Football | 10/31/2014 8:55:00 AM

    CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears have already played and beaten their former head coach Clint Conque and his Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks this season. On Saturday, the Bears will face a former UCA quarterback and Bears assistant coach in another Southland Conference showdown.

    The Bears take on Abilene Christian at 2 p.m. Saturday at a neutral site, John Clark Stadium in Plano, Texas. The Wildcats (4-5, 2-3) are coached by former UCA quarterback Ken Collums. A former four-year starter at UCA, Collums led the Bears to the NAIA national championship as a freshman quarterback in 1991. He is in his third season as head coach and 10th overall at ACU.

    The Bears (5-4, 4-1), one of five teams in the SLC with only one conference loss, have won four of their last five games, including a 58-35 victory over Northwestern State last Saturday at First Security Field at Estes Stadium. UCA has three games remaining in the regular season, two of those on the road.

    The Bears are tied for first place with Southeastern Louisiana at 4-1, with SFA, McNeese State and Sam Houston State right behind at 3-1.

    "Abilene Christian is a very tough football team,' said UCA head coach Steve Campbell. "They are one of the top teams in the conference in throwing the football. They have a quarterback who can really throw it, and he's very efficient. He's one of the leaders in passing efficiency. 

    "And they have an outstanding receiver that's really reminiscient of our Dezmin Lewis. He's a big guy that can run and catch. He can do some things after he catches it as well. So our secondary will really be tested this week.'

    ACU quarterback Parkler McKenzie is first in the SLC in passing (286.7 yards per game), first in efficiency (155.9) and second in total offense (284.1). The Wildcats have the No. 1 passing offense in the league, averaging 303.7 yards a game through the air. However, their pass defense is rated last in the league, allowing 265.4 passing yards per game.

    UCA ran for a season-high 306 yards last week and scored seven rushing touchdowns, the most since the Bears had six against Texas State back in 2010. Senior Willie Matthews had 114 rushing yards and scored three touchdowns, while freshman Dominique Thomas and sophomore Blake Veasley scored twice each. Matthews is tied for third in the SLC in rushing touchdowns with 10.

    "Defensively, they will be one of the bigger defenses we face,' said Campbell. "They are strong against the run. They're only giving up 130 yards a game running, but they have given up some yards through the air.'

   ACU and UCA are ranked Nos. 1-2 in the league in red-zone offense, with the Wildcats scoring 94.1 percent of the time in the red zone and UCA sconring 93.6 percent of the time. UCA leads the league overall in scoring at 42.0 points per game.

    The Bears probably need to win out to assure themselves of an FCS Playoff berth, either as the league champion or as an at-large selection.

    "With three games left, we're excited about the fact that we still control our own destiny,' said Campbell. "We know we need to win three more games and let everything else take care of itself. But we're excited where we stand right now.'

    Saturday's game will be televised on Fox Sports Southwest.