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Liberty

Flames · Conference USA

GIE rank
#14
of 138 FBS
Rating
1739
2026 Week 12
Record
8-1
2026 season
Proj record
11-1
12-game season

Head coach Jamey Chadwell Year 4 with Liberty

Year-4 HCs (2015-2024) averaged -0.65 W vs. preseason expectation

Season projection

2026 W12 · 10,000 sims
Expected wins
10.7
2.7 more wins in 3 left
Win range (90%)
10 to 11
Final rank (90%)
#15 (11–22)
Make playoff
35%
Win conference
99%

Path to glory

Pivotal-game scenarios for Liberty are not available right now. Make playoff 35%

Schedule

Full 2026 slate. Tap a row for the matchup breakdown.

Schedule and results
Week Opponent Result or win prob.Result or win probability
Wk 1 Sep 5 at James Madison Sun Belt Loss, 13-20 Final
Wk 2 Sep 12 vs Gardner-Webb Non-FBS Win, 24-23 Final
Wk 3 Sep 19 vs Ball State Mid-American Win, 51-15 Final
Wk 4 Sep 24 at Coastal Carolina Sun Belt Win, 34-17 Final
Wk 5 Oct 2 at Delaware Conference USA Win, 30-14 Final
Wk 6 Oct 8 vs Sam Houston Conference USA Win, 35-3 Final
Wk 7 Bye
Wk 8 Oct 22 at Kennesaw State Conference USA Win, 34-6 Final
Wk 9 Oct 31 vs Florida International Conference USA Win, 49-10 Final
Wk 10 Nov 8 at New Mexico State Conference USA Win, 30-14 Final
Wk 11 Nov 14 vs Middle Tennessee Conference USA Win probability: 98%
Wk 12 Nov 21 vs Western Kentucky Conference USA Win probability: 98%
Wk 13 Nov 28 at Missouri State Conference USA Win probability: 96%

Latest stories

  • Recap

    Liberty: 2026 Week 12 recap

    Liberty sits at 22nd overall with an 8–1 record, but the week-over-week story belongs to GIE's rating, which jumped 7.5 points to 15 after the Flames throttled New Mexico State 30–14 on the road. That's a significant recalibration—the…

  • Recap

    Liberty: 2026 Week 11 recap

    Liberty sits at 45th overall with a 7–1 record and a rating holding steady at 7.5. Their dominant 49–10 win over Florida International in Week 9 underscored offensive firepower, though the red-zone TD rate of 15% hints at untapped…

  • Recap

    Liberty: 2026 Week 7 recap

    Liberty sits at 4–1 and holds a 2.5 rating heading into Week 7, unchanged from last week despite the bye. The Flames' most recent action came in Week 5, when they dismantled Delaware 30–14 on the road—a convincing win that underscored…

In the news

More coming. Per-team pages get the full treatment in Phase 3: current rating, season projection histogram, schedule with win probabilities, and live overlays on Pylon stream days. For now, this page exists so stories and news have a permanent home as content rolls in.

If QB1 is out

Ethan Vasko

GIE projects a -2.6 rating drop and a -10.5pp shift in playoff probability if Liberty loses its QB1 for an extended stretch. (n=2 historical samples; pooled across recent seasons.)

Returning production · 2026

47 score

  • Quarterback 85% (2/5)
  • Offensive line 42% (8/19) players
  • Skill (RB/WR/TE) 16% (11/27)
  • Front 7 (DL/LB) 65% (16/27)
  • Secondary 5% (7/21)
  • Special teams 0% (3/8)

Share of last season's production each unit returns. Higher means more continuity: 70%+ is healthy, 45–70% a normal rebuild, under 45% a major turnover.

Portal additions · 2026

−0.3 rating

25 proven transfers in, carrying the production below from their prior school.

Liberty incoming transfers
Player From Impact
D-Icey HopkinsS From Georgia State Georgia State 102
Jeremiah VesselS From UAB UAB 76
Ashton WhitnerS From Ball State Ball State 63
Rashawn CunninghamWR From Charleston Southern Charleston Southern 57
Terron KellmanRB From Wyoming Wyoming 53
Justin MarshallRB From Colorado State Colorado State 47

Impact scores offensive skill additions (QB/RB/WR/TE) — prior-season production normalized within position (100 ≈ a 90th-percentile producer at that spot) and discounted for non-FBS competition, so a top back counts alongside a top quarterback. Defensive and O-line additions count as transfers but aren't box-score measurable, so they carry no impact score. The rating figure is this class's portal contribution vs. the FBS average, capped at ±2.5.

Situational efficiency · 2025

FBS percentile rank
  • 3rd-down conversion 38.7%
    63th — average
  • Red-zone TD rate 15.1%
    54th — average
  • 4th-down aggression 42.9%
    78th — strong
  • Late & close 5.8 yds/play
    70th — strong

Percentile is across all FBS teams with play-by-play data for the season. "Late & close" is yards per play in Q4+ with a one-score margin — a proxy for clutch offensive performance.