Flames survive late rally, improve to 3-0

By Chris Lang
Sports writer
Published: September 13, 2008

CULLOWHEE, N.C. — With an offense as potent as any in FCS football, Liberty didn’t figure to be in many defensive struggles this season, but that was the case Saturday night at E.J. Whitmire Stadium. The Flames’ offense sat on the sideline in the final two minutes, watching and waiting to see if the defense could make a game-saving play.
Then on 4th-and-6 with 1:40 to play, it happened. Western Carolina’s Andy Horn took the snap and made his regular drop. As he was scanning for an open receiver, Liberty nose guard Colin Dugan pushed his way up the middle, allowing defensive end Kevin Richard to get one hand on Horn’s shoulder. Though Horn had spotted an open man — Adam Hearns — the contact was enough to force Horn to hurry the throw.
It fell to the turf, two yards behind Hearns, and the Flames celebrated their first 3-0 start since 1997. Liberty scratched out a 19-16 victory on a night when its high-powered offense struggled to find any sort of rhythm.
“Everybody, the fans, expect us to put up numbers,” said Liberty tailback Rashad Jennings, who ran for 116 yards on 28 carries. “But they took on the burden. There are going to be some games where the defense has to win. And there are going to be some games where the offense has to win. But every game, everybody has to play. The defense definitely stepped up when they needed to. Hats off to them.”
No. 25 Liberty extended its win streak to eight games and won its road opener for the first time since beating Western Carolina here in 1997.
The Catamounts (1-2) didn’t roll over, even after falling behind 19-7 early late in the fourth quarter. The Flames looked like they had the game under control, but the Catamounts used a big play to steal the momentum.
Horn hit Marquel Pittman on a short pass, and the lanky Western Carolina receiver shook off three tackles and raced 78 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead to 19-13. Liberty responded with a big play of its own, as Jonathan Crawford returned the ensuing kickoff 51 yards. But the Flames went three-and-out on the next drive, and Western quickly drove into Liberty’s red zone.
“Our backs were against the wall,” Richard said.
Western Carolina kept pushing. On 2nd-and-2 from the Liberty 23, Horn recognized a mismatch at the line of scrimmage. Pittman, who is 6-foot-3, lined up on the left with no cornerback to cover him. Liberty’s 5-10 safety, Chris Rocco, saw Pittman split wide and covered. Horn threw a jump ball into the end zone, and Rocco managed to shield the receiver enough with his body to cause a drop.
“Granted, he did drop the ball, but Chris was in decent position to finish the play,” Liberty coach Danny Rocco said. “He definitely made it a much more difficult catch.”
Western Carolina converted on fourth down to move to the Liberty 7. On 1st-and-goal, linebacker Chad Brown made one of the biggest plays of the game, breaking through a gap on the line to sack Horn for a nine-yard loss, pushing the Catamounts back to the Liberty 16. A delay of game penalty pushed WCU back five more yards, and the Catamounts eventually settled for a 38-yard Blake Bostic field goal with 7:12 left to cut the lead to 19-16.
“Any time you get a sack, it just kills the drive,” Richard said. “It just builds the momentum on the defensive side. Everybody gets excited. You pin your ears back even more.”
Liberty was held to 338 yards of total offense, its lowest output since the Flames gained 282 yards in last year’s loss at Toledo. The Flames had a streak of nine straight games with 31 or more points snapped and Liberty failed to score a touchdown in the first half, marking the first time since that had happened since the Elon game last September.
Instead, it was the defense that kept Liberty in the game, holding Western Carolina to 247 yards of total offense and just 19 net rushing yards.
“This was a wasted opportunity, we had chances to win this ball game,” first-year WCU coach Dennis Wagner said. “We didn’t get the job done.”
Though the Flames trailed 7-6 at halftime, they opened the second half strong. Jennings, who had been bottled up by Western’s eight-in-the-box defense in the first half, broke free for a 38-yard gain on the first play of the second half. Dominic Bolden scored on the drive’s 12th play, taking an inside handoff and reversing to the left for a 3-yard touchdown and a 13-7 Liberty lead.
But even on that drive, the Flames needed some help. Liberty seemingly had settled for a 23-yard Ben Shipps field goal. But after the kick went through the uprights, Western’s Chris Everett was called for a personal foul for “leaping,” or using another player as leverage to get higher on an attempt to block the kick. The ensuing first down kept the drive alive.
“I certainly didn’t expect to come in here and blow them out,” Danny Rocco said. “That was never a thought in my mind. We had a little more confidence in our ability to make a play or two and win the game than they did. I gave my kids one goal this week: To win the game and get on the bus 3-0. I’m about as happy as I can be.”