Abilene Christian Wildcats football

The Abilene Christian Wildcats football program is the intercollegiate American football team for the Abilene Christian University located in the U.S. state of Texas. The team was a member of the Southland Conference through the 2020–21 season, but joined the Western Athletic Conference in July 2021, coinciding with that league's reinstatement of football as an official conference sport. After the 2022 season, the WAC fully merged its football league with that of the ASUN Conference, creating what eventually became the United Athletic Conference, and ACU accordingly moved its football team to the new league. The school's first football team was fielded in 1919. The team plays its home games at the on-campus Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium.

Football classifications

 * 1951–1972: College Division (small school)


 * 1973–1982: NAIA Division I
 * 1982–2012: NCAA Division II
 * 2013–present: NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision
 * Abilene Christian did not field a team in 1943–1945.

Conference affiliations

 * 1919–1924: Independent
 * 1925–1932: Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association
 * 1931–1932: Independent
 * 1933–1942, 1946–1953: Texas Conference
 * No team 1943–1945 due to World War II
 * 1954: Independent
 * 1955–1956: Gulf Coast Conference
 * 1957–1963: Independent
 * 1964–1972: Southland Conference
 * 1973–2012: Lone Star Conference
 * 2013: NCAA Division I FCS independent
 * 2014–2020: Southland Conference
 * 2021–2022: Western Athletic Conference
 * 2023–present: United Athletic Conference

Notable former players
Notable alumni include:


 * Charcandrick West
 * Mitchell Gale
 * Grant Feasel
 * James Hill
 * Ove Johansson
 * Johnny Knox
 * Clint Longley
 * Danieal Manning
 * Reggie McGowan
 * Wilbert Montgomery
 * Cle Montgomery
 * Johnny Perkins
 * Bernard Scott
 * Major Culbert
 * Taylor Gabriel
 * Clyde Gates
 * Bob Oliver
 * Daryl Richardson
 * John Layfield
 * Bernie Erickson
 * Wayne Walton

Conference championships
† Co-champions

Division championships
† Co-champions

NCAA Division II
The Wildcats have appeared in the Division II playoffs six times with an overall record of 3–6.

NAIA
The Wildcats have appeared in the NAIA playoffs two times with an overall record of 4–0. They were National Champions in 1973 and 1977.

Future non-conference opponents
Announced schedules as of January 16, 2024.