With a minimum of six FBS wins needed to be bowl eligible, Liberty faces a crucial game this Saturday against the New Mexico Lobos.
The Flames offense erupted in a victory over New Mexico last season. Quarterback Buckshot Calvert threw for 417 yards and three touchdowns and Antonio Gandy-Golden collected 245 yards receiving to secure a 52-43 Flames victory. This year, however, the Flames face a very different Lobos team.
New Mexico have brought in 19 junior college transfers, according to Coach Freeze. New Mexico also brought in two new coordinators. Jordan Peterson leads the defense, and Joe Dailey, a name that should ring a bell for the Flames, is the Lobos’ offensive coordinator.
New Mexico’s strength is unquestionably its offense. With the exception of a poor offensive showing against No. 10 Notre Dame, the Lobos’ offense closely mirrors the success Dailey had as offensive coordinator at Liberty. UNM opened the year with a 39-31 win over Sam Houston State before losing to Notre Dame and putting up 55 points in a three-point win over New Mexico State just last week.
Senior running back Ahmari Davis has rushed for 262 yards on 53 attempts through three games, good for almost five yards per carry. Quarterback Tevaka Tuioti has completed 22-of-41 passes for 487 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. His favorite targets are receivers Aaron Molina, Marcus Williams and Jordan Kress; each of whom have over 100 yards receiving.
“It’s good,” Coach Freeze said of the Lobos offense in a Monday presser. “It’s well planned out. It has answers, they run RPO’s, quarterback’s dual-threat.”
“That and just the different variety of defenses you get,” Freeze concluded in reference to New Mexico’s multiple defensive schemes. Freeze mentioned early in the press conference that the Lobos present multiple defensive fronts, and the points New Mexico has allowed this year shouldn’t induce a sigh of relief.
“It’s kind of awkward to prepare for, some of the things that I’ve seen on tape” Freeze said of the Lobos defense. “And kind of struggling with, how much time do you spend on the stranger things that you see?”
“It’s different from week to week. So, that’s a challenge.”
