United Athletic Conference

After picking up the top overall seed and earning a first-round bye, the top-ranked Sam Houston Bearkats escaped a late UIW drive to earn a 49-42 lead over the Cardinals in the second round of the 2020 FCS Playoffs. Unfortunately for the 'Kats, the title defense would end in the quarterfinal round as Sam Houston fell to Montana State, 42-19.

 

Against UIW, Eric Schmid finished the day with 210 yards passing on 21-of-32 attempts with one touchdown passing and two rushing. Jequez Ezzard finished with 60 yards to lead the Kats receivers while Jefferson rushed the ball 22 times for 166 yards with two scores. Defensively, Trevor Williams led SHSU with nine tackles.

 

In the loss to MSU, Schmid threw for 354 yards and two scores, but was picked off three times for the first time in his career. The Kats outgained MSU 433-359, but was only able to muster 79 yards on the ground. Ife Adeyi turned in a big game receiving with nine grabs for 184 yards and two touchdowns.Defensively the Kats were led by Williams' 13 tackles, while Tim Hart finished with 10 stops.

 

60 minutes just wasn't enough. In the first FCS game featuring two teams from the state of Texas, host Incarnate Word outlasted visiting Stephen F. Austin, 35-38, in overtime in the first round of the FCS Playoffs on Saturday at Benson Stadium in San Antonio.

 

For SFA, Trae Self finished with 243 yards passing, connecting on 21-of-37 attempts for three touchdowns and two interceptions. QuenTyvian Borders scored twice for the 'Jacks, finishing with four catches for 17 yards. The 'Jacks defense was led by nine tackles from Brevin Randle.

 

The Sam Houston Bearkats knew they were in the field. Stephen F. Austin had to sweat it out. In the end, both teams heard their names called during the FCS Selection Show on Sunday morning.

 

The Bearkats, winners of 21 straight, earned the top-overall seed in the 24-team tournament. Sam Houston, who won the delayed 2020 FCS title in May, earned one of eight first-round byes.

 

Waiting for Sam Houston will be the winner of current WAC member Stephen F. Austin and future WAC member Incarnate Word. The Lumberjacks and Cardinals will meet on Saturday at Tom and Gayle Benson Stadium in San Antonio.

 

Games through the national semifinals will be played on campus sites at the higher seed. The 2021 FCS National Championship game is scheduled for Jan. 8, 2022 at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.

 

Stephen F. Austin wide receiver Xavier Gipson picked up a lot of hardware in the postseason as the WAC Offensive Player of the Year was a consensus First Team All-American by every organization that released a team. 

 

Several other players received honors as listed below:

Chris Campos, K, SFA: Third Team (AP)

Devin Hafford, DB, TAR: Second Team (Stats Perform), Second Team (AP)

Ramon Jefferson, RB, SHSU: Second Team (AFCA), Second Team (Stats Perform), Third Team (AP)

Jahari Kay, DL, SHSU: Second Team (AP), Third Team (Stats Perform) 

Zyon McCollum, DB, SHSU: Second Team (AFCA), Third Team (Stats Perform), Third Team (AP)

Colby Thomas, OL, SHSU: Second Team (AFCA), Second Team (Stats Perform), Third Team (AP)

 

As a team, Sam Houston leads the WAC in scoring offense (43.0), touchdowns (64), total offense (496.09), rushing offense (211.73), rushing defense (75.73), yards per rush (6.03), rushing TDs (30), fumble return TDs (2), first downs (270), first downs rushing (122), opponent first downs (199), third-down conversions (45.10), least sacks against (11), red zone offense (90.0) and red zone defense (72.4).

Stephen F. Austin is the leader in scoring defense (18.8), total defense (311.42), pass efficiency (152.4), passing offense (291.6), passing TDs (30), field goals (20), field goal percentage (83.33), yards per punt (41.3), punt return average (14.88), punt return TDs (3), interceptions (15), turnover margin (+6), first downs passing (134), third down defense (33.16), fourth down conversions (46.43), fourth down defense (28.57), sacks (45) and time of possession (31:11). Abilene Christian is the leader in pass completion percentage (65.4) and Lamar is the leader in least interceptions thrown (5). Tarleton had the lone kick return TD in the regular season and also lead the conference in pass efficiency defesne (110.7)

and pass defense (189.9).

 

Individually, SHSU's Ramon Jefferson leads the WAC in rushing (103.45). SFA's Trae Self is the leader in passing average (266.75) and total offense (292.67). SFA's Xavier Gipson is the leader in reception yards per game (125.18 and all purpose yards (144.00) while DSU's Jalen Powell is the leader in receptions per game (7.50). When it comes to kicking, SFA's Chris Campos has a WAC-best 20 field goals and leads the league in scoring (9.08) while SHSU's Matt McRobert is the leader in punting (46.10 yards per punt).

 

Defensively, DSU's Tyrell Grayson is the leader in tackles (9.36) and SFA's Rayshad Nichols is the leader in sacks (10.0) and tackles for loss (15.5). SFA's Myles Heard is the leader in fumbles forced (4) while five players share the lead in fumbles recovered with two each. TAR's Devin Hafford is the leader in intereceptions with six.

 

Sam Houston dropped from the top spot after a loss in the quarterfinals but still finished the season in the top five, ranking fourth in the AFCA Coaches' Top 25 and fifth in the Stats Perform Top 25, College Sports Madness FCS Top 25 and Athlon Sports Top 25. Stephen F. Austin also finished the season in all four polls, ranking 18th in the AFCA Coaches' Top 25, 21st in the Stats Perform Top 25 and College Sports Madness FCS Top 25 and 22nd in the Athlon Sports Top 25.

 

Stats Perform announced the finalists for several awards earlier this week and the WAC is well-represented. Below is the list of WAC finalists:

 

Buck Buchanan Award (Defensive): Jahari Kay, DE, Sam Houston

Walter Payton Award (Offensive): Xavier Gipson, WR, Stephen F. Austin

Walter Payton Award (Offensive): Eric Schmid, QB, Sam Houston

Eddie Robinson Award (Coach): Colby Carthel, Stephen F. Austin

Eddie Robinson Award (Coach: K.C. Keeler, Sam Houston

 

Abilene Christian announced on Dec. 6 that Keith Patterson will be the new head coach for the Wildcats. He comes to ACU after a three-year stint at Defensive Coordinator at Texas Tech. He also has stops at Utah State, Arizona State, West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Tulsa. While this is his first collegiate head coaching job, he was head coach at Ardmore High School in Oklahaoma from 1997 until 1999.

 

Incoming members UIW and Southern Utah will have new head men on the sidelines next year. UIW will be led by G.J. Kinne, who arrives in San Antonio from the University of Central Florida, where he was the co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The new head man in Cedar City will be DeLane Fitzgerald, who joins Southern Utah after serving as the head coach at Frostburg State (Md.) for the last eight seasons.

 

With its 45-27 win over Tarleton on Oct. 30, Sam Houston set a new collegiate record for wins in a calendar year. The game was the 17th for the Kats in 2021, setting an all-time college football record. Previously four teams – Yale (1894 & 1889), Chicago (1899) and North Dakota State (2019) – had won 16 games in calendar years

 

Stephen F. Austin quarterback Trae Self was named Stats Perform FCS Offensive Player of the Week on Nov. 1 after racking up 346 yards on 32-of-39 attempts for five touchdowns to lead the 'Jacks to a 41-27 win over visiting Abilene Christian on Oct. 30. Posting a 198.9 pass efficiency, he was also efficient on the ground, running the ball nine times for 42 yards.

 

After helping lead Sam Houston to a 21-20 rivalry win over Stephen F. Austin in the Battle of the Piney Woods, senior defensive end Jahari Kay was been named Stats Perform FCS Defensive Player of the Week. He finished with eight tackles (six solos), including 2.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks. He also forced a fumble late in the game and had two quarterback hurries and a pass breakup.  

 

In a rivalry dating back to 1923, the Battle of the Piney Woods lived up to expectations, with top-ranked Sam Houston eeking past Stephen F. Austin, 21-20, to stretch their BOTPW win streak to 10. 

 

Lamar's 17-10 win over Northern Colorado was the WAC's first overtime game of the FCS era and the 59th in the conference's history since college overtime was introduced in 1996. 

 

It's a new era as football returns for the WAC for the first time since 2012, this time at the Football Championship Subdivision. Led by defending FCS national champion Sam Houston, the new incarnation of WAC football will also include Abilene Christian, Dixie State, Lamar, Stephen F. Austin and Tarleton. In 50 years at the FBS level, the WAC was home to the consensus 1984 national champion (Brigham Young), the winner of the 1990 Heisman Trophy (Ty Detmer, QB, Brigham Young) and the first pick of the 2002 NFL Draft (David Carr, QB, Fresno State). 

 

Fresh off winning the tophy, Sam Houston had a pair of players pick up Preseason All-America honors, earning a spot on the Athlon Preseason All-America team. Defensive lineman Jahari Kay and teammate Jequez Ezzard (punt returner) earned the recognition.

 

Seven WAC football players were recognized on the Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-America Teams. Kay, Ezzard and Sam Houston defensive back Zyon McCollum earned first team honors. Sam Houston Quarterback Eric Schmid was joined by teammate Joseph Wallace and SFA receiver Xavier Gipson on the second team. SHSU offensive lineman Colby Thomas was a third team selection.

 

Not looking to shy away from anyone, Dixie State has one of the toughest schedules in FCS, taking on four non-conference opponents that played in last spring's FCS tournament, in addition to traveling to WAC-foe Sam Houston. The four members of the AQ7 will also take on Jacksonville State, who represented the Ohio Valley Conference in the FCS playoffs.

 

Non-Conference Games Against 2020 FCS Playoff Teams

Sep. 11 - Weber State at Dixie State

Oct. 2 - Dixie State at South Dakota State

Oct. 9 - Stephen F. Austin at Jacksonville State (AQ7)

Oct. 23 - Jacksonville State at Sam Houston (AQ7)

Oct. 30 - Dixie State at Delaware

Nov. 6 - Abilene Christian at Jacksonville State (AQ7)

Nov. 13 - Jacksonville State at Lamar (AQ7)

Nov. 20 - Missouri State at Dixie State

 

As part of an expanded multi-year, multi-platform media rights agreement announced on Aug. 24, all home football games in the WAC for the next four years will reside on ESPN platforms. In addition, all home men's and women's basketball, as well as other select events, will be housed on ESPN digital platforms.

 

 With college football returning to the Western Athletic Conference for the first time since 2012, defending national champion Sam Houston is the favorite to win the 2021 WAC title while Bearkats quarterback Eric Schmid and defensive lineman Jahari Kay were selected WAC Preseason Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively, in a vote of the league's six head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players.

 

Schmid led the Preseason All-WAC Offense and is joined by teammates Ramon Jefferson, Jequez Ezzard, Isaac Schley, Eleasah Anderson, Prince Pines and Colby Thomas. Stephen F. Austin was represented by Xavier Gipson and Zach Ingram while Tarleton earned honors from Tariq Bitson and Zachary Perry. Dixie State running back Quali Conley earned the final offensive spot.

 

On defense, Kay was joined by teammates Trace Mascorro, Joseph Wallace, Quentin Brown, Trevor Williams, Zyon McCollum and Jaylen Thomas. SFA's Brandon Thompson Jr. and Brevin Randle were recognized, as was Tarleton duo Ronnell Wilson and Devin Hafford. Lamar's Anthony Ruffin represented the Cardinals in the preseason awards.

 

On special teams, Sam Houston kicker Seth Morgan and punter Matt McRobert were recognized and Ezzard earned the spot reserved for kick returner.

 

Sam Houston earned all five possible first place votes to earn 20 points. Stephen F. Austin earned the final first place votes and 16 points to earn second place. Tarleton is picked third with 11 points, followed by Lamar and Abilene Christian. Dixie State, who will be eligible for all individual awards, will not be playing a full WAC schedule due to previous non-conference game contracts.

 

After lifting the NCAA FCS National Championship trophy in May, the Sam Houston Bearkats are expected to return to the postseason as AQ7 champions as voted on by the seven head coaches of the alliance, which made up on four institutions from the Western Athletic Conference and three from the Atlantic Sun Conference.

 

The Bearkats earned all seven first place votes to score a perfect 49 points. Central Arkansas was picked second with 40 points, followed closely by Jacksonville State in third with 37 points. Stephen F. Austin is fourth with 27 points, followed by Eastern Kentucky, Abilene Christian and Lamar.

 

The WAC will expand yet again on July 1, 2022 as both University of the Incarnate Word and Southern Utah University join the party. The Cardinals are currently members of the Southland Conference and the Thunderbirds are currently members of the Big Sky Conference.