Fan the Flames Preview: #BEATCOASTAL

This is the final game preview post of the year for me, as the Flames welcome the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers for their final visit to Williams Stadium as a member of the Big South, with CCU accepting an invitation earlier this year to join the Division 1-A/FBS Sun Belt Conference in all sports (football playing as an FCS independent in 2016).

The Flames will be coming off a disappointing 31-24 loss in Charleston to the Charleston Southern Buccaneers, their first loss in North Charleston since 2005. Josh Woodrum did become the first QB in Liberty and Big South history as well as Virginia state history (at the FCS level) to throw for over 10,000 yards in a career. Darrin Peterson caught a TD pass from Damian King on a WR option to break the Liberty career TD record he shared with Chris Summers.

I'll keep it brief so I have a chance to offer some comments on the seniors at the end of the post, so we dive right in:

 #4 Coastal Carolina 9-1 (4-1 Big South)

vs.

 Liberty 5-5 (2-3 Big South)

After Liberty knocking off Coastal in Conway and the both teams winning playoff games (with CCU going all the way to the quarterfinals), the expectatins were very high for his matchup this year in Lynchburg. So much so, that the game was picked up by ESPNews marking the first ever appearance for Liberty football on one of the main members of the ESPN family of networks. Unfortunately, disappointing losses to Gardner-Webb and Monmouth took a lot of the luster off this one, but this still will be a game to watch as CCU plays its final game in the Big South before beginning the move to FBS next year.

Matchup

Location: Williams Stadium, Lynchburg, VA

Series: 13th Meeting

Last Meeting: 15-14 Liberty (11/22/2014

Kickoff: 7:00 PM

Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play; Chanticleer Sports Network (CCU) Joe Cashion play-by-play

Television: ESPNews/National Alex Faust play-by-play

Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty 25-19 Record), Joe Moglia (4th Season at CCU, 27-7 Record)

Last Week: Liberty L 24-31 vs. Charleston Southern, Coastal Carolina W 45-13 vs. Kennesaw State

The FLames may not have anything to play for (as noted by the CoastalFans.com blog), as far as the playoffs are concerned, but there is stil something to play for. With a win, the flames clinch their 10th consecutive winning season (longest active streak in the Big South).

I picked Liberty in this one all the way back in August, and I still think the Flames will want to go out as winners this year and go into the rebuild in the offseason on a high note

Liberty 42
Coastal Carolina 35

Now for a word about the seniors playing their final game tomorrow night:

DJ Abnar- While his career came to an end with an ankle injury earlier this year, the RB from the heart of Seminole country gave Flames Nation plenty of highlights, starting with his electrifying kick return in 2012 against Gardner-Webb. that play gave a glimpse of the kind of gamebreaker he could be. He proved in 2014 that he can be a feature back after 2013 starter Des Rice (more on him later) went down with a knee injury and true freshman Todd Macon injured himself as well. He had the "hit of the year" when he mowed down an Appalachian State defender in Boone last year.
Jonathan Burgess- the transfer from D2 Virginia State made an immediate impact, starting 9 games his first year in a Liberty uniform on the way to second team all-conference and all-state, then moving up to first team in 2014. He was part of a stalwart offensive line that year, helping Liberty finish second in the Big South in total offense and paving the way for the first 1000 yard rusher since Rashad Jennings.
Gerald Holt- A key reserve on the defensive line, Holt helped Liberty to be one of the top defensive line units in the Big South
Miles Hunter- Another key reserve on the defense who has seen his tackle numbers steadily increase over his last 4 years after redshirting in 2011
Austin Kaigler- A talented RB out of Alabama, Kaigler was an integral part of the team preparations, and had himself a few highlights as well, including a career high 3 TDs in 2013.
Dakota Kelly- the younger brother of Flames star Patrick Kelly made his mark on the field, but made an even bigger mark in the classroom as he likely will graduate in 3 years as a criminal justice major
Ryan McCarter- His was a career of
"what might have been" as the reserve wideout struggled with injuries, but he was a supportive teammmate from the sidelines
Desmond "Des" Rice- The senior running back from across campus at Liberty Christian Academy bided his time, contributing each of his first two years before becoming the full-time starter in 2013, where he finished just short of 1000 yards and earning Big South all-conference honors. After missing all of 2014 due to a knee injury, he came back with a vengeance in the opener against Delaware State, and despite a less than stellar season, has left his mark. 
Malaki Roy- The talented WR from MD assisted on the scout team and hopefully will get a chance to get on the field in his final home game
Zach Schreiber- the transfer from McDaniel College battled injuries much like McCarter
Max Sommer- the German came to Lynchburg as a defensive lineman but made the switch to offensive line in 2013 and became a key reserve before earning a starting job at tackle in 2014. He was part of an outstanding group, along with Burgess, just missing out on all-conference honors
Nolan Spicer- The defensive tackle from PA has struggled with injuries in 2015, but has been a key reserve on an outstanding defensive unit, including being part of the first all-unit Big South Defensive Player of the Week award last year.

The last four have made their mark in the record books at Liberty and will be sorely missed on the field:


John Lunsford- the man known as "Legatron 2.0" has spoiled Liberty fans with his booming kickoffs and seemingly limitless field goal range, capped by setting a school and conference record with a 60 yard field goal as time expired against Richmond:

The biggest complaint against him though, is his inconsistency on the mid-range field goals, something he will have to work on if he is going to find a landing spot at the next level, but he certainly gave Flames fans plenty to cheer about over the last 4 seasons

Darrin Peterson- the 6-2 WR from Alabama will go down as the most exciting receiver in a Liberty uniform, breaking all sorts of records and showing that he can make big things happen every time the ball comes his way. He has two TDs of 80 yards or more, including one in the Homecoming win over Kennesaw State this year, and will leave the mountain as the all-time career leader in yards, receptions AND TDs.

Chima Uzowihe- Thy say everything is bigger in TX, and that certainly can be said of the play of the senior defensive end from Houston. He will finish as the all-time career sack leader at Liberty, and, while some say he saved Turner Gill's job and Liberty's season in 2014, he had one of the biggest special teams plays in Liberty history down in Myrtle Beach last year (start at 2:00):

Josh Woodrum- Say what you will about him, but Josh Woodrum, the product of Cave Spring High School in Roanoke, will leave Liberty Mountain as the all-time leader in psasing yards, and second all time in TDs. He is the first QB in Big South and Virginia state history (at the FCS level) to throw for over 10,000 yards and one of the winningest QBs in school history. Star crossed as he may be for his issues with the media, he will certainly be missed after the clock hits all 0's tomorrow night.


Thank you Liberty football class of 2016, its been an awesome ride

Fan the Flames Week 10 Preview: Presbyterian

The Flames begin their final run to the finish with their next to last home game as the Presbyterian Blue Hose come to Williams Stadium and the Flames celebrate their sixth Military Appreciation Day

Liberty returns to action after ending their two game losing skid with a 45-35 victory over first year Big South program Kennesaw State. Josh Woodrum threw for 230 yards and 4 TDs, becoming the all time leader in passing yards, breaking a 20 year old record held by Robbie Justino. Darrin Peterson caught three of those passes, including an 80 yarderto give JW the record.

The defense was tested by the Owls' triple option attack,  but rose to the occasion, holding KSU under their season average on the ground. The running game for the Flames made a return appearance, as Des Rice and Todd Macon led the way, combining for 160 yards and 2 TD.

BJ Farrow, like Rice an LCA product, picked up his first collegiate TD in the third quarter before the Flames went exclusively to the run game.

Chima Uzowihe and COrbin Jackson combined for the lone sack on the night, and senior Jimmy O'Grady led the way with 15 tackles.

Grades:

Offense: A
Much more balance to the Flames' attack against the Owls as the running and passing games weere on display. Woodrum had an outstanding game and the success of the run game has already been mentioned.

Defense: B-
Triple option teams are tough to game plan for, especially when you are up against a disciple of Paul Johnson, currently the head coach at Georgia Tech. The boys in the front seven did well, only allowing a few big runs from KSU

Special Teams: INC
I can't really grade the special teams this week because there really wasn't much action in that area outside of Damian King making a few kick returns

Now on to this week's matchup:

 Presbyterian 1-7 (0-3 Big South)

 vs.

 Liberty 4-4 (1-2 Big South)

Matchup

Location: Williams Stadium, Lynchburg, VA

Series: 13th Meeting

Last Meeting: 28-7 Liberty (11/1/2014)

Kickoff: 3:30 PM

Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play; 103.5 FM/Presbyterian Blue Hose Radio Network (Presbyterian) Eric Thacker play-by-play

Television: LFSN/ESPN3/National: Hogewood play-by-play

Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty 25-18 Record), Harold Nichols (7th Season at PC 160-56 Record)

Last Week: Liberty Bye,  Presbyterian L10-14 vs. Gardner-Webb

This is an important game for Liberty. The Flames need a lot of help, but there is still an outside chance that they can earn the automatic bid from the Big South, but in order to do that, they need to win out, and they cannot overlook the Blue Hose. Charleston Southern plays Kennesaw State this week before welcoming the Flames, so the magnitude of that game will be determined before the Flames get back to the locker room at halftime, but Liberty has to take care of their own business this week, and knowing the magnitude of these last three games, I think they will

Liberty 42
PC 10

Fan the Flames Bye Week Review

After 8 games, the Flames finally got to their bye week. I think this came about 2 weeks too late in my view, especially given the two inexplicable losses to Gardner-Webb and Monmouth in back to back weeks. Would the Flames have done better in those two games? I certainly think its probable. Anyway, here are my grades for the Flames heading into the final 3 games of the year:

Offense: C+

Josh Woodrum has pretty much had to carry this side of the ball with the struggles in the run game. Following the Kennesaw State win last week, he owns just about every passing record in school history (he probably will get the passing TDs record in the next few weeks), and could become the first FCS QB in state history to throw for over 10,000 yards, a situation that benefits from his being a four year starter (the first in recent memory).

The biggest issue that I have seen though, is the issue with his leadership and media presence. In reading comments on the FlameFans message board following his last couple pressers leading up to the KSU game, fans took issue with his seemingly "throwing others under the bus" and not taking personal responsibility for the play on the field. Some recent comments he made calling out the Liberty Flames Nation blog (run by two members of FlameFans), especially did not go over well.

If Woodrum wants to see his teammates step their game up in these final  3 games, he is going to have to lead by example. To do that, he will not have to get in their faces or slap any helmets...He will have to make plays. Make better throws on the deep ball, spread the ball around to other receivers

The biggest reason for the low grade for the offense, comes from the running game. The Flames came into the year with this as probably their biggest strength, but Liberty has gone for less than 100 rushing yards in 5 of 8 games, and the leading rusher, redshirt senior Des Rice, entered last week with only 497 yards.

That said, the offensive line has to take a good bit of the blame for the rushing woes as well. With a number of players injured, including opening day starter Lucas Holder at center, the depth along the line has been severely tested. With 9 of the linemen on the roster redshirt sophomore or younger, and a few verbal commitments on the line as well, this is a group that has potential for much improvement.

Defense: B-

Some might see this grade as being a tad generous (especially one poster in particular on FlameFans), but the defense has been what has carried the Flames in at least 2 of the Flames' 4 wins. Chima Uzowihe and Erwin Dessources have led the way, and Virginia Beach product Javon Majors has stepped up in his first year playing after a 2014 redshirt. The player I think has a chance to be a real star on the line in the future though, is JaRon Greene. The junior out of Beaumont, TX has 26 tackles through 8 games and 2 sacks, and probably will be the leader of the line group following the graduation of the previously mentioned Uzowihe and Dessources.

The linebackers have underwhelmed this year outside of top tacklers Jimmy O'Grady and Nick Newman. This is a fairly young group behind them as well so I expect to see a lot of improvement after spring ball 2016.

The defensive backs have been very feast or famine this year. The group has 5 INTs this year (3 from freshman Chris Turner), but they have been burned on a number of long pass plays, something that they will have to work on with some fine vertical threats in both the Coastal Carolina and Charleston Southern receiving units.

Special Teams: B-

John Lunsford...has been a conundrum wrapped in an enigma. He set the FCS career record for 50+ yard field goals last week against Kennesaw State, but he has struggled on his intermediate kicks (between 30 and 50 yards). He still has a chance to be drafted next year into the NFL because scouts will see how much of a weapon he can be.

Trey Turner, the former preferred walkon, has had another outstanding season, averaging 39 yards per punt, which is good for tops in the Big South, and is one of only two punters in the conference to go over 60 yards with a punt on the year.

the biggest issue has been the punt returns. Zac Parker had a crucial fumble in the loss to Gardner-Webb, but did finally get his first return TD prior to that fumble.

Damian King has been a breath of fresh air for the kick return unit, showing his speed every time he touches the ball of a kickoff, nearly breaking a couple in the last few games. He is someone that teams will no doubt game plan for in the kicking game.

The goal for the Flames is simple: Just win baby. They are a long shot for a playoff berth at this point in the season following those two gutting losses, but if they win out, they will have a pretty stout resume to show to the selection committee.

Next week the journey continues as the Flames host Presbyterian for Military Appreciation Day

Fan the Flames Week 8 Preview: Kennesaw State

The Liberty Flames fell to Monmouth in New Jersey last week 20-17 in overtime. This was the second consecutive loss for the Flames, and marked the first time Liberty has lost multiple Big South games as well as consecutive Big South games since 2006 (current Richmond head coach Danny Rocco's first year at Liberty).

In reading the FlameFans message board, some have the attitude that this is one of the lowest points in the fairly recent history of Liberty football, coming off a playoff berth and high expectations for finally earning an outright Big South title, especially with Coastal Carolina heading to FBS and the Sun Belt Conference.

Josh Woodrum threw for 336 yards, but zero TD passes for the second time in three games as well as two costly interceptions. The story once again, though, was the absence of the running game. Des Rice finished with 66 yards to lead the way, but there was not much else to speak of.

Darrin Peterson finished with 120 yards and became the all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards

Grades:

Offense: C-
Woodrum threw for 336 yards, but he did it on 53 attempts. WAY too many passing attempts I think...As I said above, the running game disappeared once again, which has been a theme throughout the season. Rice currently leads the way with 497 yards.
Petey and Woodrum no doubt have a good relationship as QB and WR, but teams have been keying on him and in many situations, another option is wide open and sometimes overlooked. The senior NEEDS to spread the ball around, and on top of that, needs to take some time and look at his mechanics, especially on the deep ball

Defense: C+
When you only allow 20 points, that is a pretty good day, but when you can't stop the other team when it matters, that takes a good bit of the shine off of the performance. The Flames only finished with 1 sack and 3 TFL on the day despite only allowing just south of 300 yards of offense. They have a bigger test ahead of them this week, though (more on that later)

Special Teams: B-
Turner had a very good day punting, pinning the Hawks inside the 20 twice. Lunsford was booming the kickoffs again, garnering two touchbacks, but had a 27 yard field goal blocked that was the difference in the game (among other things).

Overall: C

 Kennesaw State 5-1 (1-0 Big South)

vs.

Liberty 3-4 (0-2 Big South)

Matchup

Location: Williams Stadium, Lynchburg, VA

Series: First Meeting

Last Meeting:First Meeting

Kickoff: 7:00 PM

Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play; KSUOwls.com/Kennesaw State Radio Network, Art Giffin play-by-play

Television: LFSN/ESPN3/National: Mike Tilley play-by-play

Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty 24-18 Record), Brian Bohannon (First Season at Kennesaw State 5-1 Record)

Last Week: Liberty L 17-20 vs. Monmouth,  Kennesaw State W 12-7 vs. Gardner-Webb

Prediction

The Flames likely saw any hope of a playoff bid washed away with their loss to Monmouth last week, but they can still play spoiler in the Big South, but they will have to win out, including beating a first year Owls program that has played above expectations through six games. 

I will pick Liberty in this game only because  I expect the Flames to circle the wagons after getting two straight massive reality checks and get a much needed win and move to 3-0 in first meetings with new Big South members

Liberty 42

Kennesaw State 21

Fan the Flames Week 7 Preview: Monmouth

We enter the second half of the 2015 season coming off of a down note as the Flames lost to Gardner-Webb last week 34-20 down in Boiling Springs, NC. It was the first loss for the Flames to the Runnin Bulldogs since 2006 and the first loss in Boiling Springs since 2005.

Josh Woodrum threw for over 300 yards for the first time this season, but the story offensively was...once again...the running game, or the lack thereof. Senior Des Rice finished with 52 yards on 10 carries and DJ Abnar had only 2 net yards before leaving with an injury. Woodrum did eclipse the 9,000 passing yard mark in the game, and is within striking distance of the all-time passing yardage record at Liberty, and could potentially hit 10,000 yards passing, but it will likely take making the playoffs to do it unless he goes for some very gaudy numbers in the final 5 games of the year.

A big loss for the Flames is DJ Abnar, who injured his ankle in the loss to G-W. He gave the Flames a "lightning" complement to the "thunder" of Des Rice, although Flames fans remember when he brought the thunder to an Appalachian State defender last year down in Boone (check out the video on youtube if you get a chance). It will be Todd Macon moving into the #2 role the rest of the year.

Grades for G-W

Offense: C+

Woodrum threw for over 300 yards as I noted before, but for the Flames to be successful, they need balance, and less than 80 yards rushing as a team is not going to help with that. Rice and Macon will need to really step their games up with DJ out for the year, and the line will have to do a significantly better job up front.

Defense: C-
Allowing 34 points to a team that had not broken 20 since the opening game of the sevsason is unacceptable. So is allowing a QB to rush for over 150 yards including a 40+ yard TD. The defense needs to tighten up if they are going to keep another L from going on the board the rest of the year (which is what it will take for Liberty to make the postseason at this point)

Special Teams: C-
Zac Parker did have the first punt return for a TD for Liberty in a couple years, but it was his muff that set up the Bulldogs for the game clinching TD.

Overall: C

Now on to this week's now VERY important matchup:

#22 Liberty 3-3 (0-1 Big South)

vs.

 

Monmouth 2-4 (0-1 Big South)

This week the Flames conclude their four game road trip with the first ever trip to the state of NJ to take on second year Big South affiliate member Monmouth. The Flames have won both prior meetings with Monmouth, but those games were in Lynchburg. The Flames hope to actually reverse an unusual trend this week, as they have actually lost their last two debut road games against Big South members (2008 at Presbyterian and 2009 at Stony Brook).

Liberty is playing their first regular season game north of the state of Maryland since 2011 when they traveled up to LaValle Stadium and lost to Stony Brook 41-31.

Matchup

Location: Monmouth Stadium, West Long Branch, NJ

Series: Third Meeting (Liberty leads 2-0)

Last Meeting: 34-24 Liberty (11/8/2014)

Kickoff: 1:00 PM

Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play; No Radio Information for Monmouth

Television: ESPN3/National: Matt Harmon Play-by-play

Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty 24-17 Record), Kevin Callahan (23rd Season at Monmouth 128-106 Record)

Last Week: Liberty L 20-34 vs. Gardner-Webb, Monmouth L 7-37 vs. Charleston Southern

The Flames need this one...BADLY. After coming off an inexplicable loss to Gardner-Webb, the Flames have to win out to have a chance at the postseason (They can reach 7 Division 1 wins before hosting Coastal Carolina of course, but they don't want to leave it in the hands of the committee). Monmouth does get one of their top DBs back in Marcus Leslie, and I expect he will get the assignment against Darrin Peterson, who is closing in on a few Liberty and Big South career records.

The Flames know their backs are against the wall in this one and they have traditionally done well in just that sort of a situation. I expect Liberty to win this one and get started on a downhill run to a matchup with CCU with the Big South title on the line

Liberty 28

Monmouth 17

Fan the Flames Week 6 Preview: Gardner-Webb

We have reached the halfway point of the 2015 football season, and with it comes the arrival of Big South Conference play. First though, we review last week:

The Liberty Flames picked up their second victory over an FBS opponent in two years when they knocked off the Georgia State Panthers 41-33 inside the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

Josh Woodrum threw for 242 yards and Des Rice and DJ Abnar combined for 180 yards with Rice scoring 3 TDs in the victory.

Things got off to a rather inauspicious start for Liberty as backup QB Stephon Masha fumbled the ball inside the 10 yard line on the way to an opening TD and GSU scored the first of three long TDs thanks to Donovan Harden and Nick Arbuckle (More on that later). Liberty responded with the first of 5 10+ play drives, cashing in from 1 yard out courtest of Rice. The game went back and forth after than with Liberty retaking the lead every time GSU responded, until a defensive stand by the Flames late in the third quarter forced the Panthers to take a FG, and they never got inside of double figures until a late Arbuckle TD run.

This marks the first time ever that Liberty has beaten an FBS team in back to back seasons, and the third FBS win in the last 6 seasons, after only getting one FBS win in the first 36 seasons of LU football...COMBINED.

This was an important win for the program, maybe not from the standpoint of boosting our resume with the selection committee, but at the very least shows they can bounce back from a tough loss.

Here are the grades for this week:

Offense: A
After the running game was non-existent the last few games, it came back with a vengeance down in Atlanta, giving the Flames offense much needed balance. Josh Woodrum even got in on th efun busting a 36 yard run on his first option play.

Darrin "Petey" Peterson returned to the lineup and while he did not have a huge game (9 receptions 89 yards), he was enough of a presence that Josh Woodrum was able to spread the ball around. Also, a new face emerged in true freshman Damian King, who made a pair of crucial third down catches to keep Flames drives alive.

The line improved as well, paving the way for the running game (although they ned to work on getting better push in the middle) and keeping Woodrum upright as they did not allow a sack in thega,e

Defense: C+

The biggest issue I had with the defense is in the backfield. The Flames allowed 3 TDs of 50 yards or more including the earlier mentioned 76 yarder on GSU's first posession. There were young DBs back there with Wesley Scott out due to injury, but they still need to be more cognizant of the player in front of them and not get caught with their eyes in the backfield.

The line sacked Arbuckle 3 times and largely shut down the running game of the Panthers (although some could argue they didn't have one to begin with).

Special Teams: B

The Flames got very lucky on a roughing the kicker penalty during Trey Turner's one punt on the day, but he will need to work on that or it could be a block party down the road.

Lunsford found his mojo, hitting both of his field goals (from 28 and 56 yards respectively). the 56 yarder was a gutsy call in the 4th, but head coach Turner Gill has a ton of confidence in his senior starter sending him out that close to midfield.

The return game showed improvement again and DJ Abnar showed the burst all Flames remember from his debut against Gardner-Webb in 2012, as he very nearly took the opening kickoff for a TD (which I believe has never happened for the Flames)

Overall Grade: B

 #15 Liberty 3-2 (0-0 Big South)

vs.

Gardner-Webb

This week the Flames head down to Boiling Springs, NC for the opener to Big South play against the Runnin Bulldogs. This is the 7th time the Flames have opened against G-W, and the first time doing so on the road since 2011. To say the Flames have dominated the series in recent history would be an understatement. Liberty has not lost a game in this series since 2006, has not allowed a point to G-W in the last 8+ quarters (G-W last scored on a Juanne Blount 4 yd. TD run in the 4th quarter...in 2012...) and has beaten the Runnin Bulldogs by double figures in all but 1 of those victories (7 points in 2012)

Matchup:

Location: Earnest W. Spangler Stadium, Boiling Springs NC
Series: 22nd Meeting (Liberty leads 12-8-1)
Last Meeting: Liberty 34-0 (10/25/14)
Kickoff: 37:00 PM
Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play, Runnin Bulldogs Radio Network (wgwg.org) Brendan Boylan play-by-play
Television: American Sports Network/National Mike Tilley play-by-play
Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty, 24-16 Record),Carroll McCray (3rd Season at Gardner-Webb, 12-16 Record)
Last Week: Liberty W 41-33 vs. Georgia State ,  Gardner-Webb had a bye week


Prediction:

G-W is a very young squad, and they have struggled on offense, only scoring more than 20 points once and that was in the opening loss to South Alabama. I think Liberty wins this one easily, but if G-W does not find some offense and fast, they will be the Runnin right out of their own stadium thanks to Liberty

Liberty 45
Gardner-Webb 7

Fan the Flames Week 5 Preview: Georgia State

After a week off due to a very hectic work schedule, I am back to preview Liberty's final non-conference game of the season, and second FBS opponent.

Before I do though, let's take a quick look back at last week's game against Southern Illinois.

Josh Woodrum threw for 277 yards and became Liberty's all-time leader in total offense, but the Flames were undone by a pair of fumbles, 2 failed 4th down conversions and a much faster Saluki squad as they fell 34-13 last Saturday night.

Woodrum did not throw an interception on the evening, but he was not very efficient, needing 47 attempts to get his yards. He also failed to throw a TD pass in a regular season game for the first time since the VMI game in 2013, and the Flames again could not get the running game going, as Todd Macon led the way with only 28 yards and the lone TD on the night. The Flames have not been held without an offensive TD since September 2010 against JMU (a 10-3 loss), a span of 57 games. That game was also the last time Liberty failed to reach double figures in points.

The Flames are going to have to get the run game on track if they want to contend for the Big South title, much less a playoff berth of any type.

Grades for Week 4:

Offense: C-
This is being pretty generous I know. Woodrum needed 47 attempts to get his yardage, the Flames finished below 100 yards on the ground for the third straight game and Woodrum was sacked twice, both times losing the football. there were some bright spots so I didn't think that this week warranted a D or F grade

Defense: C+
 The Flames were held without a sack after Chima pancaked Montana's QB to set the all-time sack record. They will need to get much better penetration into the GSU backfield in order to keep the pressure on QB Nick Arbuckle. The DBs were burned on some long pass plays as well, although Alpha Jalloh did have a nice diving INT. GSU has a couple guys that can put up some crooked numbers if they are not on their game despite the 1-2 record.

Special Teams:C-
Lunsford once again struggled, missing from 57 and 48 yards, but hitting from 39 and 57. The 2014 All-American is going to need to get his head in the game if he is going to be as potent a weapon as he was last year.

Trey Turner only had 1 punt, which thankfully was not blocked after the adventurous time against Montana. Hopefully he figures out a way to speed up his delivery, although I would be perfectly content with the Flames not attempting any punts in this one.

The kick return game was...well outside of Damian King it was...well...meh. King had a 38 yard burst against the Salukis, so you have to think he is due to break a huge one at some point, as is DJ Abnar. Zac Parker again struggled fielding punts, having an adventurous fair catch and a negative return in his two attempts.

Now on to this week's FBS opponent:

Liberty (#18 FCS) 2-2 (0-0) Big South)

vs.

Georgia State 1-2 (1-0 Sun Belt)

The Liberty Flames make their first ever appearance in the Georgia Dome, and their first appearance in the state of GA since 2006 (Trivia: Who was the opponent in that game?) Liberty is 2-1 in FBS games against non-"P5" opponents (defeating Ball State in 2010 and Appalachian State last year, and losing to Kent State in 2013).

Matchup:

Location: Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA
Series: First Meeting
Last Meeting: First Meeting
Kickoff: 3:30 PM
Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play, Georgia State Radio Network (Georgia State) Dave Cohen play-by-play
Television: ESPN3/Big South Network (National) Matt Stewart play-by-play
Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty, 23-16 Record), Trent Miles (3rd Season at GSU, 3-25 Record)
Last Week: Liberty L 13-34 vs.Southern Illinois,  Georgia State had a bye week

Prediction:

GSU has made strides under Coach Miles, but they still only have 3 wins in 28 games under the former Indiana State HC, and last year against 2nd year FCS program Abilene Christian, they had to rally in the 4th quarter to squeak out a 1 point win.

The Flames need this game to bolster their resume for a bid to the FCS playoffs. A win here, paired with a win over Montana as well will certainly look good in the eyes of the committee, especially if SIU and West Virginia continue to do well.

While I do pick the Flames to win this one, GSU is still an FBS program so I think this game will be close. If Lunsford was able to get his screws tightened up top, I expect him to blast one at the gun and give the Flames another FBS "scalp" (as they call in on some of the FCS message boards)

Liberty 35

Georgia State 32

Fan the Flames 2015 Week 3 Preview: Montana

The Liberty Flames return to Williams Stadium this week for what is likely their biggest game in school and stadium history this Saturday night as they celebrate Hall of Fame Weekend and induct the new class into the Liberty Athletics Hall of Fame. First, a quick recap of last week:

The Liberty Flames fell to the West Virginia Mountaineers from the Big 12 last Saturday afternooon by a score of 41-17. The Mountaineers scores the first 20 points of the game en route to the win, as Liberty finished the first half with only 4 possessions, 3 of which ended with a missed John Lunsford field goal.

Josh Woodrum finished with 280 yards passing, his 8th career 250 yard game, and moved into third on the all-time Big South total offense list, as well as 1,586 yards away from the all-time career passing yards record held by LU Hall of Famer Robby Justino. In order to pass Justino in the regular season, Woodrum needs to average just north of 176.2 yards per game over the final 9 games.

Des Rice finished with 37 yards on the ground as the Flames as they focused on the passing game in Morgantown. Todd Macon had the lone rushing TD for Liberty, finishing with 31 yards.

Darrin Peterson and Dante Shells led the receivers, combining for 135 yards on 8 receptions.Nick Newman and Avery James led the way for the defense with 9 tackles each and Chima Uzowihe added another 1.0 sacks to his career total, putting him second all time on the Flames' career sack list, only 1.5 behind leader Aaron DeBerry.

The Flames fall to 1-5 in FBS matchups under Turner Gill following the loss and remain winless in school history against "Power 5" programs.


Before moving onto the game preview for the week and grades for the West Virginia game, I want to send a quick congratulations to the earlier mentioned Liberty University Hall of Fame Class of 2015, which will be honored on Friday night: Eric Green (football, Liberty's first and to this day only first round NFL Draft selection), Katie Feenstra Mattera (basketball- 3 time Big South Player of the Year, Honorable Mention AP All American, all time leader in field goals and blocked shots, as well as most points in a single game), Mike Hatch (wrestling- all time leader in wins, two time Division II All American), Sam Rutigliano (football- all time leader in wins and longest tenured coach in football history, coached LU to first ever win over a 1-A/FBS program in 1989 (Eastern Michigan)), and Pat Sipe (baseball- all time leader in hore runs, total bases, runs scored and RBI)

Grades for Week 2:

Offense: C+
Woodrum passe for 280 yards which was nice, but missed opportunities in the first half, including missing Peterson for a TD as well as a fumbled option pitch, in addition to 3 missed Lunsford field goals put a damper on the Flames, although they did get a Des Rice TD run, a nice hookup between Woodrum and speedy Zac Parker and Lunsford connecting on his final attempt of the game. With a high powered Grizzlies offense coming to town, the home team canNOT have any missed opportunities or empty possessions. The offensive line does deserve a shoutout though as they did not allow a sack for the entire game.

Defense: B-

While allowing 41 points might be seen as a failure to some, the defense did well in spurts before the overall depth of the FBS Mountaineers showed itself. Nick Newman and Avery James led the way in tackles, Chima had another solid day  and the defense had much to learn from as they head into the remainder of their schedule

Special Teams: D
Lunsford's three missed field goals definitely dragged this unit's grade down, but Trey Turner was booming them again, finishing with a 38.8 yard average on 4 punts. DJ Abnar and true freshman Damian King had some nice returns on kickoffs, but Parker again had issues on punt returns, including allowing one ball to bounce inside the 5 yard line and pin the Flames deep


Now, on to this week's big game:

 #8/7 Montana 1-1 (0-1 Big Sky)

vs.

 #15/14 Liberty 1-1 (0-0 Big South)

The Flames welcome the Grizzlies for the first time ever to Lynchburg to complete their home/home agreement started in 2012 when Liberty traveled to Missoula.

Matchup:

Location: Arthur L. Williams Stadium, Lynchburg, VA
Series: Second Meeting (Montana leads 1-0)
Last Meeting: 34-14 UM WVU (09/15/2012)
Kickoff: 3 PM
Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play, Montana Radio Network (Montana) Mick Holien play-by-play
Television: ESPN3/Big South Network (National) Mike Hogewood play-by-play
Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty, 23-15 Record), Bob Stitt (1st Season at Montana, 1-1 Record)
Last Week: Liberty L 17-41 vs. West Virginia,  Montana had a bye week


Prediction
This game can go one of two ways with two high powered offenses meeting on Saturday night. Either, both teams will put up a ton of points and we could see a score on par with the CCU homecoming game in 2013 or the App State game in Boone last year, or we could have the two defenses put on a clinic and end up with a game much like the Griz had two weeks ago against Cal Poly and the two teams are lucky to break 45 points (the o/u for this game). I am thinking a result closer to the former. Deep down in my heart of hearts. I want Liberty to win this game. It will be a signature win over a historic program, in front of what will likely be a record crowd in Lynchburg on Saturday night thanks to the fact that is also is Parent's Weekend AND College For A Weekend at Liberty. I am picking the Griz in a close one, but I will have zero problem rejoicing over a Flames victory

Liberty 31
Montana 34

Fan the Flames 2015 Week 2 Preview: West Virginia

Sorry to jump in a little late this year readers, but life has been busy for this intrepid blog writer. But we are back and so let's recap the opener against Delaware State before jumping into this week's opponent:

The Flames kicked off the 2015 season with a 32-13 victory over the Delaware State Hornets from the MEAC.  Desmond Rice, in his first game since 2013, rushed for 139 yards and 2 TDs, while Josh Woodrum began his final assault on the all-time passing yards record by throwing for 188 yards and 2 TDs.

The Flames jumped on the board first, thanks to the first of Woodrum's two TDs, a 26 yarder to Darrin Peterson. After a Wesley Scott INT, the Flames doubled their lead on the ensuing possession, capped by Des Rice racing in from 23 yards out.
A Nick Newman safety was followed by a John Lunsford 52 yard field goal to push the lead to 19-6 heading into the half.

Woodrum found his favorite target again in the third quarter, this time from 6 yards out and the Flames extended their lead to 19 after a missed two-point conversion. DSU cut the deficit to 12  25-13 on a 2 yard Jamal Jackson run, but the Flames capped off the scoring with a 6 yard Rice touchdown for their 8th win in the last 9 openers at Williams Stadium (the 2010 game against St Francis (PA) was played across town at Lynchburg City Stadium).

Grades for Week 1:

Offense: B-

Some may call me generous for that, but there was a lot of good to see from this group. the O-line did well keeping JW upright, and paved the way for a good rushing night for Des Rice. Petey was...well Petey, although he did have to be carted off the field. Zac Parker had 6 catches for 41 yards and LCA grad BJ Farrow caught his first collegiate ball for 20 yards.

Defense: A-

THe boys up front did well in the new 4-2-5 package, routinely getting into the DSU backfield, including the aforementioned Newman safety, and finishing with 5 sacks, 2.5 from preseason all-conference pick Chima Uzowihe, who was named the conference defensive player of the week today.

The defensive bakfield had some nice plays, but as was noted by one of the posters on FlameFans, routinely got beaten on deep plays where they were not looking back for the ball. That is something that canNOT happen this week.

Special Teams: A

John Lunsford added to his reputation as "Leg-A-Tron 2.0" with a 52 yad field goal that would have been good from 60,and  Trey Turner blasted the FLame's only 3 punts including a 61 yarder. the return game had a decent night, although only 3 balls were returned total on the night, so most of this grade is on the kickers.

Now, on to this week:

 Liberty 1-0 (0-0 Big South)

 vs.

 West Virginia 1-0 (0-0 Big 12)

The Flames return to Morgantown, WV for the first time since 2009 as they face off with the Mountaineers, now a member of the Big 12. The last time these two teams met, WVU was part of the now defunct Big East Conference (which was reborn as the American Athletic Conference). An unknown player named Mike Brown made his debut in that game and began his journey into the annals of Flames football history with his performance. Here is hoping we get another breakout performer in the red, white and navy blue this year. Here is the rundown:

Matchup:

Location: Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, WV
Series: Second Meeting (WVU leads 1-0)
Last Meeting: 33-20 WVU (09/12/2009
Kickoff: 3 PM
Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play, Mountaineer Sports Network (West Virginia) Tony Caridi play-by-play
Television: Root Sports/Fox Sports Net (West Virginia) Mark Followell play-by-play
Coaches: Turner Gill (4th Season at Liberty, 23-14 Record), Dana Holgorsen (5th Season at West Virginia, 29-23 Record)
Last Week: Liberty W 32-13 vs. Delaware State, West Virginia W 44-0 vs. Georgia Southern

Prediction

Liberty has shown well against FBS opponents in the past 9 seasons, and if not for a bad case of the "yips" in the third quarter, would have had another close game against UNC this year. If the FLames can work out the rough stuff that took place last week, we could be looking at another one of those matchups against a P5 FBS opponent. I have the Mountaineers winning this one, but I would not be surprised if the Flames do not go down as easily as the former FCS national champion Eagles did in Morgantown.

Liberty 24
West Virginia 38