It was a strong start, followed by a slow second quarter, before the Flames cruised in the second half to pick up the first win of the season, 48-7, over Campbell on Saturday night. In the first game with attendance open to fans since the end of the 2019 season, Saturday night’s attendance was 15,834.
Liberty’s offense opened the game with incredible efficiency. The Flames’ first eight plays of the season traveled 114 yards and ended in two touchdowns as Liberty grabbed the early lead, 14-0. Demario Douglas scored the first touchdown of the season, grabbing Malik Willis’ first pass of the year and took it 35 yards for the score. On the team’s next possession, Willis connected with DJ Stubbs for a 40-yard attempt to set up the next score which came from a Joshua Mack run that was fumbled into the end zone and recovered by CJ Daniels.
The offense then went in a lull on the next three possessions, which included a missed field goal from Alex Barbir. This allowed the Camels to hang around, scoring a touchdown early in the second quarter to bring their deficit to just one score at 14-7.
“I thought we lost momentum and kind of relaxed some when it was 14-0,” Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze stated. “We drive right back down and miss a field goal then we were flat for one possession after that.”
With the team looking for a spark, it was none other that Malik Willis that would provide it. On the team’s final possession of the first half, the Heisman Trophy candidate took control. He accounted for 70 of the 80 yards on the drive that ended in his first rushing touchdown of the season, a 12-yard scamper around the right side as the Flames took a 20-7 lead into halftime after the missed Barbir extra point.
Coming out of the halftime break, Campbell attempted a pooch kick that only traveled just past midfield where it was fielded by Brody Brumm. Brumm would return it 28 yards to the Campbell 28. That set the Flames up for a quick scoring drive that ended in Joshua Mack’s first touchdown of the season, as he scored from one yard out.
“It was a great play by him,” Freeze said of Brumm’s return. “Credit to Coach Burns, they work that stuff. We knew they weren’t going to kick it to us. We practiced all those scenarios, the sky kicks to the upbacks, the pooch onsides, and all those other scenarios. A lot of credit goes to Brody and him handling it. That was a great way to start the second half.”
Just like the first half when Liberty scored on its first two drives, the Flames would do the same in the second half. The second score came on a drive that featured a heavy dose of Utah transfer running back TJ Green. He had his first six carries in a Liberty uniform, taking them 40 yards. On the next play, Shedro Louis took the handoff from Willis and scampered untouched for 36 yards as Liberty’s lead ballooned to 27-7. The Flames’ defense would take it from there, limiting the Camels to just 81 yards of offense in the second half.
Malik Willis would finish the game completing 15 of his 23 passes for 217 yards and 1 touchdowns. He also added 5 rushing attempts for 55 yards and another score.
“I thought he was pretty solid,” said Freeze of Malik’s play. “I thought he made one bad decision and one throw that was a little off, could have been caught by DJ (Stubbs), but it was a little behind him too on third down. Other than those two throws, one decision, I thought he was really solid. He played well.”
Demario Douglas led the team with 7 receptions for 84 yards and 1 touchdown. It was a career high in receptions in a single game for the redshirt-freshman wide receiver who also led the team with 9 nine targets. DJ Stubbs added 3 receptions for 68 yards while Jaivian Lofton added 3 receptions for 51 yards and a score.
Joshua Mack led the team with 19 rushes for 60 yards and a touchdown while Shedro Louis had 46 yards and a score on 3 attempts. TJ Green chipped in 39 yards on 7 carries.
The Flames outgained the Camels, 537-269, in total offensive yards on the evening. Liberty finished with 218 rushing yards and 319 through the air. The Flames did finish the game with 12 penalties for 98 yards.
Liberty will hit the road for the first time this season as the Flames travel to Troy, Alabama to take on the Troy Trojans. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. eastern time. Troy opened the season tonight facing FCS Southern, picking up the win 55-3.
