Abilene Christian Wildcats (variously ACU or ACU Wildcats) refers to the sports teams of Abilene Christian University located in Abilene, Texas. The Wildcats joined the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) on July 1, 2021, after having spent the previous eight years in the Southland Conference. The nickname "Wildcat" is derived from the mascot of the team.

History A member of the Western Athletic Conference, Abilene Christian sponsors teams in seven men's and eight women's NCAA sanctioned sports.

On December 6, 1923, Abilene Christian applied for admission to Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association during the conference annual meeting in Dallas. The Wildcats had been considering joining the conference for several years but funding for the athletic department preventing them to join the conference sooner.

On July 1, 2013, Abilene Christian returned to the Southland Conference as one of four new members. The university, a charter member of the Southland Conference, left the Southland in 1973 to join the Lone Star Conference (LSC) of NCAA Division II. The Wildcats remained members of the Lone Star Conference from 1973 until returning to the Southland Conference in 2013.

Overall, the Wildcats have won a combined 62 team national championships, including 57 as a member of the NCAA trailing behind UCLA, Stanford, USC and Kenyon College for the most NCAA team championships.All divisions/collegiate total championships ncaa.org, Chipionship History (through June 2, 2013), p.1. Retrieved 2013-06-24.

In 2007, the LSC included 33 ACU current and former student athletes in its 75-member all-sports team commemorating the conference's 75th anniversary."Wildcats lead way as LSC honors all-time top performers," ACU Today, Summer 2007, p.32. Retrieved 2008-09-22.

On August 23, 2017, the NCAA Board of Directors voted to pass ACU through to full Division I status, thus making them eligible for postseason play.

On January 14, 2021, ACU was one of five institutions announced as future members of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), alongside three other Southland members from Texas (Lamar, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin) plus Big Sky Conference member Southern Utah. Initially, all five schools were to join in July 2022, but the entry of ACU and the other Texas schools was moved to 2021 after the Southland expelled its departing members.

ACU football competed in a football-only partnership between the WAC and the ASUN Conference in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. After the 2022 season, the conferences fully merged their football leagues, creating what eventually became the United Athletic Conference.

Conference affiliation history 1924–25 to 1932–33 – Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association 1933–34 to 1952–53 – Texas Conference 1953–54 – Independent 1954–55 to 1956–57 – Gulf Coast Conference 1957–58 to 1962–63 – Independent 1963–64 to 1972–73 – Southland Conference 1973–74 to 2012–13 – Lone Star Conference 2013–14 to 2020–21 – Southland Conference 2021 to Present – Western Athletic Conference

Sports sponsored Baseball Basketball Basketball Beach volleyball Cross country Cross country Football Soccer Golf Softball Tennis Tennis Track and field† Track and field† Volleyball The Wildcats sponsor 15 varsity sports - 7 men's and 8 women's. The men's teams include Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Tennis, and Track & Field. The women's teams include Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, Soccer, Softball, Tennis, Track & Field, and Volleyball.

Athletics facilities Venue Sport Opened Wildcat Stadium Football 2017 Moody Coliseum Basketball Volleyball 1968 Poly Wells Field Softball 1997 Crutcher Scott Field Baseball 1991 Elmer Gray Stadium Soccer 2015

Gallery

Championships National championships

Cross Country (Men's), NCAA Division II 2006, 2007 Football, NAIA Division I 1973, 1977 Track and Field (Men's Indoor), NCAA Division II, NAIA Division I 1988, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2011 1978 Golf (Men's), NCAA Division II 1993 Track and Field (Women's Indoor), NCAA Division II 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Track and Field (Men's Outdoor), NCAA Division II, NAIA Division I 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011 1952, 1954, 1955, 1978, 1982 Track and Field (Women's Outdoor), NCAA Division II 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2008

Conference championships Lone Star Conference Baseball 1993, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2010 Men's Basketball 1984–85, 1985–86, 1986–87 Women's Basketball 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1991–92, 1995–96, 1997–98, 1998–99 Men's Cross Country 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Women's Cross Country 1983, 1984, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Football 1973, 1977, 2008, 2010 Golf (Men's) 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 2010 Soccer (Women's) 2010 Tennis (Men's) 1988, 1990, 1995, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010 Tennis (Women's) 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010 Track and Field (Men's) 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 Track and Field (Women's) 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008 Volleyball 2004, 2005

Notable non-varsity sports ACU currently has club sports in Men's Lacrosse, Men's Rugby, Men's Soccer, and Co-Ed Golf. ACU Athletics took over all club sports on the ACU campus in January 2017 and named Todd Rogers as the Director of Club Sports, who oversees all 4 sports. Todd is an Abilene native and a December 2016 graduate of Texas Tech University. As the Director of Club Sports, Rogers will oversee the university's nationally competitive program with the hopes of driving enrollment and adding more club sports in the future.

ACU athletes in halls of fame

Athlete Sport HOF Year Bobby Morrow Drake Relays 1959 Texas Sports 1960 U.S. Track and Field 1975 Track and field U.S. Olympic 1989 Tonto Coleman Texas Sports 1983 Eck Curtis Texas Sports 1985 Wilbert Montgomery College football 1996 Billy Olson Track and field 1997 Wally BullingtonFootball 1999 Wes Kittley Track and field 2006 John Layfield WWE 2020

Notes

Media All Abilene Christian athletics are broadcast on ESPN+ and KHXS.

References

External links