LYNCHBURG, Virginia – No. 24 Liberty (13-0, 8-0 CUSA) captured its first CUSA championship with a thrilling 49-35 win over New Mexico State (10-4, 7-1 CUSA) on Friday night in the 2023 CUSA Championship Game from Williams Stadium. The Flames and Aggies went back and forth most of the night before undefeated Liberty pulled away in the fourth quarter behind the game’s Most Valuable Player, QB Kaidon Salter, who finished 20-25 for 319 yards with two passing touchdowns and no interceptions, while also leading the Flames in rushing with 12 carries for 165 yards and another touchdown in the win.
Liberty, the only 13-0 G5 champion, recorded all 13 wins over FBS competition. Six of those wins have come against bowl-eligible opponents, including a pair over the 10-win Aggies. The Flames have beaten those opponents handily, winning those games by an average of 16.5 points per game.
The visitors came out of the gates quickly, as the Aggies marched 75 yards in eight plays to take an early 7-0 lead, courtesy of a 25-yard touchdown run by QB Diego Pavia, his sixth on the season. Liberty immediately responded and tied things at 7-7 with a nine-play, 80-yard drive of its own, which was capped off by a Quinton Cooley one-yard scoring run, his 14th rushing score on the year.
New Mexico State scored on its next drive as well, thanks largely in part to a 3rd and 12 conversion to keep the drive alive. Pavia rolled to his left before finding WR Trent Hudson behind his defender for a 19-yard gain. Pavia then connected with TE Ron Tiavaasue on 3rd and three for a 10-yard scoring strike to take a 14-7 advantage.
After a fourth down red zone stop by the Aggie defense, Liberty’s defense forced a quick three-and-out to get the ball back. They promptly went 55 yards in five plays to tie things at 14-14, as Cooley capped off the drive with a 12-yard touchdown run, his second of the first half.
The Flames defense then got another stop inside the final two minutes of the half, which allowed a key scoring drive before the break. Liberty quickly marched 89 yards in 1:24 to take a 21-14 lead. Salter, who was 14-16 for 187 yards in the first half, connected with WR Noah Frith for a 26-yard touchdown to put the Flames on top. Not to be outdone, however, the Aggies went 58 yards in four plays in just 22 seconds to tie things up again at 21-21. Pavia threw a perfectly-placed ball to the back pylon to Hudson for a 17-yard strike.
Liberty took the opening possession of the second half 71 yards in five plays in just 1:41 to take the lead back, 28-21, as Cooley found paydirt for the third time on the day, this time from four yards out.
After another defensive stop, Salter led the Flames on another scoring drive midway through the third quarter. He connected with WR CJ Daniels on a 20-yard scoring strike to push the Liberty lead to 35-21.
The Aggies responded again, immediately, as Pavia hit WR Jonathan Brady for a 75-yard touchdown down the sideline to cut the lead to 35-28. The scoring toss tied for the longest passing play in CUSA Championship Game history (there have been two other 75-yard passing plays – FAU’s Chris Robison to Deangelo Antoine in 2019 and Rice’s Taylor McHargue to Jordan Taylor in 2013).
After a missed field goal by Liberty, true freshman QB Blaze Berlowitz came on in relief of an injured Pavia for the Aggies and promptly led NM State down the field on a six-play, 80-yard drive that was capped off with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Berlowitz to Hudson to tie things at 35-35 with 2:57 to go in the third quarter.
The Flames took the lead again early in the fourth quarter, as RB Billy Lucas found the end zone from two yards out. Liberty converted a fourth and short inside the NM State five to keep the drive alive and eventually take a 42-35 lead.
After a Brandon Bishop interception in the end zone, Liberty then stretched its lead to 49-35 when Salter pulled another rabbit out of the hat with a highlight-reel 35-yard scamper to put the game out of reach.
-ConferenceUSA.com-
