Post by Sly Fox on Oct 22, 2005 6:23:30 GMT -5
Here is Chris' gameday story from the fishwrap:
www.newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=LNA/MGArticle/LNA_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1128767691663&path=
Flames due for another late-season run
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 22, 2005
It was hardly a scientific poll, but two of the 18 seniors who will be playing their final home game for Liberty University tonight were in complete agreement in what their favorite Williams Stadium memory was.
Two seasons ago at homecoming, Liberty trailed VMI 28-3 in the fourth quarter. Seemingly, there was nothing to do but play out the string, limp to the finish line and think about what was next.
Except the Flames didn't. They kept playing with passion and purpose. Backed into a corner, they found a way to grind out a 31-28 victory.
If an entire season can be analogous to a single game, then the 2005 LU season is a perfect parallel. The message from that VMI game hasn't been lost on some of those seniors.
"That's one thing this team has always had - that never-give-up attitude," said LU wide receiver Lauren Williams, whose team hosts Coastal Carolina tonight at 7.
At 1-6, the only things the Flames have left to play for are a slim shot at the Big South championship and pride. But LU has always played its best in Ken Karcher's tenure when little was expected.
The Flames have ended the last two seasons on four-game winning streaks. For it to happen again, they'd have to start tonight by beating a ranked team for the first time since 1997.
"They always get better as the season goes along," wary Coastal Carolina coach David Bennett said, who noted Liberty "has played the toughest schedule of anybody in our league."
It's clear that Bennett is trying to make sure his Chanticleers (5-1, 1-0 Big South) don't overlook the struggling Flames (0-1 Big South). Coastal Carolina still hasn't beaten anyone convincingly. The Chanticleers needed wild fourth-quarter comebacks to beat James Madison, South Carolina State and Gardner-Webb.
Because of those close calls, Karcher said he doesn't think it's any stretch to say his Flames will be competitive tonight.
"If this game doesn't excite us, I don't know what will," Karcher said. "We've had a good week of practice and I'll be shocked if we don't go out and play with a lot of emotion."
Perhaps the biggest mystery with this Chanticleers bunch is senior running back Patrick Hall. He shared preseason Big South player of the year honors with Charleston Southern quarterback Collin Drafts after rushing for 1,107 yards and 13 touchdowns last season.
But in 2005, he's been held to 253 yards and a 4.1 yard per carry average. Last year, he averaged 7.1 yards per carry.
Hall isn't listed on Coastal's running back two deep chart. Freshman Jamie Fordham is listed as the starter. Aundres Perkins is the backup.
"Pat's got to have that hunger back," Bennett said. "Last year, he was on a half scholarship and he was working to prove himself. Now, he doesn't have that. We're trying to keep ol' Pat Hall hungry."
Bennett's well aware that the Flames won't lack hunger tonight, despite their ugly record. It's a longshot, but if Liberty wins out and Gardner-Webb beats VMI today in Lexington, the Flames will win the conference championship.
Liberty's last two Big South games are at Gardner-Webb next Saturday and at Charleston Southern on Nov. 12.
"Right now, (Coastal) is not only one of the top teams in the Big South, they're one of the top teams in the country," LU punter Noah Crouch said. "We have all the respect in the world for them. If we were able (to win), that would be something incredible to top all of the seniors' time here."
To beat the Chanticleers and give Karcher his first win against a ranked opponent in nine tries, the Flames will have to put together a much better showing than they did last year in Conway, S.C. Coastal won that game 33-6, and Liberty's only score came when Sam Gado returned a kickoff for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
The general sentiment was simple: LU just didn't show up.
"A lot of the players went in kind of lackadaisical," Williams said. "We went in and just got shocked. They hit us in the mouth and we didn't respond."
Williams doesn't expect the same thing to happen tonight.
"That was a lesson we had to learn," Williams said. "We need to punch them in the mouth first this time, and kind of get them on their backs."
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 22, 2005
It was hardly a scientific poll, but two of the 18 seniors who will be playing their final home game for Liberty University tonight were in complete agreement in what their favorite Williams Stadium memory was.
Two seasons ago at homecoming, Liberty trailed VMI 28-3 in the fourth quarter. Seemingly, there was nothing to do but play out the string, limp to the finish line and think about what was next.
Except the Flames didn't. They kept playing with passion and purpose. Backed into a corner, they found a way to grind out a 31-28 victory.
If an entire season can be analogous to a single game, then the 2005 LU season is a perfect parallel. The message from that VMI game hasn't been lost on some of those seniors.
"That's one thing this team has always had - that never-give-up attitude," said LU wide receiver Lauren Williams, whose team hosts Coastal Carolina tonight at 7.
At 1-6, the only things the Flames have left to play for are a slim shot at the Big South championship and pride. But LU has always played its best in Ken Karcher's tenure when little was expected.
The Flames have ended the last two seasons on four-game winning streaks. For it to happen again, they'd have to start tonight by beating a ranked team for the first time since 1997.
"They always get better as the season goes along," wary Coastal Carolina coach David Bennett said, who noted Liberty "has played the toughest schedule of anybody in our league."
It's clear that Bennett is trying to make sure his Chanticleers (5-1, 1-0 Big South) don't overlook the struggling Flames (0-1 Big South). Coastal Carolina still hasn't beaten anyone convincingly. The Chanticleers needed wild fourth-quarter comebacks to beat James Madison, South Carolina State and Gardner-Webb.
Because of those close calls, Karcher said he doesn't think it's any stretch to say his Flames will be competitive tonight.
"If this game doesn't excite us, I don't know what will," Karcher said. "We've had a good week of practice and I'll be shocked if we don't go out and play with a lot of emotion."
Perhaps the biggest mystery with this Chanticleers bunch is senior running back Patrick Hall. He shared preseason Big South player of the year honors with Charleston Southern quarterback Collin Drafts after rushing for 1,107 yards and 13 touchdowns last season.
But in 2005, he's been held to 253 yards and a 4.1 yard per carry average. Last year, he averaged 7.1 yards per carry.
Hall isn't listed on Coastal's running back two deep chart. Freshman Jamie Fordham is listed as the starter. Aundres Perkins is the backup.
"Pat's got to have that hunger back," Bennett said. "Last year, he was on a half scholarship and he was working to prove himself. Now, he doesn't have that. We're trying to keep ol' Pat Hall hungry."
Bennett's well aware that the Flames won't lack hunger tonight, despite their ugly record. It's a longshot, but if Liberty wins out and Gardner-Webb beats VMI today in Lexington, the Flames will win the conference championship.
Liberty's last two Big South games are at Gardner-Webb next Saturday and at Charleston Southern on Nov. 12.
"Right now, (Coastal) is not only one of the top teams in the Big South, they're one of the top teams in the country," LU punter Noah Crouch said. "We have all the respect in the world for them. If we were able (to win), that would be something incredible to top all of the seniors' time here."
To beat the Chanticleers and give Karcher his first win against a ranked opponent in nine tries, the Flames will have to put together a much better showing than they did last year in Conway, S.C. Coastal won that game 33-6, and Liberty's only score came when Sam Gado returned a kickoff for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
The general sentiment was simple: LU just didn't show up.
"A lot of the players went in kind of lackadaisical," Williams said. "We went in and just got shocked. They hit us in the mouth and we didn't respond."
Williams doesn't expect the same thing to happen tonight.
"That was a lesson we had to learn," Williams said. "We need to punch them in the mouth first this time, and kind of get them on their backs."
www.newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=LNA/MGArticle/LNA_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1128767691663&path=
