Turner Gill retiring after coaching Liberty for 7 seasons
![Turner Gill retired as head coach of the Liberty Flames in order to devote more time to his ailing wife. (Vasha Hunt / AP)](https://thumb.spokesman.com/uO6q6eDqVn9RLDznlEJuDvMVKgE=/600x0/media.spokesman.com/graphics/2018/07/sr-loader.png)
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty coach Turner Gill is retiring.
Gill and the school made the announcement Monday. Liberty finished 6-6 this season.
The 56-year-old Gill just completed his seventh season at Liberty. His teams went 47-35 during his tenure and made the transition from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Football Bowl Subdivision. Before the transition, he guided the Flames to four Big South championships and their first FCS playoff appearance in 2014.
In a statement, Gill says his wife was diagnosed with a heart condition in 2016 and they decided he should stay to lead the transition, but “it is now time for me to step away.”
Last season, the Flames made program history by opening the season with a 48-45 victory at Baylor, their first win against a Power Five program.
Gill, a former Nebraska quarterback, also has been the head coach at Buffalo and Kansas in his career and has a 72-84 overall record.