Kennesaw State coach Bohannon resigns after 10 seasons amid 1st year in FBS

KENNESAW, Ga. (AP) — Brian Bohannon resigned Sunday as Kennesaw State football coach amid reports he was being fired with the Owls mired at 1-8 in their first season as an FBS program.

Bohannon guided the program at the university in the Atlanta suburbs since it was launched in 2015. He posted a record of 72-38 that included three Big South Conference championships and four FCS playoff appearances.

But the Owls have struggled since beginning the move to college football’s top division. They went 3-6 a year ago in their transition season and lost their first six games of 2024 before a 27-24 upset of Liberty, snapping the Flames' 17-game winning streak in the regular season.

Two more losses, including a 43-35 setback against UTEP in double overtime this past Saturday, finished off Bohannon's tenure.

Co-offensive coordinator Chandler Burks will take over as interim head coach for the final three games of the season while Kennesaw State searches for a new coach.

“Coach Brian Bohannon informed me this morning that he has decided to step down as our head football coach,” athletic director Milton Overton said in a statement. “Coach Bohannon led Kennesaw State into the football era, poured his heart and soul into this program, and represented our university with the highest standards of professionalism and character.”

Bohannon quickly transformed Kennesaw State into one of the nation's top FCS programs, twice leading the Owls to the national quarterfinals and two others times reaching the second round of the playoffs.

Kennesaw State had seven straight winning seasons and a record of 63-18 as a member of the Big South Conference.

But the Owls slipped to 5-6 after moving to the ASUN Conference in 2022 and struggled even more in one season as an independent before joining Conference USA this season.

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