We’re still over 3 months away from college football starting, but oddsmakers have already released lines for some of the week one and top 2022 games.
Week one lines have been posted by multiple sites, and Liberty is an early 4-point road favorite over Southern Miss in the season opener. The Eagles are coming off a 3-9 season and are looking to return to prominence. This will be the second ever meeting between the two programs, with Liberty defeating Southern Miss, 56-35, on Oct. 24, 2020 at Williams Stadium in Lynchburg, Virginia.
This year’s game will be the season opener for both teams and will be played on Sept. 3, 2022 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. No time has been announced for the game to this point.
Fourth year Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze will be making a return trip to his alma mater as coach for the visiting team. It will be his second trip to his former home state of Mississippi as Liberty’s head coach as Freeze and the Flames lost to No. 11 Ole Miss last November. Of course, Freeze was the head coach at Ole Miss prior to his time at Liberty.
Former Liberty offensive line coach Sam Gregg, who served under Freeze from 2019-2021, was hired by Southern Miss head coach Will Hall following the conclusion of the 2021 football season. Gregg now serves as the Golden Eagles’ offensive coordinator and offensive line coach.
The Flames will be looking to get back to a fourth straight bowl game in 2022 under Freeze. 2022 will also be the final year for the program as an FBS Independent before joining Conference USA beginning with the 2023 season. There is much anticipation surrounding the upcoming season as the Flames will play its most anticipated home schedule in school history with Virginia Tech and BYU each coming to Lynchburg to take on Liberty.
