Liberty Opens 2025 with Flames Quarter Win over Maine

LYNCHBURG, Va. – Since coming to the Mountain in 2023, Liberty Head Coach Jamey Chadwell has pressured the significance of robust play within the fourth quarter.
     
That effort was on full show in a 28-7 season-opening win over Maine on a sun-drenched day at Williams Stadium.
     
Despite being in management defensively for a lot of the recreation, the Flames wanted till the ultimate quarter-hour to get their offense flowing. Liberty scored three of its 4 touchdowns over the last quarter.
     
Last yr, Liberty outscored its opponents 124-69 through the ultimate quarter. Today, Liberty scored 21 consecutive factors and outgained the visiting Black Bears, 133 to 77, through the ultimate quarter-hour of the sport.
     
Overall, Liberty held a 391 to 316 benefit in whole offensive yards with an virtually fully balanced offensive assault (194 speeding yards and 197 passing yards).
     
Coastal Carolina switch quarterback Ethan Vasko picked up his first win underneath heart for the Flames. The redshirt junior accomplished 19-of-33 go makes an attempt for 197 yards and threw three touchdowns. He additionally led Liberty’s speeding assault with 13 carries for 63 yards and one rating
     
Georgia Tech switch Evan Dickens made probably the most of his Flames debut on his birthday. He had 10 carries for 34 yards and scored on a 24-yard sideline go play to begin Liberty’s scoring spurt through the fourth quarter.
     
Reese Smith was Vasko’s prime goal within the recreation, ending the afternoon contest with six receptions on six targets for 46 yards, together with Liberty’s first rating of the sport. The redshirt senior caught a nine-yard landing go simply seven seconds earlier than halftime to permit Liberty to enter the locker room tied at 7-7.
     
After giving up a prolonged landing run within the second quarter (77-yard run by working again Sincere Baines), Liberty’s protection held Maine and test and stored them off the scoreboard.
     
Liberty completed the sport with two turnovers triggered, together with a CJ Bazile, Jr., sack and fumble restoration to arrange Smith’s late second quarter rating.
     
Bazile and linebacker Aidan Vaughan tied for team-high tackling honors (six tackles), whereas Amarian Williams had the opposite turnover gained together with his fourth profession interception.
 
The Flames’ win at present:

• Is the Flames’ sixth straight season-opening triumph and ninth within the final 10 years, boosting Liberty’s report in season openers to 28-25 all-time.
• Gives Liberty a program-record six-year streak of profitable season openers, breaking the present report of profitable 5 straight season-opening video games (2004-08).
• Gives Liberty a win in its house opener for the sixth straight yr and twelfth out of the final 13. It pushes Liberty’s report in house openers to 32-6 on the Division I degree and 7-1 on the FBS degree.
• Keeps the house crew undefeated within the Liberty-Maine soccer collection, giving the Flames a 2-1 collection benefit.
• Makes Liberty 10-0 vs. FCS opponents since becoming a member of the FBS ranks in 2018.
• Marks Liberty’s third straight victory over a CAA opponent, making the Flames 6-24 versus the league all-time.
• Gives Liberty a 38-7 report at Williams Stadium since becoming a member of the FBS in 2018.

 
Box Score Highlights:
Final Score: 28-7
Liberty (1-0, 0-0 CUSA)
Maine (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
Location: Williams Stadium (Lynchburg, Va.)
Attendance: 20,337
 
Play-By-Play Breakdown:
First Quarter

• Both groups went on prolonged drives on their first possessions of the sport, however neither crew may add factors to the scoreboard through the first quarter-hour of play.
• The Flames’ 18-play, 47-yard drive chewed up over eight minutes of recreation clock (8:38), however an offensive go interference name moved Liberty out of the crimson zone. Three performs later, Jay Billingsley missed his first discipline aim try as a Flames, because the Gardner-Webb switch pushed a 37-yard try huge proper.
• Maine’s 11-play, 42-yard drive acquired deep into Flames territory the place the Black Bears elected to go for it on a fourth-and-three play from the Liberty 31-yard line. Nebraska switch cornerback Damon Harmon was in a position to get behind the road of scrimmage to sack Maine’s quarterback and hand the ball again to the offense.

Second Quarter

• The Black Bears have been the primary crew to seek out the top zone within the recreation, getting a 77-yard speeding landing by Sincere Baines on the 13:58 mark to present the guests a 7-0 lead.
• The recreation’s first turnover allowed the Flames to knot the rating simply earlier than halftime. CJ Bazile, Jr., sacked Maine quarterback Carter Peevey and the Joker recovered the unfastened ball. Vasko linked on his subsequent three go makes an attempt, together with a nine-yard strike to the top zone to Reese Smith, tying the sport at 7-7 with seven seconds left within the half.  

Third Quarter

• Neither crew may add factors to the scoreboard through the third quarter, regardless of the 2 groups combining to tally 173 yards of whole offense.

Fourth Quarter

• The Flames took their first lead of the 2025 season on a 24-yard landing go to Georgia Tech switch Evan Dickens. The working again acquired a go to the sidelines from Vasko and raced down the sidelines to beat two defenders to the top zone, giving Liberty a 14-7 edge on the 10:24 mark.
• The Flames capped the fourth-quarter push with a pair of scores through the recreation’s ultimate 5 minutes. Donte Lee, Jr., caught a 16-yard go play from Vasko with 4:33 left to play, whereas the quarterback referred to as his personal quantity on a 13-yard scoring run on the 2;38 mark.

 
What’s Next:
Liberty will open Conference USA play towards the defending convention champions subsequent weekend then the Flames journey to Jacksonville, Ala., to face off towards Jax State. Kickoff is ready for 11 a.m. CT/12 p.m. ET at Burgess-Snow Field at AmFirst Stadium.
     
Since the 2 groups joined Conference USA in 2023, the visiting crew has gained each collection conferences. Liberty knocked off Jax State, 31-13, in Jacksonville in 2023, whereas the Gamecocks dealt with the Flames a 31-21 setback in Lynchburg in 2024.
 
Date: Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025
Location: Jacksonville, Ala. (Burgess-Snow Field at AmFirst Stadium)
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: LFSN Radio (Flagship Station: The Journey 88.3 FM Lynchburg)
Kickoff: 12:00 p.m. (EST)