by RODERICK MULLINS
ABINGDON, Va. — Former Dickenson County Public Schools teacher and Ervinton High School head football coach Curt Newsome has died at the age of 67.
A graduate of Phoebus High School, Va., Newsome went on to play collegiately at Emory and Henry College. Upon graduation, his first coaching job would take him to Dickenson County to head up a struggling Ervinton Rebels football program.
The Rebel players bought into his coaching plan and went 7-3 in his first season as the skipper of Rebels. He would later be named Lonesome Pine District Coach of the Year for his efforts.
Newsome later left Ervinton and coached at stops at Kecoughtan High School and other state schools, amassing a 105-45 record in 16 seasons as a high school head coach in Virginia. Newsome earned five district coach of the year honors including one with the Lonesome Pine District and one with the Peninsula District in the Virginia High School League, three regional coach of the year awards and received Virginia State Coach of the Year recognition in 1998.
Newsome made the jump the next year to collegiate football in 1999 at James Madison University, where he helped the Dukes win the 2004 NCAA Division I FCS national championship. From there, he spent seven seasons as offensive line coach at Virginia Tech from 2006-12. During his tenure, the Hokies won three Atlantic Coast Conference championships and appeared in a bowl game each season.
He would later leave Virginia Tech and eventually take over the head football coaching position at his alma mater, Emory and Henry University in 2014.
While as the head football coach of the Wasps from 2014-23, he would compile a 53-42 record with six winning seasons. He was named Old Dominion Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2014 after leading the Wasps to an 8-2 record, guide the program to the ODAC championship game during the spring 2021 season and the university’s entrance into the NCAA Division II ranks and the South Atlantic Conference.
Newsome would step down from the head football coaching job in 2024 citing health reasons. He would be inducted into the Emory and Henry Sports Hall of Fame.
His coaching career spanned 42 years at both the high school and collegiate levels. In a statement, Virginia Tech remembered him as a respected leader and mentor whose impact on student-athletes will be felt for generations.
James Madison University later released a statement saying that the university was “saddened to learn of the passing of Coach Curt Newsome, who devoted his life to the game of football while helping lead us to our first national championship.”
The JMU release added that Newsome “was one of the most respected coaches in our state between his time at JMU, Virginia Tech and Emory & Henry. Our thoughts are with Coach Newsome’s family during this difficult time.”
The funeral service for Coach Curt Newsome will be at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, 2026 at Highlands Fellowship Church in Abingdon. Visitation will follow the service. He will be interred in Hampton, Virginia. A celebration of life will be held in Hampton at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Kirk Nairn Memorial Scholarship at P.O. Box 1242, Abingdon, VA 24211, or online at 4knscholarship.com, or to Highlands Fellowship Food Pantry, 22417 Watauga Rd., Abingdon, VA 24211.
The family of Curt Newsome is being cared for by Farris Funeral Service & Crematory, 427 E. Main Street, Abingdon, VA 24210; 276-623-2700.
