AMHERST — UMass Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford announced on Monday morning that Minutemen football head coach Don Brown has been released of his duties with two games remaining in his third season leading the program.

Brown finishes his second tenure as head coach with the program – his first since UMass moved up to FBS – with a 6-28 record, only two of those wins coming against FBS opponents.

Offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery will serve as the interim head coach until a permanent one is named, and according to UMass athletics, “the search for a new head coach will begin immediately.”

“I am extremely grateful to coach Brown for returning to UMass three years ago to help us build back a program he once coached to a national title game,” Bamford said in a statement. “Don should have immense pride in the outstanding contributions he has made to advance Massachusetts Football during his three stops in Amherst.”

UMass lost 35-34 in overtime to Liberty on Saturday at McGuirk Alumni Stadium after holding leads in every quarter, including overtime. A Jacob Lurie missed extra point was the difference in the extra session.

During Brown’s first head coaching tenure in Amherst, UMass posted its best five-year record in school history (43-19) and made it to the FCS National Championship after winning the Atlantic 10 conference title in 2006. In 2007, Brown again led the Minutemen to a conference crown, this time as a member of the Colonial Athletic Association.

However his second tenure was filled with miscues and missed opportunities, and one final letdown against Liberty was Bamford’s final straw.

“Upon his return in 2021, we shared a common goal to help UMass football attain conference membership, something that was realized last spring,” Bamford said. “Largely due to his renowned coaching reputation, Don legitimized our FBS program and Massachusetts football has taken positive steps forward since his return. We are structurally positioned to accomplish our competitive goals as we move into a new league and a new college athletics landscape in 2025.”