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* Philly Sports News - PDXBaller - 09-30-2017
Liberty Slay Yetis in Colorado
By Phil E. Chezestake
Coming off their second season victory at home against the Las Vegas Legion, the Philadelphia Liberty were keen to keep this winning momentum into week 8’s game against the Colorado Yeti. This is the Liberty’s first time playing the Yeti since the Logan Noble steroid scandal. This is a different Colorado team compared to the preseason form that the Liberty lost to in a 27-9 home game. There were many trades that occurred after the scandal, and the Liberty weren’t sure of how to game plan for the Yeti considering their revamped roster now included rookie quarterback Nicholas Pierno, Brice Boggs, and former Liberty linebacker Arby Krimlaw among others. With struggles on the Colorado offensive line, the Liberty were able to exploit the rookie quarterback’s inexperience to easily clinch a 40-20 victory. This was one of the Liberty’s best games this season on both sides of the ball.
What Went Well?
Clifford Rove had another great game with 20/36 completion/attempts, 247 yards, and 4 touchdowns. Rove is becoming the quarterback that Liberty fans are hoping for and he shows no signs of stopping. The offensive line only gave up 4 sacks this game and allowed Rove the breathing room to find Fox North and Damien Kroetch for 7 and 6 receptions respectively. Kroetch also ended the game with 2 touchdowns. Rove finished the game with 1 interception, but this one didn’t impact the results much in the end. Paul DiMirio came up big for the offense this game as well. The tight end showcased his ability as a vertical threat and had 5 receptions for 59 total yards and 2 touchdowns.
Liberty kicker Stephen Harris kept the scoring constant for the Liberty offense whenever he was in range. Harris scored 4 field goals throughout the game to give the team a consistent and comfortable lead over the Yeti. Harris’ highlight kick came at 9:14 of the second quarter with a 45 yard field goal. He’s proven to be a reliable kicker and the Liberty will always have the opportunity to score if they can get within field goal range for him.
The Liberty’s 2 headed monster was a bit tame in this game, but Lincoln Jefferson managed to get a decent 8 tackles and Luke Washington had 6. A.C. Hackett had a field day with the Yeti’s anemic offensive line with 7 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass deflection, and 1 interception. The list of defensive accomplishments continues down the line with Tyler Oles and Mark Ramrio having a heyday as well.
Eli Kamaka and Perry Tucker each had 4 tackles to round out the major defensive highlights.
What Didn’t Go Well?
In great performances like this, it’s tough to highlight any faults when so many things go well. Again, the Liberty defense slows down during the second half of the game and the Yeti were able to score 17 of their 20 total points during this time frame. The Liberty should look to bolster the defensive line with better endurance if they are going to be competitive in the league.
Rove had an interception this game. Granted it was one, but there’s hope that he can go an entire game without any interceptions at all. The rookie quarterback is already improving at a phenomenal rate and optimistically he’ll be able to avoid any interceptions in the near future with more games like this one against the Yeti. As of week 8, the Yeti and Liberty are ranked 1st and 2nd in interceptions thrown and it’s no coincidence that both teams are piloted by rookie quarterbacks.
Liberty Impact Player of the Game This week’s Liberty Impact Player of the Game goes to last season’s Defensive Rookie of the Year, Tyler Oles (@`To12143`). Although the cornerback struggled the first half of the season, he appears to be returning to prime defensive form. Against the Yeti, Oles proved that he was a force to be reckoned with as he netted 6 tackles, 2 pass deflections, and 2 interceptions. Both these interceptions help put the Liberty offense in ideal situations to score and the offense were able to take advantage off one of Oles’ interceptions from a successful Harris kick. Look for Oles to continue his streak of defensive achievements as the Liberty head down the final stretch of the season.
Next Game
At home against the San Jose SaberCats at Taco Bell Stadium
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