The Flames fall in the 4th quarter after owning a two touchdown lead with 7 minutes remaining, it’s the 2nd straight week UMass made a 4th quarter comeback. This time, they needed triple overtime to finish off their opponent. Liberty allowed 777 yards of offense to the Minutemen, led by quarterback Ross Comis’ 540 passing yards, 303 of which went to Andy Isabella.
Throughout every game, there are several moments or plays that go unnoticed, or could be overlooked. Still, they play a huge role in the eventual outcome.
Let’s look at five plays that changed the direction of this game:
Crazy play leads to Liberty touchdown – While it didn’t help the Flames put a W in the win column, it’s a play that is worth mentioning. In the 2nd quarter, Buckshot was intercepted on a deep pass play by Lee Moses. As Moses began to make a return, he was met by Antoinio Gandy-Golden, and he fumbled. The ball bounced towards Khaleb Coleman who recovered it and walked into the end zone to give Liberty a 24-21 lead in the 2nd quarter.
Jeremy Peters called for roughing the passer, leads to UMass TD – It looked like the Flames had come up with a 3rd down stop in the red zone as Comis’ pass fell incomplete. But Jeremy Peters was called for a roughing the passer, giving the Minutemen new life. On the next play, they scored a touchdown to take a 31-24 lead late in the 3rd quarter.
Ajayi’s fumble recovery looms big – With the Flames clinging to a 7 point lead early in the 4th quarter, Solomon Ajayi picked up a fumble and ran it inside the 5 yard line. It set Liberty up with a first and goal as the Flames went up by two scores on the next play. It looked like the play that would push the Flames over the top. Ajayi finished the game with a team-high 8 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, and 1 interception.
Botched snap gives UMass life – After the Minutemen cut the lead to 45-38 with 6:42 left in the game, Liberty needed just a couple of first downs to melt the clock away. So, they went to Frankie Hickson. Two runs picked up a first down. Two more runs set up a 3rd and 2 with less than 4 minutes remaining. If the Flames were able to pick up the first down, they could have run the clock down to under 2 minutes with 3 more run plays. Tom Sargeant’s snap to Buckshot, who was standing in the shotgun, sailed over his head. Calvert fell on the ball, and Liberty was forced to punt.
Buckshot intercepted in 3rd OT – With college overtime rules, if a team turns it over, it’s nearly impossible to win the game. That’s what happened to the Flames as Buckshot was intercepted in the 3rd overtime. The play was 2nd and 15 and the 19 yard line. Buckshot tried to force the ball to DJ Stubbs in double coverage. The interception allowed UMass to drive the ball down inside the 10 and attempt virtually an extra point for the game winning field goal.
