Salina Liberty Playbook: Attention to Detail

The Salina Liberty started the season off slowly, but have made themselves into one of the most dangerous teams in the league down the stretch. It all comes down to one final game. Win and you are in the playoffs, lose and go home. Easy enough, right? They’ll host the Southwest Kansas Storm with kickoff set for Sunday, June 15th, 6:30 p.m. ET on VICETV. 

Clutch Victory

The Liberty needed to win last week, and they did just that. It wasn’t an easy victory, but this team had thrived in being put into pressure situations down the stretch. Quarterback Rakeem Cato injured a lower extremity near the end of the first quarter as the team trailed 25-9. Coach O’Neal turned to his trusted veteran, Javin Kilgo. Kilgo stepped in like he’d never missed a beat. By halftime, the score was cut down to just a nine-point lead for the Storm. Kilgo then went ballistic in the second half. Earning the league’s Real American Beer Player of the Week award. In total, he racked up 319 passing yards, going 24 for 38 and throwing seven touchdowns in just three quarters of play. He only ran the ball one time, but he made the most of it, scrambling for 18 pivotal yards.

The Liberty got the ball down by one with just seconds left, and an interception seemingly ended the game. But after a review, it was determined that the Storm were in an illegal defense. With one second left on the clock, they turned to kicker Bailey Hale, who dropped it right through the middle of the uprights to secure a Liberty win. “It was a total team effort, special teams were huge in this.” Coach Heron O’Neal was happy to see Bailey Hale get the Special Teams Player of the Week, saying, “he was amazing, he had three Deuces and the game-winning field goal.” “He had ice water in his veins." 

Win and In 

Coach O’Neal commented on Rakeem Cato’s health Wednesday, saying, “he practiced today, I think we should be good moving forward with him.” The expectation is that Cato remains the starter, and a very capable Javin Kilgo is ready to go if needed. “We’ve been in must-wins since our bye week, so these last three-four games have been a must-win for us.” “You can see the attention to detail that’s been paid by the players and coaches in this organization.” “We play very well at home, our crowd is always huge. They are going to bring their noisemakers, their cow bells, their horns, and everything. That’s what our fans do, and that’s what football is all about.”