**Editor’s Note: Story updated on Wednesday, April 17 at 2:30 p.m.

UNA head women’s basketball coach Terry Fowler will leave UNA because he has accepted the vacant head coaching position at the University of South Alabama April 17, officials said. 

The signing was made official as of Wednesday at a press conference, officials said.

Fowler said he was in Mobile on the morning of April 15 to sign as the new head basketball coach at the University of South Alabama.

USA announced the firing of their head coach Rick Pietri on Friday April 12. Fowler said he interviewed for the job the same day.

“This is a great opportunity for me and my family,” Fowler said.

Fowler said he told his UNA players and their reactions were as expected.

“(Their reaction was) not good, they are very emotional right now,” he said. “It is very emotional for me, too.”

Fowler spent three years as an assistant coach at USA from 2000 to 2002.

He also spent five years as an assistant coach and two years as head coach at Spring Hill College in Mobile. His familiarity with the Mobile area had little to do with the decision, he said.

“Of course it helped in the decision, but it did not have that big of an affect on the decision,” Fowler said.

USA is a part of the Sun Belt Conference, which is a NCAA Division I conference. This had a big part in the decision to leave, he said.

“As a coach, you always want to see if your system will work somewhere else,” Fowler said.

Fowler was 115-86 in his seven years at UNA.

“The fans are the best, the fans in Flowers are the best, the Flowers fanatics are the best,” he said. “I want to thank them for their support. We had a good record in Flowers and the fans were a big part of that.”

Fowler said he was also thankful for the community support.

“I want to thank the entire UNA community for their support of me and my family the past seven years,” he said.

Fowler said he was not going to be in Florence until Thursday, April 18.

Stay with www.florala.net for the latest information as it becomes available.