Post by Sly Fox on Oct 30, 2005 8:27:41 GMT -5
Here is Chris' breakdown on our latest loss:
www.newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=LNA%2FMGArticle%2FLNA_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1128767839239&path=!sports
LU records another 'almost'
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 30, 2005
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. - If it seemed too good to be true, it was.
Brock Smith throws for nearly 300 yards in his first start at quarterback for Liberty University, rallies his team from a major deficit on the road, and helps the Flames snap a seven-game losing streak.
Well, almost.
Smith brought the Flames to the brink of victory Saturday night at Gardner-Webb, but the Bulldogs escaped when linebacker Jonathan Little intercepted Smith’s pass in the final minute to preserve a 21-16 victory.
“It’s disappointing, but at the same time, we haven’t arrived yet,” said LU receiver Brandon Turner, a Gretna grad who had career highs in receptions (seven) and yards (178). “We’ve just got to get over that hump. Hopefully it will happen sooner than later.”
But, oh, what a comeback it almost was.
Behind the Smith-to-Turner combination, the Flames outgained the Bulldogs 158 yards to 47 in the fourth quarter and outscored Gardner-Webb 13-0. They made a key defensive stop on fourth down to give Smith a chance to lead the Flames to their first victory since Sept. 3.
That’s where the catch lies.
Smith, for all of his savvy Saturday, is still a freshman. And freshmen make mistakes.
The final drive started with Marcus Hamilton rushing three times for 18 yards to push the Flames into Bulldogs’ territory. On 2nd-and-8 from the Gardner-Webb 47, Smith dropped back in the pocket but slipped and fell, losing eight yards.
The Flames were out of timeouts, so on 3rd-and-16, they had to move quickly. Smith was under heavy pressure, but saw Chris Luck get open early on the play. By the time Smith threw it, Luck was double covered, and Little jumped in front of him to pick the ball cleanly.
“He shouldn’t have been looking at Chris Luck,” LU coach Ken Karcher said. “We were looking to go to Brandon Turner. Chris ran his route too narrow. He should have been wider. Why (Smith) went there, I’ll have to see on film.”
Said Smith: “I should have just went to a check down and had the back or the receiver get the yards for me. It was a freshman mistake. I won’t make it in the future, hopefully.”
Even with the loss, Smith had little to hang his head about. He completed 17 of 26 passes for 261 yards and a touchdown. He found a favorite target in Turner, whose effort ranks him fourth on LU’s all-time list for single-game receiving yardage.
“He was making good reads,” Turner said. “The coaches were telling him one thing on the sideline, but when he got on the field, it didn’t work out that way. So he made good reads (and changed plays at the line). A true freshman playing that good, that’s good for the future.”
Defensively, the Flames held a Gardner-Webb team that entered the game ranked No. 4 in Division I-AA in total offense (475.6 yards per game) and No. 3 in scoring offense (40.7 points per game) in check. The Bulldogs (4-4, 2-1 Big South) finished with 395 yards and the 21 points matched a season low.
Liberty (1-8, 0-3) put up season-best numbers with 479 yards of total offense and 322 passing yards.
The only thing missing was a ‘W.’ In the first half, Karcher employed a quarterback rotation. Smith was in on first and second downs, and senior Brock Farrel was in on third downs because he was better in responding to blitzes during practice. After Farrel made a mistake on a checkdown on a blitz late in the first half, Karcher gave Smith all of the plays in the second half.
The interception wasn’t Smith’s only flub. He fumbled in Gardner-Webb territory in the first half. He dropped in the pocket looking for an open man when GWU’s Brian Johnston smacked his arm, causing him to drop it.
Still, Smith graded out pretty well in Karcher’s mind.
“Having been a quarterback and having been thrown in some games as a freshman, I’d say he had a high B-plus game,” Karcher said. “Just to handle the environment with poise … he never came off shaking. When he made a bad throw, he’d say, ‘Aw, that was my fault.’ So he wasn’t trying to blame others.”
Gardner-Webb got most of its offense in the first half when quarterback Nick Roberts and running back Kelvin German dictated the flow of the game. The mobile Roberts only rushed for 56 yards, but his 21-yard run in the second quarter set up a touchdown. German finished with 116 yards and scored twice.
Gardner-Webb 21, Liberty 16
Liberty 3 0 0 13 -16
Gardner-Webb 0 14 7 0 -21
First Quarter
LIB-FG Beasley 20, 5:45. Drive: 12 plays, 76 yards, 6:24. Key play: Smith hits Turner over the middle for a 25-yard gain.
Second Quarter
GWU-Flagler 5 pass from Roberts (Smith kick), 12:08. Drive: 14 plays, 74 yards, 5:20. Key play: Roberts scrambles for 21 yards on 3rd-and-4 to put GW at the LU 7.
GWU-German 1 run (Smith kick), 1:56. Drive: 9 plays, 67 yards, 4:48. Key play: On 3rd-and-3 from the GW 40, Roberts hits Richardson for a 40-yard gain to put GW at the LU 30.
Third Quarter
GWU-German 6 run (Smith kick), 12:07. Drive: 7 plays, 65 yards, 2:53. Key play: Pass interference call on Calvary gives GW the ball at the LU 21.
Fourth Quarter
LIB-Turner 34 pass from Smith (Beasley kick), 12:31. Drive: 6 plays, 76 yards, 1:42. Key play: Smith hits Turner for a 25-yard gain to move LU to the GW 34.
LIB-Hamilton 1 run ( run failed), 7:34. Drive: 5 plays, 60 yards, 2:34. Key play: Smith hits Turner for a 58-yard gain on 3rd-and-12 to the GW 4.
A-2,100.
LIB GWU
Firstdowns 20 21
Rushes-yards 30-157 50-228
Passingyards 322 167
ReturnYards 2 23
Comp-Att-Int 25-41-1 16-24-0
Punts 5-202 6-230
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 1-1
Penalties-Yards 9-90 5-46
TimeofPossession 28:52 30:28
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-Liberty, Terrell 18-128, Hamilton 5-21, Fluellen 2-10, Greiser 1-6, Farrel 1-1, Smith 3-(-9). Gardner-Webb, German 22-116, Roberts 12-56, Boston 11-36, Pressley 4-20, Team 1-0.
PASSING-Liberty, Smith 17-26-1-261, Farrel 8-15-0-61. Gardner-Webb, Roberts 16-24-0-167.
RECEIVING-Liberty, Luck 8-66, Turner 7-178, Jackson 6-47, Williams 3-27, Terrell 1-4. Gardner-Webb, Flagler 5-30, Alston 3-49, Gaines 2-16, Boston 2-15, Pressley 2-14, Richardson 1-40, German 1-3.
By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 30, 2005
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. - If it seemed too good to be true, it was.
Brock Smith throws for nearly 300 yards in his first start at quarterback for Liberty University, rallies his team from a major deficit on the road, and helps the Flames snap a seven-game losing streak.
Well, almost.
Smith brought the Flames to the brink of victory Saturday night at Gardner-Webb, but the Bulldogs escaped when linebacker Jonathan Little intercepted Smith’s pass in the final minute to preserve a 21-16 victory.
“It’s disappointing, but at the same time, we haven’t arrived yet,” said LU receiver Brandon Turner, a Gretna grad who had career highs in receptions (seven) and yards (178). “We’ve just got to get over that hump. Hopefully it will happen sooner than later.”
But, oh, what a comeback it almost was.
Behind the Smith-to-Turner combination, the Flames outgained the Bulldogs 158 yards to 47 in the fourth quarter and outscored Gardner-Webb 13-0. They made a key defensive stop on fourth down to give Smith a chance to lead the Flames to their first victory since Sept. 3.
That’s where the catch lies.
Smith, for all of his savvy Saturday, is still a freshman. And freshmen make mistakes.
The final drive started with Marcus Hamilton rushing three times for 18 yards to push the Flames into Bulldogs’ territory. On 2nd-and-8 from the Gardner-Webb 47, Smith dropped back in the pocket but slipped and fell, losing eight yards.
The Flames were out of timeouts, so on 3rd-and-16, they had to move quickly. Smith was under heavy pressure, but saw Chris Luck get open early on the play. By the time Smith threw it, Luck was double covered, and Little jumped in front of him to pick the ball cleanly.
“He shouldn’t have been looking at Chris Luck,” LU coach Ken Karcher said. “We were looking to go to Brandon Turner. Chris ran his route too narrow. He should have been wider. Why (Smith) went there, I’ll have to see on film.”
Said Smith: “I should have just went to a check down and had the back or the receiver get the yards for me. It was a freshman mistake. I won’t make it in the future, hopefully.”
Even with the loss, Smith had little to hang his head about. He completed 17 of 26 passes for 261 yards and a touchdown. He found a favorite target in Turner, whose effort ranks him fourth on LU’s all-time list for single-game receiving yardage.
“He was making good reads,” Turner said. “The coaches were telling him one thing on the sideline, but when he got on the field, it didn’t work out that way. So he made good reads (and changed plays at the line). A true freshman playing that good, that’s good for the future.”
Defensively, the Flames held a Gardner-Webb team that entered the game ranked No. 4 in Division I-AA in total offense (475.6 yards per game) and No. 3 in scoring offense (40.7 points per game) in check. The Bulldogs (4-4, 2-1 Big South) finished with 395 yards and the 21 points matched a season low.
Liberty (1-8, 0-3) put up season-best numbers with 479 yards of total offense and 322 passing yards.
The only thing missing was a ‘W.’ In the first half, Karcher employed a quarterback rotation. Smith was in on first and second downs, and senior Brock Farrel was in on third downs because he was better in responding to blitzes during practice. After Farrel made a mistake on a checkdown on a blitz late in the first half, Karcher gave Smith all of the plays in the second half.
The interception wasn’t Smith’s only flub. He fumbled in Gardner-Webb territory in the first half. He dropped in the pocket looking for an open man when GWU’s Brian Johnston smacked his arm, causing him to drop it.
Still, Smith graded out pretty well in Karcher’s mind.
“Having been a quarterback and having been thrown in some games as a freshman, I’d say he had a high B-plus game,” Karcher said. “Just to handle the environment with poise … he never came off shaking. When he made a bad throw, he’d say, ‘Aw, that was my fault.’ So he wasn’t trying to blame others.”
Gardner-Webb got most of its offense in the first half when quarterback Nick Roberts and running back Kelvin German dictated the flow of the game. The mobile Roberts only rushed for 56 yards, but his 21-yard run in the second quarter set up a touchdown. German finished with 116 yards and scored twice.
Gardner-Webb 21, Liberty 16
Liberty 3 0 0 13 -16
Gardner-Webb 0 14 7 0 -21
First Quarter
LIB-FG Beasley 20, 5:45. Drive: 12 plays, 76 yards, 6:24. Key play: Smith hits Turner over the middle for a 25-yard gain.
Second Quarter
GWU-Flagler 5 pass from Roberts (Smith kick), 12:08. Drive: 14 plays, 74 yards, 5:20. Key play: Roberts scrambles for 21 yards on 3rd-and-4 to put GW at the LU 7.
GWU-German 1 run (Smith kick), 1:56. Drive: 9 plays, 67 yards, 4:48. Key play: On 3rd-and-3 from the GW 40, Roberts hits Richardson for a 40-yard gain to put GW at the LU 30.
Third Quarter
GWU-German 6 run (Smith kick), 12:07. Drive: 7 plays, 65 yards, 2:53. Key play: Pass interference call on Calvary gives GW the ball at the LU 21.
Fourth Quarter
LIB-Turner 34 pass from Smith (Beasley kick), 12:31. Drive: 6 plays, 76 yards, 1:42. Key play: Smith hits Turner for a 25-yard gain to move LU to the GW 34.
LIB-Hamilton 1 run ( run failed), 7:34. Drive: 5 plays, 60 yards, 2:34. Key play: Smith hits Turner for a 58-yard gain on 3rd-and-12 to the GW 4.
A-2,100.
LIB GWU
Firstdowns 20 21
Rushes-yards 30-157 50-228
Passingyards 322 167
ReturnYards 2 23
Comp-Att-Int 25-41-1 16-24-0
Punts 5-202 6-230
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 1-1
Penalties-Yards 9-90 5-46
TimeofPossession 28:52 30:28
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-Liberty, Terrell 18-128, Hamilton 5-21, Fluellen 2-10, Greiser 1-6, Farrel 1-1, Smith 3-(-9). Gardner-Webb, German 22-116, Roberts 12-56, Boston 11-36, Pressley 4-20, Team 1-0.
PASSING-Liberty, Smith 17-26-1-261, Farrel 8-15-0-61. Gardner-Webb, Roberts 16-24-0-167.
RECEIVING-Liberty, Luck 8-66, Turner 7-178, Jackson 6-47, Williams 3-27, Terrell 1-4. Gardner-Webb, Flagler 5-30, Alston 3-49, Gaines 2-16, Boston 2-15, Pressley 2-14, Richardson 1-40, German 1-3.
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