Thursday, October 8
Lynchburg, Va.
7:00 PM ET
Liberty University
5-1 , 2-0
35
vs
3
Sam Houston
1-4 , 0-1
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Houston | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Liberty | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
Flames Run Their Win Streak to Five with 35-3 Thursday Night Win
10/8/2026 11:44:00 PM | Football
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty rushed for a season best 297 yards and had its top defensive performance of the season to post a 35-3 Weekday CUSA win over Sam Houston, Thursday night, at Williams Stadium.
Liberty's season best 297 yards on the ground allowed the Flames to run their win streak to five games in a row. Liberty enters the midseason bye week with a 5-1 overall record and a 2-0 mark early in Conference USA action.
Sam Houston falls to 1-4 on the season and drops its first CUSA game of the year after having its nationally ranked passing attack stopped.
The Bearkats entered the game ranked No. 15 nationally in passing yards per game (308.0), but were held to a season low 138 yards through the air.
Keeping the visitors out of the end zone and limiting them to just one field goal allowed the Flames to post their fewest points allowed in a CUSA game. It was also the fewest points allowed by Liberty since a 45-0 shutout of UMass on November 27, 2020.
For the first time since the 2024 season, the Flames have rushed for 200 or more yards in four-straight games.
Liberty has also seen its rushing total increase each game in 2026, finishing the night with a season-high 297 yards on 39 carries. The Flames also ended the game with a season best 7.6 yards per carry average.
Eight different players factored into the run game for Liberty. Jaylon Coleman led the group with 92 rushing yards on seven carries, while Kam Davis, fresh off back-to-back 100-yard performances, led the team with 10 carries for 67 yards and his fourth touchdown of the season.
Quarterback Ethan Vasko touched the ball three times during the game and scored twice, allowing the fifth-year player to match Davis for the team lead with four rushing touchdowns in 2026.
Starting quarterback Deshawn Purdie finished the night completing 10-of-14 passing attempts for 114 yards. He completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to Bryce Randolph, the first touchdown reception of Randolph's career.
Linebacker Derrell Farrar led all defenders in the game with a season high nine tackles, including 1.5 tackles for a loss. Fellow starting linebacker Aidan Vaughan added eight stops.
The Flames' win today:
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 35-3 (Liberty)
Liberty (5-1, 2-0 CUSA)
Sam Houston (1-4, 0-1 CUSA)
Location: Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 15,335
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
What's Next:
After a bye week, the Flames will wrap up Weekday CUSA action when they travel to Kennesaw, Ga., for their matchup against Kennesaw State on Thursday, October 22. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and LFSN Radio.
The Flames are 1-1 when visiting Walens Family Field at Fifth Third Stadium. But, Liberty has not won at game at Kennesaw State since a 36-21 victory on October 15, 2016, when both teams were members of the Big South Conference at the FCS level.
Date: Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026
Location: Kennesaw, Ga. (Walens Family Field at Fifth Third Stadium)
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Liberty's season best 297 yards on the ground allowed the Flames to run their win streak to five games in a row. Liberty enters the midseason bye week with a 5-1 overall record and a 2-0 mark early in Conference USA action.
Sam Houston falls to 1-4 on the season and drops its first CUSA game of the year after having its nationally ranked passing attack stopped.
The Bearkats entered the game ranked No. 15 nationally in passing yards per game (308.0), but were held to a season low 138 yards through the air.
Keeping the visitors out of the end zone and limiting them to just one field goal allowed the Flames to post their fewest points allowed in a CUSA game. It was also the fewest points allowed by Liberty since a 45-0 shutout of UMass on November 27, 2020.
For the first time since the 2024 season, the Flames have rushed for 200 or more yards in four-straight games.
Liberty has also seen its rushing total increase each game in 2026, finishing the night with a season-high 297 yards on 39 carries. The Flames also ended the game with a season best 7.6 yards per carry average.
Eight different players factored into the run game for Liberty. Jaylon Coleman led the group with 92 rushing yards on seven carries, while Kam Davis, fresh off back-to-back 100-yard performances, led the team with 10 carries for 67 yards and his fourth touchdown of the season.
Quarterback Ethan Vasko touched the ball three times during the game and scored twice, allowing the fifth-year player to match Davis for the team lead with four rushing touchdowns in 2026.
Starting quarterback Deshawn Purdie finished the night completing 10-of-14 passing attempts for 114 yards. He completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to Bryce Randolph, the first touchdown reception of Randolph's career.
Linebacker Derrell Farrar led all defenders in the game with a season high nine tackles, including 1.5 tackles for a loss. Fellow starting linebacker Aidan Vaughan added eight stops.
The Flames' win today:
- Gives the Flames their first five-game winning streak since Liberty opened the 2024 season with five consecutive victories (Aug. 31-Oct. 8, 2024).
- Marks the Flames' fifth victory of the season, eclipsing their win total (4) from the 2025 campaign.
- Improves the Flames' record in CUSA home openers to 4-0.
- Boosts the Flames' all-time record against CUSA foes (at time of meeting) to 28-9, including a 19-8 mark since Liberty joined the conference in 2023.
- Improves the Flames' record in October weekday contests to 9-2 under Jamey Chadwell.
- Pushes the Flames' all-time record when playing on Thursday to 5-3, including 2-0 this season. It also gives Jamey Chadwell a 12-1 mark when coaching Thursday contests at the Division I level.
- Sends Sam Houston to its sixth consecutive CUSA road loss and drop the Bearkats' all-time record in CUSA road tilts to 4-9, including 0-2 at Williams Stadium.
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 35-3 (Liberty)
Liberty (5-1, 2-0 CUSA)
Sam Houston (1-4, 0-1 CUSA)
Location: Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 15,335
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
- For the fifth-straight game, the Flames scored on their opening drive of the contest, this time getting into the end zone. Bryce Randolph capped an eight-play, 75-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown reception, muscling his way into the end zone for his first career touchdown reception at 10:48 to give the Flames a 7-0 edge.
- The Flames dominated the stat sheet during the first 15 minutes of play, finishing the opening quarter with a 141 to 18 total offensive yard edge. Liberty also accounted for 17 of the 23 total offensive plays of the quarter.
- The score remained the same until the second offensive play of the second quarter when Ethan Vasko found a hole on the left side of the line to score from one yard out. The quarterback's third rushing touchdown of 2026 gave Liberty a 14-0 lead at 14:15.
- Liberty's efforts to post a shutout in back-to-back games in the opening half came to an end during the final seconds of the period. A 27-yard pass play by Landyn Locke pushed the Bearkats into the red zone, but Liberty's defense held and Sam Houston had to settle for a 36-yard Samuel Carpenter field goal with 16 seconds left in the half.
- After forcing a turnover on downs on Sam Houston's opening drive of the third quarter, the Flames kept the ball on the ground for six-straight plays. Liberty capped the 64-yard effort with a three-yard rushing touchdown by Vasko to extend Liberty's lead to 21-3 with 8:04 left in the quarter.
- On the first offensive play of the fourth quarter, Liberty put the game out of reach with its bruising rush attack, keeping it on the ground six times on the seven-play drive. Kam Davis capped the 72-yard effort with a three-yard rushing touchdown at the 14:58 mark to push Liberty's lead to 28-3.
- Following a nine-yard touchdown by Terron Kellmon with 7:49 left to play, the Flames defense came up with one last stop. The Bearkats mounted an effort to get into the end zone for the first time on the night with a 12-play, 66-yard drive, but were stopped on a fourth-and-two play from Liberty's 10-yard line to cap the strong defensive showing.
What's Next:
After a bye week, the Flames will wrap up Weekday CUSA action when they travel to Kennesaw, Ga., for their matchup against Kennesaw State on Thursday, October 22. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and LFSN Radio.
The Flames are 1-1 when visiting Walens Family Field at Fifth Third Stadium. But, Liberty has not won at game at Kennesaw State since a 36-21 victory on October 15, 2016, when both teams were members of the Big South Conference at the FCS level.
Date: Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026
Location: Kennesaw, Ga. (Walens Family Field at Fifth Third Stadium)
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Players Mentioned
RB
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RB
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LB
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QB
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WR
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QB
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LB
/ FootballTeam Stats
SH
LU
Total Yards
243
411
Pass Yards
138
114
Rushing Yards
105
297
Penalty Yards
68
117
1st Downs
13
22
3rd Downs
4
4
4th Downs
0
0
TOP
29:04
30:56
1st Quarter
SH 0, LU 7
LU - Randolph,Bryce 15 yd pass from Purdie,Deshawn (Reeves,Chase kick) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:58
2nd Quarter
SH 0, LU 14
LU - Vasko,Ethan 1 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 5 plays, 58 yards, TOP 02:40
SH 3, LU 14
SH - Carpenter,Samuel 36 yd field goal 7 plays, 34 yards, TOP 01:32
3rd Quarter
SH 3, LU 21
LU - Vasko,Ethan 3 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 6 plays, 64 yards, TOP 03:17
4th Quarter
SH 3, LU 28
LU - Davis,Kam 3 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 7 plays, 72 yards, TOP 03:18
SH 3, LU 35
LU - Kellman,Terron 9 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 9 plays, 54 yards, TOP 05:38
Game Leaders
CMP
10
TD
1
YDS
114
INT
0
Friday, October 09
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Tuesday, October 06
Tuesday, October 06