GAMEDAY INFORMATION

No. 25 Tarleton State Texans (2-0) vs. Abilene Christian Wildcats

When: Saturday, Sept. 28 | 4 p.m. (CST)

Where: Frisco, Texas (Toyota Stadium)

Series: Wildcats lead 19-11-4

Last Meeting: Tarleton 31, #20 Abilene Christian 34 (Sept. 15, 2012)

Radio: KTRL (90.5 FM) | Listen Online | Mobile Apps

Web Stream: acusports.com

Social Media: Facebook | Twitter

Live Stats

Tickets

Game Notes

The Game
The Tarleton State Texans will take a break from Lone Star Conference action this week to face former LSC rival Abilene Christian (3-1) this Saturday, Sept. 28 at Toyota Stadium in Frisco. Kickoff between the Texans (2-0, 2-0 LSC) and Wildcats (3-1) is set for 4 p.m.
 
Covering the Game
Due to a timing conflict with Stephenville High School Football, Saturday's contest will be broadcast live on KTRL (90.5 FM) with Casey Hogan calling play-by-play and Mike Young joining him for color commentary. Joanna Hensley will provide reports from the sideline for the broadcast team.
 
The game can be heard throughout the Cross Timbers area at 90.5 FM or via KTRL's "Listen Live" link that can be found at www.ktxr.net.
 
Coach to Cure MD
Coach Fowler and all the Tarleton State coaching staff are joining coaches all over America today in wearing a patch on their left arms to help defeat a terrible genetic disorder. It's called Coach To Cure M-D.
 
The American Football Coaches Association is working to raise awareness and research funding to cure Duchenne (doo-SHEN) Muscular Dystrophy, the most prolific genetic killer diagnosed in childhood.
 
Support coach Fowler and the Texans by supporting life-saving research by either going online to www.coachtocuremd.org or text the word "CURE" to 90999 to donate $5 on your next mobile phone bill.
 
Last Week
With just 53 seconds off the clock, the Texans quickly found themselves behind 7-0, but three touchdowns later Tarleton looked to be in cruise control. ASU, however, scored 13 unanswered points to make it a 21-20 game with just 2:36 left to play in the third quarter.
 
Tarleton scored on a 45-yard field goal from Blake Barnes early in the fourth quarter and then made it a 11-point game after Aaron Doyle pushed his way into the end zone with 9:19 left in the game.
 
The Rams came right back with a pair of scores and following Blake Smith's one-yard ruh, Kyle Washington ran in for the two-point conversion to make it a 34-31 game in favor of ASU.
 
With just 1:48 left to play, Jake Fenske drove the Texans down field 78 yards and completed the drive with a 35-yard touchdown pass to Clifton Rhodes III, his third of the game.
 
ASU's last attempt to find the end zone was stalled when Devin Figures picked off Washington's pass, ending the game and sealing the four-point victory.
 
Saturday's win marked the 12th straight win for the Texans over the Rams. ASU has not defeated a Tarleton team since Nov. 18, 2000.
 
Rhodes finished the game with five catches for 103 yards and his career-high three TD catches. The quarterbacking duo of Doyle and Fenske completed 23 of 50 passes for 338 yards and four touchdowns. Doyle led the Texans on the ground as well with 69 rushing yards and one touchdown.
 
Texans in The Polls
The Texans are ranked No. 25 in this week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Poll, giving Tarleton its first national ranking since the final AFCA Poll in 2009.
 
AFCA Poll History
The Texans have been ranked inside the AFCA Top-25 for 78 different weeks since becoming a member of the NCAA Division II and the Lone Star Conference.
 
Tarleton's first-ever ranking inside the AFCA Top-25 Poll was a No. 24 national ranking on Nov. 6, 2001. The Texans went on to finish that season ranked No. 10 in the nation.
 
The Texans earned its highest ranking in school history in 2002, from Sept. 9-24, after earning the No. 6 spot for three consecutive weeks.
 
Scouting the Wildcats
Abilene Christian is currently in its first season of transitioning to NCAA Division I and the Southland Conference. The Wildcats, who had spent more than 30 weeks ranked in the AFCA Division II Top-25 Poll over the past three seasons, are currently 3-1 overall in its first season at the D-I level.
 
ACU opened the season with three straight wins, averaging over 65 points per game in those contests and giving up just 17.0 points to opposing teams. The Wildcats suffered its first loss of the season last week, falling 31-17 to Illinois State - a current member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
 
The Wildcats rushed for just 56 yards in the game and finished the contest with 288 total yards on offense. ACU's defense gave up 165 yards on the ground and 201 through the air on the road to ISU. ACU was penalized seven times for a total of 115 yards.
 
ACU is led by quarterback John David Baker, who has completed 77 of his 112 passes (68.8%) for 1,158 yards, 16 touchdowns and zero interceptions. Due to ACU's probationary status, the Wildcats are not included in NCAA statistics, but if the were, Baker would second in passing TD's and seventh in passing yards.
 
West Charcandrick leads the Wildcat running game, netting 370 yards on 58 carries this season. He averaged 92.5 yards per game, 6.4 yards per carry and has scored a team-high six touchdowns. Darr Cantu-Harkless averages more than 10 yards per carry (16 att., 161 yards) for the Wildcats and has found the end zone twice.
 
Darian Hogg leads all ACU receivers with 428 yards on 22 receptions. He averaged more than 107 yards per game and has scored five touchdowns on the year.
 
Angelo Lopez leads the ACU defense with 35 total tackles (26 solo), and has one tackle-for-loss and one sack. Nick Richardson (14 total tackles) leads the team with 5.0 total sacks.
 
About the Texans
Tarleton is coming off its first-ever 2-0 start under head coach Cary Fowler after its 38-34 road win over Angelo State.
 
The Texans have won five consecutive games dating back to last season, which includes four road wins during that span. Tarleton has won five straight games away from Stephenville, also dating back to last season.
 
After two games, the Texans are averaging 32.5 points per game, which ranks 5th in the Lone Star Conference. Tarleton's 426.0 yards per game also ranks 5th in the LSC, while the team's 260.0 passing yards per game ranks 3rd in the league.
 
Clifton Rhodes III averages 76.5 receiving yards per game, which ranks 3rd in the LSC. He is followed by fellow teammates Le'Nard Meyers (68.5 ypg) and Bubba Tandy (62.5 ypg).
 
Zach Henshaw leads the Tarleton running game with 61.0 yards per game and Jerome Regal follows with 47.5 yards per game. Aaron Doyle averages 46.0 yards per game and leads the team with a pair of rushing touchdowns.
 
Series History
ACU leads the all-time series 19-11-4, which dates back to 1920. Tarleton is 8-10 against ACU when both teams were members of NCAA Division II.
 
The Wildcats have won three consecutive games, but the last two contests have been decided by just six points total. Tarleton's last win against ACU came in 2009, a 13-6 win over the Wildcats in Stephenville.
 
ACU leads the series in games played on a neutral field following last season's 34-31 over the Texans at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.
 
ACU holds the longest win streak in the series, having won eight consecutive games during the years from 1938 to 1997.
 
Coming Up for the Texans
The Texans will be on the road for one more week before making its home debut as the team travels to Portales, N.M., next Saturday, Oct. 5 to face the Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds.
 
The Texans and Greyhounds will square-off at Greyhounds Stadium in Blackwater Draw, N.M., with a kickoff set for 3 p.m. (CST)
 
Quarterbacking the Texans
Tarleton has implemented a two-quarterback system, which has worked well two games into the season. Quarterbacks Jake Fenske and Aaron Doyle have each split snaps for the Texans this season, combining to complete 47 of their 79 passes for 520 yards and six touchdowns. Fenske heads into Saturday's game having completed 58.5 percent (24-41) of his passes with four TD's, while Doyle has completed 60.5 percent (23-38) of his passes and two TD's.
 
Texans under Fowler
With Tarleton's 38-34 win over Angelo State this past Saturday, head coach Cary Fowler improved to 17-17 overall, giving him his first non-losing record with the Texans since taking over the program in 2010.
 
The Texans were just 4-13 in Fowler's first 17 games, but since then the Texans have won 13 of the last 17 contests under him. Tarleton has won five straight games under Fowler dating back to last season.
 
Multiple TD's for Rhodes III
Tarleton junior wide receiver Clifton Rhodes III scored a career-high three touchdowns in the win over Angelo State this past Saturday.
 
Rhodes became the first Texan receiver to catch at least three touchdowns in one game since former Texan Devin Guinn scored three TD's against East Central back on Aug. 25, 2007.
 
Rhodes' three touchdown performance was his first multiple TD game of his career with the Texans.
 
Tandy Playing up a Level
Freshman wide receiver Bubba Tandy collected a career-high seven catches against ASU on Saturday, giving him 11 catches for 125 yards and one touchdown.
 
Coming up Sacks
The Texan defense has four sacks on the season with freshman Jake Blount leading the charge with two sacks on the season. Blount recorded both sacks in the late stages of the first half against the Rams last Saturday.
 
Julius Hurndon also collected a sack against ASU and teammate Jared Thames has Tarleton's other sack on the year.
 
Texans against ranked Opponents
Tarleton is now 12-22 against ranked opponents since 2000, with six of those wins coming against a top-25 ranked MSU team. The Texans are now 6-2 when the Mustangs are ranked.
 
Tarleton's next ranked opponent is likely to be West Texas A&M (3-0, 1-0 LSC) who enters this weekend's set of games ranked No. 4 in both the AFCA and D2Football.com Top-25 Polls.
 
Closing in on Win no. 450
The Texans are now just to victories shy from picking up its 450th all-time win in school history. Tarleton brings in an all-time record of 448-453-22 (.497) to Saturday's contest. Since becoming a senior college in 1961, Tarleton is 257-279-3 all-time.
 
Texans in the LSC
The Texans are 95-133 (.416) all-time against opponents in the LSC. Tarleton has won four straight LSC games dating back to last season. The Texans are currently 2-0 in LSC play this season.
 
Tarleton's Scoring Streak
The Texans have now scored a touchdown in 30 straight games dating back to the 2010 season. The last time a Tarleton team did not score a TD came against Abilene Christian in a 65-3 loss back on Sept. 25, 2010.
 
Tarleton State has scored at least a one field goal or touchdown in 41 straight games heading into the weekend.
 
Texans From the Cross-Timbers
The 2013 Texan Football squad boasts seven players (Alex Sanchez, Blake Barnes, Chase Varnado, Brayden Coverdale, Kade Cole, Nick Perez and Kody Travis) from Stephenville, with a pair of players (Cody Burtscher and Jared Thames) from Glen Rose and one player (Tyler Wright) from Granbury.
 
Wearing No. 96
Sophomore defensive end Patrick Bettiol was awarded the Zach Shaver Award this past spring and he will honor the memory of the former Texan by donning the No. 96 this season.
 
Shaver passed away from a traumatic brain injury on Mar. 29, 2010. As a memorial to Shaver, each year a Texan player is chosen to wear the No. 96 jersey because of their dedication, their attitude, their heart and their love for the game of football.
 
Texans in the National Spotlight
Tarleton had a handful of former players in the national spotlight this offseason and it began with former defensive end Rufus Johnson (2011-12) going to the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Johnson recorded four tackles in four preseason games with the Saints and will serve on New Orleans' practice squad to start the 2013 NFL season.
 
Former Texan quarterback Nick Stephens (2010-11) played in two preseason games for the Dallas Cowboys, which included the national televised Hall of Fame Game on NBC.
 
Former running back Derrick Ross (2004-05) and former kicker Garrett Lindholm (2006-09) squared off against each other in the Arena Football League's Arena Bowl this past August. Lindholm was named the AFL's Kicker of the Year, while Ross became the AFL's career leader in rushing yards.
 
Texans in LSC-Openers
The Texans are now 2-2 in Lone Star Conference-opening games under head coach Cary Fowler. Since joining the league the Texans are 7-12 in conference-opening games after last week's win over MSU.
 
When the Texans score First
Tarleton went 5-2 last season when the team put up the first points of the game. The two losses came to West Texas A&M and Texas A&M-Kingsville in 2012. The Texans are 13-8 overall when scoring the game's first points under head coach Cary Fowler.
 
Starting Strong on Offense
The Texans went 4-0 last season when scoring on its first offensive possession. Tarleton is 8-6 overall under head coach Cary Fowler when scoring on the first offensive possession.
 
Texans in September
The Texans are just 5-9 overall in September games since 2010, but Tarleton is now 31-11 overall during the month of September since 2000 following last weekend's victory over ASU. The Texans improved to 7-1 all-time when facing MSU during the month of September and are now 3-2 against Angelo State in September contests. Tarleton is just 2-4 in September games played against ACU.
 
Putting up a 30-Spot
The Texans are 14-3 overall when putting up 30 points or more under head coach Cary Fowler. That record includes a 7-0 mark when scoring 40 points or more. Tarleton was 5-2 last season when eclipsing the 30-point barrier.
 
Winning the Ground Attack
Under head coach Cary Fowler, the Texans are now 12-5 when out-rushing the opposition. Tarleton is just 5-12 over the past four seasons when the opposing team out-gains the Texans in rushing yardage.
 
Turnovers are Key
Over the past four seasons, Tarleton is a combined 11-2 when winning the turnover battle. The Texans are 4-4 when they have tied its opponent in turnovers and just 2-11 when coughing up more turnovers.
 
Passing Precision
Jake Fenske notched a 91.7 passing percentage in week two against Midwestern State after completing 11 of his 12 passes in the game. His only incompletion of the contest was an interception that came deep into the end zone at the beginning of the second quarter.
 
Fenske set a single-season school record in 2012 with a 66.2 pass-completion percentage. After taking over at quarterback in the final five games last season, Fenske completed 102 of his 154 passes.
 
Aaron Doyle finished the season with a 62.7 completion percentage, which rank third best in a single-season. He connected with 153 of his 244 passes last year.
 
Doyle's Record-Breaking Game
Quarterback Aaron Doyle set a single-game school record with 39 pass completions against Abilene Christian last season. He broke the previous record of 33 completions that was set by Chase Sugarek, which was set against Northeastern State back on Oct. 26, 2002.
 
The Offense is Back
The Texan offense gained 4,625 total yards of total offense in 2012, which ranks fifth most in school history. It was Tarleton's best offensive production since the 2009 squad racked up 5,021 total yards.
 
Last season's 286.4 passing yards per game ranks fourth all-time in school history and was just a little under four yards shy of 2011's output of 290.6 passing yards per game.
 
Texans in AT&T Stadium
Tarleton State improved to 1-1 overall in games played at AT&T Stadium. The Texans are averaging 29.0 points inside the home of the Dallas Cowboys and average more than 188 yards on the ground. Defensively the Texans have limited its two opponents to just 67.0 yards on the ground after holding MSU to just 79 rushing yards back on Sept. 14.
 
Texans picked 3rd in LSC Poll
Tarleton State was picked to finish third in the Lone Star Conference after receiving one first-place vote for a total of 99 points. West Texas A&M was the top choice to repeat as the LSC football champion according to the preseason poll.
 
Preseason honors
The Texans had nine different players earn preseason All-American honors prior to the 2013 campaign.
 
Dashaun Phillips (1st Team) and Blake Barnes (3rd Team) were each tabbed D2Football.com Preseason All-Americans, while Jerome Regal (2nd Team), Marquis Wadley (2nd Team), Barnes (2nd Team), Zach Henshaw (3rd Team), Lucas Love (HM), Nick Perez (HM), Clifton Rhodes III (HM), Desmond Jackson (HM) and Phillips (HM) were all named to the USA College Football Preseason All-American Team.

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