No. 20 Liberty Withstands Slugfest to Claim CUSA Football Championship

LYNCHBURG, Va. No. 20 Liberty claimed its first-ever FBS conference title, getting two fourth-quarter touchdowns to distance itself from New Mexico State in a 49-35 win in the 2023 CUSA Football Championship.

The back-and-forth heavyweight bout was tied 35-35 after three quarters of play before Liberty added two of its five rushing touchdowns in the fourth to secure the victory.

With the win, Liberty extends its school-record win streak to remain undefeated and move to 13-0 for the first time in program history.

Liberty fell 18 yards short of setting a school record with its 712 total offensive yards on 70 plays, averaging 10.2 yards per play.

The nation's No. 1 rushing attack was once again on full display, seeing Liberty rush for 393 yards on 45 carries (8.7 yards per carry).

CUSA Football Championship MVP Kaidon Salter accounted for 484 of Liberty's total offensive yards. He rushed for 165 yards and a touchdown, while completing 20-of-25 passing attempts for 319 yards and two touchdowns.

Salter's 484 total yards were the second most by a Liberty player in a single game, trailing only Mike Brown's 494 (334 passing, 160 rushing) against Stony Brook on Nov. 20, 2010.

Quinton Cooley moved into second place on Liberty's single-season rushing touchdown total, getting three more on the day to give him 16 on the season. He finished the game with 11 carries for 71 yards.

CJ Daniels was Salter's top target, matching his career-high with 157 yards on seven receptions. The junior also pulled in his 10^th receiving touchdown of 2023, moving him into third place on Liberty's single-season touchdown receptions list.

When the Flames needed a defensive stop during the fourth quarter, the nation's No. 1 team in interceptions picked off its national-leading 21^st of the season.

Up 42-35 early in the fourth quarter, Brandon Bishop intercepted a potential game-tying touchdown pass in New Mexico State's end zone with just under 10 minutes left to play.

Four plays later, Salter scored on a 35-yard touchdown run to put the Flames up two scores and in control of the game.

Bishop finished the game with a career-high 11 tackles and his third interception of the year. Joseph Carter followed with 10 stops, his second double-digit tackle effort of 2023.

The Flames' win today:

Extends the Flames' program records for wins in a season (13), home wins in a season (8) and winning streak (13).
Makes the Flames the first FBS team in Virginia ever to win 13 games in a season.
Ties the Conference USA single-season record for victories. Houston (2011) and Marshall (2014) each won 13 games, but neither started out 13-0.
Enables the Flames to win their ninth conference title and first at the FBS level. Liberty previously captured eight Big South Conference crowns between 2007-16.
Gives the Flames a pair of wins over New Mexico State this season. The Aggies are the only team Liberty has ever defeated twice in a season (also 2019).
Improves the Flames' all-time record against New Mexico State to 5-2, tying the Aggies with UMass as the FBS opponents Liberty has defeated most often in program history.

Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 49-35
Liberty (13-0, 8-0 CUSA)
New Mexico State (10-4, 7-1 CUSA)
Location: Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 20,077

Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter

The second matchup between the two teams in 2023 started just like the first with New Mexico State jumping out to a 7-0 lead on the Aggies' first possession. Diego Pavia capped an eight-play 75-yard drive with some misdirection, faking a handoff before scoring on a 25-yard touchdown run up the middle.
The Flames answered right back, scoring on their opening possession of the game for the 10^th time in 13 games in 2023 (nine touchdowns and one field goal). Quinton Cooley finished off a nine-play, 80-yard drive with his first of three rushing touchdowns on the day, knotting the score at 7-7 with 6:09 left to play in the quarter.

Second Quarter

New Mexico State moved back in front on the first play of the second quarter as Pavia found a receiver on the near side of the field on a third-and-three play. A 10-yard touchdown reception by Ron Tiavaasue finished off an 11-play, 75-yard drive at 14:55 and gave the Aggies a 14-7 edge.
Liberty scored twice more before the half and took its first lead of the game with 27 seconds left before the half. Cooley scored his second touchdown of the day at 5:38, while Noah Frith caught a 26-yard touchdown pass from Salter to give Liberty a brief lead, 21-14, with under a minute before the break.
Less than a half of a minute of game clock did not phase Pavia. The quarterback completed four straight passing plays, including a 17-yard strike to Trent Hudson in the back of the end zone with three seconds left to tie the game 21-21 at the break.

Third Quarter

Liberty scored twice during the opening six minutes of the third quarter to regain the lead at 35-21. Cooley scored his third rushing touchdown of the game at 13:15, a four-yard run, while Salter hit Daniels in the corner of the end zone on a 20-yard strike at 9:19.
The Aggies answered back with two scores of their own during the rest of the quarter, leaving the game tied 35-35 with 15 minutes to play. Pavia hit Jonathan Brady for a 75-yard touchdown pass at 9:07, while back-up quarterback Blaze Berlowitz found Hudson for an 11-yard touchdown at 2:57.

Fourth Quarter

The heavyweight showdown continued with Liberty regaining the lead on its third play of the fourth quarter. Billy Lucas scored his sixth rushing touchdown of the season on a two-yard burst up the middle, giving Liberty a 42-35 lead following a nine-play, 80-yard drive.
Following the game's lone turnover with Bishop's interception with just under 10 minutes to play, Salter put the game out of reach with a 35-yard touchdown run at 8:23 to finish off a quick four-play, 80-yard scoring drive.

What's Next:
With a perfect record still in hand following its first-ever FBS conference title win, the 13-0 Liberty Flames remain in the discussion for the Group of Five spot in a New Year's Six bowl game.

During the College Football Playoff Selection show on Sunday, the CFP committee will announce the two CFP semifinal matches, along with the remaining New Year's Six bowl game. The selection show airs on ESPN, beginning at Noon and all CFP and New Year's Six bowl match-ups announced by 2:30 p.m. All other bowl games can start to be announced shortly after 2:45 p.m.

Schedule

No. 20 Liberty Withstands Slugfest to Claim CUSA Football Championship

Next Event

Team Stats

Kaidon Salter

Players Mentioned

Brandon Bishop

Joseph Carter

Quinton Cooley

CJ Daniels

Noah Frith

Billy Lucas

Kaidon Salter

No. 20 Liberty Withstands Slugfest to Claim CUSA Football Championship

Related News

Next Event

Team Stats

Game Leaders

Kaidon Salter

Players Mentioned

Brandon Bishop

Joseph Carter

Quinton Cooley

CJ Daniels

Noah Frith

Billy Lucas

Kaidon Salter

Related News

Related Videos