LYNCHBURG, Va.- A 22 point second quarter blew open a three point first quarter Liberty lead as the Flames improved to 1-1 on the season, dropping future Big South conference mate Monmouth to 0-2 on the season.
Liberty opened a 9-0 lead before MU tight end Mike McLafferty (Morgan, N.J./War Memorial) cut the lead to three on a 27 yard touchdown reception. The Flames then used a 28 yard pass, a 29 yard interception return and a 85 yard TD strike to give themselves a 31-6 cushion at halftime. Liberty scored twice in the waning minutes of the third quarter to open up a 39 point lead, their largest of the game. MU got a fourth quarter field goal and a 42 yard TD reception to finish up the scoring action.
“Liberty is a very talented and very well coached. They are explosive and we gave them opportunities and they took advantage of those opportunities. I thought their defensive side of the ball was one of the best we've seen based on what we saw against Kent State. We made some mistakes and when you make mistakes against a good team those mistakes are magnified. Liberty took advantage of our mistakes and made some big plays.”
Monmouth's defense allowed a bit of a drive on the first possession but ultimately stiffened at its own 39 forcing a Liberty punt. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Liberty punter Grant Bowden dropped the ball on the Hawks' 1 yard line. Two straight stuffed runs set up a third and 10 and Hayes was dropped for a safety, putting Liberty up 2-0 with 8:05 to play in the first quarter.
Two possessions later Liberty drove 56-yards on five plays on their next drive, which was capped off by a 2 yard Desmond Rice touchdown. The drive was set up when a MU blitz was picked up and Woodrum hit wide receiver Dante Shells for 39 yards down to the MU three yard line.
Liberty head coach Turner Gill tried an onsides kick that was picked up on the second line by tight end Zach Fabel (Brigantine, N.J./Holy Spirit) and returned 34 yards to the Liberty 27. On the next play senior tight end Mike McLafferty caught a bullet from Brandon Hill (Audubon, N.J./Audubon/UMass) in the endzone for the first MU touchdown of the contest. The extra point attempt was no good as the hold was mishandled and the score sat at 9-6 with 59 seconds left in the 1st.
Corner Tevrin Brandon (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic/UConn) came up with his first interception as a Hawk, and the first MU forced turnover of the year, when he came up with an impressive one-handed interception while in full stride on coverage. MU could do nothing with the field position and after a short punt, Liberty marched on a tiring defense to go up 17-6 on a 28 yard Woodrum to Darrin Peterson pass.
Two stalled drives by each team set up the next big play, as Liberty defensive back caught a tipped ball on a 2nd and 8 pass, going untouched 29 yards to give Liberty a 24-8 advantage with 7:16 to play.
Liberty pushed the score to 31-6 on a 85 yard touchdown strike from Woodrum to Peterson with 3:24 to play, which would end the first half scoring.
Richardson capped a 80 yard, 10 play second half opening drive for the Flames after the MU offense turned the ball over in the Liberty endzone on Kevin Fogg's second pick of the game.
Liberty scored on a four yard DJ Abner run with one minute left in the third to push the score to 45-6. With senior Greg DePugh (Morris Plains, N.J./Parsippany Hills) in at quarterback, the Hawks got on the board again when he hit a wide open Fabel for 42 yards and a touchdown. The extra point was no good and Liberty lead was 45-12. It was DePugh's second career pass attempt and the first reception for Fabel.
Eric Spillane (Howell, N.J./Colts Neck) hit a 46 yard field goal in the fourth quarter to cut into the Liberty lead. The 46-yarder tied a career-long for Spillane, who moved ahead of Matt Merklinger and Chris Reed for third all-time in scoring with 211 points.
The Flames outgained Monmouth 399-280 for the game, however MU put up 205 total yards in the second half compared to 139 second half yards for Liberty. LU rushed for 122 on the night, with MU gaining 87 on the ground. The time of possession tilted towards Liberty, who held the ball for 34:15 next to Monmouth's 25:45. Liberty picked up 20 first downs and was 2-of-10 on third downs. Monmouth moved the chains 12 times, going 2-of-11 on third down.
Hill completed 7-of-17 for 97 yards and a touchdown, in addition to three interceptions. DePugh completed five of his eight attempts for 96 yards and a score. Hayes carried 14 times for 46 yards, averaging 3.3 yards per carry, and Asante rushed eight times for 43 yards, good for 5.4 yards per rush. McLafferty led the Hawks with 75 yards receiving and was one of three Hawks who made three receptions on the night, in addition to Thaddeus Richards (Columbus, N.J./Northern Burlington) and Neal Sterling (Belmar, N.J./Manasquan). Fabel made one grab, which was a 42 yard touchdown catch. Gary Onuekwusi (Baltimore, Md./Dunbar/Temple) led MU with nine tackles, six of them solo stops. Clark Coe (Hoboken, N.J./Carteret) recorded eight tackles, and Dave Damirgian (Churchville, Pa./Council Rock) added six, including 1.5 tackles for loss. Brandon added an interception.
Liberty quarterback Josh Woodrum completed 13-of-19 for 237 yards and two touchdowns. Desmond Rice led the Flames on the ground with 50 yards rushing on 16 carries, including a touchdown. D.J. Abnar rushed for 38 yards on 12 touches, for an average of 3.2 yards per carry. Dante Shells had four receptions for 68 yards, including a 40 yard grab. Darrin Peterson made three catches for 124 yards and two touchdowns, as well as an 85 yard catch. Nick Sigmon and Jimmy O'Grady both made five tackles to lead Liberty, and Charles Williams added a pair of interceptions.
Monmouth returns to action next Saturday, September 14 for their home opener at Kessler Field against Lehigh. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.
