Our 3rd annual 30 players in 30 days where we countdown our list of the 30 best current Flames’ football players. While we don’t know for complete certainty if there will be a 2020 season yet, we began our ranking a couple weeks ago with players 30-21 and last week we moved to players 20-11.
Each year this ranking brings its unique subplots, but the 2020 season sets out to be a year of transition for the Liberty football roster. Gone are the mainstays on the list in the likes of Antonio Gandy-Golden, Buckshot Calvert, Jessie Lemonier, Dontae Duff, Frankie Hickson, and Damian King.
In total, 17 of the 30 names on our list did not make our ranking last year, but that doesn’t mean Liberty doesn’t have some talent on this team. In fact, the Flames have more talent on the 2020 football roster than ever before, the talent is just young and mostly inexperienced.
10. Tristan Schultz (Last year: 30)
Schultz is suddenly a senior. He’s seen playing time in 34 games during his Liberty career and has started 23 games, including all 13 games at left tackle in 2019.
Now, Schultz looks to move into a leadership role on the line and the offense. At 6’4″ and 295 pounds, he could work his way into getting some NFL looks for the 2021 draft.
9. Jimmy Faulks (Last year: 24)
Faulks has had a very up and down career with the Flames. He came in as a true freshman and played in 9 games as a reserve in 2016. Then, he became a starter and looked poised to become one of the team’s top players in the secondary in 2017. Suddenly in 2018 he was redshirted, raising questions as to his status on the team moving forward under a new coaching staff.
Under a new coaching staff, Faulks seemed to find new life last year. He played in all 13 games, starting 12, finishing the season with 17 tackles and interception. He now becomes the leader in an otherwise very young CB room and the Flames need him to be counted on each and every week.
8. Damian Bounds (Last year: N/A)
An obvious oversight in not making our ranking last year, Bounds makes his debut in the top 10 for his redshirt-senior season. After redshirting and spending two seasons as a reserve, he exploded on the scene last year and solidified a spot on the starting lineup at left guard.
The 6’1″, 300 pound Georgia native is part of three returning starters on the line that all made the top 10 of our ranking, and they provide a strong foundation for Liberty’s offense this season.
7. DJ Stubbs (Last year: 13)
It’s hard to believe Stubbs is already a senior. He’s played in all 36 games of his Liberty career and has been a play-maker from the beginning, making an impact as a receiver and as a punt returner. For two straight years, Stubbs has ranked 2nd on the team in receiving – 2nd to Antonio Gandy-Golden. He’s also had to share time in the slot with Damian King his first three years on campus.
In his career, he has 91 receptions for 1,082 yards. Now, Stubbs looks to emerge as a go to threat in the wide receiver room.
6. Joshua Mack (Last year: 25)
Another redshirt-senior, Mack finally has the opportunity to seize control of the running back room and really shine after transferring to Liberty from Maine where he led the FCS in rushing in 2017. He nearly rushed for 1,000 yards last season behind Frankie Hickson, as Mack rushed for 792 yards and 7 touchdowns on 136 carries.
With Hickson having graduated, Mack is the man at RB. The Flames like to utilize multiple backs, so he will still rotate series with Peytton Pickett and possibly either Troy Henderson or Shedro Louis, but Mack will have enough opportunities to have a standout senior year.
5. Thomas Sargeant (Last year: 10)
Sargeant entered the program as a walk-on and redshirted in 2016, but ever since then he has solidified his place as the team’s starting center. He enters the 2020 season having started 36 consecutive games, every game of his career, at center.
2nd-year OL coach Sam Gregg has said that he intended on having Sargeant get beat out during camp each of the past two seasons, but Tom would not let that happen. He’s the third senior starting on Liberty’s line from left tackle to center, and he has become the leader of the line.
4. Malik Willis (Last year: 8)
Willis was one of the most difficult players to rank on this list. When we look back on this ranking at the end of the season, he will have either been ranked obviously too low or obviously too high. It doesn’t feel like there’s much in between.
If he earns the starting quarterback job and has the season many think he’s capable of, he will be far too low on this list, even at 4. The ceiling of Liberty’s offense rests on his shoulders. Not that it can’t be a very productive offense with Chris Ferguson, it can, but with an SEC talent like Willis, the team could have much more explosiveness to it if Willis can become consistent with his arm.
3. Ralfs Rusins (Last year: N/A)
Rusins has one of the most incredible career arcs of any Liberty player in recent memory. He joined the program in the fall of 2016 out of Latvia as a tight end. He then was moved the defensive line where he saw limited playing time as a reserve for two seasons.
He broke out in a big way last season, starting all 13 games at nose guard and finishing 4th on the team with 60 tackles and third with 6.5 tackles for a loss. He burst onto the scene in the season opener with 9 tackles against Syracuse and didn’t look back.
Rusins is Liberty’s top returning tackler from last season and looks to have another monster impact during his senior campaign.
2. Javon Scruggs (Last year: 17)
Scruggs has quickly gone from a role player in the secondary to a team leader and one of the best players on the roster. Last season he started 11 games and finished 5th on the team with 58 tackles while also adding 4.5 tackles for a loss, 3 pass breakups, 2 interceptions, and a fumble recovery.
The local favorite from Appomattox, Scruggs is the most important player in the defensive backfield and maybe on the team.
1. TreShaun Clark (Last year: N/A)
From unranked to holding down the top spot on this list, TreShaun Clark exploded onto the scene as a true freshman in 2019, having arguably the best freshman season as a defensive lineman in school history. He played in all 13 games last season, being inserted into the starting lineup for the final 7 games of the season at defensive end. He finished the year with 39 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, and a forced fumble. Clark ended his freshman campaign with a season-high 8 tackles and a sack in Liberty’s win over Georgia Southern in the Cure Bowl.
Now, Clark moves into a much different role as he emerges from the shadow of Jessie Lemonier. Clark will now be the top priority for opposing offensive lines to ensure he doesn’t get into the backfield. DL Coach Josh Aldridge has said he will move Clark around on the line during the season to keep the opposition on its toes.
