# 2024 Liberty Flames football team

The 2024 Liberty Flames football team represented Liberty University during the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Flames played their home games at Williams Stadium located in Lynchburg, Virginia, and competed as a second-year member of Conference USA. They were led by second-year head coach Jamey Chadwell.

## Preseason
### C-USA media poll

The Conference USA preseason media poll was released on July 19. The Flames were predicted to finish first in the conference.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Liberty | 197 (18) |
| 2 | Western Kentucky | 173 (2) |
| 3 | Jacksonville State | 166 |
| 4 | Middle Tennessee | 98 |
| 5 | New Mexico State | 97 |
| 5 | Sam Houston | 97 |
| 7 | Louisiana Tech | 88 |
| 8 | FIU | 81 |
| 9 | UTEP | 76 |
| 10 | Kennesaw State | 27 |

## Schedule

The September 28 game against Appalachian State was canceled due to Hurricane Helene.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31, 2024 | 6:00 p.m. | Campbell* | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 41–24 | 21,573 |
| September 7 | 10:15 p.m. | at New Mexico State | Aggie Memorial StadiumLas Cruces, NM | ESPN2 | W 30–24 | 16,562 |
| September 14 | 6:00 p.m. | UTEP | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 28–10 | 21,805 |
| September 21 | 6:00 p.m. | East Carolina* | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 35–24 | 24,076 |
| September 28 | 3:30 p.m. | at Appalachian State* | Kidd Brewer StadiumBoone, NC | ESPN+ | Canceled | |
| October 8 | 7:00 p.m. | FIU | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | CBSSN | W 31–24 $^{OT}$ | 16,343 |
| October 23 | 7:00 p.m. | at Kennesaw State | Fifth Third Bank StadiumKennesaw, GA | CBSSN | L 24–27 | 8,209 |
| October 30 | 7:00 p.m. | Jacksonville State | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | CBSSN | L 21–31 | 18,069 |
| November 9 | 1:00 p.m. | at Middle Tennessee | Johnny "Red" Floyd StadiumMurfreesboro, TN | CBSSN | W 37–17 | 13,500 |
| November 16 | 12:00 p.m. | at Massachusetts* | Warren McGuirk Alumni StadiumHadley, MA | ESPN+ | W 35–34 $^{OT}$ | 9,115 |
| November 23 | 1:00 p.m. | Western Kentucky | Williams StadiumLynchburg, VA | ESPN+ | W 38–21 | 17,930 |
| November 29 | 3:30 p.m. | at Sam Houston | Bowers StadiumHuntsville, TX | CBSSN | L 18–20 | 8,651 |
| January 4, 2025 | 11:00 a.m. | vs. Buffalo | Thomas Robinson StadiumNassau, The Bahamas (Bahamas Bowl) | ESPN2 | L 7–26 | |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### Campbell (FCS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Camels (FCS) | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Flames | 7 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 41 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: August 31, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 81 °F (27 °C) • Wind: S 8 miles per hour (13 km/h)
* Game attendance: 21,573
* Referee: Douglas Mercer
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Matt Warner (play-by-play), Joe Jauch (analyst) and Emily Austen (sideline)
| Statistics | CAMP | LIB |
| First downs | 13 | 28 |
| Total yards | 310 | 533 |
| Rushing yards | 116 | 279 |
| Passing yards | 194 | 254 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 11–18–0 | 18–26–0 |
| Time of possession | 23:58 | 36:02 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Campbell | Passing | Chad Mascoe | 10/17, 180 yards, TD |
| Campbell | Rushing | Mark Biggins | 8 carries, 81 yards, TD |
| Campbell | Receiving | Sincere Brown | 5 receptions, 126 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 16/23, 242 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 16 carries, 110 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibley | 5 receptions, 109 yards, TD |

### at New Mexico State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | 3 | 6 | 0 | 21 | 30 |
| Aggies | 10 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
at Aggie Memorial Stadium • Las Cruces, New Mexico
* Date: September 7, 2024
* Game time: 10:15 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 16,562
* Referee: Rodney Burnette
* TV announcers (ESPN2): Brian Custer (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst) and Lauren Sisler (sideline)
| Statistics | LIB | NMSU |
| First downs | 18 | 18 |
| Total yards | 473 | 275 |
| Rushing yards | 217 | 117 |
| Passing yards | 256 | 158 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 16–29–0 | 9–22–0 |
| Time of possession | 28:56 | 31:04 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 16/29, 256 yards |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 12 carries, 111 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibley | 5 receptions, 155 yards |
| New Mexico State | Passing | Parker Awad | 9/22, 158 yards, 2 TD |
| New Mexico State | Rushing | Seth McGowan | 15 carries, 66 yards |
| New Mexico State | Receiving | Monte Watkins | 1 reception, 64 yards, TD |

### UTEP

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Miners | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| Flames | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: September 14, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 78 °F (26 °C) • Wind: NE 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)
* Game attendance: 21,805
* Referee: Garrett Dickerson
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Matt Warner (play-by-play), Joe Jauch (analyst) and Emily Austen (sideline)
| Statistics | UTEP | LIB |
| First downs | 18 | 19 |
| Total yards | 335 | 415 |
| Rushing yards | 91 | 187 |
| Passing yards | 244 | 228 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 26–43–2 | 15–19–0 |
| Time of possession | 29:14 | 30:46 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UTEP | Passing | Skyler Locklear | 26/43, 244 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| UTEP | Rushing | Jevon Jackson | 15 carries, 67 yards |
| UTEP | Receiving | Kam Thomas | 8 receptions, 68 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 15/19, 228 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Billy Lucas | 21 carries, 104 yards, 3 TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibley | 4 receptions, 77 yards |

### East Carolina

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Pirates | 14 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
| Flames | 0 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 35 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: September 21, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 80 °F (27 °C) • Wind: SW at 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h) • Weather: Rain
* Game attendance: 24,076
* Referee: Ron Hudson
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Matt Warner (play-by-play), Joe Jauch (analyst) and Emily Austen (sideline)
| Statistics | ECU | LIB |
| First downs | 21 | 26 |
| Total yards | 331 | 414 |
| Rushing yards | 127 | 191 |
| Passing yards | 204 | 223 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 20–36–1 | 19–32–1 |
| Time of possession | 23:17 | 36:43 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| East Carolina | Passing | Jake Garcia | 20/36, 204 yards, 1 INT |
| East Carolina | Rushing | Rahjai Harris | 13 carries, 47 yards, 1 TD |
| East Carolina | Receiving | Chase Sowell | 5 receptions, 72 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 19/32, 223 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 19 carries, 105 yards, 1 TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Reese Smith | 6 receptions, 80 yards, 3 TD |

### at Appalachian State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | - | - | - | - | 0 |
| Mountaineers | - | - | - | - | 0 |
at Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone, North Carolina
* Date: September 28, 2024
* Game time: Canceled, due to Hurricane Helene

### FIU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Panthers | 3 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 24 |
| Flames | 3 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: October 8, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 61 °F (16 °C) • Wind: SE at 3 miles per hour (4.8 km/h)
* Game attendance: 16,343
* Referee: Garrett Dickerson
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Jordan Kent (play-by-play) and Donte Whitner (analyst)
| Statistics | FIU | LIB |
| First downs | 18 | 21 |
| Total yards | 344 | 406 |
| Rushing yards | 99 | 281 |
| Passing yards | 245 | 125 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 19–29–0 | 9–16–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:18 | 30:42 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| FIU | Passing | Keyone Jenkins | 19/29, 245 yards, INT |
| FIU | Rushing | Kejon Owens | 15 carries, 52 yards, TD |
| FIU | Receiving | Dean Patterson | 6 receptions, 90 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 9/16, 125 yards |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 29 carries, 174 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Reese Smith | 4 receptions, 68 yards |

### at Kennesaw State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | 7 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 24 |
| Owls | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 27 |
at Fifth Third Stadium • Kennesaw, Georgia
* Date: October 23, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 69 °F (21 °C) • Wind: SE 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
* Game attendance: 8,209
* Referee: Reed Brotherton
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Jason Knapp (play-by-play) and Brock Vereen (analyst)
| Statistics | LIB | KENN |
| First downs | 22 | 18 |
| Total yards | 386 | 323 |
| Rushing yards | 180 | 134 |
| Passing yards | 206 | 189 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 22–40–1 | 16–20–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:41 | 32:19 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 22/40, 206 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Kaidon Salter | 9 carries, 87 yards |
| Liberty | Receiving | Elijah Canion | 5 receptions, 61 yards, 1 TD |
| Kennesaw State | Passing | Davis Bryson | 16/20, 189 yards, 1 TD |
| Kennesaw State | Rushing | Michael Benefield | 16 carries, 54 yards, 1 TD |
| Kennesaw State | Receiving | Jaden Robinson | 3 receptions, 72 yards |

### Jacksonville State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Gamecocks | 7 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 31 |
| Flames | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: October 30, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 66 °F (19 °C) • Wind: SW 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h)
* Game attendance: 18,069
* Referee: Rodney Burnette
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play) and Luke Kuechly (analyst)
| Statistics | JVST | LIB |
| First downs | 21 | 27 |
| Total yards | 458 | 420 |
| Rushing yards | 363 | 273 |
| Passing yards | 95 | 147 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 6–10–0 | 12–25–1 |
| Time of possession | 23:46 | 36:14 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Jacksonville State | Passing | Tyler Huff | 6/10, 95 yards |
| Jacksonville State | Rushing | Tre Stewart | 27 carries, 232 yards, 4 TD |
| Jacksonville State | Receiving | Cam Vaughn | 1 reception, 39 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 12/25, 147 yards, TD, INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 27 carries, 133 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Elijah Canion | 5 receptions, 63 yards |

### at Middle Tennessee

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | 7 | 20 | 3 | 7 | 37 |
| Blue Raiders | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 17 |
at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium • Murfreesboro, Tennessee
* Date: Saturday November 9, 2024
* Game time: 1:00 p.m.
* TV announcers: Matt Warner (play-by-play), Joe Jauch (analyst) and Emily Austen (sideline)
| Statistics | LIB | MTSU |
| First downs | 30 | 19 |
| Total yards | 500 | 351 |
| Rushing yards | 339 | 88 |
| Passing yards | 161 | 263 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 30:23 | 29:37 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 11/15, 154 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 24 carries, 136 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Elijah Canion | 3 receptions, 54 yards |
| Middle Tennessee | Passing | Nicholas Vattiato | 22/33, 263 yards, 2 TD |
| Middle Tennessee | Rushing | Jaiden Credle | 10 carries, 27 yards |
| Middle Tennessee | Receiving | Holden Willis | 5 receptions, 81 yards |

### at UMass

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Flames | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 35 |
| Minutemen | 7 | 13 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 34 |
at Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Hadley, Massachusetts
* Date: Saturday November 16, 2024
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 56 °F (13 °C) • Wind: NW 11 miles per hour (18 km/h)
* Game attendance: 9,115
* Referee: Gary Patterson
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Jay Burnham (play-by-play) and Andy Gresh (analyst)
| Statistics | LIB | MASS |
| First downs | 27 | 26 |
| Total yards | 423 | 426 |
| Rushing yards | 309 | 263 |
| Passing yards | 114 | 163 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 9–16–1 | 13–25–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:50 | 32:10 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 9/16, 114 yards, INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 20 carries, 147 yards, 3 TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Treon Sibley | 1 reception, 34 yards |
| UMass | Passing | AJ Hairston | 13/25, 163 yards |
| UMass | Rushing | Jalen John | 15 carries, 119 yards, 2 TD |
| UMass | Receiving | Jakobie Keeney-James | 6 receptions, 75 yards |

### Western Kentucky

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 |
| Flames | 0 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 38 |
at Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, Virginia
* Date: Saturday, November 23, 2024
* Game time: 1:00 p.m.
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Matt Warner (play-by-play), Joe Jauch (analyst) and Emily Austen (sideline)
| Statistics | WKU | LIB |
| First downs | 19 | 29 |
| Total yards | 368 | 556 |
| Rushing yards | 106 | 419 |
| Passing yards | 262 | 137 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 20-34-3 | 7-12-0 |
| Time of possession | 25:17 | 34:43 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Western Kentucky | Passing | Caden Veltkamp | 20/34, 262 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT |
| Western Kentucky | Rushing | Elijah Young | 9 carries, 60 yards |
| Western Kentucky | Receiving | Kisean Johnson | 7 receptions, 94 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 6/11, 108 yards, TD |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 24 carries, 166 yards, 2 TD |
| Liberty | Receiving | Julian Gray | 2 receptions, 47 yards, TD |

### at Sam Houston

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | 2 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 18 |
| Bearkats | 3 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 20 |
at Bowers Stadium • Huntsville, Texas
* Date: Friday November 29, 2024
* Game time: 3:30 p.m.
* TV: CBSSN
| Statistics | LIB | SHSU |
| First downs | 18 | 18 |
| Total yards | 262 | 333 |
| Rushing yards | 179 | 131 |
| Passing yards | 83 | 202 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 12-37-2 | 19-34-1 |
| Time of possession | 24:42 | 35:18 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Liberty | Passing | Kaidon Salter | 12/35, 83 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Quinton Cooley | 19 carries, 90 yards |
| Liberty | Receiving | Reese Smith | 3 receptions, 26 yards |
| Sam Houston | Passing | Hunter Watson | 19/33, 202 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Sam Houston | Rushing | Jay Ducker | 24 carries, 96 yards |
| Sam Houston | Receiving | Simeon Evans | 6 receptions, 83 yards, 2 TD |

### vs. Buffalo (Bahamas Bowl)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulls | 6 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 26 |
| Flames | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
at Thomas Robinson Stadium, Nassau, Bahamas
* Date: Saturday, January 4, 2025
* Game time: 11:00 a.m.
* Game weather: Partly cloudy • Temperature: 72 °F (22 °C) • Wind: NNE at 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)
* Game attendance: 4,610
* Referee: Darryl DeBerry
* TV announcers (ESPN2): Matt Schumacker (play-by-play), Dustin Fox (analyst) and Coley Harvey (sideline)
* Box score
| Statistics | UB | LIB |
| First downs | 18 | 11 |
| Total yards | 359 | 242 |
| Rushing yards | 222 | 162 |
| Passing yards | 137 | 80 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 9–19–0 | 6–21–1 |
| Time of possession | 37:01 | 22:59 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Buffalo | Passing | C.J. Ogbonna | 9/19, 137 yards |
| Buffalo | Rushing | Al-Jay Henderson | 21 carries, 199 yards, TD |
| Buffalo | Receiving | Victor Snow | 4 receptions, 41 yards |
| Liberty | Passing | Nate Hampton | 2/9, 40 yards, TD, INT |
| Liberty | Rushing | Billy Lucas | 3 carries, 57 yards |
| Liberty | Receiving | Reese Smith | 1 reception, 36 yards, TD |