Meridian High football coach Marcus Boyles, pictured in a game against Biloxi during the 2023 season, has resigned after a year with the Wildcats to return to Petal High School.

This story was updated on Dec. 9 with comments from Marcus Boyles.

The Meridian Public School District Board of Trustees accepted the resignation of Marcus Boyles, head football coach of the Meridian High School Wildcats, during a special called meeting of the board on Friday, Dec. 8.

“The MPSD family would like to thank Coach Boyles for his commitment to the Wildcat football program over the past year. We wish Coach Boyles the best of luck in his future endeavors,” according to a prepared statement from the school district.

Boyles was in his first year at the helm of the Meridian High football team after retiring from coaching in 2020. This season, the Wildcats went 6-7 and reached the second round of the playoffs.

A Missisippi Hall of Fame coach, Boyles was approved by the Petal School District Board of Trustees on Thursday as the new football coach at Petal High School, where he coached from 2012-2020 before his retirement.

“A search for a new football coach at Meridian High will begin immediately with the hopes of having a new coach in place by the spring,” according to the MPSD statement. “The administration will move swiftly to hire the best possible candidate to lead the Wildcat football program and build on the success of the 2023 football season.”

The board voted unanimously to accept the resignation presented by Superintendent Dr. Amy Carter during the special called Zoom meeting on Friday morning.

“I know Dr. Carter and her folks are on this and I look forward to hearing from them with a recommendation real soon,” said Board President Sally Gray.

Boyles said on Friday that he really enjoyed his time at Meridian, and thought he would be at the school longer, but the decision to return to Petal allows him to put family first. He said the move will allow him to play a bigger role in the lives of his two daughters, grandson and son-in-law, and that is a huge thing for him right now.

“We got better every week,” Boyles said on how he will remember his time at Meridian. “I thought at the end of the year we were a lot better football team than we were at the beginning of the year. Our kids worked extremely hard the entire year, and I think in every game our kids never quit. They played hard for four quarters.”