Liberty Flames @ New Mexico State Aggies
Cooley runs for 2 fourth-quarter TDs as Liberty rallies, beats New Mexico St. 30-24
LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- — Quinton Cooley had 112 yards rushing and ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns, CJ Bazile Jr. returned a fumble 22-yard for a TD and Liberty rallied from a 14-point deficit Saturday night to beat New Mexico State 30-24.
Unsportsmanlike conduct and defensive pass interference penalties gave New Mexico State set up a 2-yard scoring run by Parker Awad to make it 24-15 with 7:42 left in the game. Cooley answered with a 27-yard TD run and, after the Flames defense forced a punt, Cooley ripped off a 44-yard touchdown to cap a seven-play, 90-yard drive that gave Liberty its first lead of the game at 30-24 with 1:05 to play.
Awad finished 9-of-21 passing for 156 yards with two touchdowns for the Aggies. Seth McGowan had 66 yards rushing and Mike Washington ran for 61.
Monte Watkins caught a screen pass and raced untouched down the right sideline for a 64-yard touchdown that gave New Mexico State (1-1, 0-1 Conference USA) a 10-0 lead and McGowan's 5-yard touchdown reception made it 17-3 lead with 13:15 left in the second quarter.
Colin Karhu, who kicked a 39-yard field goal in the first quarter, connected from 31- and 29-yards out as Liberty (2-0, 1-0) trimmed its deficit to 17-9 at halftime. Neither team scored until Quinton Reese strip-sacked Parker Awad to set up Bazile's TD with 9:45 to play and, after the 2-point conversion attempt failed, it was a two-point game.
------
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Game Information
Las Cruces, NM


2025 Standings
| Conference USAConference USA | CONF | OVR |
|---|---|---|
| Kennesaw State | 7-1 | 10-4 |
| Jacksonville State | 7-1 | 9-5 |
| Western Kentucky | 6-2 | 9-4 |
| Louisiana Tech | 5-3 | 8-5 |
| Missouri State | 5-3 | 7-6 |
| Florida International | 5-3 | 7-6 |
| Delaware | 4-4 | 7-6 |
| Liberty | 3-5 | 4-8 |
| Middle Tennessee | 2-6 | 3-9 |
| New Mexico State | 2-6 | 4-8 |
| UTEP | 1-7 | 2-10 |
| Sam Houston | 1-7 | 2-10 |
NCAAF News

Ranking college football's top 100 newcomers for the 2026 season
2h

Late Leach on college football HOF ballot after eligibility tweak
21h

What to know about college football recruiting's busiest month
1d

