Malik Willis showed some of the potential Auburn fans hoped they’d see on The Plains on Saturday as Liberty pulled off an upset of Western Kentucky.

The Auburn transfer QB at Liberty had a huge day in a win on the road as he was 13-for-21 passing for 133 yards by late in the game as the Flames ran out the clock on a 30-24 victory. Liberty was a 14.5-point underdog against the Hilltoppers.

But Willis did most of his damage on the ground with 21 careers for 168 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Willis had touchdowns of 4, 4 and 18 yards.

Liberty had control throughout, as it led 10-0 after the first quarter, and 17-10 at halftime.

Saturday’s start was Willis’ first at the collegiate level and be the first since he started in the 2016 Georgia High School Association Class 7A state title game as a senior at Roswell High, north of Atlanta.

He spent the 2017 and 2018 seasons as Jarrett Stidham’s backup at Auburn, and then transferred following the 2019 spring practice when he hadn’t won the starting job. He landed with Hugh Freeze at Liberty, and it has all the makings of a great fit.