Liberty Head Football Coach Hugh Freeze Tests Positive for COVID-19

Liberty University announced Friday that Flames head football coach Hugh Freeze tested positive for COVID-19 and is dealing with "mild symptoms."

Here's a look at the full statement from the Lynchburg, Virginia, school:

Freeze took over at Liberty in December 2018.

After guiding the Flames to an 8-5 record in his first year, they started the current campaign 8-0 before their first and only loss to NC State on Nov. 21. They rebounded with a 45-0 blowout of UMass to close out the regular season as a matchup with Coastal Carolina last week was canceled because of COVID-19 concerns.

The 51-year-old Mississippi native signed a contract extension with the program through 2026 in November.

"All aspects of our program are on the rise under Hugh's leadership, and we are putting the infrastructure in place to make this one of the top Group of 5 programs in the country," Liberty athletic director Ian McCaw told ESPN's Chris Low at the time.

Freeze previously served as head coach at Ole Miss (2012-16), Arkansas State (2011) and NAIA program Lambuth (2008-09) as part of a three-decade coaching career.

The Flames, an independent FBS member, are bowl-eligible, but their lack of a conference and games being canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic could hurt their chances of being selected.