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Liberty University
6-3
UMass
1-8
Flames Shatter Records in 63-21 Win at UMass
11/2/2019 12:00:00 AM | Football
Liberty's high-powered offense was clicking on all cylinders during the Flames' 63-21 road win at UMass, Saturday afternoon, at McGuirk Alumni Stadium.
With Liberty's second road win in three away games, the Flames have reached the six-win mark for the 14th season in a row (2006-19).
The sizeable victory also leaves the Flames one win away from becoming bowl eligible during the program's first full season at the FBS level. Liberty currently has four wins over FBS teams in 2019 and two victories over FCS programs.
The Flames will need one more victory during their final three games to reach the qualifying win total and be eligible for selection into one of the 39 FBS bowl games in 2019.
Liberty set a new program record for most total offensive yards in game, finishing the UMass contest with 730 yards on 77 plays (9.5 yards per play).
The offensive outburst surpasses Liberty's previous school record of 692 yards set during a 56-3 road win at Presbyterian College on Oct. 13, 2012.
Quarterback Stephen Calvert accounted for more than half of those yards during his record-setting day. The senior completed 20-of-27 passing attempts for 474 yards and four touchdowns, besting his own prior school record of 447 passing yards against Baylor in 2017.
With his 474 passing yards, Calvert continued to extend his school record for career passing yards (11,000) and touchdowns (85).
Calvert's top target on the day was once again Antonio Gandy-Golden, who led the team with six receptions for 137 yards, including a 60-yard touchdown catch. With his half dozen receptions on the day, Gandy-Golden is now tied with Darrin Peterson (2012-15) for the school's all-time career leader in receptions (215).
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 63-21
Liberty (6-3)
UMass (1-8)
Location: McGuirk Alumni Stadium (Amherst, Mass.)
Attendance: 10,184
Turning Point:
Much like its game at Rutgers last week, that ended in a 44-34 win by the Scarlet Knights, both teams moved the ball quickly up and down the field today and scored on three of the first four drives of the game.
However, unlike the Rutgers game, the Flames' defenders backed up the strong play of their offensive teammates. After a first quarter fumble on a misplayed punt return, which resulted in a quick UMass touchdown, Liberty allowed the Minutemen only two more scoring drive during the home team's remaining 14 drives of the contest.
The strong defensive effort allowed Liberty to outgain UMass by 490 yards (730 to 240).
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
• The two teams traded scores during the early part of the opening quarter, which gave Liberty a 14-7 lead at the 8:13 mark.
• The Flames scored twice early in the first period. Liberty got a seven-yard touchdown run by Frankie Hickson at 13:22 and a five-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Robinson to Troy Henderson at 8:13.
• Liberty pushed its lead to 28-7 before the end of the first quarter, scoring twice during a 94-second span late in the opening first 15 minutes of play.
• Demario Douglas got his first career touchdown reception on a 31-yard play at 1:36, while Gandy-Golden added to his all-time career leading stats with a 60-yard scoring play with two seconds left to play in the quarter for his 30th career touchdown reception.
Second Quarter
• The Minutemen tried to remain in the game, piecing together a nine-play, 76-yard drive to open the second quarter. Andrew Brito completed a three-yard strike to Josiah Johnson at 11:59, pulling UMass within 14 points (28-14).
• However, the rest of the quarter belonged to the Flames, who took a 49-14 lead into the locker room at halftime. Liberty got two passing touchdowns from Calvert to DJ Stubbs (38 yards) and Jerome Jackson (four yards) and a two-yard rushing touchdown from Robinson to complete the team's best offensive half of the season.
Third Quarter
• Hickson was the final Flame to find the end zone on the day, scoring twice during the third quarter. The senior had scoring runs of one and 15 yards, helping him match his career high with three rushing touchdowns on the day.
• UMass' final scoring drive of the day came at the 8:18 mark when Brito completed a 45-yard pass play to Sadiq Palmer.
Fourth Quarter
• Neither team found the end zone during the final quarter, which saw the teams have a combined three drives with only one passing attempts.
What's Next:
The Flames will continue their four-game road swing, next weekend, when Liberty makes its first-ever trip to Utah to square off against BYU. The game will be televised on ESPNU and kicks off from LaVell Edwards Stadium at 7:30 p.m. EST.
Date: Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019
Location: Provo, Utah (LaVell Edwards Stadium)
TV: ESPNU
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. (EST)
Team Stats
LIBERTY 7, UMASS 0
LIBERTY - HICKSON, F. 7 yd run (PROBERT, A. kick), 5 plays, 65 yards, TOP 1:38
LIBERTY 7, UMASS 7
UMASS - ROBERSON, Cam 16 yd run (GARCIA, Cooper kick), 2 plays, 16 yards, TOP 0:13
LIBERTY 14, UMASS 7
LIBERTY - HENDERSON, T. 5 yd pass from ROBINSON, B. (PROBERT, A. kick) 3 plays, 70 yards, TOP 1:09
LIBERTY 21, UMASS 7
LIBERTY - DOUGLAS, D. 31 yd pass from CALVERT, S. (PROBERT, A. kick) 4 plays, 90 yards, TOP 1:18
LIBERTY 28, UMASS 7
LIBERTY - GANDY-GOLDEN,A. 60 yd pass from CALVERT, S. (PROBERT, A. kick) 2 plays, 72 yards, TOP 0:24
LIBERTY 28, UMASS 14
UMASS - JOHNSON, Josiah 3 yd pass from BRITO, Andrew (GARCIA, Cooper kick) 9 plays, 76 yards, TOP 3:01
LIBERTY 35, UMASS 14
LIBERTY - STUBBS, DJ 38 yd pass from CALVERT, S. (PROBERT, A. kick) 6 plays, 74 yards, TOP 2:24
LIBERTY 42, UMASS 14
LIBERTY - ROBINSON, B. 2 yd run (PROBERT, A. kick), 7 plays, 63 yards, TOP 2:41
LIBERTY 49, UMASS 14
LIBERTY - JACKSON, J. 4 yd pass from CALVERT, S. (PROBERT, A. kick) 8 plays, 79 yards, TOP 1:03
LIBERTY 56, UMASS 14
LIBERTY - HICKSON, F. 15 yd run (PROBERT, A. kick), 3 plays, 59 yards, TOP 0:55
LIBERTY 56, UMASS 21
UMASS - PALMER, Sadiq 45 yd pass from BRITO, Andrew (GARCIA, Cooper kick) 3 plays, 46 yards, TOP 1:14
LIBERTY 63, UMASS 21
LIBERTY - HICKSON, F. 1 yd run (PROBERT, A. kick), 4 plays, 56 yards, TOP 1:03
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