Saturday, November 14
Lynchburg, Va.
3:30 PM ET
Liberty University
9-1 , 6-0
28
vs
23
Middle Tennessee
5-5 , 3-3
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middle Tenn. | 0 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 23 |
| Liberty | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
11/14/2026 8:32:00 PM | Football
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty's top rushing performance of the season propelled the Flames to a 28-23 win over visiting MTSU during a brisk Saturday afternoon Military Appreciation Day game at Williams Stadium.
With their win today, the Flames have secured a spot in the 2026 CUSA Football Championship game. The game will be contested at the site of the CUSA regular season champion on Friday, December 4. Kickoff will be at 6 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the CBS Sports Network.
With the victory, Liberty runs its win streak to nine, moving to 9-1 on the season and remains atop the CUSA standings with a 6-0 conference record.
Jax State, who entered the day tied with the Flames in the conference standings, dropped a last-second game at WKU, giving Liberty sole possession of first place in Conference USA.
The remaining two weeks of the year will determine who will host the CUSA title game and who Liberty will face in its second championship game in four seasons.
Liberty finished the afternoon with a season-high 370 yards on 53 carries, averaging 7.0 yards per rushing attempt.
This was Liberty's 11th time rushing for 300-plus yards in a game under head coach Jamey Chadwell. Three of the 11 performances have come against MTSU with the Flames rushing for a combined 1,110 yards against the Blue Raiders in those games.
Liberty's defense, which came into the ranked No. 6 nationally in scoring defense (13.6 points allowed per game), did allow MTSU to score an opponent season high 23 points.
The Flame did turn the ball over on downs twice deep in their own territory, allowing the visitors to score twice on drives that started at the Liberty 26 and 27 yard line.
Kam Davis led Liberty's ground attack, finishing the game with 20 carries for 126 yards, marking his third career 100-yard game (all with the Flames). He also scored one of Liberty's three rushing touchdowns in the game, giving him six-straight games with a rushing touchdown.
Quarterback Deshawn Purdie threw for a season-low 64 yards, completing 8-of-17 passing attempts. One of his eight completions was a 10-yard passing touchdown to Makai Jackson in the fourth quarter, giving the wide receiver seven touchdowns in 2026.
Liberty's defense limited MTSU to 290 yards and held its fourth-straight opponent to less than 100 rushing yards (88 yards on 21 carries).
Three players – safety Izaiah Guy, JACK Brenton Williams and linebacker Dillano Glaud – tied for team-high tackling honors with five stops each.
The Flames' win today:
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 28-23 (Liberty)
Liberty (9-1, 6-0 CUSA)
MTSU (5-5, 3-3 CUSA)
Location: Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 15,131
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
What's Next:
The Flames will close out the regular season portion of their 2026 schedule when they welcome WKU to Williams Stadium on Saturday, November 21.
Prior to kickoff, Liberty will honor its 2026 senior class, as they potentially play the final home game of their career on the Mountain.
Liberty holds a perfect 5-0 record against WKU, including wins in 2023 (at WKU/42-29) and in 2024 (at Liberty/38-21) since the Flames have joined Conference USA.
Date: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026
Location: Lynchburg, Va. (Williams Stadium)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 1 p.m. ET
With their win today, the Flames have secured a spot in the 2026 CUSA Football Championship game. The game will be contested at the site of the CUSA regular season champion on Friday, December 4. Kickoff will be at 6 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the CBS Sports Network.
With the victory, Liberty runs its win streak to nine, moving to 9-1 on the season and remains atop the CUSA standings with a 6-0 conference record.
Jax State, who entered the day tied with the Flames in the conference standings, dropped a last-second game at WKU, giving Liberty sole possession of first place in Conference USA.
The remaining two weeks of the year will determine who will host the CUSA title game and who Liberty will face in its second championship game in four seasons.
Liberty finished the afternoon with a season-high 370 yards on 53 carries, averaging 7.0 yards per rushing attempt.
This was Liberty's 11th time rushing for 300-plus yards in a game under head coach Jamey Chadwell. Three of the 11 performances have come against MTSU with the Flames rushing for a combined 1,110 yards against the Blue Raiders in those games.
Liberty's defense, which came into the ranked No. 6 nationally in scoring defense (13.6 points allowed per game), did allow MTSU to score an opponent season high 23 points.
The Flame did turn the ball over on downs twice deep in their own territory, allowing the visitors to score twice on drives that started at the Liberty 26 and 27 yard line.
Kam Davis led Liberty's ground attack, finishing the game with 20 carries for 126 yards, marking his third career 100-yard game (all with the Flames). He also scored one of Liberty's three rushing touchdowns in the game, giving him six-straight games with a rushing touchdown.
Quarterback Deshawn Purdie threw for a season-low 64 yards, completing 8-of-17 passing attempts. One of his eight completions was a 10-yard passing touchdown to Makai Jackson in the fourth quarter, giving the wide receiver seven touchdowns in 2026.
Liberty's defense limited MTSU to 290 yards and held its fourth-straight opponent to less than 100 rushing yards (88 yards on 21 carries).
Three players – safety Izaiah Guy, JACK Brenton Williams and linebacker Dillano Glaud – tied for team-high tackling honors with five stops each.
The Flames' win today:
- Enables the Flames to clinch a spot in the CUSA Football Championship Game for the first time since 2023.
- Gives the Flames their first nine-game winning streak since Liberty opened the 2023 season with 13 consecutive victories (Sept. 2-Dec. 1, 2023). It would be the fifth winning streak of 9+ contests in program history.
- Marks the third time in program history the Flames have started 9-1 or better through a season's first 10 games (also 9-1 in 2020 and 10-0 in 2023).
- Represents the Flames' fourth consecutive victory over Middle Tennessee, improving the team's all-time record against the Blue Raiders to 4-1.
- Enables the Flames to start CUSA play with a 6-0 record for the first time since they went 8-0 in conference play in 2023.
- Marks the seventh time in 54 seasons as a football program the Flames have recorded nine or more victories, including the third 9+ win campaign in the last seven years.
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 28-23 (Liberty)
Liberty (9-1, 6-0 CUSA)
MTSU (5-5, 3-3 CUSA)
Location: Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 15,131
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter
- After trading some early defensive stops, Liberty's ground game got the Flames on the scoreboard midway through the first quarter. Following a 15-yard gain by Kam Davis, Jaylon Coleman found a hole in the middle of the line and scored on a career-long 45-yard touchdown run to give Liberty a 7-0 lead at the 7:06 mark.
- Following Liberty's seventh turnover of the season, the Blue Raiders were able to get to the Liberty 27-yard line, but they were forced to settle for a field goal by Dominic Bourgeois. The senior's 45-yard kick trimmed Liberty's lead to four, 7-3, at 13:32.
- After the Flames were stopped on a fourth-and-one play in their own territory, MTSU found the end zone for the first time on the day. The Blue Raiders capped a six-play, 34-yard drive with an eight-yard rushing touchdown by Antonio Martin, Jr., at 8:49 to take a 10-7 lead.
- The Flames responded on the next drive, regaining the lead, 14-10, on a three-yard rushing touchdown by Jaylin Belford at the 2:06 mark of the game. Liberty kept the ball on the ground eight times on the 11-play, 75-yard scoring drive that took 6:43 of the game clock.
- The Flames came out of the locker room running the ball again and pushed their lead to 21-10 less than three minutes into the quarter. Davis finished off a quick six-play, 76-yard drive with a 23-yard rushing touchdown at the 12:08 mark.
- After the Flames were stopped on a second fourth-and-one play in their own territory, MTSU needed just three plays to find the end zone. On a third-down play, Ziyon Butler was able to get around a Liberty defender in the end zone to catch a 23-yard scoring pass from Roman Gagliano, trimming Liberty's lead to 21-17 at the 5:25 mark.
- After leaning on its ground attack for most of the game, the Flames went to the air to push their advantage to 28-17 with 14:23 left in the contest. Deshawn Purdie hit Makai Jackson in the corner of the end zone with a 10-yard scoring strike, finishing off an 11-play, 70-yard scoring drive.
- MTSU tried to stay in the game with Gagliano completing six-straight passing attempts on a 62-yard drive, capped by a 14-yard scoring pass to Neo Clifton at 6:18. The Blue Raiders elected to go for two, but were stopped by the Flames who then ran the clock on the following drive.
What's Next:
The Flames will close out the regular season portion of their 2026 schedule when they welcome WKU to Williams Stadium on Saturday, November 21.
Prior to kickoff, Liberty will honor its 2026 senior class, as they potentially play the final home game of their career on the Mountain.
Liberty holds a perfect 5-0 record against WKU, including wins in 2023 (at WKU/42-29) and in 2024 (at Liberty/38-21) since the Flames have joined Conference USA.
Date: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026
Location: Lynchburg, Va. (Williams Stadium)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 1 p.m. ET
Players Mentioned
RB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
S
/ Football
WR
/ Football
QB
/ Football
JK
/ FootballTeam Stats
MT
LU
Total Yards
290
434
Pass Yards
202
64
Rushing Yards
88
370
Penalty Yards
47
39
1st Downs
18
28
3rd Downs
4
6
4th Downs
1
1
TOP
23:28
36:32
1st Quarter
MT 0, LU 7
LU - Coleman,Jaylon 45 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 3 plays, 67 yards, TOP 01:17
2nd Quarter
MT 3, LU 7
MT - Bourgeois,Dominic 45 yd field goal 9 plays, 26 yards, TOP 04:03
MT 10, LU 7
MT - Martin Jr.,Antonio 8 yd run (Bourgeois,Dominic kick), 6 plays, 34 yards, TOP 02:41
MT 10, LU 14
LU - Belford,Jaylin 3 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 06:43
3rd Quarter
MT 10, LU 21
LU - Davis,Kam 23 yd run (Reeves,Chase kick), 6 plays, 76 yards, TOP 02:48
MT 17, LU 21
MT - Butler,Ziyon 23 yd pass from Gagliano,Roman (Bourgeois,Dominic kick) 3 plays, 26 yards, TOP 00:55
4th Quarter
MT 17, LU 28
LU - Jackson,Makai 10 yd pass from Purdie,Deshawn (Reeves,Chase kick) 11 plays, 70 yards, TOP 05:56
MT 23, LU 28
MT - Clifton,Neo 14 yd pass from Gagliano,Roman () 6 plays, 62 yards, TOP 02:26
Game Leaders
CMP
8
TD
1
YDS
64
INT
0
CMP
0
TD
0
YDS
0
INT
0
Sunday, November 15
Thursday, November 12
Thursday, November 12
Thursday, November 12