Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium - Abilene Christian Wildcats

Photos by Terry McCutchen, Stadium Journey

Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 4.29

Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium 2225 Oliver Jackson Blvd Abilene, TX 79601

Abilene Christian Wildcats website

Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium website

Year Opened: 2017

Capacity: 12,000

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Abilene Christian University Football

Established as a hub of the Texas and Pacific Railroad in 1881, Abilene, Texas quickly became a regional economic centerpiece for the Big Country. Dubbed Key City, Abilene has maintained its importance to the west-central area of Texas for the nearly 150 years since.

Allen Booker Barrett, educator and Church of Christ preacher from Tennessee, founded what would become Abilene Christian University in 1906 on five acres of land purchased from J. W. Childers. Originally named Childers Christian College in honor of J. W., the school was renamed Abilene Christian College in 1920. Though the school moved to a new, much larger location in 1929, its name remained until the school gained full university status in 1976. What began with 25 students on a 5-acre parcel of land near the railroad in west Abilene has grown into a university serving over 6,000 students, including 4,200 undergraduates representing all 50 states, 2 territories, and 56 foreign countries, all laid out in the northeast corner of town.

ACU athletics competes at the NCAA Division I level, with its football team competing in the Football Championship Subdivision (the FCS, formerly 1-AA). The early days of the athletic program were spent as either independent teams or as members of the Texas Conference/Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association. In 1952, ACU joined the NAIA and competed as a member school for 20 years. In 1973, the Wildcats joined the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference, where they remained until beginning the transition up to Division I in 2013. Today ACU offers 17 varsity sports, and the school has produced 40 Olympians and 43 NFL players.

Food & Beverage   3

Concession options at Anthony Field include standard ballgame fare with a few local specialty items. Cash, credit/debit cards, and ACU campus Bean Bucks are all accepted. Food options include the basics like hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, Frito pie, chips, and candy. The specialty items offered are walking tacos (chili and cheese in a bag of Doritos, Fritos, or chips of your choice), smoked pork nachos, and the Wildcat Wrap (jalapeno and cheese sausage wrapped inside a warm tortilla). Chips cost $2, candy $3, while popcorn and hot dogs are $4. Other entrees begin at $6, with the pork nachos being the most expensive item at $9. Condiment tables with napkins and forks are located across the concourse from most concession stands.

Beverages are served in plastic bottles or cans, with no souvenir cups available. Coca-Cola is the drink provider, which means Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Dr. Pepper, Dasani water, Gold Peak tea, Smartwater, and Powerade are among the offerings. They do sell Monster Energy Drinks and Monster Ultra Zero, but no alcohol is available, nor is it allowed on ACU’s campus. There is also a Bahama Buck’s concession stand on the visitor side of the stadium with shaved ice available. In the rare event that a West Texas fall Saturday is cold enough, hot chocolate will be available, but take advice from my years of experience – it will sell at a rate greater than sno cones in the summer. Most drinks cost $4, with hot cocoa costing $3 per cup and Monster and Smartwater requiring $5 each.

There are more than enough concession stands on the home side of the stadium. In fact, during the first half not all the roll-up doors were up at the game I last attended, but the lines were still manageable. As halftime approached and lines began to get longer, all the windows opened and the lines were immediately shortened. With only 3 or 4 windows, and a single Bahama Buck’s stand on the visitor/student side of the stadium, there are naturally long lines here, so my suggestion for the quickest access to a concession stand, no matter where you are seated, is to go to the northwest corner of the stadium (home side nearest the scoreboard), where the shortest lines seemed to consistently be located.

Atmosphere   4

Abilene Christian has averaged well above 9000 fans per game since Anthony Field opened in 2017. This has created a home field advantage for the Wildcats, which has led to some exciting games and big upsets in the past few years. The on-field emcee leads games and activities during planned time outs in a smooth and entertaining manner, and the production level is professional and polished; the sound system is also clear and can be heard anywhere within the stadium. The HD scoreboard also provides clear pictures.

There are televisions located at each concession stand, playing the in-house feed of the game so fans can keep up with the play on the field. In addition, the restrooms have a radio feed being played loud and clear, so fans don’t have to miss a moment of the action. Lastly, one often overlooked piece of sound equipment is the referee’s lapel microphone – at the game I most recently attended, the mic used by the ref was easy to hear, even into the last minute of the game. The clarity of communication from the striped shirts eliminates some confusion from the crowd, as the referee can explain clearly what the calls on the field are, especially on replays and in a close contest.

Neighborhood   4

Abilene Christian, located on the eastern edge of the University Hills neighborhood of Abilene, is surrounded by a mixture of mid-century single family homes, duplexes, and condos, which are popular with students, faculty, and as short term vacation rentals. Traditionally a safe and quiet area of town, this Rockwellian setting is slowly showing signs of modernization through business development north and east of the university, as well as urban renewal one home at a time. Paired with the school’s desire to compete academically and athletically with top tier schools across the US, Abilene Christian’s campus has grown into a beautiful gem on The Hill.

Within a short drive of the stadium, visitors will find numerous dining and sleeping options. In addition to multiple AirBnB and Vrbo listings near campus, there are multiple hotels within a couple miles of the venue, including Courtyard by Marriott, Home2 Suites, Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites, Holiday Inn Express, and Comfort Suites, among others.

Dining options within a short drive are varied, with choices ranging from drive-thru fast food to fine dining restaurants. Located cater corner from Anthony Field you will find Allen Ridge, a retail and dining center featuring lakeside dining options, as well as a playground and walking trail. Restaurants found in Allen Ridge include Twisted Root Burger Company, Cork and Pig Tavern, Phoenix Pho, and The Biscuit Bar. With ample parking across the street from both the stadium and restaurants, dining and walking to the game is a viable option.

Multiple fast food options can quickly be found by traveling south on Judge Ely Boulevard, or east on Ambler Avenue. Among these quick options you will find McDonald’s, KFC, Braum’s, Rosa’s, Schlotzsky’s, Raising Cane’s, Taco Casa, Panda Express, and Jason’s Deli to name a few. Or, for casual sit-down experiences in the same direction you can find Cracker Barrel, Chili’s, Chipotle, Blu Barrel Bar and Grill, and Buffalo Wild Wings. Other local favorites within a reasonable drive include Galveston Seafood Company, Oscar’s Mexican Food, Rock and Rollerz Burgers, and Texas Flaming Grill. Lastly, another local favorite is a Texas top 50 barbecue joint, namely Jay’s BBQ Shack on South 11th Street.

For fine dining, a few suggestions that require a bit longer of a drive include The Beehive, Taylor County Taphouse, and Perini’s Steakhouse, among many more. Perini’s is located in Buffalo Gap, approximately 30 minutes south of Abilene, where the owner, Tom Perini, is famous for serving presidents, governors, and celebrities – his meals provide some of the best bites of food you will ever eat.

Fans   4

Wildcat fans are known to be loyal. They are generally neither rude nor confrontational, but get loud, cheer success, and expect to be competitive in all athletic endeavors. As the university has grown, and their athletic programs have moved up in competition, the number of regional rivalries has diminished, yet there are a few that remain. The particular game I last attended was one such game, providing a sellout crowd that pitted two nationally ranked teams which are geographically less than 100 miles apart.

Since opening in 2017, Anthony Field has seen its average per game attendance range between 9,200 and 10,000 annually. This typically ranks in the top 35 among FCS schools and in the top five among private schools, despite ACU playing in a conference with schools from as far west as Utah and as far east as Kentucky and Georgia.

Access   5

Abilene Christian University’s athletic complex is located mere blocks off Interstate 20 in Abilene, Texas via exit 288, at the corner of Ambler Avenue and Judge Ely Boulevard. With Abilene Regional Airport a mere 12 minutes’ drive away, the university is easily accessible whether you are flying or driving into town. If flying commercial you will be forced to utilize American Eagle, with connections at DFW airport; Abilene Regional allows private planes as well. There are multiple rental car agencies at the airport to choose from, in addition to rideshare services. Public transportation is not a reasonable option in Abilene.

Parking near Wildcat Stadium is limited, but there are plenty of lots and street parking within a half mile of the field. Parking along the streets immediately to the west of campus is free and relatively open. The businesses and fields across Ambler Avenue immediately to the north of the stadium are pay-to-park and charge $20. The campus parking lots on the south side of campus, past the track and baseball facilities, are open to the public and free on a first-come, first-serve basis. The closest of these lots is approximately a quarter mile from the nearest gate into the stadium, which has entrances on both sides, as well one coming from the tailgate area on the south end.

Once inside the stadium there is 360-degree access, with walkways that go around behind both end zones. The walking path behind the north end zone is elevated and provides a picturesque view looking back toward campus, and has turfed berm seating, while the path behind the south end zone is adjacent to the tented tailgate zone; standing viewing along the wall is permitted there.

Return on Investment   5

General admission tickets are $17, and reserved tickets can be purchased through the school’s athletic website, with varying prices, presumably based prices set by individual season ticket holders who are reselling their seats. With the ability to safely park for free and bring in a water bottle, it is possible to enjoy a top-level FCS football game, sitting close enough to the field to hear the sound of the pads crunching together, for less than a $20 bill. In addition you can get an entree and a drink for as little as $10, making ACU football border on bargain level entertainment for a Saturday afternoon or evening.

Extras   5

The ACU Big Purple Band has a longstanding tradition of producing quality musicians; their halftime marching performances are also modern and entertaining.

The biographical Hall of Honor photographs lining the outside of the stadium, as well as along the concourse walls, create a museum feel. Even though the Wildcats have only participated at the NCAA’s Division I level since 2013, they have produced world class athletes for many decades.

On field and scoreboard activities are conducted during scheduled timeouts to keep the crowd’s attention. The emcee on the field is also entertaining, and guides players through the games in a fun, engaging manner.

The fans, not only the students but those on the alumni side as well, enjoy the first down callback for each new offensive first down. The PA announcer will call out “That’s another First Financial Bank…” and the entire crowd will respond in unison “FIRST DOWN!”. I noticed this interactive response only increased in volume as the game grew in intensity, prompting inexperienced fans to begin following the lead of the veterans.

Any modern big game experience with free parking deserves special attention. In the ever-growing race to fund athletic programs and “keep up with the Joneses” in the world of NCAA sports, many schools turn to every revenue stream possible. But when a program chooses to ignore the well accepted area of paid parking in exchange for their fans’ benefit, public recognition, and extra credit, is well deserved.

While not fancy in nature, concession stand prices are reasonable, thus deserving of an extra point. The Wildcat Wrap, a jalapeno cheese sausage inside a fresh tortilla, is a tasty treat and filling for $6.

Final Thoughts

Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium offers a wonderful setting for a football game. Fans are close to the action and concessions and restrooms are plentiful, assuring time wasted waiting in line is minimized. In addition, the cost comparison and ease of access increases the pleasure of your experience here.  I would suggest placing Wildcat Football on your short list for college football games to attend, as they are fun for the family and affordable.

This author’s suggestion is, if time allows, to get some Jay’s BBQ for Friday's or Saturday’s lunch (they are open Wednesday through Saturday for lunch only), possibly taking your purchase to the tailgate before the game. Enjoy your food before going into the stadium to watch the game. Then for dinner or Sunday’s lunch, I would make reservations at Perini’s and enjoy a medium rare steak with succulent sides, before calling it a weekend and heading home.