Photo by: Aly Bayliss
ACU to Host Mercer, Start 4-Game Series with Lamar in 2026
3/6/2026 10:00:00 AM | Football
The back-to-back United Athletic Conference defending champion Abilene Christian football team will host Mercer and visit Lamar as part of its 2026 schedule. Both teams finished the 2025 season ranked in the Top 25 nationally.
The Wildcats and Cardinals will open their seasons on Aug. 29 in Beaumont. The matchup begins a four-game, home-and-home series which will see ACU host Lamar in 2027 and 2029, and play on the road again in 2028.
ACU and Lamar have faced off 24 times in their series, which dates back to 1953. The most recent meeting was a 38-20 Wildcat victory in the first round of the 2025 FCS Playoffs. ACU has won the last four contests against the Cardinals.
The Wildcats welcome the Mercer Bears to Abilene for the first time on Sept. 26 in just the second all-time matchup between the two teams. The only previous matchup was during the COVID-shortened 2020 season in which ACU scored ten points in the final 6:00. Blair Zepeda kicked a 38-yard field goal on the game's final snap to give the Wildcats the 20-17 victory in Macon, Ga.
ACU is now scheduled to play four teams which made the FCS Playoffs in 2025. All four were ranked in the season's final Stats Perform FCS Top 25 – No. 6 Tarleton State, No. 7 Stephen F. Austin, No. 17 Mercer, and No. 24 Lamar. The Wildcats finished No. 12.
New season tickets will go on sale later in March with single-game tickets available over the summer.
ACU 2026 Football Schedule
The Wildcats and Cardinals will open their seasons on Aug. 29 in Beaumont. The matchup begins a four-game, home-and-home series which will see ACU host Lamar in 2027 and 2029, and play on the road again in 2028.
ACU and Lamar have faced off 24 times in their series, which dates back to 1953. The most recent meeting was a 38-20 Wildcat victory in the first round of the 2025 FCS Playoffs. ACU has won the last four contests against the Cardinals.
The Wildcats welcome the Mercer Bears to Abilene for the first time on Sept. 26 in just the second all-time matchup between the two teams. The only previous matchup was during the COVID-shortened 2020 season in which ACU scored ten points in the final 6:00. Blair Zepeda kicked a 38-yard field goal on the game's final snap to give the Wildcats the 20-17 victory in Macon, Ga.
ACU is now scheduled to play four teams which made the FCS Playoffs in 2025. All four were ranked in the season's final Stats Perform FCS Top 25 – No. 6 Tarleton State, No. 7 Stephen F. Austin, No. 17 Mercer, and No. 24 Lamar. The Wildcats finished No. 12.
New season tickets will go on sale later in March with single-game tickets available over the summer.
ACU 2026 Football Schedule
| Aug. 29 | TBA | at Lamar | Beaumont, TX |
| Sept. 5 | TBA | at Texas Tech | Lubbock, TX |
| Sept. 12 | 7 p.m. | vs. Stephen F. Austin | Wildcat Stadium |
| Sept. 19 | TBA | at Idaho | Moscow, ID |
| Sept. 26 | 7 p.m. | vs. Mercer | Wildcat Stadium |
| Oct. 3 | Open | ||
| Oct. 10 | 7 p.m. | vs. Central Arkansas* | Wildcat Stadium |
| Oct. 17 | 6 p.m. | at North Alabama* | Florence, AL |
| Oct. 24 | Open | ||
| Oct. 31 | 3 p.m. | vs. West Georgia* | Wildcat Stadium |
| Nov. 7 | TBA | at Tarleton State* | Stephenville, TX |
| Nov. 14 | TBA | at Austin Peay* | Clarksville, TN |
| Nov. 21 | 1 p.m. | vs. Eastern Kentucky* | Wildcat Stadium |
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