Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze is a finalist for the George Munger Award. The Maxwell Football Club announced Freeze as one of six finalists for the award along with Ohio State’s Ryan Day, Coastal Carolina’s Jamey Chadwell, Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell, Alabama’s Nick Saban, and Indiana’s Tom Allen. The winner of the Munger Award will be announced Jan. 19.
Freeze helped guide Liberty to the program’s best ever season in 2020 as the Flames finished 10-1, tying the school record for most wins in a season. The Flames defeated No. 12 Coastal Carolina to win the Cure Bowl for a second straight season as Liberty knocked the Chanticleers from the ranks of the unbeatens.
Throughout 2020, Freeze and Liberty captured several program firsts including the first-ever national ranking at the FBS level, first win over an ACC opponent, and the best start in school history at 8-0. Liberty entered bowl season ranked No. 23 in both the Associated Press and Amway Coaches Poll. The Flames have been ranked in the top 25 national polls in seven out of the last eight weeks. Liberty also defeated a pair of ACC foes this season in Syracuse and in-state opponent Virginia Tech. The two wins makes Liberty the first non-Power Five team to post a pair of wins over Power Five schools in the same season since Houston in 2015.
The George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Award is named after former University of Pennsylvania coach George Munger and was founded in 1989.
