Thank you for submitting your questions and continue to send them in and we will be happy to answer them in our next feature. You can send them to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, e-mail, or as a comment on the site. We had a ton of great questions last week, so many so that we had to turn it into a two-part response. Here is our second If we didn’t get to yours this time, look for it next week. Let’s get right to it.
I am curious on whether Liberty football, if it continues to grow, will schedule harder opponents in the future and try to become like BYU where we play 4-5 Power 5 teams a year?
— TurtlePower98 (@sstaedtler98) May 4, 2021
That could certainly be the case at some point in time in the future, but that is not currently the goal for Liberty football schedules. Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze has said that he doesn’t want to play that many Power Five teams each year, and the future football schedules align with that philosophy as there are no more than two P5 games scheduled in any season from now through 2026. That could change at some point in the future, but the stated goal by all within the athletic department and football program is to be one of the top Group of Five programs in the country, and that doesn’t require the Flames to play 4-5 Power Five teams each year.
along the same lines … will LU look for a conference alignment outside of the ASUN.
AAC seems to be the best fit
— Bill Powell (@WmPowellJr) May 4, 2021
What are the chances we leave the ASUN soon?
— Flames Stan (@FlamesStan) May 5, 2021
If I had a dollar for every time we’ve talked about realignment…
To answer the first question, yes, Liberty is always looking for a better conference alignment. That doesn’t mean one is going to come along as it takes two to tango. Yes, agreed on the AAC as Liberty’s best realistic option as a conference partner. I’m not sure Liberty would jump at a MAC, Sun Belt, or Conference USA invite if one of those leagues were to offer tomorrow. AAC would be a no-brainer, but, for now, we wait, make ourselves as attractive as possible, and hope they become interested.
Heard any more on the ODU & UNCC to the A-10 or CAA rumor?
— Optimus Ferg (@FergsNVA) May 4, 2021
For those that may have missed it, there was a rumor floating around a few months ago that Old Dominion and Charlotte may be interested in becoming an Independent in football and joining either the Atlantic 10 or CAA. There hasn’t been much movement, that I’ve heard, on this rumor in recent weeks. That could all change when the summer months roll around and there aren’t any other sports going on.
Any talk of who we may be scheduling (outside of the already know a) for hoops season?
— Did Liberty Win? (@didlibertywin) May 4, 2021
We know the Flames will play at LSU on Nov. 15, will host Missouri on Dec. 2, and will play in the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii in December. Look for a few low level Division I teams and a couple non-Division I teams to be added to the schedule. Hopefully we will also see a couple of strong mid-majors and a couple more top 25 level teams coming to light soon, as well.
How are season ticket sales so far?
— Brian Bodiford (@BTBodiford) May 4, 2021
I haven’t heard officially yet, it’s still a little early, but I would imagine Liberty sets a record for season ticket sales for the 2021 season. There’s too many positive factors working in their favor for it not to happen – pent-up demand from very limited attendance in 2020, coming off the best season in school history, possible preseason top 25 team, Malik Willis factor, needing to lock in season tickets for the 2022 season when Virginia Tech and BYU visit, etc. I think there will be a few records broken when it comes to attendance and ticket sales this coming season.