Liberty football is currently in the midst of spring practice as the Flames will go through 15 practices over the course of several weeks. With only one transfer portal window which closed following the conclusion of the 2025 season, Liberty knows its roster it will have for the upcoming 2026 season. As the team goes through its spring practice sessions, we are going through a series over the a few weeks where we break down each position on the roster. We continue today with a look at the offensive line.
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Quarterbacks
Running backs
Offensive line
50 Val Erickson, 6’5″, 320 lb (NC State)
51 DJ Geth, 6’3″, 295 lb
52 Kevin Evehe, 6’6″, 296 lb (St. Francis)
53 Alex Birchmeier, 6’5″, 300 lb (Penn State)
56 Christian Williams, 6’4″, 310 lb
58 Jude Foster, 6’3″, 290 lb (Ole Miss)
59 Brandon Edozie, 6’6″, 275 lb
60 Joep Engbers, 6’4″, 305 lb
61 Aaron Fenimore, 6’1″, 295 lb
62 Blake Martin, 6’2″, 250 lb
63 Daniel Schiffert, 6’3″, 295 lb
65 Malcolm Gaston, 6’4″, 350 lb
66 Erwil Anthony, Jr., 6’4″, 285 lb
70 Austin Anderson, 6’4″, 300 lb
73 Curtis Doirilus, 6’3″, 335 lb
76 Gabe Smith, 6’5″, 300 lb
The offensive line is the only position group on the offensive side of the ball where Liberty returns a significant amount of production and has several known commodities. Under fourth year offensive line coach Bill Durkin, the Flames should be able to rely on the front group, at least to begin the season while the skill position groups on offense figure out their rotation and responsibilities.
Up front, Liberty returns an experienced group that combines for 100 games played and 58 starts for the Flames over their careers. The offensive line will once again be anchored by Aaron Fenimore as he enters his third year starting at Liberty. The captain is not just one of the top offensive linemen in Conference USA, he is one of the top in the country. He was first-team all-conference in 2024 as a redshirt-freshman and named VaSID All-State Offensive Rookie of the Year. He enters the 2026 season having started 24 straight games for Liberty at center.
DJ Geth transferred to Liberty from North Carolina prior to the 2024 season, and he has become a vital piece of the group over the past two seasons. Geth started all 12 games last year, working primarily at left tackle. He has also spent time at guard during his career with the Flames, providing some flexibility for Coach Durkin. After transferring in from Illinois a year ago, Joep Engbers quickly earned a starting spot for Liberty in 2025, starting 10 games at left guard, a spot that he enters as the team’s starter to begin 2026. Christian Williams is another offensive lineman who transferred to Liberty last offseason. Joining the Flames from Florida, Williams would start 9 games for Liberty at right tackle. He will be fighting for a starting spot again this year, as Austin Anderson will also be looking for a starting spot at tackle. Anderson has played just three games in his career for the Flames, but he has an extremely high ceiling if he can remain healthy.
In addition to those five known pieces Liberty has to work with, the Flames also hit the transfer portal and brought in four offensive linemen – Alex Birchmeier, Val Erickson, Jude Foster, and Kevin Evehe. Birchmeier played in 26 games over the last two seasons at Penn State, including all 16 in 2024, mostly in a special teams capacity. He was a top 100 recruit out of high school in the 2023 recruiting class as he was the No. 1 player in Virginia, No. 2 interior offensive lineman in the class of 2023, and No. 54 player in the country per 247 Sports’ Composite rankings coming out of high school, playing at Broad Run High School in Ashburn, Virginia. Birchmeier has been working with the first team at right guard early in spring practice.
Erickson has transferred to Liberty from NC State where he played in 7 games this year for the Wolfpack. He began his career at Missouri and has played both guard and tackle. Erickson was a three-star recruit out of Chicago’s St. Rita High School. He was ranked as the No. 809 recruit nationally, No. 56 offensive lineman in the country, and Illinois’ No. 18 prospect. In 2024 at NC State, he saw action in seven games and started two. He redshirted in 2022 at Missouri and did not see any action.
Coming from Ole Miss, Foster was a top 150 national prospect as an offensive tackle in the 2024 recruiting cycle. The 6’3″, 290-pounder redshirted his true freshman season, not playing for the Rebels. In 2025, he saw limited action before entering the transfer portal. Evehe is originally from Randallstown, Maryland and Randallstown High School, transferring to Liberty from Saint Francis. Each of these four incoming transfers will be competing for playing time throughout the spring and summer.
