[Sly Fox]

Bring your postgame discussion to this thread.

[Sly Fox]

Coach Rocco Postgame Comments:

On Victory
"I was just happy to get a win. Its been tough the last couple of weeks. Anytime you win a game and feel like you could play better its a good position to be in. We made more big plays. Defensively as I said earlier in the year, anytime you get a shutout its big. We didn't tackle well today but we did finish."

On Godsil being Benched after Personal Foul
"I told Godsil he was out of the game. But he was heartbroken and I decided he could come in the second half. And he came out and played well so I was pleased with that."

On Run Game Not Dominating
"We came in today thinking we'd run the ball for 300 yards. So that was my biggest frustration. I was a little bit disappointed and we're going to have to play better next week to have a chance to win."

About Potential Winning Record for Season
"Its big. Its something I didn't want to dwell on because I wanted to focus on it. And I want to do the same thing this next week and then if we get the win we'll think about the winning season in the final game."

[A.G.]

8286. Good crowd on a very cold day. Next week should be back over 10,000. Now to get ready for the hoops game tonite.

[Sly Fox]

To be honest, I expected a bigger number than that based ont he crowd noise. I agree the crowd should be larger next week coming off a win against what could be an undefeated team.

I'll try and put my thoughts together on the game shortly. Suffice it to say its great to be back in the win column.

[topcat86]

Count me in...I'll be there with my daughter for College for a Weekend!

[A.G.]

College for a weekend? That should really boost attendance. Nice atmosphere for the home finale.

[WinthropEagleFan]

Nice win for LU...the big question is: How did SJ's prank go?

[Sly Fox]

My guess is we'll find out shortly once he gets to a computer. The pics may take a little longer.

With Charleston Southern winning today they will come in undefeated and ranked. That will make a nice target for us to take aim. CFAW always helps boost attendance combined with hopefully a nice turnout of students we should have a great game atmosphere.

As for today's game, I was pleased overall with the defense. How could you not be posting a goose egg? Fudge was able to run on but we kept coming up with the big 3rd & 4th down stops. Their QB didn't throw much upfield where we have been susceptible to getting burned. I have a feeling Drafts will be looking deep all day next Saturday.

As for the offense, we should feel fortunate to put up the 21. Zach ran the ball well and Brock threw it much better in the second half (save that bad decision in the endzone). But our sloppy play resulted in WAY too many penalties for us to keep anything substantial going offensively. The way we were dominating the line of scrimmage we should've scored every drive. But after the losing streak we've endured the past month I shouldn't be too hard on the guys. A win is a win. But as Coach Rocco mentioned in his postgame comments, today's effort will not be good enough next week against CSU. We have to play more focused.

That said, I like our chances in these final two games. I think not only CAN we beat Charleston Southern, I EXPECT us to win. We have the talent to beat them and on our home soil with a big crowd, we need to start converting on these opportunities.

[A.G.]

For the final two games, I would like to see coach settle on one QB, win or lose. I would also like to see Zach used on more short passes, use him as a Marshall Faulk-type back; hopefully Rashad will be closer to 100% so it can happen.

[Purple Haize]

Funny, the scuttlebut was saying around 7,000 to 7,500. But I am SURE the 8000 figure is accurate

[SuperJon]

Nice win for LU...the big question is: How did SJ's prank go?

Woo boy was it good. The whole football team knew about it. During warmups Brock and BT looked over and laughed at some of the signs. As WCU's team ran on the field, we had 15 people across the front row between the 45's with a KRISTEN HUTCHENS sign. When the players ran past it, they knew what was up. I also had a sign that said, "Gaffney Got Punk'd."

The first play on offense for us we started a Kristen Hutchens chant. Anytime Gaffney or #8 (I forget his name, the one on defense) came over we let them have it.

We encountered a problem. The defensive bench was on the 35. That wasn't a big problem since all 3000 students that were there knew about the prank so the guys down on the 35 were ragging him. I went down there and gave them my "Shelton <3 Kristen" and "Gaffney Got Punk'd" signs and they let him have it. They were leaning over the railing giving him crap. He kept moving his chair farther and farther away from the stands. One of their coaches eventually said something to our guys, I don't know what it was.

I had a sign that said, "I Am Kristen Hutchens" that the players didn't like too much. Sparky took that sign from me and walked around behind their bench a little bit. He also took my sign that said, "You Wear Purple" and walked around quite a few times and even walked to the WCU fans and pointed at them with the sign.

I don't know what, if anything was said on the field. He still led the team in tackles but that's just because he's that good. It was fun times.

The only bad thing is I think I showed too much too early. I have to figure something out for next week. People expect a lot out of me now.

[Sly Fox]

Here is the recap fo the game from the WCU SIDs:

Liberty Hands WCU Football 21-0 Setback

Darius Fudge Gets 102; Nears 1,000 for Season

Nov. 4, 2006

Lynchburg, Va. - Some penalties at costly times and a pair of failed fourth down conversions in the red zone in the second half led to Western Carolina suffering a 21-0 setback to Liberty Saturday afternoon at Williams Stadium. Despite loss, the Catamounts had some positives, namely Darius Fudge gained 102 rushing yards on 23 attempts to get him closer to 1,000 for the season.

Fudge, who only needs 96 to become just the sixth Catamount to rush for 1,000 yards in a season, also only needs just under 140 yards to move up to seventh on the WCU all-time list. The Liberty game marked the fourth consecutive 100-yard game for the senior. It additionally was just the third time Liberty had allowed a 100-yard rusher in nine games, allowing just 115 rushing yards per game coming in to today's game.

Liberty tailback Rashad Jennings, who only had 13 carries in the game, had seven attempts in a seven-play drive, including a two-yard touchdown carry, to give the Flames an 7-0 lead early in the first quarter.

Neither team could muster much offense over the rest of the first quarter and most of the second. However, with 3:27 left before the break, Liberty embarked on a drive from their own 33. The Flames would get down to the two, and have first and goal. The Cats kept the Flames out of the endzone twice, but a pass interference on third down game Liberty a new set of downs with 35 seconds left before the break. Zach Terrell, who rushed for 99 yards on the day, capped the drive with a two-yard TD run, giving Liberty a 14-0 cushion at the break.

The Flames built on that momentum to start the second half, taking a 21-0 lead after a 36-yard Brandon Turner to Brock Smith touchdown pass.

Down three scores, Western was able to move the ball on the ensuing drive thanks to a 26-yard Todd Spitzer to Nick Miller pass. However, facing a fourth and seven on the Liberty 20, the Cats went for it and came up short. Spitzer, who started and played the whole game for the injured Bennett Swygert, finished by completing 20-of-33 passes for 164 yards. Spitzer's top target was Michael Hines as his seven receptions leaves him with 56 catches on the season, one shy of entering the WCU single-season top 10 for receptions.

On its next drive, Western once again got down inside the red zone, reaching the Liberty 18 late in the third quarter, but Spitzer would be sacked on a fourth down try to all put seal the outcome.

The Catamount defense would keep the score at 21-0 on the ensuing Liberty drive. The Flames worked their way down to the WCU 11. Liberty went for the knock-out blow, throwing a pass in the endzone, but Catamount freshman Darrell Gray came up with his first career interception.

In addition to Gray's big play on defense, the Catamounts, as they have most of the season, were led by senior linebacker Shelton Gaffney and true freshman linebacker Kadeem Morgan, each with nine tackles. Bruce Lee added eight stops, while Jeff Bradley and Mordy Ornguze each had six.

The Catamount defense, who were allowing 209 rushing yards per game, held Liberty, who entered averaging 210 rushing yards per game, to just 135 rushing yards.

Western Carolina will return to action Nov. 11, hosting Apalachian State for the 31st Annual Battle for the Old Mountain Jug. Kickoff is set for 4:00 pm with WCU honoring its senior class prior to the game.

http://catamountsports.cstv.com/sports/ ... 06aaa.html

They also posted the official stats:

Individual Statistics



Individual Statistics (Final)
The Automated ScoreBook
Western Carolina vs Liberty (Nov 04, 2006 at Lynchburg, Va.)


Western Carolina

Rushing No Gain Loss Net TD Lg Avg
-------------------------------------------------
Darius Fudge 23 102 0 102 0 22 4.4
Mike Malone 3 8 0 8 0 4 2.7
Todd Spitzer 4 11 12 -1 0 7 -0.2
Totals... 30 121 12 109 0 22 3.6

Passing Att-Cmp-Int Yds TD Long Sack
-------------------------------------------------
Todd Spitzer 33-20-0 164 0 26 1
Michael Hines 1-0-0 0 0 0 0
Totals... 34-20-0 164 0 26 1

Receiving No. Yds TD Long
----------------------------------------
Michael Hines 7 33 0 10
Darius Fudge 3 21 0 13
Joe Clark 3 11 0 6
Chris Jefferson 2 24 0 16
L.J. Davis 2 16 0 9
Nick Miller 1 26 0 26
Eddie Cohen 1 25 0 25
Mordy Ornguze 1 8 0 8
Totals... 20 164 0 26

Punting No. Yds Avg Long In20 TB
---------------------------------------------------
Tim Mayse 4 131 32.8 35 0 0
Stephen Brown 1 41 41.0 41 1 0
Totals... 5 172 34.4 41 1 0

Punts Kickoffs Intercept
All Returns No.Yds.Lg No.Yds.Lg No.Yds.Lg
--------------------------------------------------
Willie Harper 0 0 0 1 23 23 0 0 0
Darrell Gray 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Mike Malone 0 0 0 2 60 35 0 0 0
J.C. Brown 5 11 7 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals... 5 11 7 3 83 35 1 0 0

Field goal attempts
----------------------------------------

Kickoffs No. Yds TB OB Avg
---------------------------------------
J. Parsons 1 40 0 0 40.0



Liberty

Rushing No Gain Loss Net TD Lg Avg
-------------------------------------------------
TERRELL, Z. 20 105 6 99 1 21 4.9
JENNINGS, R. 13 39 1 38 1 12 2.9
CHEEK, W. 1 4 0 4 0 4 4.0
LAWRENCE, T. 3 2 1 1 0 2 0.3
JACKSON, W. 3 5 12 -7 0 5 -2.3
Totals... 40 155 20 135 2 21 3.4

Passing Att-Cmp-Int Yds TD Long Sack
-------------------------------------------------
SMITH, B. 20-11-1 161 1 36 0
LANDIS, S. 3-2-0 11 0 11 0
Totals... 23-13-1 172 1 36 0

Receiving No. Yds TD Long
----------------------------------------
TURNER, B. 7 101 1 36
JACKSON, W. 3 48 0 22
LAMBROS, M. 1 11 0 11
EDWARDS, D. 1 6 0 6
TERRELL, Z. 1 6 0 6
Totals... 13 172 1 36

Punting No. Yds Avg Long In20 TB
---------------------------------------------------
BEASLEY, B. 7 259 37.0 49 1 2
Totals... 7 259 37.0 49 1 2

Punts Kickoffs Intercept
All Returns No.Yds.Lg No.Yds.Lg No.Yds.Lg
--------------------------------------------------
JACKSON, W. 3 38 21 0 0 0 0 0 0
STOKES, C. 0 0 0 1 7 7 0 0 0
Totals... 3 38 21 1 7 7 0 0 0

Field goal attempts
----------------------------------------

Kickoffs No. Yds TB OB Avg
---------------------------------------
BEASLEY, B. 4 245 1 0 61.2



FUMBLES: Western Carolina-Darius Fudge 1-1; Chris Jefferson 1-1. Liberty-JACKSON, W. 1-0.

[PAmedic]

As for today's game, I was pleased overall with the defense. How could you not be posting a goose egg?

apparently ESPN doesn't agree with the official results of the game.

Since about 4:30 or 5, or whenever our game ended- the ESPN bottom line ticker has been scrolling WCU 7 -LIBERTY 21.

I've seen it on all 4 channels now, about a hundred times, and it still aggrevates me every time. Would it kill them to check facts once in a while.

[Sly Fox]

Here is our SIDs' wrapup on the day:

Flames Post Third Shutout of the Season with 21-0 Victory Over Catamounts

November 4, 2006
Lynchburg, Va.

For the third time in school history and the first time since playing at the Division I level, Liberty recorded its third shutout of the season as the Flames held the visiting Western Carolina Catamounts scoreless in a 21-0 victory, Saturday afternoon, at Williams Stadium.

Earlier this year, the Flames blanked St. Paul’s (27-0) in their season opener and shutout Savannah State (28-0) to snap a six-game road losing streak in September. Liberty also shut out three opponents in 1974 and 1976 when the Flames were competing at the NCCAA and NAIA levels, respectively.

The Flames broke a scoreless tie midway through the first quarter as Rashad Jennings capped off a seven-play, 49-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run. The tailback bowled over the defensive line up the middle for a score with 4:58 left to play in the first quarter.

Six of the seven plays on the scoring drive were of the running variety with the only pass coming on a 25-yard sideline pass from Brock Smith to Brandon Turner that saw the junior wide out pushed out of bounds just one yard shy of the goal line.

The score remained the same until late in the second quarter when Liberty mounted its longest drive of the afternoon with an 11-play, 67-yard scoring effort to push its lead to 14-0 with 25 seconds left before halftime. Zach Terrell finished off the drive with a two-yard run to the left side of the field, marking the fourth-straight week that the sophomore has rushed for a score.

Liberty held the Catamounts to just three first downs over the first 30 minutes of action and 128 total yards of offense. The 14-0 lead marked the sixth time this year that Liberty has gone into the locker at halftime having held an opponent scoreless over the first two periods.

The Flames kept things rolling on its first drive of the third quarter as Smith hooked up with three different receivers to help march Liberty down field 78 yards on six plays. The final play of the drive was a 36-yard completion to Turner in the corner of the end zone, giving Liberty a 21-0 lead with 11:51 left to play in the third.

The remainder of the game belonged to the Flames’ stout defense as the closest that Western Carolina got to the end zone over the final 27 minutes of the contest was the Flames’ 20-yard line on the next drive, despite going for it on fourth down three times in the second half.

The contest marked a historic day in school history as the 8,286 fans in attendance at the afternoon game helped push the Flames over the 1,000,000 mark in home attendance since the inception of the program in 1973.

The Flames held the Catamounts to just 273 yards in the contest, the second-fewest yards Liberty has allowed this season. Conversely, the Flames made wise use of their offensive yards as Liberty managed just 307 total offensive yards in the game, also marking its second-lowest output of the year.

For the fifth-straight game and the seventh time this year, the Flames’ rushing attack and solid defensive effort allowed Liberty to control the play clock as Liberty finished with 31:43 to 28:17 time of possession advantage in the contest.

Terrell led the Flames’ rushing attack and missed posting his fifth career 100-yard game by a yard as he carried the ball 20 times for 99 yards and a score. Jennings added 13 rushing attempts for 38 yards and his conference-leading 10th rushing touchdown of the season.

Darius Fudge became the second running back to rush for 100 yards against the Flames this year as the senior rushed for 102 yards on 23 carries.

Smith finished the game with 161 yards passing by completing 11-of-20 attempts, including the touchdown pass to Turner. Spencer Landis completed his first two collegiate passes as the freshman completed 2-of-3 attempts for 11 yards late in the contest. Western Carolina’s Todd Spitzer completed 20-of-31 pass attempts for 164 yards.

Turner posted his second career 100-yard receiving game as the junior caught a team-best seven passes for 101 yards and a score. Eight different players caught passes for the Catamounts with Michael Hines leading the team with seven receptions for 33 yards.

Manny Rojas posted his 10th-career double-figure tackle game of his four-year career with the Flames as the senior linebacker finished the game with 10 tackles and two quarterback hurries. Liberty pressured Spitzer all afternoon as the Flames finished the game with a season-high 13 quarterback hurries. Shelton Gaffney led the Catamounts with nine tackles, including five solo stops.

The Flames return to Big South Conference action next weekend when they host Charleston Southern at Williams Stadium in the last home contest of the season The Buccaneers come to Lynchburg riding the second-longest active winning streak in I-AA football as Charleston Southern picked up its 14th-straight win with a 28-14 win over Gardner-Webb.

Before the game, the nine Liberty seniors playing their last home contest of their careers will be honored. Game time is scheduled for 1 p.m.

http://libertyflames.com/index.cfm?PID= ... 3&TeamID=9

[El Scorcho]

apparently ESPN doesn't agree with the official results of the game.

Since about 4:30 or 5, or whenever our game ended- the ESPN bottom line ticker has been scrolling WCU 7 -LIBERTY 21.

I've seen it on all 4 channels now, about a hundred times, and it still aggrevates me every time. Would it kill them to check facts once in a while.

They've got the score of the Towson v. W&M game wrong, too. It's way more out of wack than our score is.

[bozlady]

[Sly Fox]

Nicely done, bozlady. I'm curious to hear some feedback from the football alumni about what they think of the facilities and Coach Rocco.

[Stevev]

Unfortunately I missed todays game. With this win I feel much better about the teams prospects in finishing the season strong and with a winning record. It is always nice to beat a Southern conference team no matter how bad they are since it is good 1AA competition. Nice to see the shutout knowing it was not there best effort according to Coach Rocco. I have no reason to think that we are going to lose to Chuch South, undefeated or not and all the cupcakes they have been rolling. We should win and win convincing just like today.

[SuperJon]

Two words worry me about Chuck South: Colin Drafts.


Two words would make me feel a lot more secure about Chuck South: Jason's playing.

[thesportscritic]

good win for us. Offense is still sputtering a lot but there were some flashes. Brock Smith had a decent day throwing. Defense was good.

[Sly Fox]

And here are the fruits of Chris' labor inthe Sunday morning fishwrap:

No doubt about it: Liberty wins

By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
November 5, 2006

Liberty led Western Carolina by two touchdowns at halftime, yet Flames coach Danny Rocco was furious Saturday.

A fly on the wall, or in this case a security guard, could hear Rocco lighting into his team at the break. Later, still soaked after his players gave him a water bath on the sideline as the final seconds ticked away in a 21-0 beating of Western Carolina, Rocco expanded on just what lit a fire in his team in the locker room.

For the first time all year, Rocco lost a bit of faith in his bunch. Against a downtrodden Catamounts club that had lost six straight and allowed everyone to run all over them, Liberty's run game moved in fits and starts.

The passing game remained inconsistent. The 14-0 lead was only secured in the final minute of the first half when Zach Terrell plunged two yards for his lone touchdown of the game.

Liberty looked lifeless. Rocco couldn't understand why.

"I was yelling at them pretty good," Rocco said. "I was telling them that I have never, ever, ever, since I've been here, doubted them. Never once.

"It's 14-0 us at halftime, and for the first time, I doubted them. There was a shadow of a doubt in my mind."

Rocco's players obviously took the speech to heart. Liberty opened the second half with an impressive drive, going 78 yards in six plays, scoring when Brock Smith hit Brandon Turner deep for a 36-yard touchdown.

On its next possession, Western Carolina drove to the Liberty 20, but the Flames (4-5) held strong, forcing three straight incompletions, including one on fourth down.

Quick score, defensive stop - precisely the formula to sap the will of a struggling team.

"We just wanted to come out and put them down and just take their heart, right away," Liberty defensive lineman Kevin Richard said. "We wanted to take them out of the game quick."

So the tongue lashing worked, huh?

"I think I got the necessary response," Rocco said.

Down 21-0, Western Carolina (2-7) drove again late in the third quarter, advancing to the Liberty 18. Again, consecutive incompletions forced a fourth down, and WCU coach Kent Briggs was forced to go for it.

Liberty's Don Carlos McWhorter opened a lane by clogging up a WCU lineman, and Richard blasted through, hitting WCU quarterback Todd Spitzer before he could read the defense, sacking him for a 12-yard loss, essentially sealing the victory.

"The last couple of weeks, we weren't making the plays that had to be made," Rocco said. "When someone had to step up and make a play, we made a play."

In truth, the game was far from a classic performance, which is why Rocco was peeved at halftime.

Rocco said he thought his team would be able to run better against a thin Western Carolina front, but the Flames managed just 135 yards on 40 carries.

Though Smith finally connected on a bomb to Turner, he overthrew two more deep balls to Turner when he had his defender beat.

"It's a hard thing to figure out," Rocco said of Smith, who was 11-for-20 for 161 yards, one TD and one interception. "He goes in and out of these phases where he plays with a lot of confidence and is very accurate. We've got some guys who can make some plays. He's got to put the ball on them."

Turner was at his best in the short game. Twice, Smith found him on backdoor screens just outside the WCU red zone. With blocking in front, Turner used his athleticism to turn a short pass into a long gain, getting inside the five both times, leading to LU touchdowns.

"In watching film all week, the coaches broke down a lot of plays (in which WCU gave up more than) 10 yards," Turner said. "It just so happened to be screen plays. We ran them at good points in the game."

Rocco knows he isn't in a position to take any win for granted. The subdued postgame mood was another sign of progress for a team that would have appreciated any victory during a nightmarish 1-10 2005 season.

"This year, we've won four games," Rocco said. "Last year, we won one. The kids' expectations are just so much different.

"To go win 21-0 and kind of having this feeling that we could have done better, should have done better and that we're capable of doing more, that's a good thing for them to be feeling."

http://newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellit ... th=!sports

Rested Flames hand out big hits

Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
November 5, 2006

Western Carolina receiver Eddie Cohen quickly realized that life over the middle wasn't going to be easy Saturday.

On third-and-10 from the Western 29 in the first quarter, Catamounts quarterback Todd Spitzer fired a pass over the middle and Cohen snagged it.

Almost.

Liberty cornerback Tim Torrence was racing in from the side and crushed Cohen, forcing a dropped pass.

That wasn't the only big hit. Linebackers Manny Rojas (10 tackles), Stevie Ray Lloyd (seven tackles) and Brandon Duke (five stops) got in on the fun, too.

Liberty coach Danny Rocco made a slight adjustment in practice this week, giving the players an extra day without pads in hopes of giving the team some extra energy come game time.

"We were going to be fresh and physical," Rocco said. "Those were the two things I was kind of echoing throughout the week."

The extra rest was especially useful for players like Rojas and safety Ryan Greiser, who have battled nagging shoulder injuries this year.

"Whenever you get a little time to lay off on the hitting, it's a little break on our bodies," Rojas said. "It was good for our whole defense."

Tough sledding

Before Western Carolina's Darius Fudge ran for 102 yards on 23 carries Saturday, only one opposing back had cracked the century mark against the Flames this season.

William & Mary senior Elijah Brooks ran for 101 yards in the Tribe's 14-13 win Oct. 14. Aside from that, only Savannah State's Chad Cone (93 yards) came close to breaking 100.

"The linebackers fill the gaps pretty good," Fudge said. "The o-line created just enough space. I was able to take advantage of a couple of creases that they did give me."

The Flames have given up their share of yards in the passing game, but the 3-4 defense is designed to be physical at the point of impact, meaning running yards are often tough to come by.

"You've got the three down linemen and the two inside linebackers basically forming a wall at the line of scrimmage," Rojas said. "Everything has to bounce outside to the safeties and outside linebackers. That's where it gets complicated to run against."

Landis sighting

With Zach Terrell entrenched at running back, freshman Spencer Landis is the Flames' true "backup" quarterback. He hadn't played since the opener against Saint Paul's but got some reps in the fourth quarter Saturday.

Landis completed his first college pass, an 11-yarder to Matt Lambros on a third-and-9 play.

"I like him a lot," Rocco said. "The more I'm around him, the more positive things I see him do. I think he's got some real talent. I'll tell you what he is. He's a competitor, a kid who wants to play and be on the field. That's a hard thing not to admire."

Extra points

Liberty and Western Carolina will meet again in 2008 in Culowhee, N.C. The Flames already tentatively have games at James Madison, Youngstown State and Lehigh set for that year. * Rocco said receiver Dominic Bolden left the game with a hamstring injury. * Liberty center Mike Godsil was flagged for a 15-yard personal foul in the first quarter and sat for the rest of the first half. The Flames were called for several personal fouls last week at Coastal Carolina and Rocco said he won't tolerate that kind of play. "I don't think it was necessarily after the whistle," Rocco said. "Both players were going to the ground and Mike probably grabbed him, torqued him and threw him. That's a flag. He was heartbroken when I yanked him, trust me."

http://newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellit ... th=!sports

Liberty-Western Carolina player of the game and more

Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
November 5, 2006

Player of the game:

Brandon Turner
Liberty WR

Turner caught seven passes for 101 yards, hauled in a 36-yard TD pass and set up two other scores by catching screen passes and getting inside the Catamounts 5.

Play of the game:

LU 2nd-and-1 at the Western Carolina 36 in the third quarter

Brock Smith drops back and chucks a deep ball to the right side of the end zone. Brandon Turner waits on it and pulls it down for a touchdown, giving the Flames a 21-0 lead with 11:51 left.

Quotable:

'We'll be energized next week. I'd like to think we'll go out there and play our best football game of the year. It may take every bit of that to win that football game. I'll be very surprised if this team isn't ready to play next week.'

LU coach Danny Rocco,
on the matchup with 9-0 Charleston Southern

Grading the three keys

Don't make silly throws. Brock Smith played with fire on this one, twice throwing into heavy coverage before finally throwing a fourth-quarter interception into a double coverage. Grade: C.

Start fast. Liberty scored on its second drive and didn't score again until the end of the first half, allowing Western to stay in the game. Grade: B.

Stay strong. After halftime, Liberty's defense kept Western Carolina from generating any real scoring chances. The Flames played with pride and purpose and notched their third shutout. Grade: A.

http://newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellit ... th=!sports

[PAmedic]

bearing in mind that I'm not totally with it this weekend- I'm getting a bit concerned about our offense.

It seems like we peaked early in the year and haven't really made the adjustments necessary to improve over the course of the season.

That was a pretty weak performance yesterday against a soft defense- we should have had more points to show for it. And the overall offensive output is just not good (total yards gained).

makes you wonder if we're getting gameplanned by the opposition now that they have some film on us after most of a season has gone by - hope its just a symptom of a young team still learning how to win.

[thepostman]

I am not sure if our offense has truely ever peaked....it was slightly better before Rashad got hurt, but never that much better then it is right now, which is getting kind of frustrating....even after the win I didn't see anything today that would tell me they will win next week, but wins to provide confidence...so maybe that will go a long ways to help this team

[JDUB]

brock had a few decent throws.. if he would quit throwing into coverage and quit overthrowing receivers he'd be good to go. rashad was doing really good before he got hurt. hopefully next week he'll be back 100%. rashad is what the offense revolves around, if he's good the team is. so we have to hope he's good next week.

[SuperJon]

Zach's doing really well. The thing is, with Zach, we have to run more misdirection and sweeps and things like that. With Rashad we can do the dives and runs up the middle.