Reports: Liberty hires Coastal Carolina coach Jamey Chadwell

Jamey Chadwell is making the move from Coastal Carolina to Liberty.

According to multiple media reports, Chadwell is heading to Liberty to replace Hugh Freeze. Chadwell has been the head coach at Coastal for the past four seasons and the Chanticleers have won at least nine games in each of the past three years. The CCU offense under Chadwell has been one of the most fun and creative in college football.

Chadwell’s move comes after Freeze left Liberty to become Auburn’s new head coach. Liberty has played as an independent since it moved to the top level of college football and is set to join a remodeled Conference USA in 2023.

Coastal Carolina, meanwhile, is a member of the Sun Belt and lost to Troy on Saturday in the conference title game. That conference has recently positioned itself ahead of Conference USA and the MAC in the Group of Five football hierarchy. Teams like Coastal, Troy and Louisiana have posted 10-win seasons over the past two years while Appalachian State beat Texas A&M and Georgia Southern beat Nebraska this season.

The Sun Belt’s strength relative to Conference USA makes Chadwell’s move seem odd on the surface. But the reported $4 million per season he will make at Liberty is four times as much as he was making at Coastal Carolina. And his recent salary with the Chanticleers was boosted only after a contract extension following the 2020 season.

While Chadwell could have easily gone to a Power Five school at some point in the future had Coastal kept winning, he moves to a Liberty program willing to pay him like a Power Five coach. And if Freeze’s move is any indication, Chadwell can always get a Power Five job after a successful stint at Liberty.

The Flames won 34 games over the past four seasons with Freeze in charge.