Coastal’s Jamey Chadwell leaving to be Liberty’s new football coach

The most high-profile coach in Coastal Carolina football history is leaving town — and the Chanticleers are already zeroing in on their next leader.

Jamey Chadwell will be the next head coach at Liberty, both schools confirmed Sunday afternoon, a day after the Chanticleers lost to Troy in the 2022 Sun Belt Conference championship game.

Meanwhile, CCU is set to hire N.C. State offensive coordinator Tim Beck to replace Chadwell, per reports Sunday afternoon from ESPN Insider Pete Thamel and from On3 Sports.

Chadwell will replace Hugh Freeze, who left Liberty last Monday to be the coach at Auburn. National media outlets on Sunday indicated that Liberty had offered Chadwell $4 million a year to be their new coach. Chadwell was making $900,000 annually at Coastal, according to USA Today’s coaching contracts database. Freeze’s most recent contract extension at Liberty would’ve paid him just under $5 million a year.

The Chanticleers (9-3) are now set to hire their fourth head coach in the program’s 20-year history.

Said Thamel via Twitter on Sunday afternoon: “Sources: NC State OC Tim Beck is finalizing a five-year deal to make him Coastal Carolina’s next head coach. Beck is finalizing a five-year contract that will pay him nearly $1 million per year.”

Liberty, which competes in football as an independent, is moving to Conference USA starting with the 2023-24 sports seasons.

About Tim Beck

Beck has been N.C. State’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach since the 2020 season. Before that, Beck had stops at Texas, Ohio State, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri State, among others. He served as the offensive coordinator for the Longhorns, Buckeyes and Cornhuskers.

During his time at Nebraska, Beck and Coastal Carolina football administrator Joe Moglia spent time on Bo Pelini’s staff together.

About Jamey Chadwell

Chadwell, a Tennessee native, has spent the bulk of his coaching career in the state of South Carolina. He previously served as the head coach at North Greenville and Charleston Southern with a stop at Division II Delta State (Mississippi) in between.

The ex-East Tennessee State quarterback was hired as the interim head coach during Joe Moglia’s sudden health issues due to mold in his lungs. Moglia returned as head coach in 2018, before stepping aside for Chadwell, his offensive coordinator, the next year.

Chadwell’s name had been attached to numerous Power Five head coaching gigs in recent years, including at South Carolina and Tennessee.

“If (I’m coaching) here the rest of my life, or however long they want me here, awesome,” Chadwell told McClatchy in October. “If there’s another place, it’ll open up regardless — (that’s) how I look at things.

“And maybe other people laugh at that and say, ‘Pshhhh, whatever,’ but it helps me stay content. Does that make sense? Because I think if you don’t have a perspective on that, man, it can eat you up. (Besides), it’s not like I’m at Podunk U.”

Chadwell had Coastal Carolina in the Sun Belt Championship for the second time in as many years. He compiled a 39-22 record in his four years in Conway.

The Chanticleers burst onto the national scene under Chadwell thanks, in part, due to the pseudo-option offensive scheme he’s concocted over years as a head coach at lower levels. They’ve been ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 in each of the last three seasons — peaking at No. 9 during the 2020 campaign. (They finished ranked No. 14 nationally.)

Quarterback Grayson McCall, who’s expected to be an NFL draft pick this spring, has been the linchpin for the offense. The North Carolina product was named the 2021 Sun Belt Player of the Year, setting single-season school records in completion percentage (73.02%), passing efficiency rating (207.6) and yards per completion (16.3).

Coastal Carolina coach history

▪ David Bennett (2003-11), nine seasons, 63-39 record

▪ Joe Moglia (2012-16/2018), six seasons, 56-22 record

▪ Jamey Cadwell (2017, 2019-22), five seasons, 39-22 record

Chanticleers bowl game

Coastal Carolina (9-3) will face East Carolina (7-5) in the Birmingham Bowl on Tuesday, Dec. 27, according to Action Network’s Brett McMurphy. Kickoff time is to be announced.