The Wildcats will get their chance to play in the eighth Wonder of the World for the second straight year this weekend as the ACU football team descends on Jerryworld for a matchup with Tarleton State University.

The Wildcats will be a part of the Lone Star Conference Football Festival, which means they will get the unique opportunity to play in an NFL stadium in a game the ‘Cats desperately need to win.

“When you go into Cowboy Stadium, it’s a little like walking into the Roman Coliseum,” head coach Ken Collums said. “It’s just a little different. Our guys that have never been there will have to adjust a little bit, but that’s a great place to play.”

Last year, Tarleton State gave the ‘Cats all they could handle in their early season faceoff in which ACU snuck out of Stephenville with a three point win.

As the clock wound down, Nate Bailey did his best Champ Bailey impersonation, intercepting a Texan pass in the end zone to secure a victory.

ACU came off of a disappointing open to their conference schedule when they were bested by Texas A&M Kingsville. Meanwhile, Tarleton sent shockwaves through Division II football, conquering the Midwestern State Mustangs 20-17.

The Wildcats will be facing off against a potent running attack lead by LSC player of the week Jerome Regal, who carried the ball for more than 150 yards last week.

“We have a new philosophy on tackling this year, just running through the outside leg of the opponent,” linebacker Justin Stephens said. “We had seven missed tackles against Kingsville.”

On the ACU side of things, the focus will be to get the offense going early after struggling offensively in last week’s game against Kingsville.

“Our focus is mainly on us, and us executing,” Collums said. “Once we start ginning up on offense, things will look way different.”

The ‘Cats offense is used to dominating the opposing defense and overwhelming their competitors, so they will be looking to get back on track in this game and salvage the rest of the season.

On defense, the ‘Cats have looked good, giving up only eight points a game this season, including a shutout of McMurry on opening night.

“As a defense we have been really in sync, there is a lot of camaraderie and we all know each other,” Stephens said. “There is a lot of trust on the defense.”

The Wildcats play the second of three games scheduled for Saturday. The game begins at 4:00 p.m. in the last meeting between ACU and Tarleton State.