Saturday, August 29
Beaumont, TX
6 p.m.
Abilene Christian
0-1 , 0-0
14
at
21
Lamar
1-0 , 0-0
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abilene Christian | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Lamar University | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
Photo by: Ella Kelso
No. 14 ACU's Final Push Falls Just Short in Beaumont
8/29/2026 10:24:00 PM | Football
BEAUMONT, Texas – The No. 14 Abilene Christian football team came up a few yards shy of pulling off a final-minute comeback, losing the 2026 season-opener in a 21-14 defeat to No. 20 Lamar on a muggy Saturday evening.
Midway through the 4th quarter and trailing 21-7, ACU marched down the field on a 79-yard drive. Rovaughn Banks Jr. broke free for a 17-yard rush, Lamar was called for pass interference and Alex Broome zigged and zagged for 21 yards on a screen pass to move to the 6 yard line. Two plays later quarterback John David Black found Cristian Driver, who wiggled open behind his defender, for the touchdown pass in the right side of the endzone to pull within a score.
ACU's defense then forced a punt and the Wildcats had a chance to tie the game. Back-to-back 10+ yard gains by Broome, the Boston College transfer, pushed ACU to midfield. He followed with a 22-yard scamper down the left side to set up the Cats in the redzone.
Facing 4th down and 3 at the Lamar 6 with 0:19 remaining, Black faked the handoff and rolled to his left, tucked the ball and was hit out of bounds. The officials ruled him a yard short of the sticks, and the Cardinals took over on downs.
Black, seeing his first playing time in college, showed poise and leadership as he entered the game in the second quarter and played the final eight drives.
On his first drive, Black led the offense on a 13-play, 77-yard touchdown drive culminating with an 8-yard touchdown pass to true freshman Romelo Boykin in the 2nd quarter. Black completed 15-of-25 passes for 142 yards and two scores.
Broome carried the ball 14 times for 75 yards and added 21 yard receiving. Driver and Boykin led ACU with five catches each and combined for 100 yards.
Defensively, Dillon Williams (13) and Javeon Wilcox (12) had double-digit tackle totals. Chris Herpin recorded a sack in the first half.
Penalties were a major thorn in the Wildcats' side with 12 flags for 106 yards, including a holding call which negated a 90-yard kickoff return early in the 4th quarter.
Quarterback Tucker Parks started the game and led the offense for ACU's first four drives. After a three-and-out, the Wildcats' pieced together a 48-yard drive but stalled just inside Lamar territory. The next two possessions ended with Cardinal interceptions.
As anticipated, the Wildcats' tight ends were featured prominently in the passing game with Larry Benton III breaking off a 33-yard catch-and-run, and Jayden York, a transfer from Houston, hauling in four passes for 33 yards.
UP NEXT
ACU stays in West Texas by traveling to Texas Tech, which is ranked No. 12 in the preseason FBS rankings, on Saturday, Sept. 5. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. in Lubbock with a national television broadcast, ACU's first since 2014, on Fox Sports 1.
POSTGAME WITH KEITH PATTERSON
Midway through the 4th quarter and trailing 21-7, ACU marched down the field on a 79-yard drive. Rovaughn Banks Jr. broke free for a 17-yard rush, Lamar was called for pass interference and Alex Broome zigged and zagged for 21 yards on a screen pass to move to the 6 yard line. Two plays later quarterback John David Black found Cristian Driver, who wiggled open behind his defender, for the touchdown pass in the right side of the endzone to pull within a score.
ACU's defense then forced a punt and the Wildcats had a chance to tie the game. Back-to-back 10+ yard gains by Broome, the Boston College transfer, pushed ACU to midfield. He followed with a 22-yard scamper down the left side to set up the Cats in the redzone.
Facing 4th down and 3 at the Lamar 6 with 0:19 remaining, Black faked the handoff and rolled to his left, tucked the ball and was hit out of bounds. The officials ruled him a yard short of the sticks, and the Cardinals took over on downs.
Black, seeing his first playing time in college, showed poise and leadership as he entered the game in the second quarter and played the final eight drives.
On his first drive, Black led the offense on a 13-play, 77-yard touchdown drive culminating with an 8-yard touchdown pass to true freshman Romelo Boykin in the 2nd quarter. Black completed 15-of-25 passes for 142 yards and two scores.
Broome carried the ball 14 times for 75 yards and added 21 yard receiving. Driver and Boykin led ACU with five catches each and combined for 100 yards.
Defensively, Dillon Williams (13) and Javeon Wilcox (12) had double-digit tackle totals. Chris Herpin recorded a sack in the first half.
Penalties were a major thorn in the Wildcats' side with 12 flags for 106 yards, including a holding call which negated a 90-yard kickoff return early in the 4th quarter.
Quarterback Tucker Parks started the game and led the offense for ACU's first four drives. After a three-and-out, the Wildcats' pieced together a 48-yard drive but stalled just inside Lamar territory. The next two possessions ended with Cardinal interceptions.
As anticipated, the Wildcats' tight ends were featured prominently in the passing game with Larry Benton III breaking off a 33-yard catch-and-run, and Jayden York, a transfer from Houston, hauling in four passes for 33 yards.
UP NEXT
ACU stays in West Texas by traveling to Texas Tech, which is ranked No. 12 in the preseason FBS rankings, on Saturday, Sept. 5. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. in Lubbock with a national television broadcast, ACU's first since 2014, on Fox Sports 1.
POSTGAME WITH KEITH PATTERSON
Players Mentioned
RB
/ Football
TE
/ Football
QB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
RB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DL
/ Football
QB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
TE
/ FootballTeam Stats
ACU
LAM
Total Yards
358
278
Pass Yards
207
183
Rushing Yards
151
95
Penalty Yards
106
67
1st Downs
17
17
3rd Downs
5
5
4th Downs
1
1
TOP
28:21
31:39
1st Quarter
ACU 0, LAM 7
LAM - Driskell,Davin 5 yd pass from McCown,Aiden (Sandoval,Andres kick) 10 plays, 72 yards, TOP 05:53
2nd Quarter
ACU 7, LAM 7
ACU - Boykin,Romelo 8 yd pass from Black,John David (Perez,Brandon kick) 13 plays, 77 yards, TOP 06:46
ACU 7, LAM 14
LAM - Thomas,Blake 33 yd pass from McCown,Aiden (Sandoval,Andres kick) 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 01:41
4th Quarter
ACU 7, LAM 21
LAM - Driskell,Davin 5 yd pass from McCown,Aiden (Sandoval,Andres kick) 14 plays, 65 yards, TOP 07:40
ACU 14, LAM 21
ACU - Driver,Cristian 4 yd pass from Black,John David (Perez,Brandon kick) 7 plays, 79 yards, TOP 03:12
Game Leaders
CMP
15
TD
2
YDS
142
INT
0
CMP
4
TD
0
YDS
65
INT
2
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