Staff Predictions: Liberty vs. Southern Mississippi

After thrashing the Syracuse Orange and earning their first win against an ACC opponent, the Flames come home to the mountain and face the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles. The visiting team boasts Frank Gore Jr. (who had 130 yards rushing and a touchdown last week), the son of the legendary NFL running back, but the defense surrenders nearly 500 yards of offense per game. Will the Flames be able to exploit that weakness, or will the Golden Eagles get the upset and improve to 2-0 on the road? Our sports staff answers all that and more in our weekly staff predictions.

John Nekrasov, Editor – LU 35, Southern Miss. 17

Given that the Golden Eagles had a game postponed Saturday due to COVID cases, there is a high possibility this game will not go ahead. If it does, however, an undefeated Liberty should have little trouble finishing off a Southern Mississippi team that shipped 66 points to Tulane and has allowed 40 points per game so far this season.

Christian Weaner, Asst. Editor – LU 31, Southern Miss. 20

Coming off the high of the program’s first victory over an ACC opponent and facing the alma mater of Head Coach Hugh Freeze, Saturday will be an exciting game – if it happens. With Southern Miss not taking the fied since Oct. 3 and LU playing its best football in school history, watch for the Flames to stay unbeaten in a hard-fought home contest.

John Simmons, Web Manager/Reporter – LU 28, Southern Miss. 24

After coming off a major win against Syracuse, the Flames will come back off an emotional high looking to go 6-0. They will win, but it will be sloppy and the Flames will need a late red zone defensive stop to seal the win.

Emmanuel Adamson, Social Media Manager/Reporter – LU 42, Southern Miss. 24

After the Liberty Flames beat Syracuse in a convincing fashion, they moved into the top 25 of ESPN’s Power Rankings. With this confidence boost the Flames will beat the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles, who have been giving up an average of 40 points per game.

Mario Cosentino, Reporter – LU 42, Southern Miss. 14

Liberty has fared well this season against Conference USA opponents, and this weekend will be no exception. Southern Miss. simply doesn’t have the yardage on either side of the ball to match the Flames. Assuming they stay healthy, expect the Flames to pick up another win at home.

Joshua Lipowski, Reporter – LU 38, Southern Miss. 17

Southern Miss has not played a game since Oct. 3 due to COVID-19 issues. No one knows if this game will be played this weekend, or who will even be on the field for Southern Miss come Saturday. Liberty is on fire right now, and there is no reason to believe that last week’s win over Syracuse will cause them to overlook the Golden Eagles.

Christian Shields, Reporter – LU 37, Southern Miss. 24

Liberty silenced the critics with last week’s dismantling of an ACC team for the first time in program history. Expect them to continue that momentum against Southern Mississippi.

Season Standings: 1- Adamson (5-0), 2- Shields (5-0), 3- Cosentino (4-1), 4- Nekrasov (4-1), 5- Simmons (4-1), 6- Weaner (4-1), 7- Lipowski (3-2)

Last Week’s Closest: Christian Weaner

Prediction: Liberty 37, Syracuse 33 Actual: Liberty 38, Syracuse 21