In the opening matchup of the Week 4 college football slate, the Liberty Flames will face off with the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
This is the 16th meeting between these programs on the football field, with Liberty holding an 8-7 historical advantage. They have not faced off since 2020, with this being a 37-34 overtime victory by Liberty. There is an additional element: Liberty head coach Jamey Chadwell served as the Coastal Carolina head coach for four full seasons and an interim stint, last representing the school in 2022.
Looking at the odds, Liberty enters as a 2.5-point favorites and hold -135 odds of winning outright on DraftKings Sportsbook. Coastal Carolina holds +114 odds of pulling off the upset, with the game total set at 50.5 points.
This article will preview both teams and provide a pick for the Week 4 CFB matchup.
Coastal Carolina vs. Delaware Preview
Coastal Carolina Preview
The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers are off to a 1-2 start to the season. In the first season with Ryan Beard at the helm, Coastal Carolina has dropped both of their road games and picked up their lone victory at home.
They opened the year with a 31-24 loss to West Virginia. The Chanticleers fell behind 24-0, but battled back in the second half by outscoring the Mountaineer’s 24-7. Quarterback Deuce Bailey aired the ball out for 373 passing yards and three touchdowns, but the team was limited to just 52 rushing yards on the ground. They covered the 21-point spread in the loss.
Coastal Carolina got in the win column in Week 2, defeating Fordham 45-7. Fordham was able to tie the game 7-7 in the second quarter, but scored 38 unanswered points to complete the blowout. The Chanticleers out gained the Rams 460-215, forced four turnovers, and successfully covered the 35.5-point spread.
In their most recent matchup, Coastal Carolina fell to the University of Delaware in a 22-14 thriller. The Chanticleers leaped out to a 7-0 lead and then took a 14-7 advantage once again before Delaware scored a late touchdown and two-point conversion to take a 15-14 lead into halftime. A muffed punt by the Chanticleers in the fourth quarter paved the way for the Blue Hens to score on the first play and extend the lead to 22-14. Coastal Carolina’s offense largely fell silent in the second half, and the two turnovers proved costly. They failed to cover the 5.5-point spread.
There has been encouraging production at the quarterback position from Deuce Bailey with 826 passing yards and eight passing scores without an interception so far this year. Jevon Edwards and Dominic Knicely headline the rushing production, but have had a mixed bag of results with 214 rushing yards and two touchdowns overall. Colton Hinton, Clayton Coppock, and Robby Washington have each tallied 125+ receiving yards, with Hinton and Coppock each notching three scores. The defense has had some flashes of encouragement and concern, with the level of competition making it a bit difficult to gauge thus far.
Liberty Preview
The Liberty Flames are off to a 2-1 start to the season in which they have taken care of business in the matchups they are supposed to. Jamey Chadwell is in his fourth season as head coach after previously serving in the role for Coastal Carolina. The Flames went 13-1 in his first season at the helm, but have regressed each year since, and there is pressure to improve following a 4-8 season last year.
Liberty opened the season with a 20-13 loss to James Madison. The Flames fell behind 17-3 in the second quarter, but battled back and out-gained the Dukes 321-291 while dominating the time of possession 37:17-22:43. Liberty narrowly missed out on covering the six-point spread.
In the second matchup of the season, Gardner-Webb struck some fear into the hearts of this Liberty squad. The Flames were able to ultimately secure a 24-23 win, but trailed 23-17 in the fourth quarter before scoring a touchdown with 2:39 left to play to pave the path to a win. Liberty did not come close to covering the 28.5-point spread in this matchup.
They fared a bit better in their most recent matchup, covering the spread for the first time this season in a 51-15 win over Ball State. Even still, Ball State was able to notch a 7-6 lead in the first quarter before Liberty poured on 31 unanswered points to break the game open and secure the blowout. Liberty tallied 460 total yards of offense and limited Ball State to just 93 total passing yards.
Through their first three games, there have been some fairly significant ups-and-downs for each key member of this Liberty team. Quarterback Deshawn Purdle has completed just 56.3% of his pass attempts for 563 passing yards and five touchdowns, although he has not thrown an interception. Kam Davis and Peyton Jones have combined for 280 rushing yards, but just one touchdown score. Makai Jackson is the clear leader at the wide receiver position, with 230 yards and three touchdowns while no other player has eclipsed 100 yards through the air.
Liberty vs. Coastal Carolina Pick
Don’t expect Lane Kiffin levels of hatred in this matchup, but the coaching return of Jamey Chadwell does provide an additional element. Chadwell does deserve credit for building up the program effectively, but he may be reaping a bit of what he sowed in this matchup.
Coastal Carolina has looked more impressive than their 1-2 record shows. They took the most recent matchup with Delaware down to the wire as 5.5-point underdogs, and held control for a good portion of the matchup. A successful two-point conversion and a costly muffed punt were largely the difference in the matchup. They are not afraid to air the ball out downfield, and Deuce Bailey has been impressive under center. My lean is toward the Chanticleers not just covering the spread, but winning outright against this vulnerable Liberty squad.
But my best bet for this matchup is for the game total to soar past the 50.5-point total. These teams have had plenty of high scoring affairs when they have faced off, with the average game total finishing at 61.6 in their previous 15 meetings. They have scored 70+ combined points in six of the past 10 matchups. The over is
Both programs have also struggled defensively this season. Liberty allowing 23 points to Gardner-Webb raised more than a few eyebrows and has not allowed fewer than 15 points in a matchup despite facing inferior competition. Coastal Carolina has put up as many as 45 points this season, and have given up 22+ points in two of their three matchups. Facing a Liberty team that poured in 51 points in their previous game and still has an offensive gear to hit, expect there to be plenty of scoring.
Both of these quarterbacks are eager to hunt big plays, ranking in the top three in average distance of target. They have had some success in these chances, and expect some offensive fireworks in this potential Thursday night thriller. If you want to get bold and parlay Coastal Carolina moneyline with the game total going over at +286 odds, you can tail me in the DraftKings Network CFB Committee betting group. But for the sake of this article, let’s lock in the game total going over 50.5 points in this Week 4 college football opener.
