Historic Victory

Liberty football defeats Baylor 48-45 on the road

There were six seconds on the clock. Baylor’s sophomore quarterback Zach Smith took the snap from Baylor’s 42-yard line and dropped back before stepping up into the pocket and hurling an absolute prayer down the field into a crowd of Baylor receivers and Liberty defensive backs.

A prayer was answered, but not for Baylor.

Sophomore safety Brandon Tillman came down with Smith’s pass for a game-winning interception as time expired, officially sealing Liberty’s first win against a Power 5 team, and one of the biggest upsets in college football history.

According to ESPN’s Football Power Index, Liberty only had a 2.2 percent chance to beat Baylor — that’s a 32.5 underdog point-spread.

The Flames overcame those odds to shock Baylor, and the rest of the college football world, by defeating the Bears 48-45 on the road at McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas.

The Flames win is the second biggest FPI upset in the last 10 years, second only to Howard University’s victory over the University of Nevada Las Vegas just a few hours later.

“It was a landmark win for Liberty,” President Jerry Falwell Jr. said. “We’re so proud of the team and the school spirit that was shown after the game.”

The Flames upset was the perfect answer to all the looming questions of whether the team was ready for its two-year transition to the FBS this season. 

“I told (the team) it’s about us, it’s not about them,” Head Coach Turner Gill said a few days before the game. “We can’t control wins and losses, but we can control giving our best effort and execution.”

And execution and perseverance was exactly what gave the Flames an edge in their first win of the season.

Though the game started out slow, it turned into an offensive shootout as both teams would eventually combine for 1,117 total yards on the night.

Liberty took the field first and produced an 11-play, 73-yard drive that ended in a 27-yard field goal from sophomore kicker Alex Probert. Both teams were held to a punt on their following drives, but Liberty put up another field goal on its third drive that would eventually end the first quarter at a score of 6-0.

Just a minute into the second quarter, the Bears answered back with the first touchdown of the game off of a 45-yard pass, taking the lead at 7-6. However, the Flames would raise the tempo with a quick score of their own as sophomore quarterback Stephen “Buckshot” Calvert converted a 40-yard touchdown pass to his newfound favorite target, sophomore Antonio Gandy-Golden, to regain the lead at 14-7.

Prior to the game, Coach Gill mentioned that one of the biggest strides he wanted to see in Calvert this year was improving his accuracy and becoming a game manager.

Calvert demonstrated both as he led the Flames with 447 passing yards, converting 44 of his 60 passes, three of which were for touchdowns. Both his passing yards and number of completions broke Liberty and Big South records.

The quick scores continued to pour on the scoreboard. It took the Bears just two minutes to score off of a 14-yard run, tying the game at 14 with 9:38 left in the first half. Both teams would produce a field goal on their final drives of the half, leaving the game tied at 17.

Baylor received the ball at the start of the third quarter, but three plays later their drive was brought to an end by junior defensive back Chris Turner after he took Anu Soloman’s pass 32 yards to the house. Turner’s interception return came on his first appearance of the game after having to sit out the first half, and gave the Flames a 24-17 lead.

The back-and-forth action continued as the Bears bounced back in 20 seconds, going 75 yards on three plays. Both teams punted on their next possession, but Liberty took its fifth lead of the game after a 31-yard field goal from Probert.

The Flames lead only lasted 11 seconds as the Bears would quickly score on a pass of 75 yards, taking a 31-27 lead.

With 5:37 left in the third quarter, the Flames took the field at the 27-yard-line with their backs against the wall as they trailed in the game. But Calvert calmly led a 15 play, 73-yard drive that resulted in another touchdown for Gandy-Golden, which came on a third-and-goal play from the 13-yard-line.

Gandy-Golden finished the day with 13 receptions, two of which were touchdowns and 192-yards receiving, which is fifth in program history for total yards in a game.

On the next possession, the Flames held the Bears to a three-and-out and then started their drive with great field position on the Bear’s 44-yard-line. Seven plays later, Calvert took the snap from the 8-yard-line and danced his way into the end zone after scrambling from a broken play, putting the Flames lead at 41-31.

In the final 11 minutes of the game, Baylor fought back with another touchdown, but the Flames would confidently manage the clock as they drove 65 yards and scored their final touchdown with 6:12 left in the game.

Baylor once again produced a quick score with five minutes left in the game, but the Flames would run the clock all the way down to just 32 seconds on their final possession. The Flames clock management proved to be successful as Tillman intercepted the Bear’s last ditch effort as time ran out.

Senior running back Carrington Mosley led the Flames rushing attack with 122 yards on 28 carries, and junior defensive back Jeremy Peters led the defense with seven tackles on the day.

“It’s just the beginning,” President Falwell said. “I couldn’t be any more thrilled with where this program is heading.”

The Flames look to continue their success at Williams Stadium for their first home contest of the 2017 season against Morehead State Saturday, Sept. 9, at 6 p.m.

 

Davis is the sports editor.