For several members of the ACU football team, Saturday’s trip to Lubbock will not feel like traveling to an unfamiliar stadium. 

Head coach Keith Patterson, co-offensive coordinator and QB coach Graham Harrell and co-offensive coordinator and WR coach Joel Filani all have ties to Texas Tech. 

Harrell, who was inducted into the Texas Tech Hall of Fame in 2021, said returning to Galaxy Stadium, formerly known as Jones AT&T Stadium, as an opposing coach will be different from his previous visits.

“When you go in as an opponent, you don’t really get to do much except play games,” Harrell said. “So it’s not like you’re going to experience anything other than you’re going down there to play a game.”

Harrell will also return to Lubbock alongside Filani, who is being inducted into the Texas Tech Hall of Fame this year. The two played together at Texas Tech (2005-06) and have coached together at multiple spots since then. 

Harrell said he was excited to see Filani receive the honor, noting that he voted for him when Filani appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot. 

“He had an unbelievable career there,” Harrell said. “If anyone deserved it, it was him.” 

Patterson, who was previously a defensive coordinator at Texas Tech (2019-21), said the connections between the two programs have benefited ACU, particularly through the transfer portal. 

Patterson said players who left Texas Tech and transferred to ACU have been “instrumental and critical” to the teams’ success and helped accelerate the program’s turnaround. 

For Harrell, the trip will provide another opportunity to return to a place that played a significant role in his career while preparing to lead ACU against his former team. 

“They’ve got great fans,” Harrell said. “It’ll be fun to go back, but again, it’s more of a, you’re just going out there to play a game.”

Alongside the coaches who are returning, six players currently on the Wildcats’ roster previously played for the Red Raiders:

• TE Jayden York, DB Jocelyn Malaska, DB Javeon Wilcox, LG Kaden Carr, WR Deante Lindsey and DE Tanner Allen

Four players played at least one year of high school football in Lubbock: 

• C Colter Lynch (Lubbock-Cooper), DE Hudson Page (Frenship), K Giovani Cardenas (Monterey) and LG Kaden Carr (played his senior year at Lubbock-Cooper)

Four other coaches worked/played at Texas Tech:

• DL Nick Holt (analyst, 2021)
• TE Stanton Keane (player, 2014-15; student coach, 2016-17; GA, 2018)
• LB Conor Dubin (quality control assistant, 2019-21)
• Def. Assistant Joseph Punk (player 2020-24)