Life After Willis; Flames 2022 Season Preview

Liberty Flames Season Preview for the 2022 season!

As we approach the 2022 college football season, life after Malik Willis will be the biggest question mark for the Liberty University Flames. During the two-year stint with Willis, the Flames were dominate with a 18-6 record and won two bowl games.

Yes, most college fans will not take the Flames serious since they are an independent football team. To argue for the Flames, they have victories over Syracuse, VT, UAB, and Coastal Carolina the past two years. That is better than a few Power-5 conference teams can say.

Liberty University will enter their last season as an Independent before they enter the CUSA in 2023. They will join Jacksonville State, New Mexico State, and Sam Houston State to the CUSA. Before we get ahead of ourselves here is the 2022 schedule for the Flames.

LU Flames 2022 Schedule

• Sat., Sept. 3 – at Southern Miss
• Sat., Sept. 10 – vs. UAB
• Sat., Sept. 17 – at Wake Forest
• Sat., Sept. 24 – vs. Akron
• Sat., Oct. 1 – at Old Dominion
• Sat., Oct. 8 – at UMass
• Sat., Oct. 15 – vs. Gardner-Webb
• Sat., Oct. 22 – vs. BYU
• Sat., Nov. 5 – at Arkansas
• Sat., Nov. 12 – at UConn
• Sat., Nov. 19 – vs. Virginia Tech
• Sat., Nov. 26 – vs. New Mexico State

Breaking down Liberty’s Schedule:

The Flames schedule released has been labeled as the, “best home schedule” for the upcoming season. As published, opponents coming to Lynchburg, Virginia like UAB, BYU, and VT are top quality opponents.

So, how will the Flames attack this schedule? Let us nosedive deeper to forecast the Flames season.

According to Thom Cunningham from Vegas Insider, the win total for the Flames is set at 6.5 wins. His prediction is the under 6.5 wins and I can see why with the questions at QB. Life after Malik Willis will not be an easy assignment, but Hugh Freeze will have the right guy for the job. Now, there has not been news who the starting QB will be this year. Most have expected former Baylor/Utah QB Charlie Brewer to grab the job.

The Flames will also have to replace over 45% on both sides of the ball. Per ESPN, the Flames ranked 121st out of 131 teams in returning production. However, I expect Freeze to collect a group of guys to fill those holes and be immediate impact.

Liberty Flames 2022 Season Prediction

Covering the Liberty Flames Season Preview is a blessing. As a Liberty Flames Alumni since December of 2021, I may have some bias, but I appear to be objective. Overall, I see the Flames going over on their 6.5 O/U wins for the season.

First, let us collect the easy wins:

• Southern Miss
• Akron
• Old Dominion
• UMass
• Gardner-Webb
• UConn
• New Mexico State

The Flames should have the superior roster and coaching staff for all those games. Four of those games listed are on the road, where the Flames have underperformed. I expect Hugh Freeze to take authority of the offensive playbook and make the difference in having a good season to great.

If we are talking going over 6.5, I will take it in a heartbeat. Go Flames!

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