It was the schools first title game appearance. His football coaching record at Oxford was 107-41-4. Burgess teams made the playoffs nine times and won four area and region titles. In 1985, Burgess became head football coach at Jacksonville State University. Bill Burgess finished his college career with a 84-49-4 and won the 1992 NCAA division II National Championship in 12 seasons as the head coach of the Gamecocks. He won four Gulf South Conference crowns, five straight invitations to the NCAA Division II playoffs and the Gamecocks advanced to the title game in three of those seasons. Burgess was named the Gulf South conference Coach of the Year three times and was also the 1992 NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year. Jacksonville State won the Gulf South Conference in 1988 with a 7-1 record. The next season they won the 1989 GSC title with a perfect 8-0 record and finished NCAA Runner-up. His team finished 6-0 in 1991 and 5-0-1 in 1992 to win back-to-back GSC titles, capped with the 1992 National Championship in JSUs final game as a Division II member. Burgess coached the Gamecocks from 1985 until 1996. He was inducted into the Jacksonville State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003. He is also a member of the Calhoun County Hall of Fame. | 
