Tomorrow night the long awaited return of ACU football will come to an end, as the Wildcats take on the McMurry War Hawks in an intracity match-up.

In an interesting juxtaposition, McMurry will be playing in their first ever Division II football game, while the ‘Cats are headed to the greener pastures of the Southland Conference when this season comes to a close.

ACU has been a staple in the Division II playoffs for the last few years, and will be looking to kick-start another successful season and prove that they are the best team Abilene has to offer.

“They have a great coaching staff, those guys are really good,” head coach Ken Collums said. “They are a legitimate program, and if you are not ready to play them, you are going to get beat.”

There will be no shortage of offense on Saturday, as both teams scored over 35 points a game in the 2011 season, largely because of their ability to move the ball across the field.

“We have that air raid offense and it’s no mystery what we are going to do,” McMurry student Reid Frazier said. “But we went into UTSA last year and beat them in their own stadium, so even though we are the underdog anything is possible for us.”

McMurry quarterbacks Jake Mullin and Stephen Warren split time last year, racking up over 4,000 yards and over 40 touchdowns. However, Mullin took the lion’s share of the snaps and scored 34 touchdowns in his junior campaign.

“They are going to throw the ball, and if Jake is on, they are a tough team to beat,” Collums said. “McMurry is going to be ready to play on Saturday.”

The key to the game for ACU will be to not let the War Hawks hang around. The Wildcats have superior talent at nearly every position, and should be able to put this game away in the first half.

There is nothing better than spending a Saturday night under the lights and taking in a college football match-up, especially when city bragging rights are on the line. Kickoff is at 6:00 p.m. on the field of Shotwell Stadium.