Syracuse will play a three-game series with Liberty University starting in 2019, SU athletics announced on Friday in a press release.

“We are pleased to add Liberty as an opponent,” Syracuse Director of Athletics John Wildhack said in the release. “This series makes sense for many reasons. It’s an opportunity to play in an area that’s important to our recruiting and it’s within driving distance of one of our largest alumni centers (Washington, D.C.).”

The series starts with SU opening its 2019 campaign on the road against the Flames in Lynchburg, Virginia on Aug. 31, 2019. It will be the two school’s first-ever matchup.

SU will host Liberty the next two seasons, 2020 and 2021. The 2021 matchup is set for Sept. 25 while no date has been set for the 2020 game.

In November, Liberty hired Ian McCaw, Baylor’s athletic director during Dino Babers’ tenure in Waco, Texas, to hold the same position for the Flames.

The 2019 Liberty game displaces Syracuse’s previously scheduled game with Holy Cross, which will be moved to a later date.

Liberty is currently in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), but will have transitioned to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) by 2019 when SU travels to Lynchburg.