Player of the game: Not much more can be said for Liberty Hawks football’s heart and soul Kaleb Roth. Not only did he carry the ball for a career-high 32 times, but he also set a school record with 269 yards rushing. He averaged 8.4 yards per carry and added two more touchdowns to his total, the second best rushing season in Liberty history. By the way, he caught a pass for 43 yards to give him more than 300 yards of total offense. He also was a force on defense, recording 13 tackles, including four solo tackles. Roth is the only player in Liberty Hawks history to gain more than 1,000 yards rushing and record more than 100 tackles in a season. He finished second to Brandon Graham (2006) in rushing yards in a season and touchdowns in a season and was the third Liberty back to gain more than 3,000 yards in a career. He also recorded the third-most tackles (138) in Liberty history.
Unsung hero of the game: Roth’s running mate on both sides of the ball Colton Cardoza may not have had the rushing stats, but he played an important role. He recovered a Roth fumble and finished a drive with a touchdown. He also kept a drive alive with another fumble recovery on offense. On top of that, he led the team with 14 tackles and had an interception.
Play of the game: After Monache jumped out to a quick 15-0 lead, helped by a turnover, the Hawks had the ball at their own 30-yard line. Roth took the pitch to his right, cut inside a Cardoza block and accelerated past the rest of the Monache defense for a 70-yard touchdown run to give Liberty some momentum.
Drive of the game: The Hawks came out of the halftime break with some momentum. Wyatt Roth opened the drive with his longest carry of the game, a 47-yarder that moved the ball to the Monache 34-yard line. Kaleb Roth followed his brother with a run off the right side and carried a defender for the final five yards on a 32-yard gain to the two-yard one. Roth then carried for a yard. On the next play, Greyson Hoelzel bobbled the center snap and dropped the ball. Monache recovered to end the Liberty drive. The Mauraders then drove 98 yards on 13 plays to score a touchdown and increase their lead to 43-14 midway through the third quarter.