Liberty Flames 2026 College Football Preview
Posted June 1, 2026
2025 Recap
Record – 4-8
ATS – 3-9
“There’s many a slip twixt the cup and the lip.”
<Billy the Kid> <Young Guns, 1988>
Getting to the CUSA title game seemed like a given, but the preseason favorite stumbled to a 1–4 start that left the Lynchburg faithful absolutely SHELL SHOCKED. The Flames rallied admirably to get to 4–4 — only to drop their final four regular season games in a row. The cruelest twist? The last THREE losses all came in OVERTIME. Yup, that happened, and it’s the kind of finish that makes coaches want to walk into a lake.
It was the worst season in the Jamey Chadwell era and a massive wake‑up call for a program with legitimately high expectations. The good news — and there is good news — is that the 2026 schedule is an absolute GIFT, and a bounce‑back campaign looks very achievable.
Liberty Flames 2026 Outlook
OFFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (CUSA):
- Scoring: 25.6 PPG (#7 CUSA)
- Total Offense: 389.5 YPG (#7 CUSA)
- Rushing: 194.0 YPG (#3 CUSA)
- Passing: 195.5 YPG (#9 CUSA)
- Sacks Allowed: 25 (#5 CUSA)
The most important question in Lynchburg is who wins the QB battle — and it is a CROWDED HOUSE. Ethan Vasko is coming off shoulder surgery and a disappointing 2025 campaign (10–12 TD to INT, 5 rush TDs), and while he’s the most experienced option, he’s far from a lock to win this job. Transfers Deshawn Purdie (Wake Forest) and Jaylen Henderson (West Virginia) are both mobile veterans who’ll get a long look from new OC Newland Isaac — promoted from within after following HC Chadwell from Coastal Carolina. Whoever wins the job inherits a run‑first system that should mask some of the THROW GAME concerns.
The RB room was a gaping hole after losing Evan Dickens — who finished #5 in the entire country with 1,339 rushing yards LY — to Boston College. But Liberty hit it YUUUGE in the portal to fill that void. Blue‑chip specimen Kam Davis arrives from Florida State, and Kanye Udoh comes over from Arizona State after absolutely dominating with Army in the past. That’s a dangerous 1–2 punch in a system built to run the football.
The passing attack remains the concern — nobody on the team had more than 35 receptions or 600 receiving yards LY, and returning #2 WR Jamari Person (28‑315, 0 TD) doesn’t exactly move the needle. The hope is that Makai Jackson (Indiana) and Rashawn Cunningham (34‑628, 7 TD at Charleston Southern) can step up and give whoever wins the QB battle some legitimate downfield threats. Four OL starters are back, and the Flames did a fine job adding portal depth up front — expect the ground game to be potent once again.
DEFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (CUSA):
- Scoring Defense: 26.5 PPG (#5 CUSA)
- Total Defense: 375.8 YPG (#2 CUSA)
- Rush Defense: 179.1 YPG (#10 CUSA)
- Pass Defense: 196.8 YPG (#1 CUSA)
- Sacks: 16 (#12 CUSA)
Some fascinating splits in those numbers — rock solid in pass defense (#1 CUSA) but a significant concern vs the run (#10 CUSA) and dead last in the conference in sacks. Getting the run defense back on track and generating more PENETRATION are the two defining challenges for new DC Shawn Quinn, who arrives from Virginia Tech where he was the OLB coach.
The DL is a mix of holdovers and transfer pieces, and it’s genuinely unclear how much talent is there up front. DT Mike Jarvis (6‑4, 295) is the key interior piece, and the Flames need a few of the new portal additions to provide the pass rush that’s typically been a program calling card in recent years — 16 sacks, dead last in CUSA, is simply unacceptable for a program with championship aspirations.
The LB unit is the strength of the defense — leading tackler Derrell Farrar is back, and the majority of the two‑deep returns, giving Quinn experienced bodies to work with as he installs his system. That continuity matters enormously for a new coordinator. The secondary is undergoing a rebuilding project, and the Flames brought in over half a dozen transfers to rebuild the back end heading into 2026. Keep your eye on doods like safety D‑ICY Hopkins (Georgia St), who was a very productive specimen with the Panthers, as well as safety Izaiah Guy, who rolls into town from USF. Playmaking and leadership are still a bit of a concern as we approach press time.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Transfer PK Tyler Black arrives from Wake Forest and appears set to take over the full‑time duties. It won’t be easy to replace the departed (left the program, not dead, yo) Jay Billingsley, who was 15/20 on FGA LY, including 5/7 from 40+ yards out. Sophomore Sam Crossan steps into the punter role. It’s not great to lose KR Julian Gray (28.5, TD LY).
Schedule Analysis
Overall — ESPN rates this the EASIEST SCHEDULE IN THE NATION at #138. The Flames open with a Battle of the Blue Ridge rivalry game at James Madison — a tough opener, and note that they lost by 18 LY at home — but the other three non‑conference games are very winnable. The CUSA docket is extremely kind as they miss Jacksonville State and get WKU at home. This schedule is tailor‑made for a turnaround season.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot — at New Mexico State (Nov 7)
Long travel to Las Cruces, and the Aggies will be fired up looking to avenge last year’s narrow 30–27 defeat at the hands of the Flames. It’s a lengthy trip out to the middle of nowhere for the Liberty faithful — but if you do make the trek, at least grab some legit NEW MEXICAN FUEL at La Nueva Casita Café, a local institution known for its red & green chile that will absolutely light you up in the best possible way. Great food… sketchy spot for the road favorite.
Season Win Total
Market consensus – June 1
Over 8.5 +115
Under 8.5 -145
MEGALOCKS says:
Lean: Over
We’d feel a lot better about going over a flat 8, as 23 of our 27 models have them winning eight games or more. We’re not down yet, but this bad boy is firmly on our short list for deeper investigation.
Note – Our official list of season win total investments will be posted in the blog section of the website.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Liberty’s 2023 campaign was one of the more remarkable achievements in Group of Six history — 13‑0 heading into the Fiesta Bowl against mighty Oregon before falling 45‑6 to the Ducks.
HC Jamey Chadwell is 64‑35 at the FBS level — going 39‑22 in five seasons at Coastal Carolina, where he won the Sun Belt title in 2020 and collected multiple national Coach of the Year awards, and 25‑13 at Liberty, including the aforementioned Fiesta Bowl appearance. One bad year doesn’t erase that résumé.
Lynchburg, Virginia sits in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and is home to Liberty University — one of the world’s largest Christian universities, with over 140,000 students between residential and online enrollment.
The Snowflex Centre is a year-round synthetic ski slope on campus. It’s one of the only ski facilities of its kind in the southern United States.
MEGALOCKS Forecast:
The Flames are primed for a major rebound in 2026, and here’s why — the schedule is a GIFT, the RB room got a massive upgrade via the portal, the OL is experienced and deep, and Jamey Chadwell is too good of a coach to have back‑to‑back disaster seasons.
The QB situation is the one genuine wildcard — if Purdie or Henderson wins the job and brings some freshness to the position, the offense will be very dangerous. The new DC has quality pieces to work with, but this doesn’t look like a killer defense on paper.
Thanks to the BUTTERY SOFT schedule, this looks like an 8+ win team and a prime CUSA title contender. The Battle of the Blue Ridge opener at James Madison will tell us a lot right away.
FAN THE FLAMES, bay‑bee!