Hugh Freeze has taken yet another step toward a return to the coaching sidelines.
Liberty University announced Thursday that Freeze was released from the hospital the day before after a nearly one-week stay. The university had announced Aug. 13 that its head football coach was dealing with severe back spasms and had been unable to participate in practices since the previous Sunday. As it turns out, there was a significantly more serious underlying issue than simple back spasms as Freeze subsequently revealed that he underwent emergency surgery at the University of Virginia Medical Center one week ago today because a potentially life-threatening strand of staph infection entered his bloodstream.
As for the next course of action? The school spelled it out in a release:Under the direction of his medical team, Freeze will not return to his office for another few days, but that will not keep the Flames’ first-year head coach from his duties to lead the team.
Freeze is continuing his recovery process from back surgery and a related medical condition at the Fairfield Inn and Suites, which overlooks the Liberty University campus.
Thanks to the efforts of the Liberty University Information Technology team, Freeze’s room at the Fairfield Inn and Suites is equipped with TVs and computers that allow him to watch a live feed of Liberty’s daily practices and communicate with his coaching staff during the practice sessions.
Additionally, the football staff plans to hold several of its daily staff meetings at the hotel until he returns to the office, keeping their head coach up to date on the team’s progress as they prepare to host No. 22 Syracuse at Williams Stadium on Aug. 31.
For that opener against the Orange, it’s expected Freeze will be on hand, albeit coaching from the booth.
Hired by the Flames in December of last year, Freeze is set to enter his first season as the head coach at the football independent. Freeze had been out of coaching for two full seasons following his unceremonious ouster as the head coach at Ole Miss in July of 2017.