This is the first piece in a five-part series taking a look at Liberty football entering 2026 fall practices. Be sure to check back for the rest of this series throughout the next week as we tackle a variety of Liberty football topics.

Liberty is set to open training camp on August 5th, with 15 practices throughout the next several weeks leading up to kickoff on Sep. 5 at James Madison.

As the Flames prepare for the upcoming season, here are our three biggest story lines entering camp:

HOW DO THE FLAMES RESPOND TO A 4-8 2025?

Liberty had its worst season at the FBS level and worst since 2005 with a overwhelmingly disappointing 4-8 campaign last fall. With the program’s resources, that is simply not good enough. Head coach Jamey Chadwell has taken the blame for those struggles during the offseason, citing his health concerns as a major factor in keeping him from being his best. Now, Chadwell and the Flames want to prove last year was an anomaly and the team can get back to competing for a CUSA championship and making a name for itself on the national scale.

HOW WILL THE PLAY BE AT QB?

Leading to much of the team’s struggles last year was the inconsistent play at quarterback. The Flames finished the year with a 55% completion percentage and more interceptions (13) than touchdowns (11). Those aren’t numbers that will lead to success. Ethan Vasko played in 10 of the team’s 12 games, fighting through injuries throughout much of the year, but he accounted for 10 of those touchdowns and 12 of the interceptions. Vasko is back and he has been joined by incoming transfers Deshawn Purdie and Jaylen Henderson. Both of those transfers have starting experience at the Power Four level, putting the Flames in a much more experienced place than it was a year ago. Still, one has to emerge as the team’s leader and starter and perform in a way that the team can have success.

WILL WE SEE IMPROVEMENT FROM THE DEFENSE UNDER NEW DC?

With the exception of leading the nation in interceptions in 2023 as a very opportunistic defense, the Flames have struggled on that side of the ball to be consistent in Chadwell’s previous three seasons. Looking to make a change to the defensive staff for the first time in his tenure, Chadwell is handing the reigns of the defense over to new defensive coordinator Shawn Quinn. He comes from Virginia Tech where he coached the linebackers for a few years. Previously he was a head coach at Savannah State while also serving as DC at several stops including Savannah State, Tennessee Tech, Western Carolina, and Charleston Southern. Will the Flames see improvement on that side of the ball, most notably in causing havoc and creating turnovers?