Stature and coaches, 2018–2026
The program’s standing over time, with every coach’s tenure beneath it — read down to see who was there for each rise and fall.
DynastyBlue BloodPower ProgramNational ProgramRegional Program
Run↔pass identity, by season
Every coach
Big movers show how many stature points they built or lost against what they inherited; steadier tenures show the tier they reached instead. A small blue arrow marks a real System Shift at that changeover — how hard the offense’s run/pass identity flipped.
2023–now
Jamey Chadwell Steady ◆ COY
Jamey Chadwell moved the Flames from Regional Program III to Regional Program II in 4 seasons.
2023 offense ranked in the 96th percentile nationally — elite
+2.9 pts over 4 seasons · top 20% of 3-5-season tenures (717 in sample)
Closest comparable run: Jeff Tisdel’s Nevada run (1996–1999)
1st-best Liberty tenure of 2 by the numbers.
Followed Hugh Freeze (2019–2022).
System Shift, on arrival
| Season | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record & result | |||||
| Record | 13-1 | 8-4 | 4-8 | 7-1 | |
| Postseason | L bowl | L bowl | — | — | |
| Recruiting rank | #110 | #105 | #86 | #109 | |
| Style — pass rate | |||||
| Pass rate | 31.1 | 35.0 | 38.7 | 34.4 | |
| Coordinators | |||||
| OC | Willy Korn / Newland Isaac | Willy Korn / Newland Isaac | Willy Korn / Newland Isaac | Newland Isaac | |
| DC | Kyle Krantz / Skylor Magee | Kyle Krantz / Skylor Magee | Kyle Krantz / Skylor Magee | Shawn Quinn | |
| Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile | |||||
| Offense | 96 | 39 | 56 | 92 | |
| Defense | 21 | 65 | 24 | 91 | |
| Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script | |||||
| 1st-down pass% | 30.6 | 33.0 | 29.0 | 29.9 | |
| Red-zone pass% | 21.7 | 28.5 | 28.3 | 30.3 | |
| 4th-down go%opp. territory | 32.0 | 42.4 | 38.3 | 18.5 | |
Recruiter or developer?
Outperforms his recruiting talent on offense and performs about as expected for his recruiting talent on defense.
Offense vs. talent
+22.2 pts
#35 of 208 · top quarter
Defense vs. talent
-5.7 pts
#131 of 208 · middle half
Recruiting talent is team-wide (no offense/defense split exists in the source data) -- both sides are scored against the same talent input, only the outcome is side-specific.
Roster construction · portal era
A portal-built roster.
Portal arrivals
77
3.0★ avg rating
Portal departures
80
left via the portal
Net portal flow
-3
#44 of 187 FBS stints
Who they bring in
Typical size for position, once adjusted for position mix.
Recruits younger transfers than most — more of a development bet.
Avg. size (raw)
6′2″, 232 lbs
across 60 of 77 arrivals — unadjusted for position mix
Size vs. position-typical
+4.1 lbs
#124 of 255 · middle half
Avg. class year
Jr
#240 of 255 · bottom quarter
Top states: FL (10), VA (6), GA (6), TX (4), NC (4)
Who won the portal our read
Talent added
54.4
position-weighted
Talent lost
58.7
position-weighted
Net
-4.3
arrivals minus departures
Best addition: Michael Merdinger (QB) from North Carolina
Biggest loss: Kaidon Salter (QB) to the portal
Position-value-weighted (QB/CB weighted highest, depth-decayed within each position) — the same scoring engine as the Portal Heat feed, not a separate grade.
Does the system survive a coordinator change?
OC: Willy Korn (co) / Newland Isaac (co) → Newland Isaac · 2026
1-season window either side — numbers shown, not enough to badge a verdict.
1st-down pass rate: 29.0% → 29.9% (+0.9 pts)
Confound, shown not hidden: only 38% of offensive production returned the year the coordinator changed — the roster turned over at the same time, not just the play-caller.
DC: Kyle Krantz (co) / Skylor Magee (co) → Shawn Quinn · 2026
1-season window either side — numbers shown, not enough to badge a verdict.
Roster size, by position
Skill positions · usage-weighted (real participation)
Quarterback
205 lbs
6′2″ avg · #600 of 767 · bottom quarter
Running back
206 lbs
5′10″ avg · #427 of 791 · middle half
Wide receiver
196 lbs
6′1″ avg · #268 of 791 · middle half
Tight end
241 lbs
6′4″ avg · #523 of 731 · middle half
Trench & secondary · recruited roster, not confirmed starters
Interior line
299 lbs
6′4″ avg · #704 of 779 · bottom quarter
D-line
272 lbs
6′2″ avg · #628 of 753 · bottom quarter
Linebacker
229 lbs
6′1″ avg · #343 of 772 · middle half
Cornerback
184 lbs
6′0″ avg · #645 of 771 · bottom quarter
Safety
191 lbs
5′11″ avg · #302 of 346 · bottom quarter
Offensive-line size is one undifferentiated bucket — the source data almost never distinguishes tackle from guard from center, so we can't split them out.
Where the roster comes from, by position
Buys Linebacker via the portal
67%
#23 of 225 stints
Buys Cornerback via the portal
73%
#32 of 236 stints
Postseason detail2023: Lost to Oregon 6-45 Vrbo Fiesta Bowl2024: Lost to Buffalo 7-26 Bahamas Bowl Presented by Atlantis Resorts
Coach of the Year: Conference USA Coach of the Year (2023)
AI Narratives — “Liberty — stat check”.
+2.9
32-14
2022
Josh Aldridge Short tenure
No outlier style signal this stint
0-1
2019–2022
Hugh Freeze Steady
Hugh Freeze moved the Flames from Regional Program IV to Regional Program III in 4 seasons.
No outlier style signal this stint
+7.4 pts over 4 seasons · top 9% of 3-5-season tenures (717 in sample)
Closest comparable run: John Smith’s Louisville run (1998–2002)
2nd-best Liberty tenure of 2 by the numbers.
Followed Turner Gill (2018) · succeeded by Jamey Chadwell (2023–now).
System Shift, on departure
System Shift, on arrival
| Season | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record & result | |||||
| Record | 8-5 | 10-1 | 8-5 | 8-4 | |
| Postseason | W bowl | W bowl | W bowl | — | |
| Recruiting rank | #130 | #95 | #110 | #97 | |
| Style — pass rate | |||||
| Pass rate | 51.0 | 38.8 | 42.9 | 44.5 | |
| Coordinators | |||||
| OC | Kent Austin / Maurice Harris | Kent Austin / Maurice Harris | Kent Austin / Maurice Harris | Kent Austin / Maurice Harris | |
| DC | Scott Symons | Scott Symons | Josh Aldridge / Scott Symons / Jack Curtis | Josh Aldridge / Jack Curtis | |
| Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile | |||||
| Offense | 83 | 93 | 71 | 39 | |
| Defense | 43 | 34 | 80 | 74 | |
| Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script | |||||
| 1st-down pass% | 49.4 | 39.9 | 45.7 | 45.1 | |
| Red-zone pass% | 49.0 | 34.6 | 29.8 | 24.0 | |
| 4th-down go%opp. territory | 16.0 | 32.4 | 52.9 | 29.8 | |
Recruiter or developer?
Outperforms his recruiting talent, on both sides of the ball.
Offense vs. talent
+42.8 pts
#4 of 208 · top quarter
Defense vs. talent
+26.9 pts
#11 of 208 · top quarter
Recruiting talent is team-wide (no offense/defense split exists in the source data) -- both sides are scored against the same talent input, only the outcome is side-specific.
Roster construction · portal era
A typical amount of portal roster-building.
Portal arrivals
19
2.8★ avg rating
Portal departures
19
left via the portal
Net portal flow
0
#131 of 187 FBS stints
Who they bring in
Brings in smaller-than-position-typical players than most.
Recruits older, more experienced transfers than most.
Avg. size (raw)
6′2″, 236 lbs
across 16 of 19 arrivals — unadjusted for position mix
Size vs. position-typical
-0.3 lbs
#234 of 255 · bottom quarter
Avg. class year
Sr
#1 of 255 · top quarter
Top states: TX (4), CA (2), NC (1), LA (1), KS (1)
Who won the portal our read
Talent added
44.3
position-weighted
Talent lost
37.4
position-weighted
Net
+6.9
arrivals minus departures
Best addition: Kaidon Salter (QB) from Tennessee
Biggest loss: Emanuel Dabney (CB) to the portal
Position-value-weighted (QB/CB weighted highest, depth-decayed within each position) — the same scoring engine as the Portal Heat feed, not a separate grade.
Does the system survive a coordinator change?
DC: Scott Symons → Josh Aldridge (co) / Scott Symons / Jack Curtis (co) · 2021
1-season window either side — numbers shown, not enough to badge a verdict.
Roster size, by position
Skill positions · usage-weighted (real participation)
Quarterback
216 lbs
6′1″ avg · #304 of 767 · middle half
Running back
190 lbs
5′9″ avg · #781 of 791 · bottom quarter
Wide receiver
189 lbs
6′0″ avg · #576 of 791 · middle half
Tight end
248 lbs
6′3″ avg · #268 of 731 · middle half
Trench & secondary · recruited roster, not confirmed starters
Interior line
312 lbs
6′4″ avg · #243 of 779 · middle half
D-line
283 lbs
6′3″ avg · #417 of 753 · middle half
Linebacker
222 lbs
6′1″ avg · #659 of 772 · bottom quarter
Cornerback
183 lbs
6′0″ avg · #690 of 771 · bottom quarter
Safety
194 lbs
5′11″ avg · #236 of 346 · middle half
Offensive-line size is one undifferentiated bucket — the source data almost never distinguishes tackle from guard from center, so we can't split them out.
Where the roster comes from, by position
Buys Quarterback via the portal
67%
#16 of 206 stints
Grows Safety from high school
75%
#165 of 218 stints
Grows Tackle from high school
83%
#180 of 223 stints
Postseason detail2019: Beat Georgia Southern 23-16 Fbc Mortgage Cure Bowl2020: Beat Coastal Carolina 37-34 FBC Mortgage Cure Bowl2021: Beat Eastern Michigan 56-20 LendingTree Bowl
3 NFL Draft picks: Antonio Gandy-Golden (2020), Malik Willis (2022), Demario Douglas (2023)
+7.4
34-15