CFB Bowl Preview 2025: Liberty Bowl
By Rory Daniels
Bowl season is in full swing and we will be previewing some of the bigger matchups over the next couple of weeks. This year’s Liberty Bowl will be contested between the Navy Midshipmen and the Cincinnati Bearcats. Rory-Joe Daniels takes a look at the key matchups.
Where and When
Location: Simmons Bank Liberty Bowl Stadium, Memphis, Tennessee
Date: Friday, January 2
Time: 4.30pm EST / 9.30pm GMT
Story So Far...
The Cincinnati Bearcats appeared to be making headway in Scott Satterfield’s third year as Head Coach. They started the season 7-1, after a narrow loss to Nebraska in the season opener. However, the November blues struck once again as they lost their last four conference games, ending the year out of the Big 12 title conversation as well as CFB Playoffs. The only upside is that Satterfield makes his first bowl appearance since taking over from Luke Fickell. The Bearcats’ last bowl appearance was in 2022, and they have lost their last three. Satterfield must reverse the late-season form without star QB Brendan Sorsby, a challenging task indeed.
Fortunes were different for Navy, whose Head Coach Brian Newberry led them to his second consecutive 10-win season and could go one better this year, with the bowl game still to play. They were easily handled by Notre Dame, who by that point had hit mid-season form, but the biggest disappointment was the loss to North Texas, which proved to be the tiebreaker that denied them a spot in the Conference Championship. Still, Navy have become a true test as opposed to a gimmicky offense that causes headaches. Newberry won last year’s bowl game, and the last time the Midshipmen were in the Liberty Bowl, 2019, they also ran out victors, good omens perhaps?
The Quarterbacks
QB Brendan Sorsby was a real shining star for the Bearcats in 2025. He threw for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns and only five interceptions. Add to that 580 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground, and you can see why he is the most highly sought-after commodity in the transfer portal. He will surely land with a title contender this offseason. For the bowl game, backup Brady Lichtenberg will see some action. He’s an experienced backup who only had six pass attempts this year. Perhaps more exciting is that 4-star dual-threat freshman Samaj Jones will get some playing time, with a view to the starting gig next spring.
Navy QB Blake Horvath is at the other end of the spectrum experience-wise. Now in his second year as starter, Horvath has proved to be one of the most efficient and dangerous QBs in Midshipmen history. Heading up the triple option offense, Horvath ran for 1,196 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also proved his worth as a passer with over 1,400 yards through the air. He did fumble 3 times in each of his last two outings, so ball security could improve. Without star defensive tackle Dontay Corleone for the Bearcats, slowing down Horvath could be tricky.
Who to Watch
Cincinnati
Cyrus Allen, Wide Receiver
Cyrus Allen led the Bearcats in receiving yards and led the offense with 12 touchdowns in 2025. For the first time in his career, where he travelled from Louisiana Tech, via Texas A&M, to the Bearcats, Allen saw action almost exclusively in the slot. It allowed him to become a go-to target for Sorsby, and he enters the game needing one touchdown to equal the school record of touchdown catches in a single season. He will be the release valve for the two inexperienced QBs.
Navy
Alex Tecza, Fullback
Outside of the running threat of Horvath, it will be fullback Alex Tecza that the Bearcats defense will need to keep tabs on. He had 822 rushing yards along with nine touchdowns, averaging a fantastic 5.8 yards per attempt. The Navy offense was held to 17 points by Army last time out, and part of that was restricting Tecza to only 50 rushing yards. Stopping this group from establishing the run is a must for Satterfield and co.
Prediction
Navy is a seven-point favourite in this one, and given the dip in form the Bearcats suffered at the end of the year and the fact they will be without their star QB, Brendan Sorsby and also their key defensive tackle Dontay Corleone, means it’s hard to see them overturning the Midshipmen.
Cincinnati 18-28 Navy
Rory-Joe Daniels
COLLEGE FOOTBALL ANALYST
AS A LONG-SUFFERING CINCINNATI BENGALS FAN, RORY HAS FOLLOWED THE NFL FOR OVER 20 YEARS. HIS PASSION FOR THE DRAFT LED HIM TO GET ENTANGLED WITH COLLEGE FOOTBALL AND HE HAS BEEN WRITING ABOUT PROSPECTS AND THE CFB LANDSCAPE EVER SINCE.