Bears Score 27 Unanswered Points To Rattle Abilene Christian

Saturday, September 26

Abilene, Texas

8 p.m.

Mercer University

3-2 , 0-1

Abilene Christian

1-4 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Mercer	7	10	10	7	34
Abilene Christian	14	3	0	0	17

Photo by: Brandon Mcauliffe

Bears Score 27 Unanswered Points To Rattle Abilene Christian

9/26/2026 6:40:00 PM | Football

Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

ABILENE, TEXAS – Abilene Christian used a 22-yard field goal to grab a 17-7 lead midway through the second quarter, but visiting and 23^rd-ranked Mercer responded with 31 unanswered points to register a 34-17 victory over the defending United Athletic Conference champs on Saturday evening at Wildcat Stadium.

The triumph snapped a 2-game skid for the Bears (3-2) who racked up 197 total yards in the second half, including 151 on the ground. Abilene Christian (1-4) dropped to 0-3 this season against nationally-ranked FCS squads.

THE BASICS

SCORE: Mercer 34, Abilene Christian 17
RECORDS: Mercer 3-2 (0-1 SoCon); Abilene Christian 1-4 (0-0 UAC)
LOCATION: Abilene, Texas (Wildcat Stadium)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

It was nearly all ground forces for the Bears, with the exception of a little bit of trickery that capped the 9-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Mercer ate up 69 yards on eight rushing plays to open the possession before Travion Solomon turned the table and found quarterback JP Pickles all alone in the end zone on a 6-yard scoring toss. MU 7, ACU 0

Abilene Christian punched back on the ensuing possession, driving 75 yards on eight plays, including a 1-yard touchdown drive by Deonte Dean that knotted things back up. Tucker Parks completed three consecutive passes for 48 yards, but it was a 19-yard run from Alex Broome on the next play that set ACU up with a fresh set of downs inside the 5-yard line. MER 7, ACU 7

The Wildcats kept their momentum running on their next possession, capping a 5-play, 71-yard touchdown drive with a 13-yard scamper up the middle by quarterback Tucker Parks. ACU amassed 31 rushing yards on the possession, but it was a 26-yard pass to Dallas Dudley coupled with an untimely personal foul by the Orange & Black that moved the visitors inside the red zone. ACU 14, MER 7

Philly Special and it's an opening drive touchdown for the Bears‼️@Sh1fty_T1 ➡️ @JPPickles19 #ATTACK pic.twitter.com/ehoEaJtfLD
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 27, 2026

2ND QUARTER

Abilene Christian relied a bit more on its passing attack to tack up another score on their initial possession of the second period, but were ultimately forced to settle for a 22-yard field goal from Brandon Perez. Tucker Parks completed two passes for 54 yards on the drive, including a 36-yard toss to Raydrian Baltrip that moved ACU all the way down to the 2-yard line. ACU 17, MU 7

Senin Seymour's 56-yard punt midway through the second quarter was muffed on the return, and Emmanuel Lane's fumble recovery set Mercer up at the 23-yard line. The Bears went backwards on the three plays after that, however, but still got on the board via a 44-yard field goal from Simon Zeidan. ACU 17, MU 10

Sam Martin Jr. forced a fumble on the ensuing offensive possession to set the Bears up at midfield. The miscue would pay dividends again as the Bears followed with a 5-play, 50-yard touchdown drive that was culminated by a 1-yard dive by JP Pickles that evened things up heading into the halftime break. ACU 17, MU 17

FUMBLE‼️👀@sam_martinjr forces the fumble and @AidenHolewski40 recovers it! 🙌#ATTACK pic.twitter.com/nEJPfescAm
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 27, 2026

3RD QUARTER

Mercer picked up where it left off after a 95-minute lightning delay, finishing off a 5-play, 53-yard scoring drive with a 38-yard touchdown pass from JP Pickles to Brayden Smith. The drive was set up by a Cameron Goggins interception right before inclement weather moved into the Abilene, Texas, area. MU 24, ACU 17

Cameron Goggins' second interception of the night three plays later set the Bears up at the ACU 36-yard line, and the Bears did not disappoint. The Bears followed with 11 rushing plays amid a 12-play, 31-yard scoring drive that was capped with a 23-yard field goal by Simon Zeidan. MU 27, ACU 17

TOUCHDOWN BEARS‼️@JPPickles19 finds @BraydensmithMU for the 38-yard touchdown to give us the lead! 🫡

3Q | 9:25
Mercer 24, ACU 17#ATTACK pic.twitter.com/UbaYAq1FZ4
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 27, 2026

4TH QUARTER

A missed field goal attempt by the Wildcats set Mercer up at the 30-yard line ahead of what would turn out to be the final points of the evening. Devon Caldwell scampered for seven yards on the opening play of the possession and JP Pickles took care of the rest of the 70-yard drive. He would cap the touchdown drive with a 59-yard sprint down the far sideline. MU 34, ACU 17

@JPPickles19 House Call 🏠📞

4Q | 1:51
Mercer 34, ACU 17#ATTACK pic.twitter.com/ab19Dncv99
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) September 27, 2026

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Senior JP Pickles finished the night with 136 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns, including a career-best 130 rushing yards (18 carries). He also became the first player in program history to register a passing, rushing and receiving touchdown.
+ Freshman Devon Caldwell ran for 132 yards on 23 carries, including 87 rushing yards (13 attempts) in the first half alone. He turned in five rushes that went for 10 or more yards, including a 25-yard jaunt in the first quarter.
+ Senior Brayden Smith hauled in six catches for 68 yards and a third-quarter touchdown. His 38-yard touchdown catch in the third period put the Orange & Black in front for good.
+ Junior Jeremy Richardson posted a career-best 10 tackles to pace the Mercer stop troops, while senior Cameron Goggins logged his team-leading third and fourth interceptions of the campaign. Freshman Ronin Dangler added nine stops, including 2-1/2 tackles for loss (1 sack).

NOTABLES

+ Mercer improved to 2-1 this season when forcing three or more turnovers. The Bears picked off a trio of passes in the win over Abilene Christian, including two from Cameron Goggins and another from Justin Ferguson. Aiden Holewski and Emmanuel Lane also recovered fumbles for Mercer.
+ Travion Solomon became the first non-quarterback to throw a touchdown pass for the Bears in more nearly 13 years. The last time it happened was when wide receiver Josh Jones found quarterback Josh Jones on a 32-yard touchdown strike against Stetson on Nov. 23, 2013.
+ Saturday's contest marked Mercer's first game in the state of Texas amid the 134-year history of its program. The Bears evened up their series record with Abilene Christian at one win apiece.

UP NEXT

Mercer will close out its 3-game road trip on October 3 when it makes the long haul to Lexington, Va., to battle Southern Conference rival VMI (0-5, 0-1 SoCon). Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. ET at Foster Stadium and tickets can be purchased by visiting the VMI athletic ticketing portal.

STAY CONNECTED

Follow Mercer Football on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" Mercer Football on Facebook.

SUPPORT THE BEARS

Support the Mercer athletics department by making a gift to the Mercer Athletic Foundation. To find out more information about the Mercer Athletic Foundation, email maf@mercer.edu.