SLC Team Previews: Abilene Christian

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STORYLINES
• The 2014 season will be Abilene Christian’s first in the Southland Conference since 1972. ACU – a founding member of the league in 1963 – was part of the Lone Star Conference from 1973-2013 before re-joining the Southland Conference and changing affiliation from NCAA Division II to NCAA Division I in July 2013. Last year, ACU played an FCS independent schedule and finished with a 6-5 record.
• For the first time since the 2005 season-opener, ACU will start the season with a starting quarterback who has never started a game at the collegiate level. ACU lost senior quarterback John David Baker to graduation after he threw for 3,376 yards and 35 touchdowns in 2013. Redshirt sophomore Parker McKenzie (3 for 3 for 33 yards and no touchdowns in 2013) goes into the season as the starter with redshirt freshman Kade Munden and incoming freshmen Dallas Sealey and Cody Ennis vying for not only playing time, but perhaps also the starting job.
• Besides losing its starting quarterback, ACU also lost three starting offensive linemen, all three starting wide receivers and its starting tailback. DeMarcus Thompson is the leading returning receiver (23-305-3) and is joined by Monte Green-Avery (4-97-0) and Cade Stone (2-10-0) as the only WRs who return with much playing time.
• Junior running back Herschel Sims returns to Abilene after stints at Oklahoma State and Lamar, and could be the focal point of the Wildcats’ offense. After losing West and Cantu-Harkless from the backfield, Sims should be ready to step in after spending the 2013 season as a redshirt.
• Senior defensive end Nick Richardson needs 11 sacks to become the school’s all-time leader in quarterbacks sacks. Richardson had 11.0 sacks last season and enters his senior season with 23.5 in his career, just 11 sacks away from passing Reuben Mason (34.0 sacks from 1976-78) as ACU’s all-time leader in that category. One of the most disruptive pass-rushers in ACU history, Richardson also has 34.5 tackles for loss.

OFFENSE
• The Wildcats are set at the tight end/fullback position with seniors Jonathan Parker, Noah Cheshier and Cy Wilson and junior Jamie Walker rotating between those two positions.
• Since 2006 when the Wildcats began their current run of eight straight winning seasons, ACU’s passing offense has generated an average of 3,479 yards, 31 touchdowns and only 8 interceptions per season.
• Since 2005 when current coach Ken Collums joined the ACU coaching staff as its offensive coordinator, “ball security” has been catchphrase for the Wildcat offense. In the nine seasons since 2005, ACU is a combined plus-95 in turnover differential.

DEFENSE
• ACU’s defense had just 22 sacks last season and 52 tackles for loss. The 22 sacks are the fewest by the Wildcats since the 2004 team had just 15, and the 52 tackles for loss are the fewest for ACU since the 1992 team recorded just 51.
• The ACU defense has averaged 26.8 takeaways per season since 2005 when current coach Ken Collums arrived as the team’s offensive coordinator. ACU was plus-17 in turnover margin last year with 29 takeaways and only 12 turnovers.
• The Wildcats gave up 391.8 yards per game in 2013, which was a 20-yard per game improvement over their 2012 per-game average of 413.8 and a 44-yard per game improvement over their 2011 average of 435.9.

SPECIAL TEAMS
• Sophomore placekick Nik Grau had one of the best seasons of any placekicker in ACU history in 2013. He hit 10 of 11 field goals – including his final eight attempts – and was 56 for 62 on PATs. His 56 PATs are the third-best single-season total in program history, and his 10 field goals are tied for the 10th-best in a single season.
• Sophomore punter set the ACU record for average per punt at 44.2 yards per kick. Of his 40 punts, he dropped seven inside the opponents’ 20-yard line, had four touchbacks, forced four fair catches and 11 punts of 50 yards or more. He had a season-long punt of 64 yards against Illinois State on Sept. 21.
• The ACU punt return team allowed an average of only 9.6 yards per punt return.

 

 

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