Each week of the 2013 football season, we will be publishing a report card on where we see the Flames in the three primary phases of the game, as well as an overall grade. We realize that our readers will have different view points, and we really encourage you to talk it out over at the FlameFans Forums. So, without further ado, here is our Week 1 Report Card from the Kent State loss.
SR CB Kevin Fogg performed well against Kent State. The Flames need him to make somebig plays in the return game moving forward.
Defense B+
Coming into the season we expected the Flames’ defense to be the strength of the team, and those expectations were met on Thursday night. While Liberty did not have to face off against star player Dri Archer for long, the defense still performed very well against a quality FBS opponent. Safety Aaron Dial led the team in tackles, and the Corner tandem of Walt Aikens and Kevin Fogg kept what Coach Gill calls “explosive plays” at a minimum. Liberty will want to improve on some individual tackling, but this was a strong overall performance to open the season.
Offense C-
There were a lot of unanswered questions on offense to start the 2013 season. The Flames featured new starting Wide Receivers, and last season’s starting Running Back Aldreakis Allen’s status was uncertain. Thursday night didn’t answer all of the questions, but it helped. Transfer RB Clifton Richardson showed flashes of his potential, and QB Josh Woodrum made some gorgeous throws. The offensive line struggled early, but did seem to settle down as the game went on. Sophomore WR Darrin Peterson showed well in his starting debut, but also had a couple of crucial drops in crunch time. Look for Desmond Rice to push hard to show he deserves touches in the offense this week, and expect the play calling to open up for Josh Woodrum and these young receivers against Monmouth. Overall, the offense did not perform poorly, especially against an FBS opponent. However, 10 points is not going to win you many games, and the Flames will have to improve as the season continues.
Special Teams A-
The fact that there isn’t much to talk about here is a good thing. The kicking game was solid, as we expected it would be. Sophomore Kicker John Lunsford kept the kickoffs deep, which eliminated the risk of big returns, and he made his only Field Goal attempt. Punter Grant Bowden also performed very well when called upon. Return man Kevin Fogg never had that game changing electric moment, but he still had a solid performance.
Overall B-
All things considered, the Flames fared very well last Thursday. The offense is a work in progress, and we expected that. There were some positives there that show a lot of potential for later in the season. The defense looked solid, and should be stout in the Big South portion of the schedule. The special teams played well, but if LU is going to pull an upset at Richmond or Old Dominion, a big play may be necessary. There is no shame in losing to Kent State by a touchdown, but it is difficult to grade the team higher than B- after a loss.
We will have more grades after the home opener against Monmouth! Be sure to stay on LibertyFlamesNation.com all week for coverage of Flames Football.
“There is no shame in losing to Kent State by a touchdown, but it is difficult to grade the team higher than a B- after a loss.” It’s hard to give Liberty a grade that is above-average when they lost a winnable game. I’d grade it a C at best. Kent State isn’t so much better that Liberty definitely should have lost. Liberty has too many so close, yet so far away games that by just winning a few it would make them much more of a credible FBS consideration. I didn’t expect Liberty to win but they still put up a worthy showing. I just think the program needs to be past moral victories and concentrate on actual wins.
How can Defense have a B+ when KS was 9-18 on third down conversion that’s half the time, the defense could not get off the field. True we didn’t give up big plays but getting 3rd down stops is just a critical. Maybe a C but not a B+
Special Teams – K Fogg had 1 return for 14 yds and no returnable punts while DJ had 1 return for 24.