By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
After spending the last three weeks on the road the Salina Liberty will return to Tony’s Pizza Events Center on Saturday to kick off a four-game homestand with the Billings Outlaws.
The Liberty enter this matchup in a tie for third at 3-1 while the Outlaws come in looking to set their feet at 2-2, fresh off a 73-28 beating at the hands of Wyoming.
Last time out, the Salina secondary won the day on the road as part of a 42-18 victory in Rapid City.
“The fight that our guys played with and their inner confidence were the best things that I saw in that game,” Liberty head coach Heron O’Neal said. “We finally played with sound technique and were all on the same page in our secondary.”
While it does appear that the two major holes in Salina’s game have been patched with a strong special teams showing earning them a win in Topeka and the secondary coming through last week, the team has acknowledged that they still have a ways to go to become the best version of themselves.
“I can see the light at the end of the tunnel but we’re still far from where we need to be,” O’Neal said. “The good thing is we’re progressing towards that and you can really see how far we’ve come especially on defense.”
Now, the Liberty will turn their attention toward one of the most dangerous 2-2 teams in the league in a Billings squad brimming with talent but one that has struggled against the top of the league and away from home.
The battle in the trenches could very well set the tone for how this game goes down, as Billings currently boasts the first, fifth, and sixth leaders in the league in sacks.
“Billings’ strength is in their line,” he said. “It’s led by [Dylan] Donahue and they also have D’Nerius [Antoine] who’s probably the best linebacker in the game. Those two guys are big-time ballplayers and we have to be ready for them.”
Offensively, quarterback Vincent Espinoza has carried the load for the Outlaws, with nine total touchdowns to just three turnovers on the year.
“Their quarterbacks are mobile, they can get themselves out of trouble if they get into it,” O’Neal said. “They also have 2-3 running backs that can be active in the passing game, a strong, agile offensive line, and a good mix of fast receivers as well as big, physical receivers. This is a really good team and we’ll need to bring our A-game to have a chance.”
Kickoff between the Liberty and Outlaws is scheduled for 6:35 at Tony’s Pizza Events Center in Salina, and as always, the game can be heard on KINA (910 AM or 107.5 FM) courtesy of Eagle Radio.
For continuing coverage of Liberty football all season long, stay tuned to the Salina, Little Apple, and JC Posts.