Namely, Jamey Chadwell arrived at Liberty University with strong credentials. Consider that at Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, Chadwell went 39-22. Including records of 11-1, 11-2, and 9-3 in his final three seasons. Coastal finished with a final national ranking of 14th in 2020. Thus, the loss of former head coach Hugh Freeze was easier to accept with Chadwell coming in. Chadwell went gangbusters in his first College Football Betting season. To show, he went 13-1 with an 8-0 mark in Conference USA. Finally, Chadwell did the impossible by taking Coastal Carolina to a New Year’s Day bowl game.
College Football Futures 2024 Liberty Flames
| Liberty Flames Odds to Win National Championship | +60000 |
|---|---|
| Liberty Flames Odds to Win CUSA Championship | -210 |
| Over/Under Win Total: | 10.5 |
2024 Liberty Flames Schedule
- Aug. 31 (Sat.) CAMPBELL (LYNCHBURG)
- Sept. 7 (Sat.) at New Mexico State * (Las Cruces, N.M.)
- Sept. 14 (Sat.) UTEP * (LYNCHBURG)
- Sept. 21 (Sat.) EAST CAROLINA (LYNCHBURG)
- Sept. 28 (Sat.) at Appalachian State (Boone, N.C.)
- Oct. 9 (Wed.) FIU * (LYNCHBURG)
- Oct. 23 (Wed.) at Kennesaw State * (Kennesaw, Ga.)
- Oct. 30 (Wed.) JACKSONVILLE STATE * (LYNCHBURG)
- Nov. 9 (Sat.) at Middle Tennessee * (Murfreesboro, Tenn.)
- Nov. 16 (Sat.) at UMass (Amherst, Mass.)
- Nov. 23 (Sat.) WESTERN KENTUCKY * (LYNCHBURG)
- Nov. 30 (Sat.) at Sam Houston * (Huntsville, Texas)
Previously, the thought of Liberty playing in the Fiesta Bowl would have been considered an impossible dream. Chadwell made that dream a reality. Now comes the 2024 season, with more accomplishments coming.
2024 Liberty Flames Preview
Liberty—the defending CUSA champions—has a path back to the title game in front of them. They lost some notable offshore betting pieces. But the return of quarterback Kaidon Salter. Also, another less-than-intimidating schedule helps their cause. Their non-conference date with Appalachian State on Sept. 28 is arguably their most compelling matchup.
Last year, running opposing defenses off the field propelled Liberty to the Fiesta Bowl. The Flames will likely try that approach again in 2024. Jamey Chadwell’s biggest wins of the offseason were keeping both quarterback Kaidon Salter and running back Quinton Cooley on campus. Both players were instrumental in the Flames’ 13-1 record, Conference USA title, and Fiesta Bowl berth in 2023. Accordingly, Liberty had the top rushing offense in FBS with 293.3 yards on the ground per game.
The rushing offense was so effective that the Flames had nearly double the number of rushing first downs (207) as passing (114) in 2023. That’s not to say that Salter was an ineffective passer, though. The former Tennessee Volunteer completed 61 percent of his passes with 32 touchdowns last year.
The Flames do need to replace 1,000-yard receiver CJ Daniels, who is now with LSU. Coastal Carolina transfer Tyson Mobley is one possible candidate. However, he had only one season of at least 40 catches with his previous program.
The Flames need to replace a lot of College Football Betting talent on defense. While they intercepted an FBS-high 21 passes in 2024, they lost multiple starters from the secondary. Still, FWAA All-America safety Brylan Green does return after intercepting five passes in 2023. And he’s joined by starting cornerback Amarian Williams, who broke up four passes last season.
Additionally, punter Max Morgan returns after averaging 41.9 yards per punt over the last two years. Kicker Nick Brown made all but one of his 66 extra-point attempts last year.