2022 Abilene Christian Wildcats football team

2022 Abilene Christian Wildcats football
2022 Abilene Christian Wildcats football
WAC co-champion
Conference	Western Athletic Conference
Record	7–4 (3–1 WAC)
Head coach	Keith Patterson (1st season);
Offensive coordinator	Stephen Lee (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Air raid
Defensive coordinator	Skyler Cassity (1st season)
Base defense	3–4
Home stadium	Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium

2022 WAC–ASUN Challenge football standings

Team	W		L	W		L
Eastern Kentucky $^	4	–	1	7	–	5
Central Arkansas	4	–	1	5	–	6
Austin Peay	3	–	1	7	–	4
Stephen F. Austin	2	–	1	6	–	5
	1	–	1	7	–	4
Kennesaw State	1	–	3	5	–	6
Southern Utah	0	–	3	5	–	6
North Alabama	0	–	4	1	–	10

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll

2022 Western Athletic Conference football standings

Team	W		L	W		L
Stephen F. Austin +	3	–	1	6	–	5
+	3	–	1	7	–	4
Sam Houston *	3	–	2	5	–	4
Utah Tech *	2	–	2	4	–	7
Tarleton State *	1	–	3	6	–	5
Southern Utah	1	–	3	5	–	6

+ – Conference co-champions * Note: Sam Houston ineligible for WAC championship and FCS postseason play due to start of transition to FBS; Tarleton and Utah Tech ineligible for FCS postseason play due to transition from NCAA Division II. Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2022 Abilene Christian Wildcats football team represented Abilene Christian University in the 2022 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Wildcats played their home games at Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium in Abilene, Texas, and competed in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). They were led by first-year head coach Keith Patterson.

Offseason

On November 21, 2021, the university announced that head coach Adam Dorrel had been fired. The Wildcats went 19–32 under Dorrel through five with only one winning season, a 6–5 campaign in 2018.^[1] On December 6, Texas Tech defensive coordinator Keith Patterson was hired as the Wildcats' new head coach.^[2]

Preseason

WAC coaches' poll

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
WAC coaches' poll
1	Stephen F. Austin	16 (4)
2	Abilene Christian	12
3	Tarleton	10 (1)
4	Southern Utah	7
5	Utah Tech	5

^[3]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	7:00 p.m.	Lamar*	Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium Abilene, TX	ESPN+	W 28–14	5,413
September 10	7:00 p.m.	Prairie View A&M*	Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium Abilene, TX	ESPN+	W 21–13	6,236
September 17	11:00 a.m.	at Missouri*	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	SECN+/ESPN+	L 17–34	53,253
September 24	7:00 p.m.	Western New Mexico*	Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium Abilene, TX	ESPN+	W 34–7	7,703
October 1	8:00 p.m.	at Utah Tech	Greater Zion Stadium St. George, UT	ESPN+	W 26–10	3,718
October 8	6:00 p.m.	at Stephen F. Austin*	Homer Bryce Stadium Nacogdoches, TX	ESPN+	L 38–41	7,224
October 15	3:25 p.m.	Southern Utah	Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium Abilene, TX	ESPN+	W 21–18	10,229
October 29	3:00 p.m.	at No. 23 North Dakota*	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND		L 31–34	8,355
November 5	7:00 p.m.	at Tarleton State	Memorial Stadium Stephenville, TX	ESPN+	W 28–23	9,359
November 12	12:00 p.m.	at Sam Houston	Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX	ESPN+	W 45–28	7,592
November 19	2:30 p.m.	Stephen F. Austin	Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium Abilene, TX	ESPN+	L 21–24	7,508
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[4]^[5]

Game summaries

Lamar

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	14	0	0	0	14
Wildcats	7	14	0	7	28

Statistics	LAM	ACU
First downs	7	25
Total yards	272	444
Rushing yards	68	186
Passing yards	204	258
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	19:40	40:20

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Lamar	Passing	Mike Chandler II	8/24, 204 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Khalan Griffin	8 rushes, 39 yards
	Receiving	Sevonne Rhea	3 receptions, 113 yards, TD
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	22/38, 258 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Rovaughn Banks	18 rushes, 69 yards
	Receiving	Kendall Catalon	7 receptions, 119 yards, TD

Prairie View A&M

	1	2	3	4	Total
Panthers	7	6	0	0	13
Wildcats	7	0	0	14	21

Statistics	PV	ACU
First downs	20	19
Total yards	333	335
Rushing yards	93	110
Passing yards	240	225
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	32:39	27:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Prairie View A&M	Passing	Trazon Connley	20/37, 240 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Bernard Goodwater III	8 rushes, 39 yards
	Receiving	Jailon Howard	4 receptions, 75 yards, TD
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	20/34, 225 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT
	Rushing	Jermiah Dobbins	15 rushes, 61 yards
	Receiving	Tristan Golightly	3 receptions, 63 yards

At Missouri

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	3	0	7	7	17
Tigers	14	3	14	3	34

Statistics	ACU	MIZ
First downs	11	18
Total yards	308	488
Rushing yards	109	191
Passing yards	199	297
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	25:50	34:10

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	19/32, 199 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Jermiah Dobbins	18 rushes, 73 yards
	Receiving	Tristan Golightly	3 receptions, 50 yards
Missouri	Passing	Brady Cook	22/31, 297 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Cody Schrader	10 rushes, 55 yards
	Receiving	Dominic Lovett	7 receptions, 132 yards, 2 TD

Western New Mexico

	1	2	3	4	Total
Greyhounds	7	0	0	0	7
Wildcats	3	14	3	14	34

Statistics	WNMU	ACU
First downs	9	30
Total yards	167	469
Rushing yards	2	218
Passing yards	165	251
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	20:07	39:53

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western New Mexico	Passing	Devin Larsen	21/44, 165 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Devin Larsen	4 rushes, 7 yards
	Receiving	Jamon Chambers	4 receptions, 34 yards
Abilene Christian	Passing	Ethan Long	22/34, 251 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Rovaughn Banks Jr.	21 rushes, 143 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Kobe Clark	7 receptions, 92 yards, TD

At Utah Tech

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	6	7	13	26
Trailblazers	3	7	0	0	10

Statistics	ACU	UTU
First downs	26	15
Total yards	440	293
Rushing yards	200	172
Passing yards	240	121
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	36:00	24:00

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	7/12, 148 yards
	Rushing	Jermiah Dobbins	24 rushes, 130 yards, 3 TD
	Receiving	Blayne Taylor	4 receptions, 70 yards
Utah Tech	Passing	Victor Gabalis	12/34, 121 yards, INT
	Rushing	Quali Conley	20 rushes, 148 yards, TD
	Receiving	Joey Hobert	5 receptions, 64 yards

At Stephen F. Austin

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	21	10	7	38
Lumberjacks	14	10	7	10	41

Statistics	ACU	SFA
First downs	30	21
Total yards	527	397
Rushing yards	244	154
Passing yards	283	243
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	32:21	27:39

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	24/45, 283 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Jermiah Dobbins	31 rushes, 166 yards, 3 TD
	Receiving	Tristan Golightly	4 receptions, 76 yards, TD
Stephen F. Austin	Passing	Trae Self	21/33, 243 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Jerrell Wimbley	12 rushes, 99 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Xavier Gibson	9 receptions, 144 yards

Southern Utah

	1	2	3	4	Total
Thunderbirds	0	3	7	8	18
Wildcats	7	7	0	7	21

Statistics	SUU	ACU
First downs	17	17
Total yards	375	280
Rushing yards	86	118
Passing yards	289	162
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	27:52	32:08

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Utah	Passing	Justin Miller	26/45, 289 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Drake Fakahua	5 rushes, 27 yards
	Receiving	Isaiah Wooden	5 receptions, 117 yards, TD
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	17/27, 162 yards, TD
	Rushing	Jermiah Dobbins	21 rushes, 81 yards, TD
	Receiving	Kobe Clark	6 receptions, 47 yards, TD

At No. 23 North Dakota

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	7	7	10	7	31
No. 23 Fighting Hawks	3	17	7	7	34

Statistics	ACU	UND
First downs	14	27
Total yards	361	463
Rushing yards	122	171
Passing yards	239	292
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	21:57	38:03

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	21/32, 239 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Jermiah Dobbins	6 rushes, 85 yards
	Receiving	Tristan Golightly	5 receptions, 82 yards, TD
North Dakota	Passing	Tommy Schuster	23/32, 292 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Tyler Hoosman	20 rushes, 112 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Bo Belquist	7 receptions, 100 yards, TD

At Tarleton State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	7	7	0	14	28
Texans	7	3	7	6	23

Statistics	ACU	TAR
First downs	17	23
Total yards	456	390
Rushing yards	68	209
Passing yards	388	181
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	28:09	31:51

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	24/34, 384 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Rovaughn Banks Jr.	8 rushes, 34 yards
	Receiving	Tristan Golightly	7 receptions, 117 yards
Tarleton State	Passing	Beau Allen	16/27, 181 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Derrel Kelley III	18 rushes, 114 yards
	Receiving	Derrel Kelley III	5 receptions, 77 yards

At Sam Houston

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	21	17	0	7	45
Bearkats	7	7	8	6	28

Statistics	ACU	SHSU
First downs	24	16
Total yards	398	362
Rushing yards	136	43
Passing yards	262	319
Turnovers	1	4
Time of possession	38:43	21:17

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Abilene Christian	Passing	Ethan Long	30/48, 262 yards, 4 TD, INT
	Rushing	Anthony Smith	11 rushes, 59 yards, TD
	Receiving	Kendall Catalon	4 receptions, 78 yards
Sam Houston	Passing	Keegan Shoemaker	23/46, 319 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Keegan Shoemaker	8 rushes, 29 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Cody Chrest	5 receptions, 117 yards

Stephen F. Austin

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lumberjacks	0	7	6	11	24
Wildcats	7	0	14	0	21

Statistics	SFA	ACU
First downs	19	14
Total yards	480	364
Rushing yards	83	44
Passing yards	397	320
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	34:40	25:20

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Stephen F. Austin	Passing	Trae Self	26/37, 397 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Miles Reed	23 rushes, 51 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Gibson	11 receptions, 213 yards, TD
Abilene Christian	Passing	Maverick McIvor	25/38, 318 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Rovaughn Banks Jr.	9 rushes, 57 yards
	Receiving	Kobe Clark	7 receptions, 168 yards

References

^ Richards, Joey D. (November 21, 2021). "Abilene Christian fires football coach Adam Dorrel after five seasons". Abilene Reporter News. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
^ Richards, Joey D. (December 6, 2021). "Texas Tech assistant Patterson named Abilene Christian football coach". Abilene Reporter-News. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
^ "WAC 2022 Preseason College Football Poll". July 18, 2022. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
^ "2022 Football Schedule". Abilene Christian University Athletics. July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
^ "Abilene Christian Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved July 13, 2022.

[1] Richards, Joey D. (November 21, 2021). "Abilene Christian fires football coach Adam Dorrel after five seasons". Abilene Reporter News. Retrieved March 25, 2025.

[2] Richards, Joey D. (December 6, 2021). "Texas Tech assistant Patterson named Abilene Christian football coach". Abilene Reporter-News. Retrieved March 25, 2025.

[3] "WAC 2022 Preseason College Football Poll". July 18, 2022. Retrieved March 25, 2025.

[4] "2022 Football Schedule". Abilene Christian University Athletics. July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.

[5] "Abilene Christian Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved July 13, 2022.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

Abilene Christian Wildcats football
Venues	Shotwell Stadium (1959–2016) Wildcat Stadium (2017–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games
Culture & lore	Willie the Wildcat (mascot)
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2023 2024 2025
National championship seasons in bold

Western Athletic Conference football champions
I-A/FBS	New Mexico (1962) Arizona State (1963) Arizona, New Mexico & Utah (1964) BYU (1965) Wyoming (1966) Wyoming (1967) Wyoming (1968) Arizona State (1969) Arizona State (1970) Arizona State (1971) Arizona State (1972) Arizona & Arizona State (1973) BYU (1974) Arizona State (1975) BYU & Wyoming (1976) Arizona State & BYU (1977) BYU (1978) BYU (1979) BYU (1980) BYU (1981) BYU (1982) BYU (1983) BYU (1984) Air Force & BYU (1985) San Diego State (1986) Wyoming (1987) Wyoming (1988) BYU (1989) BYU (1990) BYU (1991) BYU, Fresno State & Hawaii (1992) BYU, Fresno State & Wyoming (1993) Colorado State (1994) Air Force, BYU, Colorado State & Utah (1995) BYU (1996) Colorado State (1997) Air Force (1998) Fresno State, Hawaii & TCU (1999) TCU & UTEP (2000) Louisiana Tech (2001) Boise State (2002) Boise State (2003) Boise State (2004) Boise State & Nevada (2005) Boise State (2006) Hawaii (2007) Boise State (2008) Boise State (2009) Boise State, Hawaii & Nevada (2010) Louisiana Tech (2011) Utah State (2012)
I-AA/FCS	Sam Houston (2021) & Stephen F. Austin (2022)
National championships in bold