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Saturday, September 7
Las Cruces, N.M.
10:15 PM ET/8:15 PM MT
Liberty University
2-0 , 1-0
30
at
24
New Mexico State
1-1 , 0-1
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Liberty
3
6
0
21
30
New Mexico St.
10
7
0
7
24
Flames Score 3 Times in 4th Quarter to Pick Up Road CUSA Victory
9/8/2024 4:30:00 AM | Football
LAS CRUSES, N.M. - A defensive score midway through the fourth quarter sparked Liberty's stymied offense, as the Flames rallied for a 30-24 CUSA win over the New Mexico State Aggies, late Saturday night, at Aggie Memorial Stadium.
With the victory, Liberty moves to 2-0 on the season and atop the Conference USA standings after the first league game played in 2024.
New Mexico State drops back to 1-1 and 0-1 in CUSA play after its third-straight loss to Liberty, including the 2023 CUSA Football Championship game, last December.
After a scoreless third quarter for both teams and Liberty trailing 17-9, Quinton Reese sacked Aggies' starting quarterback Parker Awad. The quarterback lost control of the ball and Liberty's defensive end CJ Bazile, Jr., scooped it up and returned it 22 yards for a score to pull the Flames within two at 9:56, 17-15, after a failed two-point conversion.
Liberty, who led the nation in rushing in 2023, was held to 100 rushing yards entering the fourth quarter. However, during the final six minutes of the game, Quinton Cooley found a way to break free for two rushing touchdowns. Liberty racked up 117 yards on the ground during the final 15 minutes of play.
New Mexico State answered back after the Flames' defensive touchdown, pushing its lead to 24-15 following a two-yard score from Awad with 7:42 left to play.
The Flames quickly responded with a six-play, 82-yard drive that saw Cooley break free on a 27-yard score at the 5:12 mark.
After a failed drive by the Aggies, New Mexico State pinned Liberty at its own 10-yard line with just under three minutes to play. A 16-yard quarterback scramble by Kaidon Salter, followed by back-to-back completions to Treon Sibley, set up the game-winning play. Cooley took his 12th and final handoff of the game and found a gap to score from 44 yards out to give the Flames their first lead of the night at 1:05.
Salter found Reese Smith in the corner of the end zone on a successful two-point play, giving Liberty a 30-24 lead. Liberty's defense made the score stand by forcing four incomplete passes by New Mexico State on its last-ditch effort on its final drive to close out the game..
Liberty finished the late-night game, which kicked off at 10:25 p.m. EST, with 473 total offensive yards, and included 178 yards coming in the decisive fourth quarter.
Cooley posted his second-straight 100-yard game on the ground and the ninth of his career. He finished with 12 carries for 111 yards and two touchdowns. The senior picked up 91 of his yards during the final 15 minutes of play.
Salter finished the night completing 16-of-29 pass attempts for 256 yards. Sibley was his No. 1 option with five receptions for a career-high 155 yards, giving the senior his second 100-yard game in a row and the third of his career.
TJ Bush led Liberty's defense, which allowed only six points during the final 43 minutes of the game, with a career-high eight tackles. Bazile followed with six stops and the defensive score that started Liberty's rally.
The Flames' win today:
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 30-24
Liberty (2-0, 1-0 CUSA)
New Mexico State (1-1, 0-1 CUSA)
Location: Aggie Memorial Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 16,562
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
The Flames will look to move to 2-0 in Conference USA play when Liberty welcomes UTEP to Williams Stadium during Homecoming and Hall of Fame Weekend, next Saturday.
During the festive weekend, Liberty Athletics will celebrate its 16th Hall of Fame class when they honor Dre Barnes (Football), Kristal [Tharp] Bechtold (Women's Basketball), Chuck Burch (Athletics Administrator/Athletics Director), Keith Butler (Baseball), Bill Gillespie (Men's Track & Field/Football/Strength and Conditioning), Jennifer [Klugh] Margraff (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field) and Holly Van Noord (Women's Soccer).
Date: Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024
Location: Lynchburg, Va. (Williams Stadium)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 6 p.m. (EST)
With the victory, Liberty moves to 2-0 on the season and atop the Conference USA standings after the first league game played in 2024.
New Mexico State drops back to 1-1 and 0-1 in CUSA play after its third-straight loss to Liberty, including the 2023 CUSA Football Championship game, last December.
After a scoreless third quarter for both teams and Liberty trailing 17-9, Quinton Reese sacked Aggies' starting quarterback Parker Awad. The quarterback lost control of the ball and Liberty's defensive end CJ Bazile, Jr., scooped it up and returned it 22 yards for a score to pull the Flames within two at 9:56, 17-15, after a failed two-point conversion.
Liberty, who led the nation in rushing in 2023, was held to 100 rushing yards entering the fourth quarter. However, during the final six minutes of the game, Quinton Cooley found a way to break free for two rushing touchdowns. Liberty racked up 117 yards on the ground during the final 15 minutes of play.
New Mexico State answered back after the Flames' defensive touchdown, pushing its lead to 24-15 following a two-yard score from Awad with 7:42 left to play.
The Flames quickly responded with a six-play, 82-yard drive that saw Cooley break free on a 27-yard score at the 5:12 mark.
After a failed drive by the Aggies, New Mexico State pinned Liberty at its own 10-yard line with just under three minutes to play. A 16-yard quarterback scramble by Kaidon Salter, followed by back-to-back completions to Treon Sibley, set up the game-winning play. Cooley took his 12th and final handoff of the game and found a gap to score from 44 yards out to give the Flames their first lead of the night at 1:05.
Salter found Reese Smith in the corner of the end zone on a successful two-point play, giving Liberty a 30-24 lead. Liberty's defense made the score stand by forcing four incomplete passes by New Mexico State on its last-ditch effort on its final drive to close out the game..
Liberty finished the late-night game, which kicked off at 10:25 p.m. EST, with 473 total offensive yards, and included 178 yards coming in the decisive fourth quarter.
Cooley posted his second-straight 100-yard game on the ground and the ninth of his career. He finished with 12 carries for 111 yards and two touchdowns. The senior picked up 91 of his yards during the final 15 minutes of play.
Salter finished the night completing 16-of-29 pass attempts for 256 yards. Sibley was his No. 1 option with five receptions for a career-high 155 yards, giving the senior his second 100-yard game in a row and the third of his career.
TJ Bush led Liberty's defense, which allowed only six points during the final 43 minutes of the game, with a career-high eight tackles. Bazile followed with six stops and the defensive score that started Liberty's rally.
The Flames' win today:
- Improves the Flames' record to 19-1 all-time against CUSA opponents (at time of meeting).
- Pushes the Flames' all-time conference record to 9-0 as a member of Conference USA.
- Gives the Flames a 12-6 all-time record in conference openers, including 2-0 in Conference USA.
- Boosts the Flames' all-time record against New Mexico State to 6-2, making the Aggies the FBS opponent which Liberty has defeated most in program history (surpassing UMass).
- Gives the Flames a 3-1 all-time record in New Mexico.
- Extends the Flames' regular-season winning streak to 14 and pushing their road winning streak to six.
- Makes the Flames 8-9 all-time when traveling over 1,000 miles to play a game.
- Marks the fifth year in a row in which the Flames won at least their first two games.
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 30-24
Liberty (2-0, 1-0 CUSA)
New Mexico State (1-1, 0-1 CUSA)
Location: Aggie Memorial Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 16,562
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
- Following a fourth-down stop on Liberty's opening drive, the Flames saw their opponent drive deep into Flames' territory, but they were forced to settle for a field goal. The Aggies' nine-play, 67-yard drive was stopped at the 12-yard line. Abraham Montano ended the drive at 7:23 with a 29-yard field goal.
- Less than two minutes later, New Mexico State pushed its lead to 10-0 on a 64-yard pass from Awad to Monte Watkins. Awad found Watkins near the sideline and the running back raced to the end zone at 5:39.
- The Flames managed to trim their deficit back to one score late in the opening period. Liberty got to the two-yard line, but was stopped on consecutive plays and called for a personal foul, forcing the Flames to settle for a 39-yard field goal by Colin Karhu at 2:53.
- New Mexico State scored on its third-consecutive drive, piecing together a 10-play, 75-yard effort. The scoring drive ended with a five-yard touchdown pass from Awad to Seth McGowan at 13:15 to push the home team's lead to 17-3.
- Another lengthy pass play from Salter to Treon Sibley, this time a 52-yard reception, helped the Flames move back into the red zone. However, a pass breakup on a third-and-four play from the 12-yard line ended the drive and brought Karhu back on for a 31-yard field goal at 5:55.
- Liberty tried one last time to find the end zone just before the half, but a pass in the back of the end zone by Salter to Sibley slipped out of the sixth-year wide receiver's hands. Karhu finished the 12-play, 41-yard drive with a 29-yard field goal with 37 seconds left in the half, sending New Mexico State to the locker room with a 17-9 edge.
- Neither team added points to the scoreboard during the third quarter. The two squads combined for 85 total yards and just three first downs during the 15-minute period.
- The Flames' defense, who had limited New Mexico State to just 47 yards on its previous seven drives, gave Liberty a needed spark with its first turnover of the season.
- On a third-and-five play, Quinton Reese got through the line of scrimmage and sacked Awad, who lost the ball. The fumble was scooped up by CJ Bazile, Jr., and returned 22 yards for a touchdown with 9:45 left to play in the game. Liberty attempted a two-point conversion, but it failed, leaving the home team with a slim 17-15 edge.
- The Aggies' offense came alive on the next drive.The home team quickly move the ball downfield on a five-play, 65-yard drive that was capped by Awad's two-yard touchdown.
- Cooley took over the game from there, scoring twice during the final six minutes of the game to rally Liberty for the Conference USA road victory.
The Flames will look to move to 2-0 in Conference USA play when Liberty welcomes UTEP to Williams Stadium during Homecoming and Hall of Fame Weekend, next Saturday.
During the festive weekend, Liberty Athletics will celebrate its 16th Hall of Fame class when they honor Dre Barnes (Football), Kristal [Tharp] Bechtold (Women's Basketball), Chuck Burch (Athletics Administrator/Athletics Director), Keith Butler (Baseball), Bill Gillespie (Men's Track & Field/Football/Strength and Conditioning), Jennifer [Klugh] Margraff (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field) and Holly Van Noord (Women's Soccer).
Date: Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024
Location: Lynchburg, Va. (Williams Stadium)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 6 p.m. (EST)
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Team Stats
LIB
NMS
Total Yards
473
275
Pass Yards
256
158
Rushing Yards
217
117
Penalty Yards
122
58
1st Downs
18
18
3rd Downs
1
3
4th Downs
1
1
TOP
28:56
31:04
1st Quarter
LIB 0, NMS 3
NMS - Montano,Abraham 29 yd field goal 9 plays, 47 yards, TOP 04:16
LIB 0, NMS 10
NMS - Watkins,Monte 64 yd pass from Awad,Parker (Montano,Abraham kick) 1 plays, 64 yards, TOP 00:12
LIB 3, NMS 10
LIB - Karhu,Colin 39 yd field goal 5 plays, 54 yards, TOP 02:46
2nd Quarter
LIB 3, NMS 17
NMS - McGowan,Seth 5 yd pass from Awad,Parker (Montano,Abraham kick) 10 plays, 65 yards, TOP 04:38
LIB 6, NMS 17
LIB - Karhu,Colin 31 yd field goal 8 plays, 73 yards, TOP 03:31
LIB 9, NMS 17
LIB - Karhu,Colin 29 yd field goal 12 plays, 41 yards, TOP 02:56
4th Quarter
LIB 15, NMS 17
LIB - Bazile, Jr.,CJ 22 yd fumble recovery ()
LIB 15, NMS 24
NMS - Awad,Parker 2 yd run (Montano,Abraham kick), 5 plays, 65 yards, TOP 01:55
LIB 22, NMS 24
LIB - Cooley,Quinton 27 yd run (Karhu,Colin kick), 6 plays, 82 yards, TOP 02:26
LIB 30, NMS 24
LIB - Cooley,Quinton 44 yd run (Smith,Reese pass), 7 plays, 90 yards, TOP 01:54
Game Leaders
CMP
16
TD
0
YDS
256
INT
0
Players Mentioned
DE
/ Football
RB
/ Football
K/P
/ Football
S
/ FootballQB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
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