2008 Woodie Awards
Different expectations
Daniel Johnson, Sports Editor
Issue date: 8/31/07 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 3 next >
|
They were picked to finish sixth in the Lone Star Conference
South Division, hadn't won a season opener since 1998 and hadn't posted a winning season in three years. Nobody knew how good the ACU football team could be, not even its players.
"We didn't know we were good last year," said senior defensive end Travis Carpenter. "I mean, we knew we had some players who worked hard, but we didn't know what we could really do."
But in 2007 everything is different.
The Wildcats are coming off an 8-3 season that is one of the program's most successful seasons in almost 30 years. ACU is picked to win the LSC South and are already nationally ranked No. 11 in the nation by the American Football Coaches Association and No. 16 by d2football.com preseason poll; the Wildcats are expected to win.
"Success is the only option," Carpenter said. "It's not necessarily about winning, but we have two goals: to be the most prepared team in the nation and to play together. If we do those things, wins will come."
ACU will open its season against the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond, Okla., Saturday and with a long list of returning starters from the program's first playoff season since 1978 and impressive transfers that can make an immediate
impact, 2007 could be the second-straight winning season for the Wildcats.
"Our main focus is a championship," said senior corner Corey Jordan.
Returning starters to spare
Junior quarterback Billy Malone prefers the underdog role. But after throwing for 27 touchdowns, more than 3,000 yards, only throwing six interceptions and posting five 300-yard passing games in 2006, his underdog days may be over.
"It's more fun when you're the underdog," Malone said.
2007 will be Malone's third year as the Wildcats' starter and with a receiving corps that is filled with other returning starters that already know the Wildcat offensive scheme, the LSC South Preseason Offensive Player of the Year said his third should be his best.
Be the first to comment on this story