#12/10 ACU (4-2, 3-0) @ North Alabama (2-5, 2-1)
Florence, AL | Braly Stadium
Saturday, Oct. 12Â at 6:00 p.m.
GAME LINKS
FLORENCE, ALABAMAÂ - The ACU Wildcats will play their first game as a top 10 FCS team when they meet North Alabama on Saturday evening in United Athletic Conference action.
ACU, ranked no. 12 in the FCS Coaches Poll and no. 10 in Stats Perform FCS Top 25 this week, improved to 4-2 this season and 3-0 in the UAC with a 41-34 victory over Central Arkansas last week. The Bears were ranked no. 5 before the game, which marked the Wildcats' first win against a top 5 team since the 2009 season opener (Division II era).
Nehemiah Martinez I, a transfer receiver from Texas Tech, piled up 202 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns in the victory. Martinez was named UAC Offensive Player of the Week -- the second straight ACU player to earn the honor following
Sam Hicks' winning performance the week prior.
Martinez enters this Saturday's match-up as the FCS leader in receiving yards (611) and tied for the lead in receiving TDs (8).
North Alabama struggled out of the gate with five consecutive losses -- but they faced stiff competition. Those five opponents included one FBS team (Memphis), two ranked FCS squads (Illinois State and Tarleton), and three FCS teams which were receiving votes in the national rankings that week (Southeast Missouri and UT Martin).
The Lions stopped their backslide on Sept. 28 with a 25-16 win at West Georgia, and followed with a 60-14 takedown vs. Utah Tech last Saturday. UNA is 2-1 in the conference and is holding its Homecoming festivities this weekend.
ACU and North Alabama have played twice before -- the first at Arlington's AT&T Stadium in 2011 when the Lions prevailed 23-17, and last season when the Wildcats claimed a 30-13 victory in Abilene.
Fans can watch the game on theÂ
ESPN+ streaming platform (requires paid subscription), and listen to the radio call onÂ
106.3 The Raider.
KEEP IT ROLLING
- ACU appeared in both the FCS Coaches Poll (#12) and the Stats Perform Top 25 (#10) for the fourth straight week.
- Earlier this season the Wildcats cracked the FCS rankings for the first time since the transition to Division I in 2013.
- Last week, ACU was ranked #17 by the coaches and #16 by the media.
- Before this season, ACU had not been nationally ranked since the 2012 season -- which was the Wildcats' last in Division II.
NO SACKING ALLOWED
- Central Arkansas came into its game vs. ACU as the FCS leader in sacks per game. However, ACU's offensive line did not allow the Bears to reach the quarterback.
- The linemen-- led by center Tay Yanta and guards Jacob Thielen and Alan Hatten -- have a combined 109 career starts heading into Saturday's game.
MASTERFUL McIVOR
- Three-year starting QB Maverick McIvor went over 6,000 career passing yards, and set a new career-high with 5 passing TD in the week 6 win vs. Central Arkansas.Â
- This Saturday, he has a good chance of climbing the all-time record books in passing yards and completions.
- McIvor has started 26 games and has thrown for 250+ yards in five of ACU's six games this season.
THREE-AND-OH
- ACU is off to a 3-0 mark for the first time since joining a Div. I conference in 2014. They had been 2-0 three other times before.
AN ACU WIN WOULD...
- Push ACU to  its first 3-game winning streak since 2021, and first for Keith Patterson as the Wildcats' head coach.
- Give ACU a 4-0 start to conference play for the first time in the Division I era. The Wildcats last had a 4-0 conference record in 2011. The last 5-0 conference start was in 2010.
- Improve the Wildcats' road record to 3-1 this season with the lone loss being the 52-51 loss at Texas Tech.
- Keep ACU in first place in the UAC. Tarleton (3-0) and Eastern Kentucky (1-0) also enter this week undefeated in conference play.
- Make Keith Patterson 7-5 on the road vs. FCS teams, and 5-2 in road conference games, as ACU's head coach.
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