Post by Sly Fox on Oct 10, 2005 13:22:38 GMT -5
LU improving with tougher practices
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 10, 2005
On the surface, the results are the same.
Liberty University takes the field on Saturday. Liberty loses. That hasn’t changed since Sept. 3 when the Flames beat Division II Concord at Williams Stadium.
But anyone who has witnessed all five of LU’s losses this season can tell the difference between the first three and the last two.
Against Connecticut, Youngstown State and William & Mary, Liberty was outscored 157-0. Against VMI and Chattanooga, the Flames have been much more competitive, losing by a combined 34-28.
So why have the Flames shown so much improvement?
It’s all about practice, or the type of practices LU has run in the last two weeks.
Instead of running non-contact, walk-through type drills, Liberty has run full-contact scrimmages on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
“We’ve been playing three games a week,” LU coach Ken Karcher said.
The goal? To breed competitiveness and toughness, things that were missing in Liberty’s miserable three-game run to end September.
LU has had plenty of both in the last two games. The increased contact in practice has been a big reason.
“I think it’s been good for all of us,” LU quarterback Brock Farrel said. “We just get out there and play. We don’t worry about so much stuff. We learn, and we get our gameplan in. And then we just play.”
Now, the Flames need to work on executing in clutch situations. As spectacular as freshman Zach Terrell was in his debut Saturday against the Mocs, the Flames failed to move the ball once Chattanooga tied the game at 21 with 2:13 left.
All Liberty needed was a first down to eat time off the clock and potentially force overtime, but the Flames went three-and-out.
Of course, had the Flames not left so many points on the field in the first half, the game very likely would have been out of reach in the final five minutes, when Chattanooga made its charge.
The Flames had an opportunity to score 17 more points in the first half, but instead went to the break tied at 7. With no one in between him and the end zone, Pat Calvary dropped an interception that would have gone for a touchdown.
Terrell, who rushed for 241 yards, fumbled at the Chattanooga 3 when the Flames were driving for their second touchdown.
Add Zac Kolegue’s blocked field goal, and the Flames missed three huge opportunities to score.
“What’s frustrating is that it should have been 24-7 at halftime,” Farrel said.
Still, with a newfound weapon in Terrell, the Flames have reason for hope heading into the final five games of the season, something that was severely lacking just two weeks ago.
“Kids are really learning how to play through injuries and learn how to play tougher and learn how to play with a chip on their shoulder,” LU linebacker Manny Rojas said. “I don’t think we did that leading into the William & Mary game. We had good practices, but nothing like we had in the last two weeks.
“I really like the way coach Karcher is doing that.”
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 10, 2005
On the surface, the results are the same.
Liberty University takes the field on Saturday. Liberty loses. That hasn’t changed since Sept. 3 when the Flames beat Division II Concord at Williams Stadium.
But anyone who has witnessed all five of LU’s losses this season can tell the difference between the first three and the last two.
Against Connecticut, Youngstown State and William & Mary, Liberty was outscored 157-0. Against VMI and Chattanooga, the Flames have been much more competitive, losing by a combined 34-28.
So why have the Flames shown so much improvement?
It’s all about practice, or the type of practices LU has run in the last two weeks.
Instead of running non-contact, walk-through type drills, Liberty has run full-contact scrimmages on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
“We’ve been playing three games a week,” LU coach Ken Karcher said.
The goal? To breed competitiveness and toughness, things that were missing in Liberty’s miserable three-game run to end September.
LU has had plenty of both in the last two games. The increased contact in practice has been a big reason.
“I think it’s been good for all of us,” LU quarterback Brock Farrel said. “We just get out there and play. We don’t worry about so much stuff. We learn, and we get our gameplan in. And then we just play.”
Now, the Flames need to work on executing in clutch situations. As spectacular as freshman Zach Terrell was in his debut Saturday against the Mocs, the Flames failed to move the ball once Chattanooga tied the game at 21 with 2:13 left.
All Liberty needed was a first down to eat time off the clock and potentially force overtime, but the Flames went three-and-out.
Of course, had the Flames not left so many points on the field in the first half, the game very likely would have been out of reach in the final five minutes, when Chattanooga made its charge.
The Flames had an opportunity to score 17 more points in the first half, but instead went to the break tied at 7. With no one in between him and the end zone, Pat Calvary dropped an interception that would have gone for a touchdown.
Terrell, who rushed for 241 yards, fumbled at the Chattanooga 3 when the Flames were driving for their second touchdown.
Add Zac Kolegue’s blocked field goal, and the Flames missed three huge opportunities to score.
“What’s frustrating is that it should have been 24-7 at halftime,” Farrel said.
Still, with a newfound weapon in Terrell, the Flames have reason for hope heading into the final five games of the season, something that was severely lacking just two weeks ago.
“Kids are really learning how to play through injuries and learn how to play tougher and learn how to play with a chip on their shoulder,” LU linebacker Manny Rojas said. “I don’t think we did that leading into the William & Mary game. We had good practices, but nothing like we had in the last two weeks.
“I really like the way coach Karcher is doing that.”
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