It’s a new era for Liberty football.
First-year head coach Jamey Chadwell will coach his first game in the red, white, and blue when the Flames host Bowling Green in their Sept. 2 season opener, a game that will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network.
Chadwell, who has seen tremendous success at schools such as Charleston Southern and Coastal Carolina, now looks to bring that success over to Liberty as the Flames move into Conference USA. This will be a big adjustment for LU as the team competed as an Independent the past four seasons.
“I’ve shared with our team, multiple times, that being in a conference, everybody is playing for that opportunity there at the end,” said Chadwell. “Every game is important and there’s no off-weeks. What I mean by that, is you can’t just roll the ball out and think you’re going to show up and think, ‘Hey, we’re going to get excited for this one and not worry about this opponent. Every week is important.’ Being a part of that, a lot of our staff has been a part of that, that will help our team understand the importance of playing every week.”
The Flames were picked to finish second in Conference USA by the media behind Western Kentucky. The top two teams at the end of the regular season will meet in the CUSA Championship Game on Friday, Dec. 1. The game will be played at the regular season champion’s home field.
Last year, Liberty won 8 games, reaching that mark for a fourth consecutive season, and advanced to a fourth straight bowl game. That was all accomplished as an Independent and under head coach Hugh Freeze who left following the 2022 regular season to become the head coach at Auburn.
Along with a new coaching staff, the Flames also have a roster full of new names and faces as the team has seen approximately 50% roster turnover of the team’s scholarship players. Chadwell and his staff will lean on team captains OL Brendan Schlittler, LB Tyren Dupree, DL Kendy Charles, OL X’Zauvea Gadlin, and S Quinton Reese.
“As a coach, you try not to look too far ahead because you are focused on your team and the things you need to do to get ready not just for the game but really the season,” Chadwell said earlier this week. “As we get closer here, our staff is excited about it because for the majority of us it’s the first time we ever get to run out at home, that’s something we are looking forward to.”
A large crowd is expected once again when Chadwell and his team take the field at Williams Stadium on Saturday prior to kick off. The fans will be ready to help usher the team into this new era.
“This is literally what we’ve worked for,” Liberty WR Noah Frith said of the season opener. “Football is a crazy sport. You work year round, all year, busting tail to play 12 times. I’m super excited, especially with this being my last year. I’ve been thinking about this week for years. My last week of having firsts – first game day, first week – bittersweet, but I couldn’t be more excited.”
Frith, as a sixth-year player for Liberty, will be counted on as a leader at wide receiver. He has been slowed by injuries during much of his career, but he is hopeful to end his college career on a high note.
For Liberty and Chadwell, the next step on the road to their goals and dreams begins Saturday against Bowling Green.
“You’ve got to try to find a way to win a game no matter what you have, that’s what we’re trying to do and also get your team in all three phases prepared,” Chadwell said. “We are shooting for a 14-game season, that’s what we want to have. To do that, you have to prepare accordingly.”
It has been a challenging first nine months on the job for Chadwell even before taking the field for his first game as head coach of the Flames. He and his staff have had to navigate multiple transfer portal open periods, multiple injuries to key players, the tragic death of freshman offensive lineman Tajh Boyd, and all of that while also trying to install new systems on both sides of the ball. That’s a lot of adversity to navigate through in a short period of time.
“It has been challenging with all the different things that have happened but that’s what we’re preparing for,” Chadwell said of attempting to get his team ready for the season. “Nobody is going to feel sorry for you, nobody is going to make excuses for you, we’re not going to make excuses. You want an opportunity. We are out looking for an opportunity to win games and be our best every time we kick it off. Everything that we’re doing now is to try and help us win that first game.”
