#16 Wildcats Face #5 Central Arkansas on Saturday

#17/16 ACU (3-2, 1-0) vs. #7/5 Central Arkansas (4-1, 1-0)
Abilene, TX | Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium
Saturday, Oct. 5 at 3:00 p.m.

GAME LINKS

• Watch on ESPN+ | Listen on 106.3 The Raider | Live Stats | Weekly Football Press Conference | ACU Game Notes (PDF)

ABILENE - The ACU Wildcats have climbed to their highest national ranking in Division I history and can do a great deal to prove their belong with the top teams in the country when they face off with Central Arkansas on Saturday afternoon.

ACU walloped Utah Tech 55-30 last week, which improved the Wildcats' record to 3-2 overall and 2-0 in the United Athletic Conference. Sam Hicks, a transfer from Central Michigan, needed just 12 carries to roll up 203 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns in the win. Hicks was named UAC Offensive Player of the Week for his effort.

Now the Wildcats go toe-to-toe with the Bears, who were the preseason favorite to win the conference. Central Arkansas is ranked #7 in the FCS Coaches Poll, and #5 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25.

The Bears are led by a powerful running attack featuring ShunDerrick Powell and Darius Hale. Powell's 810 rushing yards are second-most in the FCS this year. He has scored ten touchdowns on the ground, while Hale has added nine.

UCA is fifth in the FCS in both offensive (485) and rushing yards (273) per game. Will McElvain is one of the few college quarterbacks older than ACU's Maverick McIvor. McElvain, playing his seventh year of college football, redshirted at Northern Iowa in 2018, and spent four seasons with the Panthers. He transferred to Cental Arkansas before the 2022 season.

McIvor graduated from San Angelo Central H.S. in 2019, played at Texas Tech from 2019-2021, and has been ACU's starting quarterback since the 2022 campaign.

The Wildcats boast the no. 4 offense in the FCS with an average of 488 yards, and McIvor is second in the FCS with 321 passing yards per game.

ACU and Central Arkansas are meeting for the 15th time. The Bears lead the series 12-1-1 and have won seven in-a-row over the Wildcats. ACU won in 1974 and 2014, but the 1974 victory was later forfeited to UCA.

It is Big Country Day on Saturday at Wildcat Stadium. Tailgating in the south endzone begins at 1 p.m. with kick-off at 3 p.m. Fans can also watch the game on the ESPN+ streaming platform (requires paid subscription), and listen to the radio call on 106.3 The Raider.





LAST TIME OUT

• ACU pushed its UAC record to 2-0 this season with a 55-30 victory at winless Utah Tech last Saturday.
• The Wildcats led 27-16 at halftime, and scored 28 unanswered points in the second half to coast to the win.
• ACU scored a defensive touchdown for the first time in 2024 with a scoop and score by LB Chris Wright. The Wildcats defense recovered two fumbles during the game -- their first two of the season.
• The 55 points scored is the 4th highest total vs. an FCS team in the Div. 1 era. The school record is 65 points in 2013 at Prairie View A&M. ACU's 608 yards is 5th most vs. FCS competition.

HOME, SWEET HOME

• The third largest crowd in Wildcat Stadium history saw the venue's first ranked match-up in week 3 when then #19 ACU hosted #4 Idaho.
• The final attendance of 11,719 is the biggest since the stadium's opening season (2017) when two games were sold out.
• ACU is 20-15 at Wildcat Stadium. HC Keith Patterson is 8-3 at home.

KEEP IT ROLLING

• ACU appeared in both the FCS Coaches Poll  (#17) and the Stats Perform Top 25 (#16) for the third 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 #22 by the coaches and #20 by the media.
• Before this season, ACU had not been nationally ranked since the 2012 season -- which was the Wildcats' last in Division II.

THE MAV-MAN

• Three-year starting QB Maverick McIvor is closing in on 6,000 career passing yards with 5,790 entering Saturday's game.
• McIvor has started 25 games and has thrown for 250+ yards in four of ACU's five games this season.
• His 44 passing touchdowns put him tied for 5th place with John Mayes and Loyal Proffitt in ACU history. Jim Lindsey is the next player up the list, in fourth place with 61 TD through the air.

AN ACU WIN WOULD...

• Be the first vs. a top 5 team since Aug. 27, 2009 when #8 ACU beat #2 Northwest Missouri State 19-14 (Division II era).
• Give ACU a 3-0 start to conference play for the first time in the Division I era. The Wildcats last had a 3-0 conference record in 2011.
• Snap a 7-game losing streak to Central Arkansas. ACU last defeated the Bears in 2014, and is 0-4 at home vs. UCA.