Jacksonville State football will be making the move from FCS to FBS, effective 2023 as the university becomes an all-sport member of Conference USA.

It will do so without John Grass. The Gamecocks’ head coach since 2014, and a longtime high school coach in Alabama before then, announced his resignation from the program on Saturday. Grass was 72-26 with 6 playoff appearances, including a FCS Championship game appearance and No. 2 finish in 2015.

In 2021, the Gamecocks were 4-5, with a win over Florida State. They beat Abilene Christian 40-25 in their final home game of the season on Saturday. However, the program is on probation for a year and was fined $5,000 after it was found to have committed several recruiting violations.

“This will always be my home,” Grass said, according to AL.com. “My wife and I are alumni and I’ve raised my kids for nine years here. This place has done so much for me that I can’t ever repay it. I’ve always put this university first and how I represent it and I think my family has done a great job in being ambassadors for this university.”