Hall of Fame JuCo coach announces retirement

One of the most accomplished coaches at the junior college level is retiring.

Georgia Military College head coach and AD Bert Williams announced Wednesday he has coached his final game, ending a 23-year run at the Milledgeville, Ga., based school, to focus on spending time with his family amid an ongoing battle with cancer.

Williams arrived at GMC as offensive coordinator and assistant head coach, then was promoted to head coach and AD in 2000. He led the Bulldogs to a 156-58 record, 10 bowl games, three national title game appearances and a 2001 national championship. Williams won four coach of the year awards and in 2010 became the first active coach inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame.

“Coach Williams’ retirement is the end of an era at Georgia Military College,” said GMC president Lieutenant General (Ret.) William B. Caldwell, IV. “For more than 20 years Bert has served this institution and grown our Athletics Department exponentially. He’s achieved so much success during his time here and we are so thankful for all he’s done for Georgia Military College, and especially for our student athletes. We will miss him greatly but we know he’s looking forward to spending more time with his beloved wife Cathy, and his two boys Parker and Zach.”

Williams did not kick his feet up in his AD role, either. He expanded GMC's athletics offerings from one sport to nine, paved the way for six Olympic sports national championships, spearheaded the building or construction of four athletics facilities and raised over $2.5 million for scholarship endowments.

A 4-year letterman at Davidson, Williams began coaching at Georgia, then moved to the divisional level, spending three years as the offensive coordinator at Union College in Kentucky before arriving at GMC.

Williams' career will be celebrated at a retirement ceremony on Monday, and his final day will be Tuesday.

“This is a very difficult decision for me but it is the right one for me and my family,” Williams said. “The next step in my fight against cancer will be a long and onerous one and will simply not allow me to lead our athletic department or our football program. I am so thankful for the opportunity to have been the athletic director and head football coach at Georgia Military College for so many years and proud of the many accomplishments our players and coaches have achieved. One of the main reasons my family and I decided to make Milledgeville and GMC our home was the opportunity to do work that mattered, to help young men and women build a foundation based on character, and to help make a difference in their lives. I believe this has been accomplished, and I am sure it will continue to be accomplished as others will now build on a tremendous foundation and tradition of success.”

The college is accepting donations to the Bert and Cathy Williams Endowed Scholarship Fund here.

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