Turns out Hugh Freeze is going to have a chance to coach Malik Willis after all.

There was a time during the offseason where it appeared Freeze was close to joining Gus Malzahn’s Auburn staff as the program’s new offensive coordinator and Willis was poised to take over for Jarrett Stidham as the starting quarterback on The Plains heading into the 2019 season. Neither of those things occurred but that won’t stop Freeze and Willis from joining forces this fall.

That’s because Willis is planning on transferring to Liberty, where Freeze took over as head coach this offseason. This news was first reported by Benjamin Wolk, who formerly covered Auburn for Rivals. Wolk is also reporting that Willis will apply for a waiver in order to play immediately for Liberty this season.

Entering the offseason, the junior signal-caller had the most experience of any quarterback on Auburn’s roster but following the conclusion of spring practice, Malzahn announced either redshirt freshman Joey Gatewood or true freshman Bo Nix would start for the Tigers in the opener against Oregon. That decision led Willis to explore his options via the NCAA transfer portal.

In two seasons at Auburn, Willis passed for 69 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 309 yards and two scores. He appeared in seven games as a freshman and five as a sophomore. Willis signed with Auburn out Atlanta and was ranked as a three-star prospect in the 2017 recruiting cycle.