Stephen F. Austin
6-5 , 3-1
Abilene Christian
7-4 , 3-1
SFA defeats ACU 24-21 and Claims 2022 WAC Championship
11/19/2022 7:13:00 PM | Football
Those words are posted at the SFA football practice facility and it came to fruition Saturday evening.
Stephen F. Austin defeated Abilene Christian 24-21 to capture the 2022 WAC Football Championship.
It's the programs sixth conference championship, first conference championship since 2010, and inaugural conference championship as members of the Western Athletic Conference.
"This senior class went through some tough times. Building, fighting through adversity, and they've been through so much throughout their tenure in this program," said SFA head coach Colby Carthel. "They stayed with the program, they bleed purple and have given everything over the past four years. This is a great moment for them and serves as validation for them and our program."
ACU (7-4, 3-1 WAC) led throughput the game and the Lumberjacks (6-5, 3-1 WAC) scored at 2:43 in the fourth quarter to put the game on ice. Facing a 4th and goal from the ACU 12-yard line, senior quarterback Trae Self found space in the Wildcats' defense and sprinted to the pylon to push the 'Jacks in front. SFA went for two and Self found Moe Wedman for the two-point conversion.
Self had a career day. The Richland Hills, Texas native finished 26-for-37 and threw for a career-high 397 yards and two touchdowns. Self also surpassed the 10,000 career passing yards mark.
Senior All-American Xavier Gipson finished with a game-high 213 receiving yards and one touchdown.
On defense, Myles Heard led the team with six tackles, and Tkai Lloyd added five and a half tackles and forced a pair of fumbles.
The SFA offense generated 480 yards on 73 plays for an average of 6.6 yards per play. The 'Jacks led in time of possession 34:40 – 25:20.
SFA played a bend-but-not-break defense. ACU totaled 364 yards, however, the 'Jack defense stepped up when it mattered the most and the Wildcats finished 1-for-10 on 3rd down.
Team Stats
SFA 0, ACU 7
ACU - Cooper, Colt 2 yd pass from Catalon (Zepeda, Blair kick) 8 plays, 62 yards, TOP 4:21
SFA 7, ACU 7
SFA - Reed, Miles 20 yd pass from Self, Trae (Campos, Chris kick) 9 plays, 68 yards, TOP 4:00
SFA 7, ACU 14
ACU - Catalon 4 yd pass from McIvor, Mav (Zepeda, Blair kick) 5 plays, 80 yards, TOP 2:04
SFA 13, ACU 14
SFA - Gipson, Xavier 3 yd pass from Self, Trae (Campos, Chris kickblocked) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:33
SFA 13, ACU 21
ACU - Cooper, Colt 32 yd pass from McIvor, Mav (Zepeda, Blair kick) 3 plays, 73 yards, TOP 1:31
SFA 16, ACU 21
SFA - Campos, Chris 46 yd field goal 9 plays, 42 yards, TOP 3:44
SFA 24, ACU 21
SFA - Self, Trae 12 yd run (Wedman, Moe pass), 12 plays, 65 yards, TOP 4:46
