Ole Miss Football: An early look at the Rebels 2021 Schedule
Liberty Flames
November 6 could be a great homecoming for former Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze and the Liberty University Flames. Everybody knows what led to coach Freeze being forced to resign as Ole Miss head coach, so there is no reason to beat a dead horse. However, Hugh Freeze was a good head coach while at Ole Miss and is still proving to be a good head coach at Liberty. The job he has done there is nothing short of amazing. In his two short seasons as the Flames head coach, he has done the improbable.
In 2019 he won 8 games, the highest win total for the Flames since 2014, and led the Flames to their very first bowl game appearance which resulted in a 23-16 win over Georgia Southern in the FBC Mortgage Cure Bowl. Freeze had 11 players from that team named to Phil Steele FBS Independent All-Conference teams. The 2019 Flames had the No.21 ranked passing offense in the nation at 288.9 yards per game and the No.32 ranked total offense in the nation averaging 439.4 yards per game.
The 2020 season was even better for Hugh Freeze and the Flames. Freeze coached the Flames to a 10-1 season with wins over three majors in consecutive weeks. The Flames had a 38-21 win at Syracuse, a 55-36 win over Southern Miss, and then a 38-35 win at Virginia Tech. The season was capped off by a 37-34 overtime win over Coastal Carolina. Freeze has brought an attitude to the Flames where they consider themselves to be giant killers.
Last season the Flames averaged 38.2 points per game while allowing just 20.5 points per game. The Flames averaged 482.7 yards of total offense per game with 252.4 coming on the ground and 230.4 coming thru the air. This raises concerns when you look at the defense the Rebels had in 2020. This matchup will be a huge game for Hugh Freeze and his co-offensive coordinators, Kent Austin and Maurice Harris. OHT calls this a win for Ole Miss but it could be a trap game if coach Lane Kiffin and the Rebels aren’t very careful.