Lynchburg, Virginia
🏈 Liberty Flames

Williams Stadium, surrounded by the hills of central Virginia, is a centerpiece of sorts for Liberty University. What began as a modest, bleacher-filled football field has quickly grown into a classy hotspot and regional sports mecca, mirroring the Flames’ ascent to FBS competition. For over thirty years now, the venue has been home to this team, a program that seems to burn brighter with each passing fall.

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The stadium was initially built in 1989, Liberty’s first on-campus facility. Until that time, the Flames had been sharing Lynchburg City Stadium with local high schools and practicing even further away on Treasure Island, the latter of which was wiped out by a flood in 1985. This event turned out to be the catalyst in bringing the football program back to the university grounds at a field they could call their own.

Boasting a much larger seating capacity now than when it first opened as an FCS venue, Williams Stadium has space for around 25,000 spectators. This is thanks to upgrades made in 2010 and multi-phase renovations that took place in 2018 to prepare the school for the jump to FBS. The overhauls saw the addition of new upper decks, the installation of new videoboards and improved architectural styles both inside and out. Today, Williams has a nice, brick-clad exterior that helps make it one of the finer facilities in Conference USA.

And the success of Flames football has ensured that the stadium will be packed to the brim when those fall Saturdays come to Lynchburg. Since being elevated to FBS, the team made six consecutive bowl game appearances, winning three of them. Liberty joined Conference USA in 2023 and immediately clinched a conference trophy there as well. Bright things are on the horizon for the Flames, their fans and their stomping grounds.