Do you remember Hugh Freeze, the former Ole Miss coach who coached the Rebels to back to back New Years Six bowl games? After two years out of the college game he found himself back on the sidelines at NCAA Division I independent Liberty University, in Lynchburg, Va. this season.
Freeze — who was head coach at Lambuth (Tenn) University and Arkansas State before landing his ‘dream job’ at Ole Miss — led the Flames to their first bowl game in school history, as Liberty beat Georgia Southern 23-16 in the Mortgage cure Bowl played in Orlando on Dec. 21.
Freeze has connections to Winston County through his wife Jill, who was raised in Louisville.
While pleased to get the opportunity at Liberty, Freeze was candid when asked to explain the difference between being named he head man at LU and at Ole Miss.
“I don’t know that that can really be matched,” he said of being named head man of he Rebels. “I’m going to a place where … I was raised around it.” Taking nothing away from being named head coach at Liberty”, Freeze said, “because in its own way it was very special too — my return to college football”.
Freeze’s tenure at Ole Miss abruptly came to an end under a cloud of recruiting allegations.
The Flames finished the year with an 8-5 record, including losses to Syracuse, Rutgers, Virginia, Louisiana-Lafayette, and BYU. The biggest wins were over Buffalo, UMASS, New Mexico, and New Mexico State.
The Flames played as an independent this season.
While at Arkansas State Freeze led the Red Wolves to a 10-win season. While at Ole Miss he led the Rebels to the Music City, Peach and Sugar Bowls.
He won the Grant Teaff Coach of the year award in 2013.
