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Flames Football celebrates historic season amidst regular season finale cancellation

Arguably the finest season in Liberty University football history came to an abrupt halt Thursday morning with the announcement that Liberty has paused football operations and canceled Saturday afternoon’s regular season finale at longtime rival Coastal Carolina due to a rise in COVID-19 numbers within the Flames Football program.

The Flames game against Coastal Carolina this Saturday has been cancelled due to a rise in COVID-19 cases within Liberty’s football program.

Saturday’s scheduled contest at Brooks Stadium would have been the first AP Top 25 matchup in Liberty football history as the No. 25 ranked Flames (9-1) were set to try to revive a rivalry with former FBS foe the No. 14 ranked Chanticleers (9-0) on ESPNU. The game would have come after ESPN’s “College Gameday” morning show in Conway, S.C., prior to kickoff.

According to Liberty Athletics, the decision to pause football activities and cancel Saturday’s game was made by the medical staff at Liberty University.

“I am certainly disappointed for our coaches and student athletes and Flames Nation who were all looking forward to this game, but at the same time I support the decision of our medical team who are charged with providing care for our student-athletes, and that’s first and foremost,” Liberty Athletic Director Ian McCaw said at Thursday morning’s press conference.

Liberty Football Head Coach Hugh Freeze also addressed the media and mentioned that he felt the Flames game plan for Saturday was the best he and the coaching staff had come up with all season.

“We were really looking forward to a Top-25 game down at Coastal,” Freeze said. “I love those type of games. I love the attention it brings to our program. Our kids I think would flourish in that competition and have a chance to beat a top 15 team.”

The team intends to return to action pending medical approval and staff have already talked with BYU athletic administration about a possible matchup on Dec. 19, although McCaw said the game is unlikely to take place due to the date colliding with the start of Bowl season. If the regular season is indeed over, Flames Football will turn its attention to a potential postseason bowl matchup later this month.

Despite the disappointing and unexpected pause to the 2020 season, Liberty Football has given Flames fans across the nation one of the most exciting seasons in school history.

From a 51-yard game winning field goal in Blacksburg to upset the Virginia Tech Hokies to a 45-0 route over the UMass Minutemen on Thanksgiving weekend for Liberty’s first ever shutout over an FBS opponent, it was a season of thrilling firsts for the Flames.

Redshirt junior quarterback Malik Willis was one of many stars who shined over the course of the season for Liberty. The dual-threat passer who has been named to the Maxwell Award Watchlist and the Davey O’Brien Award’s Quarterback Class of 2020 sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules but was named the Flames’ starter shortly before the start of the 2020 season. In 10 games, the redshirt junior has led Liberty to a school season-best 9-1 record while totaling close to 3,000 yards of total offense. In early November, there was even talk of Willis rising in the Heisman Trophy finalists ranks due to his outstanding and consistent performances.

Flames Football and its fanbase have plenty of reason to be excited for the future of Liberty Football with a projected best-ever recruiting class to be announced during the early-signing period this month.

“It is disappointing, but man, nothing can take away the joy of the accomplishments that our kids and staff have gotten done this year in this crazy 2020,” Freeze said. “So we celebrate that a lot more than we will focus on being disappointed on not being able to compete this Saturday.”

 

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