MARS HILL, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Mars Hill University football coach Tim Clifton will retire at the end of the 2025 season, closing a 32-year tenure that made him the winningest coach in school history and one of the most successful in South Atlantic Conference history.

Clifton, 69, has led the Lions since 1993, compiling the second-most overall and conference wins in league history. His career spans 49 years of coaching, from high school sidelines to Division II football, and includes two recent Mountain Division titles and a 28-12 record over the past four seasons.

“I have decided to retire after our 32 years here at Mars Hill and 49 years in coaching to spend more time with my family, especially our four grandchildren,” Clifton said in a statement Monday. “Mars Hill University is a very special place and has become home to our family.”

During his tenure, Clifton coached more than 20 All-Americans and over 100 All-Conference players. Six of his former players went on to the NFL, and in 2011, running back Jonas Randolph became the only South Atlantic Conference player to win the Harlon Hill Trophy, Division II’s equivalent of the Heisman.

Athletic director Rick Baker, who has worked with Clifton for 31 years, praised his impact beyond the field. “I saw a man who loved to win but more than that loved to develop young men into good fathers and good citizens,” Baker said.

Before Mars Hill, Clifton coached at Evans Junior High School, Clarke Central High School — where he helped win a national title in 1979 — the University of South Carolina, Virginia Military Institute, Fayetteville State University and Ferrum College. A native of Macon, Georgia, he played at Mercer University, where he met his wife, Joy.

Mars Hill will announce a new head coach in the coming days. The Lions open the 2025 season Sept. 6 at home against Winston-Salem State University.