As the Liberty Flames Football team took the field at State Farm Stadium in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on Monday, the team did so with a swell of support from fans who traveled from all over the country to see Liberty compete on the national stage against the Oregon Ducks.
In the end, the Ducks snuffed out the Flames’ historic 13-0 start, winning the Fiesta Bowl 45-6 following a strong performance by the Ducks defense to shut down Liberty’s fifth-ranked scoring offense in the country.
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The Flames jumped on the board early after quarterback Kaidon Salter connected with tight end Bentley Hanshaw for a 17-yard touchdown to the left side of the end zone on the team’s opening drive, sending the Liberty contingent in the stadium into a frenzy that sounded like a Saturday on the mountain.
On the ensuing drive by Oregon, the Ducks drove deep into Flames territory before settling for a field goal to pull within three. After the teams traded punts on the next two possessions, the Ducks would go on to score on their final four drives of the half to take a 31-6 lead into halftime. In the second half, the Ducks added two more touchdowns on their first two drives to hand the Flames program its first loss since the Boca Raton Bowl in December 2022.
Even in defeat, Flames Football Head Coach Jamey Chadwell said the result didn’t diminish the historic season his team had in 2023, and that the team will use the experience of playing on one of the sport’s biggest stages as a foundation to build upon.
“I think the biggest lesson that we as a team and a program have to learn is when you play on these big stages, these big moments, what do you have to do consistently? What do you have to give up to make sure that you can play your best?” Chadwell said post-game.
Salter, who has racked up the accolades in Conference USA this year, took a moment to acknowledge the love that the fans gave him and his teammates as they exited the field Monday.
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“They love us win or lose,” Salter said. “And that just shows right there, walking off the field and hearing my name and all the screams knowing that we just lost, that brought more cheer to me.
“I never had my head down after the game,” he continued. “I knew that our team did everything we can do to go out there and try to win this game. So I had no reason to walk off the field with my head down … I just wish we could have finished the season better.”
The love between the Flames fans and players was on display at its fullest over the few days the team was in Phoenix, including early Monday morning, as Flames fans rose with the sun on New Year’s Day to attend a Flames Club tailgate at the Heritage Yard in the shadows of State Farm Stadium.
Starting around 8 a.m. locally, the sounds of the Spirit of the Mountain marching band began to fill the air around the stadium, continuing its busy weekend in Phoenix. After an abbreviated battle of the bands during a joint service project between the two universities on Sunday, the band traveled to the Phoenix Zoo Sunday night to take part in a Zoo Lights concert, where they played for fans and family in a sea of Christmas lights.
On game day, the Spirit of the Mountain marched its way into State Farm Stadium pre-game, where they played for the announced 47,769 in attendance. The band also took center stage again at halftime for one final performance on the field before the festivities ended.
For the fans who made the trip to root on the Flames, the game was an opportunity to reunite with each other and relish seeing their team compete on one of college football’s biggest days.
At the Flames Club tailgate was one group of Liberty graduates, Aubrey Thomas (’13), Johnathan Crego (’13), Will Wilcoxson (‘12), and George Godsey (‘13), who were once roommates in undergrad at Liberty.
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The superfans now live all across the country from each other, but knew they had to reunite for the big occasion after the Flames’ selection to the Fiesta Bowl was announced on Dec. 3.
“Once we knew we got (the Fiesta Bowl), we knew we had to get back together and go,” Crego said.
Thomas remarked on the exponential rise of the football program, saying he thought one day the Flames would make it to the big stage, but as an undergraduate, said he didn’t think it would only take 10 years.
“It’s been 10 but in reality it’s only been five in the (Football Bowl Subdivision), but to see where the program has gone since we left, it’s really crazy.”
Macy Thornton, a junior at Liberty, made the trip from Chesapeake, Va., with her family to watch the Flames. Macy’s father, Franky, said their family had to take advantage of the “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to watch the team.
“I was kind of mulling it over, but (Macy) really put her foot down and said we need to go, because I was opting out. But we wanted to support the team, and so we made it out here.”
In the postgame, senior linebacker Tyren Dupree, even in defeat in his final game, said he is “more than excited” to follow the team in the coming years, as those around the program hope to make playing on the big stage a common occurrence rather than a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“I just told them back in the locker room, ‘Do not have your heads down,’” Dupree said. “… This is not the last time you guys are going to be here. We’ve done this in a short amount of time that we’ve been an FBS program, and I’m so excited to see what God and coach have to bring to this university. We’re not done.”
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