Ninth-ranked UIW Holds Off Wildcats

ABILENE – For three quarters Saturday night, defenses dominated. But the fourth quarter belonged to Incarnate Word Zach Calzada as he led the ninth-ranked Cardinals to a 27-20 win over ACU at Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium.
 
Two of the top offenses in FCS football found themselves tied 10-10 going to the fourth quarter, but Calzada – a graduate transfer who played at Texas A&M before transferring to Auburn for the 2022 season – took over the game, leading the Cardinals (2-1) to their second straight win on the season and dealing ACU (2-1) its first loss in 2023.
 
Calzada threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Porter on the second play of the fourth quarter to give his team a 17-10 lead, an advantage the Cardinals wouldn't give away the rest of the night. After UIW's defense forced a quick three-and-out, Calzada led his team on another scoring drive, and Calzada capped a 70-yard drive with a 1-yard scoring run to give the Cardinals a 24-10 lead.
 
ACU got back to within 24-17 on a Jay'Veon Sunday 1-yard touchdown run with 8:26 left in the game, but the Wildcats would get no closer. The teams traded field goals to make it 27-20, and then the game came down to its final drive.
 
UIW took over on the ACU 46 after recovering an onside kick, and soon after that play, the Cardinals faced fourth-and-3 from the ACU 39-yard line. The Cardinals rolled the dice and went for it, and Calzada made the game-winning play.
 
He put a perfect ball on Porter, who made the catch, spun away, and got down to the 10-yard line before being tackled. The Cardinals took two knees, and the game was over. Calzada was 5 for 7 passing for 112 yards and one touchdown in the fourth quarter and also added two carries for 15 yards and a score in the final 15 minutes.
 
During the week, ACU head coach Keith Patterson said that the game was a litmus test for his program, and he thought Saturday night was the perfect opportunity to prove his program had arrived on the national stage. 
 
"It's time for our program to get back to winning games like this, and I thought our time was (Saturday)," Patterson said. "We need to win one of these instead of talking about being close. We have to learn how to win games like that. It boils down to having confidence when things get hard and having confidence we can make plays in those situations."
 
Calzada made plays throughout the night as he finished 23 of 36 for 373 yards and one touchdown through the air and was the Cardinals' rushing leader with 66 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries.
 
The Wildcats were led by running back Jermiah Dobbins, who had 106 yards and one touchdown on 21 carries. ACU quarterback Maverick McIvor was 15 of 32 for 189 yards through the air.
 
GAME SUMMARY
How They Scored
2Q (4:16) – The Wildcats broke a scoreless contest with an 80-yard drive sparked by an interception in the end zone by cornerback Patrick Jolly, ending a UIW scoring threat. The Wildcats almost turned it over on the drive's first play, but quarterback Maverick McIvor hopped on a loose ball to keep it with the Wildcats. Jermiah Dobbins had a 13-yard run on the next play, and McIvor connected with Tristan Golightly on a 19-yard pass play later in the drive. On the drive's eighth play, Dobbins went up the middle for a 29-yard scoring run.
          Scoring Play: Jermiah Dobbins 29 run (Kyle Ramsey PAT)
          Drive: 8 plays, 80 yards, 4:41 TOP    
          ACU 7, Incarnate Word 0
 
2Q (3:29) – It didn't take long for the Cardinals to answer the Dobbins scoring run as they scored just four plays later on a 52-yard run by quarterback Zach Calzada. The graduate transfer quarterback completed passes on the first two plays of the drive, and then on third-and-1 from the UIW 48, he broke up the middle and then cut right, scoring untouched to tie the game.
          Scoring Play: Zach Calzada 52 run (Mason Lawler PAT)
          Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 0:47 TOP    
          ACU 7, Incarnate Word 7
 
2Q (0:31) – After the Calzada touchdown run, the Wildcats moved back down the field before stalling at the UIW 34-yard line. The drive was aided by a 15-yard facemask penalty on UIW, moving the ball into scoring range. On fourth-and-17 from the UIW 34, Kyle Ramsey – who hit a 55-yard field goal in last week's win at Prairie View A&M – drilled a 51-yard field goal to give ACU a 10-7 lead.
          Scoring Play: Kyle Ramsey 51 field goal
          Drive: 5 plays, 39 yards, 1:35 TOP    
          ACU 10, Incarnate Word 7
 
2Q (0:00) – The Cardinals answered ACU's go-ahead field goal with the game-tying field goal on the first half's final play. The Wildcats helped the Cardinals get the game-tying points with a breakdown in the secondary on the next-to-last play of the half when Calzada – scrambling to his right – found Marquez Perez for a 49-yard gain to the ACU 26-yard line. He stepped out of bounds with two seconds left in the half, which was enough time for Lawler to hit a game-tying 43-yard field goal on the final play of the first half.
          Scoring Play: Lawler 43 FG
          Drive: 3 plays, 49 yards, 0:31 TOP    
          ACU 10, Incarnate Word 10
 
4Q (14:50) – The Cardinals took their first lead of the game on the second play of the fourth quarter, capping a quick, five-play scoring drive that happened primarily because of the arm of Calzada. The Cardinals' quarterback hit Brandon Porter with a 38-yard pass to the ACU 24-yard line on the second play of the drive, and three plays later, he and Porter connected again, this time on a 23-yard scoring pass to give UIW the lead.
          Scoring Play: Brandon Porter 23 pass from Calzada (Lawler PAT)
          Drive: 5 plays, 64 yards, 1:24 TOP    
          Incarnate Word 17, ACU 10
 
4Q (10:06) – UIW stretched its lead to two touchdowns early in the fourth quarter, thanks again to Calzada, whose right arm and legs led to another Cardinals touchdown. On the drive's first play, Calzada hit Porter with a 24-yard pass, then hit him with an 18-yard pass, moving the ball down to the ACU 26-yard line. Three plays later, Calzada scored his second rushing touchdown of the night, this time from one yard out, giving the Cardinals a 14-point lead.
          Scoring Play: Calzada 1 run (Lawler PAT)
          Drive: 8 plays, 70 yards, 4:20 TOP    
          Incarnate Word 24, ACU 10
 
4Q (8:26) – The Wildcats answered with a touchdown when they had to have it, cutting the UIW lead to 24-17. UIW helped the Wildcats' cause with a pass interference penalty on third-and-5 from the ACU 30, giving the Wildcats a fresh set of downs. Four plays later, McIvor hit Taelyn Williams with a 54-yard pass down to the UIW 1-yard line. Jay'Veon Sunday scored on the next play to cut the Cardinals' lead to 24-17.
          Scoring Play: Jay'Veon Sunday 1 run (Ramsey PAT)
          Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 1:34 TOP    
          Incarnate Word 24, ACU 17
 
4Q (5:18) – The Cardinals answered ACU's touchdown with a drive to a Lawler field goal, giving them a double-digit lead at 27-17. A couple of big runs gained 34 yards on the first two plays of the drive before Calzada hit Jaelin Campbell with an 18-yard pass down to the ACU 14-yard line. But the ACU defense stiffened and forced a field goal by Lawler, his second of the night.
          Scoring Play: Lawler 27 field goal
          Drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 3:01 TOP    
          Incarnate Word 27, ACU 17
 
4Q (2:45) – The Wildcats moved to points on their second straight drive as Kyle Ramsey's second field cut the UIW lead to seven points late in the game. McIvor hit Cooper McCasland with a 40-yard completion to the UIW 43 on the drive's second play. ACU eventually had a first-and-10 at the UIW 17 before McIvor was sacked and fumbled, with offensive lineman Rafiti Ghirmai recovering to keep the Wildcats in possession of the ball. Two passes into the end zone were incomplete, and the Wildcats were forced to settle for a field goal.
          Scoring Play: Ramsey 44 field goal
          Drive: 9 plays, 56 yards, 2:27 TOP    
          Incarnate Word 27, ACU 20



TURNING POINT I
The Wildcats took a 10-7 lead with less than 35 seconds left in the first half and looked like they would take a lead into the halftime locker room. But the Cardinals had other ideas. On second-and-10 from the UIW 25 and the clock winding down, Calzada rolled out to his right, looking like he would run out of bounds. Instead, he launched a strike to Marquez Perez for a 49-yard gain down to the ACU 26-yard line. Perez stepped out of bounds with two seconds left in the half, enough time for Mason Lawler to hit a 43-yard field goal to tie the game at 10-10 going to halftime.
 
TURNING POINT II
Incarnate Word took its first lead of the game at 17-10 on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Caldaza to Porter on the second play of the fourth quarter. ACU then went three-and-out on offense – taking just 24 seconds off the clock – giving the ball right back to the Cardinals. UIW took advantage, moving 70 yards on eight plays and taking 4:20 off the clock, capping the drive with a 1-yard TD run by Calzada, pushing the lead to 24-10. ACU was playing catch-up the rest of the night, but the Wildcats could never catch the Cardinals.
 
KEY STAT
ACU placekicker Kyle Ramsey hit a 51-yard field goal Saturday night, one week after hitting a 55-yarder against Prairie View A&M. He is just the third kicker in ACU history to have multiple field goals of at least 50 yards in one season, joining Morgan Lineberry (three field goals of at least 50 yards in 2009) and Eben Nelson (two field goals of at least 50 yards in 2003) on the shortlist. Lineberry (4), Nelson (3), Matt Adams (2), Dennis Brown (2), and now Ramsey are the only five kickers in ACU history with at least two field goals of at least 50 yards in their careers.
 
POST-GAME NOTES
• ACU is now 9-5 under head coach Keith Patterson, with four losses coming by one score. In those five losses, the Wildcats have three three-point losses, one seven-point loss, and a 17-point loss (last year at Missouri).
• Both the ACU and Incarnate Word programs have worked the NCAA Transfer Portal over the last two seasons to rebuild and replenish their rosters. On its roster, ACU has 29 transfers from NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs, while UIW has 21 such transfers.
• UIW starting quarterback Zach Calzada – a native of Buford, Ga. – is playing for his third NCAA Division I program in the last three seasons. He originally signed with Texas A&M out of high school, and after spending two seasons on the bench, he started 10 games in 2021, helping the Aggies to an 8-4 record that included a 41-38 home win over No. 1 Alabama.
• UIW is playing under its third head coach in the last three seasons after each of the previous two head coaches were hired to coach FBS programs. Eric Morris was the head coach from 2018-21, leaving for one season as the offensive coordinator at Washington State before being hired as the head coach at North Texas in December 2022. He was replaced at UIW in 2022 by G.J. Kinne, who led the Cardinals to a second straight Southland Conference title, a 12-2 record, and a spot in the FCS semifinals last year before leaving for the head coaching job at Texas State. Clint Killough was hired to take Kinne's place as the head coach.
 
QUOTING HEAD COACH KEITH PATTERSON
 
On UIW scoring right before halftime: "We just gave up too many explosive plays, and that was one of them. I take full responsibility for everything, but we did some things we hadn't done the first two weeks. But that happens when you play a team that knows what it takes to grind out wins. That's what we have to become.
When we scored to go ahead 7-0, I thought, 'OK, here we go,' but it just seemed like it was an uphill battle all night long. That play and the field goal seemed to deflate us and swing the momentum at halftime."
 
UP NEXT
The Wildcats will open United Athletics Conference action next Saturday when they play on The Stripes in Conway, Ark., against the University of Central Arkansas. Kickoff from Estes Stadium is set for 6 p.m. The Bears are 1-2 on the season after dropping a 49-31 decision Saturday at No. 2 North Dakota State. ACU is 1-11-1 all-time against the Bears, with one of those losses an ACU win-turned-forfeit in 1974 in Conway. ACU's only other victory came in 2014 when the Wildcats beat UCA, 52-35, on a neutral field in Plano. ACU is officially 0-7 all-time in Conway.