After a week five loss to the University of Incarnate Word, the Wildcats are back at Anthony Field to face the University of North Alabama in the team’s second United Athletic Conference matchup of the season.
In the loss, the Wildcats gave up 38 unanswered points after scoring a touchdown on their opening drive. The team’s seven points tied for a season low with the opening weekend loss to the University of Tulsa.
“We played with zero energy and passion,” Head Coach Keith Patterson said. “It was the opposite of what we had done through the first four games.”
The Lions will enter Abilene 1-3, coming off a 36-38 double overtime loss to Illinois State University. The game featured four passing touchdowns from quarterback Ari Patu, with two being caught by wide receiver Justin Pegues.
“They’ve got a lot of athletic guys,” said Will Shaffer, senior linebacker from Tempe, Arizona. “They want to get on the perimeter fast.”
When it comes to stopping the athletic Lions offense, Shaffer is confident in the defense’s ability to tackle and force turnovers. Last week, the Wildcats failed to force a turnover against the Cardinals.
“That was a disappointing loss on the road,” Shaffer said. “You never want to go out on the road and lay an egg like that.”
The seven-point performance drops the Wildcats to just 22 points per game during the 2025 season, compared to the Lions’ 28.
Despite the team’s 2-3 record, Stone Earle, senior quarterback from Fort Worth, has thrown for over 1,100 yards through the five games. Earle has also connected with five different receivers for touchdowns in 2025.
In 2024, the Wildcats fell to the Lions 47-34 on the road. The victory for the Lions earned them FCS Team of the Week honors, as it was their first ranked win and third consecutive victory.
“Every time we’re going to get everybody’s best,” Shaffer said. “They’re trying to knock us off that throne from last year. We’re the 2024 UAC Champions. We’re trying to go back-to-back.”
To go back-to-back, the Wildcats want to win every game at Anthony Field. A win over UNA would give the Wildcats their second straight 2-0 start in conference play, and their fourth 2-0 start since becoming a Div. I program in 2013.
To get to 3-3 on the season and 2-0 in the UAC, the Wildcats will need to play with discipline, control the ball on both sides of the line and score in the red zone.
“We’ve got 29 penalties on the year and they have 29 penalties on the year,” Patterson said.
In addition to being nearly identical in penalties, the two teams are also separated by just one turnover in the turnover margin. The Lions will enter Saturday’s game +3 in turnover differential, while the Wildcats enter +2.
