Liberty football posted a video to its social media channels on Wednesday evening announcing that numerous seniors will be returning for one more season in 2021. The NCAA has previously ruled that the 2020 football season will not count against student-athletes eligibility, and now we know which Liberty seniors will be returning for 2021.

Wide receivers DJ Stubbs and Kevin Shaa, offensive linemen Tristan Schultz, Bryce Mathews, Thomas Sargeant, and Damian Bounds, tight ends Trevor Hobbs and Johnny Huntley, running back Joshua Mack, defensive tackles Ralfs Rusins and Elijah James, defensive end Jayod Sanders, safeties Ben Alexander and Cedric Stone, corner Jimmy Faulks, and kicker Alex Barbir were all included in the video announcing their return.

The seniors who will not return are quarterback Chris Ferguson, running back Peytton Pickett, tight end Chris Barrett, offensive lineman Maisen Knight, linebackers Anthony Butler, Tyron Staples, and Matt Terrell, corner Emanuel Dabney, and safety Tim Kidd-Glass.

Mack returns to a Liberty backfield where he has rushed for nearly 1,500 yards and 11 touchdowns over the past two seasons since transferring to Lynchburg from Maine.

Stubbs led the team in receiving in 2020 with 38 receptions for 523 yards and 3 touchdowns, and he has surpassed the 1,500 receiving yard mark in his Liberty career. Shaa has been the third leading receiver on the team each of the past two seasons, and he has 51 receptions for 813 yards and 6 touchdowns during his time at Liberty.

Huntley led Liberty’s tight ends in 2020 with 15 receptions for 201 yards and 3 touchdowns in his second year on the field with the program after transferring in from Colorado. In his lone season at Liberty, Hobbs had 3 receptions for 33 yards, playing in only two games this year after suffering an injury during training camp.

Sargeant has started every game for the past four seasons at center for Liberty. Schultz has started most games over the past three seasons for Liberty, at right tackle and then moving over to left tackle the past two seasons. Bounds has started most of the past two seasons at left guard for the Flames. Mathews joined the program prior to the 2020 season after transferring from Ole Miss. He was a reserve lineman for the Flames.

Rusins has been the team’s starting nose guard the past two years. In 2020, he had 34 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 1 sack. James was a starter at defensive tackle for the Flames this season recording 33 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and a blocked field goal in the Cure Bowl to clinch the win for Liberty over Coastal Carolina. Sanders has been a key reserve at defensive end for the Flames. He had 6 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks in 2020.

Faulks started most of the 2019 season and played in 4 games in 2020 with 3 tackles and 1 interception. Alexander has been a key member of the secondary and special teams the past few seasons. He started 2 games in 2020 and had 19 tackles. Stone joined the program just prior to the start of the 2020 season. He played in 10 games, making 5 starts, and recorded 23 tackles and 1 interception.

Barbir joined the program for the 2020 season and made 13 of his 20 field goals and 50 of his 52 PATs.