Jamaal Artis has been hired as the new head coach of the Cumberland County High School varsity football team, according to a recent press release from Cumberland County Public Schools (CUCPS).

The position became open when Edgar Knapp resigned Nov. 6.

Artis, 40, brings five years of experience as the head coach of a varsity high school football team and has familiarity already with the Dukes after joining the program as an assistant coach and the school as a teacher last fall.

“I think it’s a program on the rise,” Artis said. “Coach Knapp did a really good job of setting things in place. Although we only had about 20 on varsity, about 20 on (junior varsity), the middle school program had roughly about 35 kids, so that’s a positive. I think he improved things leaps and bounds from when he first got here. I’m just grateful to take over a program headed in the right direction.”

Though wins were scarce during Knapp’s three-year tenure, he helped lead several positive developments, including the revival of the junior varsity (JV) program. Artis had responsibilities relevant to both the JV and the varsity teams last year.

According to the CUCPS release, from 2004-06, Artis served as head coach and offensive coordinator at Tidewater Academy in Wakefield. In 2006-09, he held the same roles at King and Queen Central High School in King and Queen Court House.

The release also noted he was assistant varsity coach, running backs coach and special teams coordinator from 2010-13 at Lee-Davis High School in Mechanicsville and held the same roles in 2014 at Armstrong High School in Richmond. At Prince George High School in 2015, he served as assistant varsity coach, defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator, and in 2016, he was assistant varsity coach, quarterbacks and defensive backs coach and offensive coordinator at Surry County High School.

Artis played in high school at Sussex Central High School under Virginia High School League Hall of Fame Coach Dwight Regan, the release cited. Artis earned the all-district honor at defensive end and played on four straight regional championship teams, one state championship squad and one team that finished as state runner-up.

“After high school, Artis played in (NCAA) Division III competition at Chowan College, where he lettered twice, playing linebacker and defensive end,” CUCPS officials said in the release. “After college, Artis played six years of semi-professional football with the Virginia Ravens, a team based out of Richmond.”

Cumberland looks to improve on an 0-11 season in 2017.

Starting in his new coaching role with the Dukes in January, Artis said offseason workouts have begun.

With his experience coaching all three phases of the game — offense, defense and special teams — he expects to bring some different elements to the Dukes’ game plan.

“I think we’re going to improve in special teams,” he said. “Defensively, we’re going to change some things up, and then offensively, although a lot of stuff is going to be the same, we’re going to add a new wrinkle or two here and there.”