vs. Liberty (9/13)

[mbenecke]

On Saturday, September 13, our Falcons (1-1) will return home to take on the Liberty Flames (1-1). Kickoff will be at 5:00pm, and it will be available to stream on ESPN+. BG opened as a 6.5 point underdog in this one.

We haven't won on Homecoming since 2022 (34-31 in OT over Marshall) so it would be nice to break that streak in front of what is sure to be a great crowd - currently looking like mid-80s and sunny for Saturday, so the forecast is excellent for tailgating.

Liberty comes in off a 34-24 loss to Jacksonville State last week, after they beat FCS Maine 28-7 in their opener. Jax State ran for 338 yards on them, so it seems like they can be beaten on the ground - we just haven't been able to run with a lot of consistency yet this year. If we can run the ball, with the improved passing game we showed in the 2nd half against Cincinnati, I think we have a real shot in this one.

Go Falcons! Beat Liberty!

[jpfalcon09]

Gonna be a tough one. Despite the loss, Liberty put up over 500 yards of offense on Jax State. Will be a big challenge for the defense to slow down the spread option look. Ethan Vasko has plenty of experience running the Flames offense as he was with Jamey Chadwell for a year at Coastal Carolina before transferring.

This is the biggest non-conference game IMO and may be the contest that determines if BG goes bowling or not. Hoping for a big crowd given its Homecoming and a somewhat favorable start time, despite the Buckeyes playing in the evening. One thing of note form the Cincy game - Chris McMillian was absent from the scoresheet after getting several carries against Lafayette. Not sure if he's hurt or if it was a coaching decision.

[Miami Valley Falcon]

Gonna be a tough one. Despite the loss, Liberty put up over 500 yards of offense on Jax State. Will be a big challenge for the defense to slow down the spread option look. Ethan Vasko has plenty of experience running the Flames offense as he was with Jamey Chadwell for a year at Coastal Carolina before transferring.

This is the biggest non-conference game IMO and may be the contest that determines if BG goes bowling or not. Hoping for a big crowd given its Homecoming and a somewhat favorable start time, despite the Buckeyes playing in the evening. One thing of note form the Cincy game - Chris McMillian was absent from the scoresheet after getting several carries against Lafayette. Not sure if he's hurt or if it was a coaching decision.

McMillan was questionable going in based on the MAC injury report, so I’m assuming they held him out because of the matchup.

Jyrin Johnson obviously has looked great but Arlis Boardingham isn’t exactly a slouch and I would expect he’ll meaningfully contribute at some point. He was questionable going into the Lafayette game, but didn’t show participation in the game so I’m assuming they held him out of that one. He wasn’t on the injury report this past weekend and was dressed, but didn’t show participation this week either. I’m assuming he was cautiously held out of this one too because of the matchup and the seeming desire to get out of that game healthy rather than win. Loeffler did this at times too, where they would hold out guys in P5 matchups to avoid further injury, and I get that.

[jpfalcon09]

Jamey Chadwell's press conference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ter3E2Dwiw4

Highlights from JSU:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSGwK6ZC8uM

They have a cool podcast too which includes a recap of their Jacksonville State tilt, and a preview of the BG game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6MB8IlGIyw

Had some time today to break down Liberty's team.

Flames on Offense:
Ethan Vasko is the Flames QB, starting his first year with Liberty after transferring from Coastal Carolina. Last year with the Chanticleers he completed 54.6% of his passes for 2,120 yards with 14 TDs to 8 INTs, also rushing for 447 yards on 102 attempts for 5 TDs (includes sack yardage). He is known as a dual threat and fits well into the spread option attack Jamey Chadwell implements. So far this season, he is completing 61.3% of his passes for 5 TDs and 1 INT, and has rushed for 85 yards on 26 attempts (includes sack yardage), and one touchdown.

Running the ball, they employ a stable of backs to compliment their option game as four running backs all have carries, with the lead man being Evan Dickens outside of Vasko. They're averaging 5.1 YPC and 196.5 YPG. Receiving wise, they spread the wealth pretty well between their receivers, tight ends, and running backs. No one really stands out, but Donte Lee Jr. appears to be the home run hitter with five receptions for 110 yards and two scores. They allowed four sacks vs. Jax State and Jamey Chadwell noted in his press conference that Vasko needs to be quicker at getting the ball out in some situations. They also turned the ball over three times, once on a missed field goal, once on downs and Vasko threw an interception.

The spread option is one of the more complex offenses to defend. Liberty will often line up in a pistol style formation with multiple backs featuring motion, zone reads, play action, traditional option plays and straightforward runs. They racked up 534 yards last week on a rather balanced attack (335 passing, 199 rushing).

Flames on Defense:
Liberty has had issues stopping the run game so far this season - Jax State in particular ran the ball for 338 yards on 50(!) total carries, and even Maine had some success moving the ball against them on the ground. Coach Chadwell noted they had issues tackling and being gap sound last week, leading to the Gamecocks breaking off some big runs. They have however generated 10 TFLs and 3 sacks, and recovered a forced fumble this year.

LB Joseph Carter leads their team with ten total tackles (1 TFL), and CJ Bazile Jr. has a sack and a half along with the forced fumble. Bazile however is doubtful for this game which may have a considerable impact. They have other injuries on this side of the ball, so coupled with their tackling woes there may be some opportunity here to exploit.

Their kicker is Jay Billingsley who is 1-for-3 on field goals this season with his only make being from 35 yards. The punter is Max Morgan who is averaging 37.4 yards per punt.

Intangibles:
This is third meeting all-time between the Flames and Falcons. Liberty won the opener in 2023 down in Lynchburg, 34-24. The Falcons beat the Flames back in 2003 when Liberty was in FCS, 62-3. Obviously this is BG's homecoming game, and with the preseason hype around Coach George's hiring we can expect a large crowd at the Doyt. BG is a bit more battle tested having gone up against a P4 opponent last week, while Liberty's first game was vs. FCS Maine. BG is +6.5 on most sportsbooks, and Bill Connelly's SP+ rankings list Liberty 88th and BG 106th. This is undoubtedly BG's most important non-conference game as the outcome may determine if the Falcons go to a bowl or not.

[Beaker]

Thanks for the write up, Jeremy. That was the only way I was going to get that info - I'm a combination of too busy and too lazy to go tracking it down for myself, so much appreciated! This is a winnable game if we control turnovers, penalties and mistakes.

[Flipper]

https://bit.ly/4pk90zK

The weekend will include a ribbon cutting for the new FMB practice field

[fanatic13]

General Admission tickets are sold out. Only reserved tickets left

[ZuluWarrior]

Sloppy first half.

Calls went are way.

BiG TD to end the half.

Crowd looks great!

[fanatic13]

Defense looks fantastic getting sacks and forcing turnovers. Still need to work on the pass coverage breakdowns but this group is going to cause problems in the Mac. Offense still meh

[BillyLP]

So Drew Pyne is…..not great. I don’t think the line or receivers have been perfect but he has just not adjusted to anything.

(I’m hoping I jinx this opinion by typing it out.)

[mbenecke]

BG is up 16-7 early in the 4th.

[BillyLP]

Not sure how Liberty’s Farrar wasn’t ejected after punching McMillan for seemingly no reason, but still results in a touchdown on the next play. Looking much better in the second half.

[Miami Valley Falcon]

What a game by the defense man.

[ZuluWarrior]

Pringle looked like he got hurt in the INT celebration and didn’t come back into the game. Hoping precautionary.

[Siborg]

Pringle looked like he got hurt in the INT celebration and didn’t come back into the game. Hoping precautionary.

Yeh, I saw that too.