Bill Burgess, former Auburn player and legendary Jacksonville State head coach, dies

Former Auburn football player and Jacksonville State head football coach Bill Burgess died this week. He was 82.

Burgess was a fullback for the Tigers for two seasons, 1961 and 1962. His acclaim in football came as head coach of Jacksonville State, then a Division II program. For his coaching efforts, Burgess is enshrined in the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

During a five year run in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Burgess led Jacksonville State to a 56-8-1 record and capped it with a Division II national championship in 1992.

“On behalf of the entire JSU Family, we extend our deepest sympathies to the entire Burgess Family,” Jax State president Dr. Don Killingsworth said in a release. “Coach Burgess launched JSU to national recognition in football and was one of the best at building young men into the great husbands, fathers and community members that they are today. He will surely be missed, and all of the Burgess family and Gamecock Football family are in our prayers.”

For leading the program to some of its highest highs ever, the field at the Gamecocks’ stadium bears his name: Burgress-Snow Field. That change was made in 2010.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of Coach Burgess,” Jax State athletic director Greg Seitz said in a release. “He was one of the best coaches to ever stand on a sideline and had as much of an impact on his players as any coach I’ve ever met. He had a tremendous career, but he was an even better man that left a lasting impression on anyone who had the honor of knowing him. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Geynell, his children, family, players and staff members family during this difficult time.”

A Birmingham, Alabama, native, Burgess also coached high school football in the state prior to taking over the Gamecocks.

“He began his coaching career as a football assistant at Banks High School before accepting the head coach position at Woodlawn High School in 1966. Following his time at Woodlawn he coached the Oxford Yellow Jackets to nine playoff appearances, four area titles, and four regional titles,” The Alabama Sports Hall of Fame notes. He was inducted there in 2019.

He was also inducted into the NCAA Division II Football Hall of Fame in 2011, one of the many honors bestowed on Burgess after his illustrious playing and coaching career.