Liberty to study possible move to FBS

Dec 15, 2011 - 8:37 PM Lynchburg, VA (Sports Network) - On the day Turner Gill was introduced as its new head football coach, Liberty University announced Thursday it will conduct a study to determine the feasibility of moving its program from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Bowl Subdivision.

Liberty is a member of the Big South Conference and won titles in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.

"Liberty greatly values its membership in the Big South Conference, but given the unexpected turn of events (on the FBS level), we believe the time is right to conduct this study," Liberty chancellor and president Jerry Falwell, Jr. said. "Due to the changes we have all seen in the college football landscape, we need to thoroughly evaluate the future of Liberty University football.

"During our discussions with these head coaching candidates, it quickly became clear to us that the future of Liberty's football program was their primary concern. The candidates were particularly interested in whether Liberty had plans to move to the Football Bowl Subdivision level at some point. In order to determine what course Liberty should pursue for its football program, including when Liberty should attempt to move to the FBS level, Liberty has commissioned an FBS Feasibility Study by Carr Sports Associates. The study should be completed in February or March."

Gill was introduced as the Flames' eighth head coach. He was fired last month after a 5-19, two-season run as Kansas' head coach. He went 20-30 in four seasons from 2006-09 at Buffalo, leading the Bulls to an upset victory against then-undefeated Ball State in the 2008 MAC Championship Game and an appearance in the International Bowl.

Liberty had a 7-4 record this past season under Danny Rocco, finishing second in the Big South. Rocco left to become Richmond's head coach.