A TALE OF TWO GAMES

If you were at the game or watching the game, you might have stopped paying attention at sometime during the first three quarters, and you wouldn’t be blamed.

The Flames led 31-3 less than four minutes into the 2nd quarter. It was 45-17 at halftime and 52-17 in the closing seconds of the 3rd quarter. The game was over.

Maine didn’t stop playing though.

Over the course of the final 18+ minutes of the game, the Black Bears would have 288 yards of offense and score 27 points.

It began when Maine intercepted the third Liberty quarterback to play in the game, Landon Brown, and returned it to the 37 yard line. Six plays later and the Black Bears got in the end zone.They then caught the Flames off guard and recovered an onside kick in the final seconds of the third quarter.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Maine cashed in with a deep 43 yard touchdown pass. But it was still 52-30 Liberty. Maine would score two more touchdowns down the stretch, but the black Bears never got closer than 15 points.

“I felt like we were content in the 2nd half of the game instead of continuing to apply pressure,” true freshman CB Kei’Trel Clark said. “I feel like we let our foot off the gas. We just didn’t have it. I don’t know what it was, but we’re going to figure it out.”

FREEZE COACHES FROM SIDELINE

For the first time in his Liberty coaching tenure, Hugh Freeze was able to coach from the sidelines without being confined to his small perch located behind the team’s bench.

As Freeze continues to recover from surgery related to a staph infection in his back, he has slowly worked his way back to his normal coaching duties. In the season opener against Syracuse, he coached from a hospital bed in the press week. The next week at Louisiana, Freeze was again in the press box but this time from a medical chair. For the last four games, he coached from the sidelines behind the team’s bench in what he coined his NASCAR pit box.

“I loved being down there,” said Freeze. “(Strength coach) Dom (Studzinski) protected me. I only had one little close scare. He was on top of it. We will see how I feel Sunday. Hopefully, I get up in the morning and it kind of feels the same that it’s been feeling.”

INJURY UPDATE

Coming off the bye week, Liberty was as healthy as it has been all season with only CB Emanuel Dabney being ruled out prior to the game. Several Flames, however, left the game against Maine early due to injury including WR/KR Shedro Louis, WR Damian King, and CB Jimmy Faulks.

Faulks was able to return to the game and is expected to be fine, according to Coach Freeze.

“Shedro’s got a groin issue, don’t know how bad it is,” Freeze said postgame. “Damian King will have an MRI either (Sunday) or Monday to see if he has any damage in his knee.”

MACK GETS INTO END ZONE AGAINST FORMER TEAM

Liberty running back Joshua Mack got into the end zone against his former team Saturday night. The former FCS leading rusher at Maine, scored on a two-yard rush just before halftime. He finished the game with 45 rushing yards on 11 carries while adding 30 receiving yards.

“It was special,” Mack said postgame about scoring against his former team. “It’s just like any other game. I didn’t do anything different. It means just as much to me as scoring on any other team.”

His best friend on the Black Bears had a great game as wide receiver Earnest Edwards led Maine with 127 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns while adding 12 rushing yards and completing 1-of-2 passes for 11 yards.

“We were high school rivals growing up,” Mack said of Edwards. “We took a jersey swap picture after the game. That was exciting for me.”