Williams named assistant head coach, director of personnel at Southern Miss
Adam Gore/LetsGoICC.com

FULTON, MS – Itawamba Community College head football coach Jon Williams stepped down on Monday to accept a position as the new assistant head coach and director of player personnel with the University of Southern Mississippi.

"The opportunity to work at the FBS level and a program with such a rich tradition was too good to pass up," said Williams. "I am excited to be a small part of assisting the current staff at USM. I believe in Coach [Todd] Monken and his vision for where the program needs to be and his plan to follow in order to get there."

Williams spent seven seasons at ICC and served as the head coach for the past four seasons. He had a career record of 21-16 with three runner-up finishes in the MACJC North Division and one playoff appearance.

"ICC has been good to my family and I," said Williams. "We thoroughly enjoyed our time here. The campus and facilities are first class, but the heart of the institution is the faculty, staff, Board of Trustee's along with the administration."

Last season, Williams led the Indians to their first 5-0 start in school history and the program's highest ranking ever at No. 4 in the NJCAA poll.  

"Four years ago I stood at the podium at a press conference introducing me as the new head coach and I said that my goal was to leave the program in better shape than when I inherited it. The program is in excellent shape and we made a great program even better. The graduation rate of our players has shown remarkable improvement, our staff helped many young men find four-year college homes and we were able to have some success on the field, too."

"Coach Carrie Ball-Williamson has provided great leadership for many years to ICC Athletics. It was a pleasure to work under her direction. I learned a great deal from her and I will always be appreciative of her support and leadership," said Williams.

Williams was named the 10th head football coach at ICC in 2009 after spending three seasons as the Indians' offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator.

The Panama City, FL native served as an assistant coach at Mississippi College, Wingate University in North Carolina, East Central Community College, Wayne County High School, Simpson Academy and was head coach at Locust Fork High School in Alabama before arriving at ICC.

Williams replaces Steve Buckley, who stepped down after two seasons to pursue a private business venture.

ICC will be seeking a replacement immediately.