With all the hoopla surrounding expansion and realignment, would you hire Liberty HC Hugh Freeze.

Positives: Freeze is Liberty's most successful coach to date. He brought high rated QB Willis to the school. He's been a successful coach at every level and every school he's landed. He can flat out coach and recruit.

Negatives: Old baggage at Old Miss with call girls and leaving in disgrace. So bad that with his prior success he was unwanted until Liberty hired him and he resurrected his career.

Now: He is a hot commodity. Funny how times change when a coach wins.

This is a 30 day poll.
9/22/2021 update: 65% say YES, 35% say NO to hiring Freeze.

If I was ECU or USF I would have to consider Freeze

Make sure he gets a burner phone.....

Speaking as if I were an AD whose primary objective is to win, I would. There have been so many slimy coaches out there who have gotten second chances that hiring Freeze wouldn't be the end of the world especially since Liberty already took the flak for hiring him as his first coaching job after Ole Miss. By the time allegations came to light (let's be real some more violations would probably occur) I'd likely be at another job. Speaking as a fan, I wouldn't want him anywhere near my program.

After looking up what happened at Ole 'Miss there is no chance he gets to be a head coach or involved in recruiting. I don't believe in cancel culture, and everyone has right to work in their field (well almost, I can think of certain positions you can reasonably ban yourself for life, but not most fields) so I'd be open to hiring him as a defensive position coach under probationary terms. One call to hoes and hookers or anything on his computer and he's gone.

He's clearly talented and capable, but he has two strikes on him coming in the door.

The personal scandal on top of probation bringing violations is probably enough to keep looking for other options.

But what happens if there’s a hiring freeze?

I think I read somewhere that Freeze makes $4M at Liberty. If that is true it will take a big check to lure him away.

Not for any of the teams I root for (primarily ND and LSU, both family schools), but I could see other less than ethical schools take a shot. And I don’t consider any of my schools to be particularly ethical, but I’d like them to at least try.

About the OP, this means as an HC, then my vote is no.

It's another reason I would not touch Liberty with a 1000 foot pole were I a school President.

(09-19-2021 10:04 PM)Aztec Since 88 Wrote:  I think I read somewhere that Freeze makes $4M at Liberty. If that is true it will take a big check to lure him away.

As LU is a private school and is not required to divulge salaries, that figure may or may not be true. What has been inferred by LU, and with his recent contract extension, is LU is thrilled with his performance and that he got a significant raise. And with the weighted value of LU winning vs. Freeze's perception and baggage, he and LU are gaining much more with the arrangement than losing with the win-at-all perception.

At present, the poll shows slightly more would hire Freeze than not.

I'd seek better options with less baggage. He's the perfect coach at Liberty who no one here would be talking about if it weren't for him. Why should schools like say USC or Florida State take a chance on him? Do either of those schools want to go on probation? The risks don't outweigh the rewards.

(09-20-2021 07:11 AM)schmolik Wrote:  I'd seek better options with less baggage. He's the perfect coach at Liberty who no one here would be talking about if it weren't for him. Why should schools like say USC or Florida State take a chance on him? Do either of those schools want to go on probation? The risks don't outweigh the rewards.

Watching the Miami/Michigan State game, the thought popped into my head that he would be a good fit at Miami. A school with a questionable image like Freeze. A private school floundering with Manny Diaz. An offense that is anemic and a team with great talent but without direction or discipline.

The question to whether or not to hire Freeze? How would you feel about going on probation? I mean that's the biggest fear when hiring him. The most likely punishment I would think would be you can't go to a bowl game for a few years. Let me take my Illinois. Illinois's made 6 bowl games since 2000. We went 2014 to 2019 without going to one. We're used to not going to bowl games. The downside to hiring Freeze would be we miss bowl games for 2-3 years, in other words, what we're used to. The upside is we could win and go to bowl games for 2-3 years and many more. Now replace that with Penn State and 2-3 years without bowl games for them and State College would revolt. So there are plenty of Illinois's that probably should take a chance on Freeze but the Penn State's of college football would be idiotic to.

I would absolutely hire him, but I'm certain ECU wouldn't and even if they'd consider it couldn't afford him.

At UCF, hell no. We can do just as well on the market now.

At somewhere that's struggling but still a step up from Liberty? Yeah, probably. I'd have to hold my nose, but if you're say USF, I don't see how you could pass on him.

With realignment comes talk of FCS move ups, teams changing conferences, potential indy invites and more. Then fans discuss the power of the presidents since they are the voting block. And there is the powerful alumni (which means heavy donors) who want to win. Also there are fans of other teams who don't want to be associated with team x or y because of...

And then there is the 800 pound gorilla in the room. Money. So if we weigh all the factors, where does economics place. Individual schools have their own priorities and one size priority list does not fit all. An Ivy league school or a P5 program with a huge endowment is much different than a lower level, struggling G5. So we have emotions, money, and egos (Presidents) involved. What could go wrong! Not an easy choice for all but a easy one for schools in need.

Last check is 60% would hire Freeze.

I would hire him. I think it is easier to be the second stop rather than the first on the redemption tour. I would be more worried about his recruiting violations than his phone records, but the fact that NIL allows athletes to get paid means it is less necessary to have bag men dropping off cash and rented cars to players.

(09-19-2021 05:58 PM)No Bull Wrote:  If I was ECU or USF I would have to consider Freeze

Hugh Freeze and Mons Venus. A bad idea waiting to happen.

When he was at Arkansas State a friend worked in academic admissions and was working directly with football.

He told me he thought Freeze was a great coach, but he doesn’t seem to feel especially constrained by NCAA and university guidelines (he had a transfer rejected because the school wouldn’t waive its requirements, and Freeze kept telling the kid it’s going to be worked out, finally academics had to explain there was no way he was getting in unless he went some place else and got the issue worked out).

My friend said pray he leaves after three years because he is a horse drawn wagon loaded with nitroglycerin driving down a road full of potholes.

When he was Ole Miss and the NCAA noose was around his neck, he asked the AState System President for a character reference letter and the president declined to do so, which came out in the flurry of Ole Miss FOI requests.

Maybe as he’s gotten older his exuberance is more in check and he is ready to operate within the framework of NCAA rules and institutional rules, if so, HIRE HIM. I’m leery though.