It has been quite the season for Liberty in 2024. There have been some highs and some lows, head-scratching outcomes, thrilling victories, game delays and cancellations, and so much more. It has all led to the Flames being 7-2 and 4-2 in CUSA play with two weeks remaining.
Despite the two losses in conference and currently being in fourth place in the league, Liberty still has plenty to play for and can reach the CUSA Championship Game, even host it!
Here are the current standings of the teams still alive for the conference championship as we enter the final two weeks of the regular season:
Jacksonville State……….8-0
Western Kentucky……..5-1
Sam Houston……………..5-1
Liberty………………………….4-2
The schedule sets up perfectly with these four teams all playing each other over the next two weeks. This Saturday, Liberty plays host to Western Kentucky at 1 p.m. while Jacksonville State hosts Sam Houston with a noon kickoff on CBS Sports Network. Next week, Liberty plays at Sam Houston on Friday at 3:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network while Western Kentucky hosts Jacksonville State next Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
For the Flames, it’s pretty simple: take care of business, win your next two games, and you will play for a CUSA Championship for a second straight season. If the Flames drop one of these two games, they are eliminated from championship contention.
Jacksonville State needs to win just one game to ensure their spot in the championship game. If the Gamecocks win at least one of their final two games and Liberty wins out, the Flames will play at Jacksonville State on Friday, Dec. 6 for the conference championship.
If Jax State drops both of their remaining two games and Liberty wins out, the four teams vying for a spot in the conference championship would all end up tied with 6-2 conference records. In this scenario, the CUSA FB Championship Game Tiebreaker Policy states, the tie would be broken by the head-to-head record between the four teams tied. In this scenario, Liberty and Western Kentucky would be 2-1 against the teams tied while Jax State and Sam Houston would be 1-2. This would have the Flames and Hilltoppers meeting in the conference championship game, and Liberty would host that contest due to the head-to-head win over WKU.
Despite all the ups and downs throughout this season, Liberty is in position to play again for a conference title. Now, it’s all about winning the next two games and then the Flames will either play in Alabama at Jacksonville State or host the Hilltoppers. November football. Gotta love it.
We worked through all the possible scenarios, and here is how each team can reach the CUSA Championship game and host it:
Liberty reaches CUSA Championship with:
- Win over Western Kentucky AND win over Sam Houston
Liberty hosts CUSA Championship with:
- Win over Western Kentucky AND win over Sam Houston AND loss by Jacksonville State to Sam Houston AND loss by Jacksonville State to Western Kentucky
All CUSA Championship Scenarios
There are 16 different scenarios for the final two weeks for the top four teams in the CUSA conference championship race. All four teams competing control their own destiny, quite a wild scenario. Here is what the CUSA Championship matchup will look like in all 16 scenarios:
Scenario 1
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Jacksonville State hosts Western Kentucky in this scenario
Scenario 2
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Jacksonville State hosts Western Kentucky in this scenario
Scenario 3
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Western Kentucky hosts Jacksonville State in this scenario
Scenario 4
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Western Kentucky hosts Jacksonville State in this scenario
Scenario 5
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Sam Houston hosts Jacksonville State in this scenario
Scenario 6
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Jacksonville State hosts Liberty in this scenario
Scenario 7
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Sam Houston hosts Western Kentucky in this scenario
Scenario 8
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Liberty hosts Western Kentucky in this scenario
Scenario 9
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Jacksonville State hosts Sam Houston in this scenario
Scenario 10
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Jacksonville State hosts Liberty in this scenario
Scenario 11
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Jacksonville State hosts Western Kentucky in this scenario
Scenario 12
Jacksonville State beats Sam Houston
Liberty beats Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Jacksonville State hosts Liberty in this scenario
Scenario 13
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Sam Houston hosts Jacksonville State in this scenario
Scenario 14
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Jacksonville State beats Western Kentucky
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Jacksonville State hosts Western Kentucky in this scenario
Scenario 15
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Sam Houston beats Liberty
Western Kentucky hosts Sam Houston in this scenario
Scenario 16
Sam Houston beats Jacksonville State
Western Kentucky beats Liberty
Western Kentucky beats Jacksonville State
Liberty beats Sam Houston
Western Kentucky hosts Sam Houston in this scenario
