Kennesaw State football is in its tenth year of existence, and its second year at the FBS level. In their second season in Conference USA, Kennesaw State won the conference title. As other teams looked into the possibility of hiring the Kennesaw head coach, Jerry Mack, has signed a new contract with the university.
According to Matt Zenitz of CBSSports, Mack is signing a six-year deal after being a candidate for both the Tulane and Memphis jobs. Mack is in his first year with the Owls.
Kennesaw State began its football program in 2015 as part of the Big South Conference at the FCS level. They named Brian Bohannon, the quarterback coach at Georgia Tech, the new head coach to lead the birth of the program. Bohannon has worked under Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson at Georgia Southern, Navy, and with the Yellow Jackets prior to accepting the job at Kennesaw.
The program saw immediate success, going 6-5 in the first season in 2015. The team continued to improve, winning the Big South in 2017, 2018, and 2021. Further, they made it to the FCS playoffs in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2021, with two second-round eliminations and two quarterfinal eliminations. In 2022, the team would go 5-6 in the ASUN, and then 3-6 as an independent as they prepared to move to FBS. The team was just 2-10 in 2024, their first year in CUSA, leading to Bohananon being fired after nine games and the team being just 1-8.
Jerry Mack was named the head coach for Kennesaw State in 2025. Mack started his coaching career in 2004 with Delta State as a GA. He spent time with Jackson State, Central Arkansas, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and South Alabama before his first head coaching job at North Carolina Central. The former Arkansas State wide receiver went 31-15 at NC Central, including losing the 2016 Celebration Bowl.
He then spent time at Rice and Tennessee before spending a year in the NFL ranks with the Jacksonville Jaguars as the running back coach in 2024. Mack was the MEAC coach of the year in 2016 and was named the CUSA coach of the year this season. He is now under a six-year contract with Kennesaw, hoping to build on the success of this season.
