Brown and Defense Push Flames Past Ball State

Completing a day of upsets for Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) programs, Liberty became the fourth FCS program to down a FBS team on Saturday. The Flames used a late touchdown by Mike Brown and numerous key defensive stands to upend Ball State, 27-23, inside Scheumann Stadium.

The win upped Liberty's record to 2-0 on the year and marked the program's second victory over a FBS team. The first came in a 25-24 stunner on Oct. 14, 1989, against another Mid-American Conference opponent, Eastern Michigan, in Ypsilanti, Mich.

Liberty missed becoming the first Big South Conference program in league history to post a FCS win over an FBS program by mere hours. Earlier today, Gardner-Webb upset Ball State's MAC conference foe Akron, 38-37, in Akron, Ohio.

A defensive shift for the Flames on the opening drive to a "4-3" scheme gave Liberty a quick edge and forced the home squad to punt the ball away following a three-and-out series.

Liberty then took to the air on its first drive of the contest to take a quick 7-0 lead at the 8:59 mark of the first quarter.

Eight of the plays on the 11-play, 79-yard scoring push were of the passing variety, spotlighted by two lengthy completions. The first was a 34-yard strike from Brown to Ervin Garner on a third-and-10 play and the second was a 21-yard scoring pass to Chris Summers after Brown avoided two would-be tacklers.

Ball State tried to answer right back on the next drive and managed to penetrate the Flames' 20-yard line on a 26-yard rush by MiQuale Lewis to the Liberty nine. However, Liberty's defense once again was able to stop the Cardinals and the home squad was forced to settle for a 28-yard field goal by Ian McGarvey with 5:25 left in the opening period.

Liberty responded and widened its lead on the ensuing drive, as the Flames started to keep the ball on the ground a bit more. Four different players carried the ball on the 10-play, 69-yard drive.

The final player with a rushing attempt was SirChauncey Holloway. He used a block by offensive lineman Malcolm Boyd on the nearside of the field, allowing him to easily scamper in for a four-yard touchdown run with 11 seconds left in the opening quarter. The four-yard burst was the ninth of Holloway's career in 10 career games, giving Liberty a 14-3 advantage after 15 minutes of play.

The Cardinals appeared to trim the margin back to four points, when wide receiver Daniel Ifft scored on a 26-yard reverse play. But the scoring effort was called back after Ball State was whistled for an illegal block.

Ball State managed to get the ball to 14-yard line and elected to go for it on a fourth-and-two play, but linebacker Kyle O'Donnell was able to get behind the line of scrimmage and halt Lewis for a four-yard loss to keep the score at 14-3.

Both teams tried to tack on additional points during the final minutes of the second quarter, but both squads missed lengthy field goals that could have added three points to the scoreboard.

Liberty's miss, a 41-yard attempt by Matt Bevins, sailed just to the right of the goalpost, ending a seven-play, 27-yard Liberty drive with 57 seconds left before intermission.

Ball State's Keith Wenning was able to quickly move the Cardinals downfield, as the quarterback completed all four of his passing attempts for a total of 40 yards. Wenning's success got the ball to the 26-yard line, but McGarvey missed his 44-yard attempt to the left to leave the halftime score at 14-3.

Both teams primarily used their passing games to move the ball during the opening 30 minutes of action. Liberty finished the first half with 204 total offensive yards, with 142 of those coming via the passing game. Ball State finished just behind Liberty with 197 total offensive yards, including 114 passing yards.

Brown was almost single handedly responsible for Liberty's yardage during the first half. He carried the ball eight times for 36 yards and completed 12-of-19 passing attempts for 142 yards. Summers was Brown's No. 1 target, as he caught six passes for 61 yards.

Wenning (5-of-6/50 yards) and Kelly Page (5-of-10/64 yards) shared quarterbacking duties for the Cardinals during the first half, with Cory Sykes as the home team's No. 1 rushing option with six carries for 32 yards.

Liberty took over possession of the ball to start the second half, but it only took three plays before Ball State got its hands on the ball.

Following two short-yardage receptions by Summers, Brown's attempt pass to Pat Kelly was picked off by Charlie Todd. Liberty's first turnover of the 2010 season was returned 36 yards by the cornerback for a touchdown, trimming Liberty's lead to four points, 14-10, 54 seconds into the third period.

Liberty managed to get to the Ball State 33-yard line on the next drive. Following two incomplete pass attempts, the visitors were forced to settle for another field goal attempt. However, Bevins' 50-yard attempt was blocked by Sean Baker and returned 10 yards.

Four plays later, Ball State took its first lead of the day, when Wenning tossed up a ball to Aaron Mershman and the freshman was able to corral in the 15-yard reception and get one foot in the end zone, giving the Cardinals a 17-14 edge with 9:54 left in the third quarter.

But the lead was short-lived for the home team, as Brown found Summers open for a career-long reception by the junior. Following two plays that resulted in a loss of two yards, Brown found Summers over the middle of the field and the wide receiver was able to outrun the defense. The 65-yard scoring reception gave Liberty a 21-17 lead with 8:47 left in the period.

A 43-yard kickoff return and a personal foul by Liberty on the coverage gave Ball State prime field position on the next play. But a defensive stand by the Flames kept the Cardinals from finding the end zone, as Ball State had to settle for a 22-yard field goal by McGarvey to pull Ball State with one, 21-20.

On the third play of the next drive, Brown threw his second interception of the day and of his career and the junior's attempted pass was returned by Baker 31 yards to the 14-yard line.

Ball State did manage to pick up a first down on a play that got to the two-yard line, but once again Liberty's defense was able to keep the Cardinals out of the end zone. McGarvey was called upon for a 21-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth period, giving Ball State a 23-21 lead with 14:57 left in the game.

Following a third interception by Brown and a three-and-out series by Ball State, Liberty took over possession of the football with just over nine minutes of play at its own 26-yard line.

Brown completed three-straight pass attempts to get to midfield and then used his legs to move the ball the rest of the way. Three-straight rushing plays by the Big South Preseason Offensive Player of the Year set up the eventual game-winning run.

Brown called his own number again on a second-and-goal play from the one yard line and the junior bowled his way into the end zone, taking Ball State linebacker Tony Martin along with him. Following a failed two-point attempt, Liberty held a 27-23 lead with 4:47 left to play.

Ball State used the tandem of Wenning and Eric Williams to move the ball quickly downfield into Liberty territory to try and respond.

However, the Flames' battle-tested defense came up with one last defensive stand, as nose guard Asa Chapman was able to sack Wenning on a fourth-and-two play and Mike Connolly pounced on the loose ball to secure the victory with 38 seconds left in the game.

Liberty finished the game with 395 total offensive yards, with 276 of those yards coming via the passing game. Ball State tried to use a more balanced offensive attack, finishing with 145 rushing yards and 193 passing yards (for a total of 338 yards).

Brown finished the game by completing 24-of-38 passing attempts for 276 yards and two touchdowns. The junior also added 87 rushing yards on 18 attempts, including the game-winning one-yard run.

Summers posted his second-straight 100-yard game, as the junior hauled in 11 receptions for 146 yards and two scores. B.J. Hayes finished as Liberty's No. 2 receiver, recording six catches for 62 yards.

Larry Claiborne led the strong defensive effort for the Flames, as the defensive back finished the game with eight tackles and his first career fumble recovery.

O'Donnell followed behind with six stops, while Connolly, Patrick Bannon and Chapman were close behind with five stops apiece.

The Flames will continue their three-game road swing next weekend, when Liberty travels to Moon Township, Pa., to take on Robert Morris. Kickoff is slated for Noon inside Joe Walton Stadium.

The contest will be the home opener for the Colonials, who are coming off a 35-31 road victory over Sacred Heart, earlier today. Robert Morris (1-1) had to rally in the game, scoring three fourth-quarter touchdowns, including the winner with 17 seconds remaining, to secure its first win of the season.

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Brown and Defense Push Flames Past Ball State

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