Potts, Eagles Cruise Past Colonels 35-6
Liberty's Corey Lillard has been a top performer all season long.
Photo By: Larry Middleton / Gameday
Coach Tommy Buzzo guided the Eagles to their first playoff appearance since 2004.
Photo By: Larry Middleton / Gameday
ROANOKE, VA - The Liberty Eagles made their first appearance in the post season in four years and came out firing on all cylinders on Saturday Afternoon. The Eagles dominated on both sides of the ball for 48 minutes and extended their season by at least one more week with a 35-6 victory over William Fleming.
Liberty's got on the board first at 5:02 mark in the first quarter when Frankie Allison's second high snap sailed over the head of QB Derek Brown and Sophomore Cortez Carter fell on the ball in the end zone. From that moment on it momentum stayed on the Eagle sideline.
Early in the second quarter Senior WR Stefan Ross was on the receiving end of a 9-yard strike from Nick Potts to push the Liberty lead to 12-0. Potts then connected with Derrick Lee on the 2-point conversion to make the score 14-0.
On the next offensive possession for Liberty, Potts was hit as he threw the ball and the Colonels recovered deep inside Eagle territory. It looked as though Potts' arm had passed by his head as he threw the ball but nonetheless the call on the field stood.
Senior RB LaCalvin Hickman capitalized on the turnover with a 3-yard touchdown run. It would be the only score that Fleming saw for the rest of the game. Hickman had been putting up big numbers all year long but was held in check the entire game. The Colonels only managed 10 yards rushing on 26 attempts as the Eagle defense dominated all afternoon.
The Eagles found their way past the goal line with 1:23 to go in the first half when junior Wayne Fleming ran around the right side of the line for a 14-yard score. Jordan Hunter connected on the extra point to make it 21-6 at half.
Derrick Lee continued his stellar play with a 10-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter to give the Eagle s 28-6 lead. Lee was dubbed the 'Velocity Sports Performance Player of the Game' by Miller Bennington as his play in all facets of the game helped the Eagles win.
Junior James Rogers hauled in a 73-yard bomb from Potts just one minute after Lee's touchdown to put the Colonels away for good at 35-6. Rogers has now had two long touchdowns in consecutive weeks as he scored on a 71-yard pass against Fauquier last Friday night.
The Eagles dominance in the game can be found in one stat line, total yards. The Eagles out gained Fleming 394 to 39 and did so with an extremely balanced attack. Potts finished the game 9 of 16 for 190 yards passing and the Eagles ran the ball 41 times for 204 yards.
Liberty will host the GW-Danville Eagles next weekend in the AAA Division 5 Northwest Region Finals at Kip Hull Field in Bealeton. Stay tuned to GameDayMagazine.com as more details come throughout the week.
