Bold Predictions Challenge: Richmond

With five weeks in the books, the Flames Nation Bold Predictions Challenge is heating up. Here’s our scoreboard from last week’s Indiana State edition:

Last week’s game.

Our very own Jon Manson is doing a nice job repping LibertyFlamesNation, picking up his second weekly win. That puts him atop the leader board after dropping everyone’s lowest score (in grey). Also, the weekly winner’s scores are in green.

Here’s the entire standings through five weeks:

Jon won’t be eligible for any of our prizes though, so spencers777 is currently in first place to win the two tickets to a 2015 away game of choice.

1.New attendance record set at Williams Stadium.

Why this is bold- The number to beat is 19,314. Last game at The Bill brought out 16,873.

Why it will happen- This game has numerous story lines that will create a lot of interest for fans. Even without story lines, this game has huge connotations for the Flames playoffs hopes. Richmond is the only non-conference, in-state, team Liberty hosts this year, and it being homecoming weekend, should create the perfect storm to break the attendance record.

2.Total passing yardage will be 660+.

timesdispatch.com

Why this is bold- 660 yards just passing is pretty ridiculous for one game, and their current average yardages per game combined totals to 622, almost 40 yards short.

Why it will happen- With Strauss and Woodrum at their team’s offensive helm, this game will largely be played in the air. If this becomes a high scoring affair, expect the Flames and Spiders to rely on their passing game to move the ball quickly. Also, Liberty’s defense did not respond well in their first test against a good quarterback, giving up 340 passing yards to Indiana State.

3. Darrin Peterson gets more receiving yardage than Richmond gets rushing yardage.

Why this is bold- Richmond is currently rushing for 162 yards per game while Peterson is averaging 114 receiving yards. Liberty will also be without one of their best run-stoppers in Nick Sigmon.

Why it will happen- This matchup looks like a potential shoot out and I still haven’t seen a defender who can stay with Petey. Woodrum will continue to look his way, and Peterson should have another big day.

4. Nick Newman will record 2 passes defensed.

Why this is bold- Newman has only recorded one pass defensed all year.

Why it will happen- Newman has increased his role in the defense throughout the season, and with a couple of injuries to the Flames’ linebackers, should be see even more responsibility this week. His safety/linebacker hybrid type should be a good counter to the Richmond air attack.

5. Michael Rocco records 50+ yards passing/rushing.

Why this is bold- Michael Strauss seems to have solidified his place at QB1 for the Spiders. Rocco only had two passing attempts in Richmond’s game against New Hampshire.

Why it will happen- Rocco still has a role in the offense as a superior runner to Strauss. Also, since Michael Rocco is a former LCA star, I could see Uncle Rocco giving him a few extra snaps in his homecoming to Williams Stadium, if the opportunity presents itself.

6. Trey Turner has 2 punts inside the 20.

Why this is bold- This will be tough to do twice in one game. Turner may not even get two opportunities where he can get it within the 20.

Why it will happen- Trey has already pinned opponents inside the 20 seven times this year. His accuracy has been phenomenal and it seems easy for him to bury the ball deep in opponents’ territory.

7. Liberty records 14.5+ points in the first quarter.

Liberty lost 30-21 at Richmond last year in a monsoon. Des Rice broke out with a 108 yard game.

Why this is bold- Liberty is currently scoring under 8 points a quarter on average.

Why it will happen- The Flames have had no trouble getting off to hot starts this year. This will be a high scoring game, and I’m sure the game plan will be to jump out to an early lead.

Bonus 1 (8 points) Which will be greater?

A) Number of rushing touchdowns.

B) Number of field goals.

C) Number of turnovers.

Bonus 2 (8 points) How many total pushups will Liberty students do after Flames’ scores?

A) less than 75

B) 75-110

C) 110-150

D) 150+

The cheerleaders select a student to do pushups after every Liberty touchdown. The student does as many pushups as the Flames have points at the time. Remember, they won’t do pushups after field goals.

Bonus 3 (8 points) Who wins?

Liberty is 3-2, Richmond is 2-2. Richmond won 30-21 last year. The spread opened at -2 Liberty and has moved to no spread.

Who ya got?

There’s potential for some big movement on the leader board this week, as we put more points on the table than usual.

Submit your picks in the comments by 11:59 Friday night. Good Luck!