CANYON – Oh, brother!
Looking a lot like his older sibling – Cincinnati Bengals' running back and former ACU star Bernard Scott –
Daryl Richardson broke away from a tackle at the line of scrimmage and sprinted 23 yards for a touchdown with one minute left to give No. 2-ranked Abilene Christian University a thrilling 41-34 win over 14th-ranked West Texas A&M University.
And like his brother did in 2008, Richardson helped hoist his team on his shoulders and clinch at least a tie for another Lone Star Conference South Division championship – its second in three years.
“I thought Daryl had his best game,” said ACU head coach Chris Thomsen. “He did well against Midwestern (a 31-28 win Oct. 9), but he broke tackles tonight. We encouraged him all year, telling him that the difference between good backs and great backs is breaking tackles and getting touchdowns, and that's what he did tonight.”
The Wildcats overcame an aerial assault by West Texas quarterback Taylor Harris, who completed 39 of 60 passes for 496 yards and four touchdowns in front of a crowd of 13,827 in Kimbrough Stadium. ACU defensive back
James Williams intercepted Harris three times, giving his team new life when it appeared the Buffaloes were nickel-and-diming their way downfield on yet another scoring drive from the LSC's most prolific passing offense.
Richardson ran for 98 yards, scoring three TDs in the second half, two of them in the decisive fourth quarter when the game's outcome was in doubt and the two archrivals were trading punches like a pair of heavyweight boxers. The win marked the eighth straight year for the visiting team in this series to prevail over the host.
The game was an uncharacteristic defensive struggle in the first half, with the Buffaloes holding a 14-6 lead. ACU missed prime opportunities to score in the first and second quarters, managing only 6 points – on 28- and 21-yard field goals by
Morgan Lineberry – despite venturing inside the West Texas 10-yard line four times.
Sophomore quarterback
Mitchell Gale reversed that trend on the first drive of the second half, masterfully guiding his team down the field with his feet and arm. He scrambled for 30 yards on two carries, and completed pressure-packed passes while moving the Wildcats 80 yards in 10 plays and burning 4:30 off the clock. He also drew ACU to its closest margin of the game, although still trailing, 14-13.
West Texas answered with two consecutive touchdowns in the third quarter. The first was a 20-yard pass from Harris to Brittan Golden with 7:41 left. The second was a product of only the second interception thrown by Gale this season in 356 passing attempts. Buffs' defensive back Caleb Randolph caught the ball and picked his way downfield on a 76-yard return and TD with 4:37 remaining, breaking numerous tackles along the way.
Richardson's first TD of the second half was set up by
Marvin Jones' recovery of a Harris fumble at the West Texas 4-yard line with 2:20 left in the third quarter. A penalty on WT moved the ball to the 2, and Richardson ran in for the score on the next play. Lineberry's PAT kick cut ACU's deficit to 27-20.
ACU senior wide receiver
Edmund Gates caught only four passes but one of them was a game-turner just 10 seconds into the fourth quarter. Gates, who had 96 yards receiving on the night, snared a pass from Gale in the right flat and sprinted 51 yards for the score. Lineberry's kick knotted the score at 27. The quick drive (1:21) was set up by Williams' third interception of the game.
The Buffaloes bounced back to take the lead with 9:05 remaining when Tyson Williams caught an 11-yard scoring pass from Harris.
ACU marched back downfield on a 10-play drive, with Richardson running in from 7 yards out with 4:51 left. Lineberry's PAT knotted the score again at 34-34.
“I kept telling the guys we had to run the ball to win,” Thomsen said. “And that won the game for us.”
Six plays after ACU's
Kendrick Johnson returned a punt 32 yards – setting up the Wildcats at the Buffaloes' 36-yard line with 3:53 left – Richardson proved his coach a prophet.
Gale – who completed 22 of 36 passes for 296 yards and a touchdown – engineered a short but time-consuming drive, making the game's biggest play (to that point) with 1:47 remaining when he dove 2 yards for a first down on fourth and 1. Two snaps later, Richardson did his best big brother imitation, breaking into the open and breaking the Buffaloes' hearts.
ACU endured a frantic West Texas drive back up the field in the final minute, with a pass from Harris falling incomplete in the end zone beneath a small crowd of leaping Wildcat and WT players.
Thomsen's team celebrated by soaking their head coach with a blue bucket of ice water at midfield.
“I can't really describe the feeling,” Thomsen said afterward. “They were down two scores and they showed great heart and courage. … We have a chance to be the first team in ACU history to have an 11-0 regular season. We felt like we could have this kind of year, and those seniors have led us all year. We have no doubt those seniors won't allow us to lose focus and slip up next week.”
ACU, the No. 1-ranked team in the region, closes out its regular season Nov. 13 against Southwestern Oklahoma State in a noon game in Shotwell Stadium.
