... one of the greatest football seasons in ACU history, that is. As great as it was, I don't think you can call it the greatest season in ACU history because it didn't end with a national championship like the 1973 and 1977 seasons did.
What I think you can say is that the 2008 version of the Wildcats was probably the best team that ACU has ever fielded. That's not meant as a slight to the 1950, 1962, late 1960s, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1983, 1986, 2006 or 2007 teams, but it's rather a nod at how much the game has changed over the years.
No ACU team has ever fielded the array of talent, speed and athleticism as the 2008 Wildcats. This team posted plenty of highlights to fill our collective memory banks for years to come. Here are a few that spring to mind:
* Rallying from a 21-7 first-quarter deficit in the season-opener to deliver a 44-27 win over Northwest Missouri State that announced to the rest of the D2 football world tha the Wildcats were ready for prime time.
* A thorough domination and destruction of LSC North Division pre-season favorite Texas A&M-Commerce in the home opener. What was supposed to be an early showdown between two of the league's top quarterbacks (ACU's Billy Malone and Commerce's Terry Mayo) instead became a game that proved the Lions weren't anywhere near ready to compete with the Wildcats.
* Mike Kern's 99-yard interception return for a touchdown against Southeastern Oklahoma State.
* The flies and the stench in Portales, N.M., where ACU whipped Eastern New Mexico, 56-11.
* Oct. 18 in Canyon. Jared Brock and his "late hit." ACU jumps to a 31-7 halftime lead. Billy and Johnny Knox play pitch-and-catch in the first half against the Buffs' secondary. The Bernard Scott Show in the second half. 409 all-purpose yards on the night for Bernard in the game that stamped him as the man to beat in the Harlon Hill Award race.
* Zach Stewart stepping in for Malone when he went down with a hairline fracture in his right thum. The redshirt freshman from Abilene directed the Wildcats to a pair of wins over Tarleton State and Texas A&M-Kingsville. Against the Texans he let Bernard, the offensive line and the defense do the heavy lifting, but against the Javelinas he threw for 350 yards and three touchdowns in the win.
* The ACU defense holding Midwestern State to just 11 total yards and no points in the second half of the Wildcats' 47-17 win in the regular-season finale, a win that clinched the program's first outright LSC championship since 1973.
* 93 points. Do I have to say anything else?
* The way the Wildcats fought through their most inconsistent game of the year in the season-ending loss to Northwest Missouri State to make it a game late in the fourth quarter.
* The consistent brilliance of Bernard Scott, Billy Malone, Johnny Knox and the offensive line.
* The emergence of a new breed of playmakers on the defensive side of the ball in Aston Whiteside, Fred Thompson, Bryson Lewis, Tony Harp, Nick Jones and Craig Harris.
* The steady leadership of great seniors in Malone, Scott, Knox, Sam Collins, Joseph Thompson, Mike Kern, Matt Adams, Chris Morris, Jonathan Ferguson, Kendrick Holloway, Chancy Campbell, Eliot Allen, Chenry Lewis and Nick Fellows.
* The calming influence and overall program leadership of head coach Chris Thomsen and his staff. If you haven't had a chance to listen to Chris talk about what he wants to do with the ACU football program and where he wants to take it, I would suggest you carve a few minutes out of your schedule and ask him about it. He's passionate about ACU and what ACU football could one day become, and that passion and drive pulses through everything the players in that program do every day.
Finally, what a great thrill it's been to be able to watch virtually every snap Billy Malone has taken over the last four years, as well as almost every carry by Bernard Scott and catch by Johnny Knox. The Wildcats have enjoyed great trios in their long history, but never one as explosive or productive as this trio. Consider these mind-boggling numbers:
* Since the start of the 2007 season when the three began playing together, they have helped ACU score 1,225 offensive points and rack up 13,787 yards of total offense in the last 25 ACU games.
* Those three alone have combined to rack up 18,560 yards of offense and are responsible for a combined 193 touchdowns during their ACU careers.
Hope you enjoyed watching them, folks. Their like may never be seen again.
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Great summary of a great year. I really like what you said about Coach Thomsen and his plans and passion about ACU football. I just hope ACU is taking the steps required to keep him there and help with his plans for ACU football because as LSCScoop.com and D2football.com report he has applied and is interviewing with Northwestern St. (La.)
We all need to step up to keep him at ACU rather than he and staff become NWS Demons. We need to thing about the big picture but the little things as well. When you look at the NW St. website one thing that caught my attention was that the Head Coach has an administrative assistant. Things like that can make a difference.
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