# 2023 Liberty Flames football team

The 2023 Liberty Flames football team represented Liberty University in the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Flames played their home games at Williams Stadium in Lynchburg, Virginia, and competed as a first-year member of Conference USA. They were led by first-year head coach Jamey Chadwell. The Liberty Flames football team drew an average home attendance of 18,911 in 2023.

## Schedule

Liberty and Conference USA announced the 2023 football schedule on January 10, 2023.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 2 | 12:00 p.m. | Bowling Green* | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | CBSSN | W 34–24 | 18,811 |
| September 9 | 6:00 p.m. | New Mexico State | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 33–17 | 20,123 |
| September 16 | 12:00 p.m. | at Buffalo* | | UB StadiumBuffalo, NY | CBSSN | W 55–27 | 13,020 |
| September 23 | 6:30 p.m. | at FIU | | Riccardo Silva StadiumWestchester, FL | ESPN+ | W 38–6 | 17,437 |
| October 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Sam Houston | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | CBSSN | W 21–16 | 17,100 |
| October 10 | 7:30 p.m. | at Jacksonville State | | Burgess–Snow Field at JSU StadiumJacksonville, AL | ESPNU | W 31–13 | 21,745 |
| October 17 | 7:00 p.m. | Middle Tennessee | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | CBSSN | W 42–35 | 16,354 |
| October 24 | 7:30 p.m. | at Western Kentucky | | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | ESPNU | W 42–29 | 16,036 |
| November 4 | 6:00 p.m. | Louisiana Tech | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | CBSSN | W 56–30 | 21,647 |
| November 11 | 1:00 p.m. | Old Dominion* | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 38–10 | 21,481 |
| November 18 | 1:00 p.m. | UMass* | | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 49–25 | 16,860 |
| November 25 | 3:30 p.m. | at UTEP | No. 25 | Sun BowlEl Paso, TX | CBSSN | W 42–28 | 10,240 |
| December 1 | 7:00 p.m. | New Mexico State | No. 24 | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA (C-USA Championship Game) | CBSSN | W 49–35 | 20,077 |
| January 1, 2024 | 1:00 p.m. | vs. No. 8 Oregon | No. 23 | State Farm StadiumGlendale, AZ (Fiesta Bowl) | ESPN | L 6–45 | 47,769 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after October 31) - Released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### vs Bowling Green

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bowling Green | 0 | 14 | 10 | 0 | 24 |
| Liberty | 7 | 17 | 7 | 3 | 34 |
at Williams Stadium, Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: Saturday, September 2, 2023
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 78 °F (26 °C)
* Game attendance: 18,811
* Referee: Jeremy Valentine
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Chick Hernandez and Taylor McHargue
| Statistics | BGSU | LIB |
| First downs | 19 | 22 |
| Total yards | 62-328 | 69-389 |
| Rushing yards | 31–191 | 49–246 |
| Passing yards | 137 | 246 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 11–31–5 | 11–20–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:05 | 32:55 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Bowling Green | Passing | Connor Bazelak | 6/21, 71 yards, 3 INT |
| Bowling Green | Rushing | Taron Keith | 3 carries, 69 yards, TD |
| Bowling Green | Receiving | Odieu Hillare | 4 receptions, 59 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 11/20, 143 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Kaidon Salter | 19 carries, 82 yards |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibley | 3 receptions, 56 yards |

### vs New Mexico State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| New Mexico State | 7 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Liberty | 7 | 16 | 10 | 0 | 33 |
at Williams Stadium, Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023
* Game time: 4:00 p.m. MDT/6:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 71 °F (22 °C)
* Game attendance: 20,123
* Referee: Ron Hudson
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Matt Warner, Joe Jauch, and Emily Austen
| Statistics | NMSU | LIB |
| First downs | 16 | 26 |
| Total yards | 50–339 | 77–526 |
| Rushing yards | 24–170 | 52–250 |
| Passing yards | 169 | 276 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 14–26–2 | 15–25–0 |
| Time of possession | 22:06 | 37:54 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| New Mexico State | Passing | Diego Pavia | 12/21, 150 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| New Mexico State | Rushing | Diego Pavia | 9 carries, 63 yards |
| New Mexico State | Receiving | Chris Bellamy | 3 receptions, 74 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 15/25, 276 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 20 carries, 106 yards |
| Liberty | Receiving | C. J. Daniels | 4 receptions, 129 yards, TD |

### at Buffalo

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Liberty | 10 | 14 | 17 | 14 | 55 |
| Buffalo | 0 | 14 | 7 | 6 | 27 |
at University at Buffalo Stadium • Amherst, New York
* Date: September 16, 2023
* Game time: 12 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C); Sunny
* Game attendance: 13,020
* Referee: Greg Sujack
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Jason Knapp (play-by-play); Malik Zaire (analyst)
| Statistics | LIB | BUFF |
| First downs | 19 | 22 |
| Total yards | 65–569 | 81–363 |
| Rushing yards | 36–225 | 30–87 |
| Passing yards | 344 | 276 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 16–29–0 | 29–51–2 |
| Time of possession | 28:35 | 31:25 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 16/26, 344 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Kaidon Salter | 10 carries, 66 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibler | 3 receptions, 106 yards, TD |
| Buffalo | Passing | Cole Snyder | 29/51, 276 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT |
| Buffalo | Rushing | Mike Washington | 11 carries, 37 yards |
| Buffalo | Receiving | Nik McMillan | 4 receptions, 72 yards, TD |

### at FIU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Liberty | 14 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 38 |
| Florida International | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
at Riccardo Silva Stadium • Westchester, Florida
* Date: September 23rd
* Game time: 6:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 82 °F (28 °C); Cloudy
* Game attendance: 17,437
* Referee: Garrett Dickerson
* TV announcers (ESPN+): AJ Ricketts and Jonathan Zipper
| Statistics | LIB | FIU |
| First downs | 22 | 11 |
| Plays–yards | 65-520 | 57-211 |
| Rushes–yards | 44-364 | 33-64 |
| Passing yards | 156 | 147 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 11-21-1 | 11-24-1 |
| Time of possession | 33:09 | 26:51 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 11/21, 156 yards, 2TD, 1INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley, Billy Lucas | 12 carries, 102 yards / 11 carries, 102 yards, 1TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibley | 2 receptions, 83 yards, 1TD |
| Florida International | Passing | Keyone Jenkins | 9/21, 133 yards, 1INT |
| Florida International | Rushing | Kejon Owens | 11 carries, 42 yards |
| Florida International | Receiving | Kris Mitchell | 3 receptions, 89 yards |

### Sam Houston

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Sam Houston | 10 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 16 |
| Liberty | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
at Williams Stadium Lynchburg, VA
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT/7:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 68 °F (20 °C)
* Game attendance: 17,100
* Referee: Rory Bernard
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Chick Hernandez and Robert Turbin
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | SHSU | LIB |
| First downs | 19 | 19 |
| Total yards | 327 | 448 |
| Rushing yards | 72 | 191 |
| Passing yards | 255 | 257 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 27:24 | 32:36 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Sam Houston State | Passing | Keegan Shoemaker | 27/41, 255 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Sam Houston State | Rushing | Keegan Shoemaker | 7 rushes, 52 yards |
| Sam Houston State | Receiving | Noah Smith | 13 receptions, 97 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 11/19, 257 yards, TD, INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 17 rushes, 106 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | CJ Daniels | 5 receptions, 157 yards, TD |

### at Jacksonville State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gamecocks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
* Statistics
* First downs
* Plays–yards
* Rushes–yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: comp–att–int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Liberty | Passing |
| Liberty | Rushing |
| Liberty | Receiving |
| Jacksonville State | Passing |
| Jacksonville State | Rushing |
| Jacksonville State | Receiving |

### vs Middle Tennessee

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Middle Tennessee | 14 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
| Liberty | 14 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: Tuesday, October 17, 2023
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
* Game attendance: 16,354
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play) and Brock Vereen (analyst)
| Statistics | MTSU | LIB |
| First downs | 23 | 33 |
| Total yards | 63–428 | 81–541 |
| Rushing yards | 26–96 | 61–401 |
| Passing yards | 332 | 140 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 24–37–2 | 12–20–1 |
| Time of possession | 22:40 | 37:20 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Middle Tennessee | Passing | Nicholas Vattiato | 24/37, 332 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT |
| Middle Tennessee | Rushing | Jaiden Cradle | 12 carries, 50 yards |
| Middle Tennessee | Receiving | Zack Dobson | 2 receptions, 82 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 12/20, 140 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Kaidon Salter | 16 carries, 160 yards |
| Liberty | Receiving | CJ Daniels | 6 receptions, 71 yards, TD |

### vs No. 8 Oregon (Fiesta Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 23 Flames | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| • No. 8 Ducks | 3 | 28 | 7 | 7 | 45 |
| Statistics | No. 23 Liberty | No. 8 Oregon |
| First downs | 15 | 28 |
| Plays–yards | 52–294 | 71–584 |
| Rushes–yards | 28–168 | 29–183 |
| Passing yards | 126 | 401 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 15–24–2 | 33–42–0 |
| Time of possession | 24:45 | 35:15 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| No. 23 Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 15/24, 126 yards, TD, INT |
| No. 23 Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 8 carries, 79 yards |
| No. 23 Liberty | Receiving | CJ Daniels | 8 catches, 79 yards |
| No. 8 Oregon | Passing | Bo Nix | 28/35, 363 yards, 5 TD |
| No. 8 Oregon | Rushing | Bucky Irving | 14 carries, 117 yards, TD |
| No. 8 Oregon | Receiving | Tez Johnson | 11 catches, 172 yards, TD |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 25 | 22 | 20 | 18 | 25 |
| Coaches | — | — | — | — | RV | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 22 | 22 | 20 | RV |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | — | — | — | 25 | 24 | 23 | Not released |