2021 Abilene Christian Wildcats football team

The 2021 Abilene Christian Wildcats football team represented Abilene Christian University in the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season as a member of the Western Athletic Conference. The Wildcats were led by fifth-year head coach Adam Dorrel and played their home games at Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium, Abilene, Texas. The Wildcats played their 100th season in 2021.[1]

2021 Abilene Christian Wildcats football
ConferenceAQ7
Record5–6 (1–5 AQ7)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJosh Lamberson (5th season)
Defensive coordinatorClint Brown (3rd season)
Home stadiumAnthony Field at Wildcat Stadium
Seasons
← 2020
2022 →
2021 Western Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 5 Sam Houston $^   5 0     11 1  
No. 21 Stephen F. Austin ^   4 1     8 4  
Abilene Christian   2 2     5 6  
Tarleton State *   2 3     6 5  
Dixie State *   0 3     1 10  
Lamar   0 4     1 9  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
  • * – Ineligible for FCS playoffs due to transition from Division II
Rankings from STATS Poll
2021 WAC–ASUN Challenge football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 5 Sam Houston $^   6 0     11 1  
No. 21 Stephen F. Austin ^   4 2     8 4  
Eastern Kentucky   4 2     7 4  
Central Arkansas   3 3     5 6  
Jacksonville State   3 3     5 6  
Abilene Christian   1 5     5 6  
Lamar   0 6     1 9  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll

The Western Athletic Conference and ASUN Conference announced the formation of the WAC-ASUN Challenge (AQ7) for the 2021 season on February 23, 2021. The Challenge included the four fully qualified Division I (FCS) members of the WAC (Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, and Stephen F. Austin) and Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky, and Jacksonville State of the ASUN Conference. The winner of the challenge received an auto-bid to the NCAA Division I FCS football playoffs.[2]

Preseason

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Preseason polls

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WAC Poll

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The Western Athletic Conference coaches released their preseason poll on July 27, 2021. The Wildcats were picked to finish fifth in the conference.[3]

Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Sam Houston 20 (5)
2 Stephen F. Austin 16 (1)
3 Tarleton State 11
4 Lamar 8
5 Abilene Christian 5
  • Note: Dixie State is not included since they are not playing a full WAC schedule due to previous non-conference game contracts. Dixie State players are eligible for individual rewards.

AQ7 Poll

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The AQ7 coaches also released their preseason poll on July 27, 2021. The Wildcats were picked to finish sixth in the ASUN-WAC Challenge.[4]

Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Sam Houston 49 (7)
2 Central Arkansas 40
3 Jacksonville State 37
4 Stephen F. Austin 27
5 Eastern Kentucky 20
6 Abilene Christian 15
7 Lamar 8

Recruits

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US college sports recruiting information for 2021 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight 40 Commit date
Hayden Anderson
QB
Keller, Texas Keller High School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) - Jul 24, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A
Tyrin Bradley
DE
Lubbock, Texas Monterey High School (Lubbock, Texas) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 245 lb (111 kg) - Dec 11, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 73
Cirby Coheley
LB
Iowa Park, Texas Iowa Park High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) - Jul 13, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A
Colt Cooper
TE
Quinlan, Texas Ford High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 230 lb (100 kg) - Jun 30, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A
Luke Dillingham
S
Brock, Texas Brock High School (Texas) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) -  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Kyle Pointer
LB
Queen Creek, Arizona Queen Creek High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) -  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Jar'Quae Walton
RB
Waco, Texas La Vega High School 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) - Dec 13, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A
Jackson Andrews
OL
Schertz, Texas Samuel Clemens High School (Schertz) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 295 lb (134 kg) -  
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A
Landon Eades
DT
Boerne, Texas Samuel V. Champion High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 280 lb (130 kg) -  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Isaiah Pedack
DT
Dallas, Texas Highland Park High School (University Park, Texas) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 250 lb (110 kg) -  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Ethan Taite
OLB
Frisco, Texas Independence High School (Frisco, Texas) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) -  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • ‡ Refers to 40 yard dash
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Transfers

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Name No. Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Prev. school
Trey Adams #5 LB 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 190 pounds (86 kg) Redshirt Sophomore Corvallis, Oregon Northern Colorado
Alex Spadone #7 WR 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 216 pounds (98 kg) Redshirt Junior Houston, Texas San Diego
Triston Anderson #12 CB 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 pounds (88 kg) Redshirt Freshman Rockwall, Texas Arkansas State
Roland Williams III #15 DB 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 180 pounds (82 kg) Redshirt Junior Arlington, Tennessee Richmond
Anthony Smith #20 RB 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 195 pounds (88 kg) Redshirt Sophomore Fort Worth, Texas Texas State
Mike Garrett Jr. #29 DB 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 187 pounds (85 kg) Redshirt Junior Magnolia, Texas Tulsa
John Brannon #43 LB 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 233 pounds (106 kg) Senior Prosper, Texas Texas State
Kaleb Chester #58 OL 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 271 pounds (123 kg) Sophomore Grayson, Georgia Lenoir–Rhyne
Derek Simmons #73 OL 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 311 pounds (141 kg) Redshirt Freshman Jacksonville, Florida Tusculum
Reese Moore #74 OL 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 273 pounds (124 kg) Redshirt Freshman Seminole, Texas Texas
Derek Simmons #99 DL 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 245 pounds (111 kg) Redshirt Freshman Bakersfield, California Fresno State
Tyran Calloway # DT 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 249 pounds (113 kg) Junior Fort Worth, Texas Howard Payne

Personnel

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Roster

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2021 Abilene Christian Wildcats football

Quarterback

  •  2 Peyton Mansell –   sophomore (6'2, 213)
  •  3 Stone Earle –   freshman (6'2, 203)
  •  4 Sema'J Davis – senior (6'1, 191)
  •  12 Hayden Anderson – freshman (6'1, 173)
  •   Trevor Baker – freshman (6'3, 186)
  •   Carson Cross – freshman (6'2, 185)
  •   Jace Robinson – freshman (6'0, 190)

Running backs

  •  14 Quae Walton – freshman (5'10, 166)
  •  20 Anthony Smith –   sophomore (5'11, 209)
  •  21 Jermiah Dobbins –   freshman (5'11, 195)
  •  24 Tyrese White – senior (5'10, 202)
  •  31 Robert McKnight –   senior (5'10, 186)
  •  34 Charlie Moore – freshman (5'11, 220) (FB+)
  •  36 Rece Stafford –   freshman (6'0, 231) (FB+)
  •  43 Easton Myrick –   freshman (5'11, 195) (FB+)
  •   Jailen Dixon – freshman (6'3, 202)
  •   Jamal Stephens – freshman (5'8, 185)

Wide receiver

  •  5 Darius Lewis –   freshman (5'8, 163)
  •  6 Taelyn Williams –   junior (6'2, 169)
  •  7 Alex Spadone –   junior (6'2, 216)
  •  8 Kobe Clark – junior (5'11, 180)
  •  9 Davion Johnson –   sophomore (5'8, 163)
  •  13 Jordan Brooks-Wess –   sophomore (5'10, 164)
  •  16 Denver Holman –   freshman (5'10, 179)
  •  19 Dax Neece –   freshman (6'3, 206)
  •  80 Jackson Young – freshman (5'11, 183)
  •  82 Cooper McCasland –   freshman (6'1, 188)
  •  87 Andrew Edwards – freshman (6'0, 178)
  •   Tanner Bowman –   freshman (6'3, 185)
  •   Matthew Bynum – freshman (5'11, 160)
  •   Solomon Cole – freshman (5'10, 165)
  •   Jack Frazier – freshman (6'2, 192)
  •   Kendall Jimerson –   freshman (5'10, 185)

Tight ends

  •  81 Noah Caldwell –   freshman (6'6, 245)
  •  83 Colt Cooper – freshman (6'4, 240)
  •  84 Grant Miles –   sophomore (6'5, 252)
  •  85 Andrew Stripling –   freshman (6'5, 219)
  •  86 Remington Lutz –   junior (6'6, 241)

Long snappers

  •  46 Dustin Inness –   sophomore (5'11, 189)
  •  54 David Stone –   senior (6'0, 213)
  •  60 Cade Lippincott –   freshman (6'0, 213)
 

Offensive lineman

  •  51 Collin James –   freshman (6'4, 273)
  •  55 Alan Hatten –   freshman (6'3, 300)
  •  56 Truett Knox –   freshman (6'2, 287)
  •  57 Jaron Marshall –   junior (6'3, 291)
  •  58 Kaleb Chester – sophomore (6'0, 271)
  •  59 Jacob Thielen –   freshman (6'4, 292)
  •  61 Mitchell Melrose – junior (6'6, 286)
  •  62 Jackson Andrews – freshman (6'2, 300)
  •  63 Peyten Girty –   freshman (6'3, 280)
  •  65 CJ Zotz –   freshman (6'4, 292)
  •  66 Dylan Howerton –   freshman (6'5, 273)
  •  67 Wyatt Tate –   freshman (6'6, 290)
  •  69 Bronson Warner –   freshman (6'3, 310)
  •  73 Derek Simmons –   freshman (6'5, 311)
  •  74 Reese Moore –   freshman (6'6, 273)
  •  76 Zach Terry – senior (6'6, 280)
  •  78 Ty Smith –   freshman (6'6, 296)
  •   Cohen Carpenter – freshman (6'3, 290)
  •   Brad Robinson – freshman (6'2, 260)
  •   Tai Sewell – freshman (6'5, 305)

Defensive lineman

  •  40 Dre Jones –   sophomore (6'4, 277)
  •  41 Tyrin Bradley –   sophomore (6'4, 242)
  •  45 Jordan Paup –   freshman (6'5, 250)
  •  49 Dennis Herrold –   freshman (6'4, 235)
  •  50 Damion Hart –   freshman (6'3, 235)
  •  89 Cameron Byrom –   freshman (6'5, 249)
  •  90 Kadron Johnson –   sophomore (6'4, 249)
  •  91 Garviea Freeny –   junior (6'3, 235)
  •  92 Quent Titre –   junior (6'2, 286)
  •  93 Landon Eades – freshman (6'3, 283)
  •  94 Osaretin Obadeyi –   sophomore (6'5, 239)
  •  95 Jack Schultz –   junior (6'0, 280)
  •  96 Isaiah Pedack – freshman (6'3, 255)
  •  97 William Morgan –   sophomore (6'3, 292)
  •  99 Colby Warkentin –   freshman (6'6, 245)
  •   Tyran Calloway – junior (5'11, 249)
  •   Tanner Rambeau – freshman (6'4, 270)
 

Linebacker

  •  5 Trey Adams –   sophomore (5'10, 190)
  •  9 Chike Nwankwo –   sophomore (6'2, 224)
  •  30 Tory Hargrove –   junior (5'11, 210)
  •  32 Joshua James –   junior (6'0, 228)
  •  33 Greg Green –   junior (5'10, 217)
  •  35 Ethan Taite – freshman (6'3, 205)
  •  42 Hunter Kier –   senior (5'11, 217)
  •  43 John Brannon – senior (6'2, 233)
  •  46 Cirby Coheley – freshman (6'4, 206)
  •  47 Derrick Parker – freshman (6'1, 206)
  •  52 Abe Schwinn –   freshman (6'3, 219)
  •  53 Zeke Lott –   freshman (6'1, 205)
  •   Diego Diaz – freshman (5'10, 208)
  •   Dilaver Ibrahimi – freshman (5'10, 206)
  •   Kyle Pointer – freshman (6'3, 213)

Defensive backs

  •  1 Shelby Washington –   junior (6'1, 190)
  •  2 Christopher Satterfield –   freshman (5'10, 190)
  •  3 Ryan Stapp –   sophomore (6'0, 170)
  •  7 Elijah Moffett –   freshman (6'2, 195)
  •  12 Triston Anderson –   freshman (6'2, 195)
  •  15 Roland Williams III –   junior (5'11, 180)
  •  17 Dishon Hall II – sophomore (6'3, 195)
  •  22 Koy Richardson –   senior (5'11, 178)
  •  23 Kameron Stokes –   freshman (6'0, 203)
  •  24 Luke Dillingham – Freshman (6'2, 198)
  •  26 Brian Bullock –   Junior (6'0, 198)
  •  29 Mike Garrett Jr. –   Junior (6'1, 187)
  •  31 Keegan Tharp –   Freshman (6'2, 198)
  •  39 Anthony Egbo, Jr. –   Sophomore (5'8, 180)
  •   Jeremy Gonzales – Freshman (5'7, 165)
  •   Jamal Marshall – Freshman (6'0, 186)
  •   Quintin Montgomery – Sophomore (5'11, 183)
  •   Casen Olsen – Freshman (6'1, 189)
  •   Landon Reynolds –   Freshman (5'8, 185)
  •   Manny Ruiz – Freshman (5'8, 163)

Placekickers

  •  37 Blair Zepeda –   Sophomore (5'11, 205)
  •  85 Oscar Hernandez –   Sophomore (5'11, 197)

Punter

  •  88 Will Fargason –   Freshman (6'2, 204)
  •  88 Brock Thompson –   Freshman (5'11, 161)

Coaching staff

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Name Position Alma mater Joined Staff
Adam Dorrel Head Coach Northwest Missouri State (1998) 2016
Josh Lamberson Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks Northwest Missouri State (2005) 2016
Clint Brown Defensive Coordinator
James Curlee Wide Receivers Hastings College (2016) 2017
Travis Dixon Cornerbacks UNLV (2010) 2020
Zach Williams Safeties / Co-Recruiting Coordinator
Bryce Baccarini Running Backs / Fullbacks / Co-Recruiting Coordinator
Travis Britz Defensive Line Kansas State (2017) 2020
Cody Scribner Defensive Line Central Missouri (2010) 2020
Drew Liddle Offensive Line Kansas State (2014) 2021
Dimitri Donald Tight Ends West Texas A&M (2015) 2021

Depth chart

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Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 46:00 p.m.at SMU*ESPN+L 9–5623,373
September 116:00 p.m.Louisiana College*ESPN+W 62–78,117
September 186:00 p.m.Texas–Permian Basin*
  • Wildcat Stadium
  • Abilene, TX
ESPN+W 34–99,018
September 256:00 p.m.at Lamar*ESPN+W 56–05,411
October 26:00 p.m.Central Arkansas
  • Wildcat Stadium
  • Abilene, TX (WAC/ASUN Challenge)
ESPN+L 21–426,602
October 95:00 p.m.at Eastern Kentucky
ESPN+L 15–308,659
October 163:00 p.m.Lamar 
  • Wildcat Stadium
  • Abilene, TX
ESPN+W 24–1710,121
October 304:00 p.m.at Stephen F. AustinESPN+L 27–419,817
November 61:00 p.m.at Jacksonville StateESPN+L 25–40 14,143
November 131:00 p.m.Tarleton State
  • Wildcat Stadium
  • Abilene, TX
ESPN+W 29–36,213
November 201:00 p.m.No. 1 Sam Houston
  • Wildcat Stadium
  • Abilene, TX
ESPN+L 9–354,421
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[5][6]

Game summaries

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at SMU

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Abilene Christian at SMU
1 234Total
Wildcats 0 360 9
Mustangs 7 28147 56
  • Date: September 4
  • Location: Gerald J. Ford Stadium
    University Park, TX
  • Game start: 6:06 p.m. CDT
  • Elapsed time: 3 hours and 21 minutes
  • Game attendance: 23,373
  • Game weather: Temperature: 95 °F (35 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SE 7 MPH
  • Referee: Tim Rich
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Ted Emrich (play–by–play), Stanford Routt (analyst) and Morgan Uber (sideline)
      
Pregame line Over/under
SMU –32 66[7]
Statistics ACU SMU
First downs 14 27
Total yards 332 490
Rushing yards 119 171
Passing yards 213 319
Turnovers 4 1
Time of possession 28:22 31:38
Team Category Player Statistics
Abilene Christian Passing Stone Earle 13/28, 160 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing Peyton Mansell 2 carries, 33 yards
Receiving Kobe Clark 6 receptions, 89 yards, TD
SMU Passing Tanner Mordecai 24/30, 317 yards, 7 TD
Rushing Ulysses Bentley IV 10 carries, 48 yards
Receiving Danny Gray 4 receptions, 72 yards, 2 TD

Louisiana College

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1 2 3 4 Total
LC Wildcats 0 7 0 0 7
ACU Wildcats 27 14 7 14 62

UT Permian Basin

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1 2 3 4 Total
Falcons 3 0 0 6 9
Wildcats 0 27 0 7 34

at Lamar

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1 2 3 4 Total
Wildcats 14 14 21 7 56
Cardinals 0 0 0 0 0

Statistics

Statistics Abilene Christian Lamar
First downs 22 10
Total yards 461 136
Rushing yards 274 98
Passing yards 187 38
Turnovers 0 2
Time of possession 29:13 30:47
Team Category Player Statistics
Abilene Christian Passing Stone Earl 13/18, 187 yards, long 32 yards, 3 TDs
Rushing Peyton Mansell 6 carries, 107 yards, long 62 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Kobe Clark 4 catches, 50 yards, long 16 yards, 1 TD
Lamar Passing Jalen Dummett 4/7, 38 yards, long 14 yards
Rushing Hunter Batten 7 carries, 29 yards, long 11 yards
Receiving Kirkland Banks 2 catches, 15 yards, long 10 yards

Central Arkansas

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1 2 3 4 Total
Bears 0 14 14 14 42
Wildcats 7 14 0 0 21

at Eastern Kentucky

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1 2 3 4 Total
Wildcats 0 7 0 8 15
Colonels 10 17 3 0 30

Lamar

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1 2 3 4 Total
Cardinals 0 17 0 0 17
Wildcats 7 7 7 3 24

Statistics

Statistics Lamar Abilene Christian
First downs 14 21
Total yards 364 466
Rushing yards 158 208
Passing yards 206 258
Turnovers 0 1
Time of possession 29:35 30:25
Team Category Player Statistics
Lamar Passing Mike Chandler 9/17, 206 yds, 1 TD
Rushing James Jones 9 carries, 81 yds, 1 TD
Receiving Nathan Gaskamp 1 reception, 80 yards, 1 TD
Abilene Christian Passing Peyton Mansell 10/18, 135 yds
Rushing Peyton Mansell 18 carries, 106 yds, 2 TD
Receiving Davion Johnson 6 receptions, 82 yds

at SFA

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1 2 3 4 Total
Wildcats 3 3 7 14 27
Lumberjacks 3 17 14 7 41

at Jacksonville State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Wildcats 0 10 7 8 25
Gamecocks 14 6 7 13 40

Tarleton

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1 2 3 4 Total
Texans 3 0 0 0 3
Wildcats 3 10 0 16 29

No. 1 Sam Houston

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 1 Bearkats 14 14 7 0 35
Wildcats 0 3 6 0 9

References

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  1. ^ Hadfield, Ron. "Wildcats fall to record-setting SMU passing attack". Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  2. ^ "ASUN, WAC form 2021 alliance, seek FCS playoff bid". Verizon Media. February 23, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  3. ^ "WAC Coaches Select Sam Houston, Schmid, Kay as Preseason Favorites". Western Athletic Conference. July 27, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  4. ^ "AQ7 Coaches Select Sam Houston as Preseason Favorite". Western Athletic Conference. July 27, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  5. ^ "2021 Abilene Christian Wildcats Football Schedule". ACUSports.com.
  6. ^ "2021 Abilene Christian Wildcats Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com.
  7. ^ "Abilene Christian Wildcats vs SMU Mustangs". Odds Shark. Retrieved September 17, 2021.