Scoring drive: 9 plays, 63 yards, 0:03
3Q –
Peyton Mansell threw a 36-yard TD pass to
Kobe Clark to pull ACU closer, 20-13, with 12:36 remaining. Scoring drive: 2 plays, 73 yards, 0:37
3Q – Self threw a 7-yard TD pass to Simmons to put SFA further ahead, 27-13, with 9:12 left. Scoring drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 3:44
3Q – Self threw an 8-yard TD pass to Larry Jones III to extend his team's lead to 34-12 with 41 seconds left. Scoring drive: 6 plays, 89 yards, 2:58
4Q – Mansell threw a 14-yard TD pass to
Davion Johnson to cut the Lumberjack lead to 34-20 with 14:54 left in the game. Scoring drive: 4 plays, 53 yards, 0:37
4Q – Self threw a 73-yard TD pass to Gipson to make the new score 41-20 with 14:37 left. Scoring drive: 1 play, 73 yards, 0:12
4Q – Johnson scored his second TD of the game on a 10-yard jet sweep, reducing the SFA lead to 41-27 with 9:21 left. Scoring drive: 11 plays, 79 yards, 5:14
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Two of ACU's three scoring drives concluding in TDs consumed just 37 seconds each.
- In four games against SFA, Kobe Clark has 24 catches for 377 yards.
- ACU played SFA to a 21-21 draw in the second half, but the pivotal second quarter saw the Lumberjacks hold the Wildcats to seven plays for minus-2 yards and no first downs while running 31 plays for 218 yards and 15 first downs.
STAT CORNER
- Blair Zepeda's previous career-best field goal was a 51-yarder in 2019 at Central Arkansas.
- After one quarter, ACU led in first downs (6-4), rushing yards (59-14), total yards (91-59), and time of possession (8:47 to 6:13). SFA led in passing yards (45-32). Neither team punted, had a turnover or was whistled for a penalty.
- At the half, SFA led in first downs (19-6), rushing yards (85-50), passing yards (192-39), total yards (277-89), time of possession (18:19 to 11:41), and the scoreboard (20-6).
NOTABLE
- The Wildcats are playing in their 100th season in 2021. Abilene Christian did not play football from 1943-45 because of World War II. With tonight's loss, ACU's series with Stephen F. Austin is tied at 11-11.
- ACU first played SFA in 1973 when it joined the Lone Star Conference, taking a 57-50 win behind six touchdowns in Shotwell Stadium from freshman running back Wilbert Montgomery, on its way to the NAIA Division I national championship.
- SFA head coach Colby Carthel was ACU's defensive line coach from 2000-05. He first became a head coach from 2013-18 for Texas A&M-Commerce (where his team won the 2017 Division II national title), and was named the Lumberjacks' head coach in 2018.
- SFA and ACU are two of four teams to leave the Southland Conference in 2021 for the Western Athletic Conference, along with Sam Houston State and Lamar.
