Well folks, after a three-year hiatus, I am back. Thank you to Jacob Bleymaier and The Point for giving me an opportunity to return to my roots and write about Liberty Football. After taking the first couple of weeks to get things somewhat settled, I am back in action so let's open this week with a quick recap of the Flames' home opener against UAB.
Kaidon Salter opened the game as the starter and with the exception of a couple plays near the goal line, carried the load for Liberty all night, finishing 13/25 for 202 yards while adding 89 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries as the defense bowed up and made the plays when it mattered and LU won 21-14
The Blazers' double-barreled rushing attack of Dewayne McBride and Jermaine Brown Jr, did finish with 285 yards and 2 TDs, but the Liberty defense forced four fumbles and extinguished the Blazers when it mattered most. Robert "Rocket" Rahimi and "The General" Javon Scruggs each had 6 tackles and a fumble recovery to lead the way.
Now on to the biggest game of the year for the Flames thus far...
#18 Wake Forest (2-0)
vs.
Liberty (2-0)
The Liberty Flames make their first trip to Winston-Salem since 2012 to face off with the Demon Deacons. This is also the first road game for Liberty against a ranked FBS opponent since their own move to FBS. This is also the first time LU has traveled to a ranked ACC school since 2014 when they traveled to North Carolina in 2014 (a game the Flames lost 56-29). Wake Forest is coming off an outstanding 2021 season, winning 11 games, qualifying for the ACC Championship game (where they lost to Kenny Pickett and Pittsburgh), and winning the Gator Bowl over Rutgers 38-10.
The Deacs are red hot on offense, led by Sam Hartman, who returned to the program after contemplating going to the NFL, and they have scored 40+ points in wins over FCS (and former Big South rival to Liberty) VMI and Vanderbilt from the SEC.
On paper, this sounds like it would be a blowout loss for Liberty, but we all know football games arent played out on paper, or on internet message boards. Kaidon Salter is improving as he acclimates to being "the guy" under center for Liberty, but head coach Hugh Freeze knows he has weapons at his disposal and has a defense that has gotten after it in the first two games, with LU currently in the top 5 in the country in a number of defensive categories.
Location:Truist Field at Wake Forest, Winston Salem, NC
Series: Wake Forest leads 3-0
Last Meeting: September 1, 2012 (Wake Forest 20-17)
Kickoff: 5:00 p.m.
Radio: The Journey FM Radio Network/Liberty Flames Sports Network (Liberty) Alan York play-by-play; Wake Forest Radio Network (Wake Forest) Stan Cotten play-by-play
Television: ACC Network, Mike Corey play-by-play
Coaches: Hugh Freeze (4th season at Liberty 28-11 record), Dave Clawson (9th season at WF 53-48 record
Last Week: Liberty d. UAB 21-14, Wake Forest d. Vanderbilt 45-25
If you followed the chatter on the message boards and social media communities for both schools, you'd think that Wake Forest would roll over Liberty like their first two opponents. The thing that Liberty could use to their advantage though is Wake hosts Clemson in their ACC opener next Saturday night, and while not as dominant as the team when Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson (both now in the NFL) were calling signals for the Tigers, Wake Forest could be looking ahead because Clemson has won 13 straight meetings in this series, and this may be one of the best opportunities for a win in that series. With that in mind, it would be a prime opportunity for the Flames to pull an upset.
Liberty cannot afford a slow start offensively though if they want to pull that off. This is a Wake Forest team that has scored LESS than 30 points just twice in the last 16 games. If Liberty's defense eats like they did against UAB and forces a LOT of turnovers, this could be a very low-scoring game. Otherwise, this one could get ugly very quickly.
Liberty 27
Wake Forest 24
