Williamsburg, KY – Patriots Athletic Director Chris Kraftick has announced that Jacob Ball has been named the Head Esports Coach on Tuesday.  Ball replaces Jeremiah Brown, who stepped down last month, making Ball just the second Head Coach in program history.

"We welcome Jacob Ball as our new Esports Head Coach," said Kraftick. "Jacob served as our GA this past season and has been busy recruiting and working to build Esports to the level where we expect all our athletic teams to compete. We look forward to working with Jacob for years to come."

Ball was elevated to take the reigns after serving as a Graduate Assistant for the past season at UC.  In his first year at UC, Ball helped guide the Patriots to strong finishes in four different games, including a runner-up finish the MSC Rocket League Championships.  Cumberlands also competed in League of Legends, Rainbow 6, and Super Smash Bros.  In addition, Ball helped coach UC's first MSC All-Conference player, Courtland Ellis, and had a pair of MSC Academic All-Conference selections.

"I'm looking forward to becoming a leader that can have a positive impact on our students lives while giving them an outlet to best represent UC," said Ball.  "My goals are to represent UC at a national level and help build a solid foundation of Esports throughout our region and show people Esports is a sport for everyone."

Prior to Cumberlands, Ball was a student-athlete at the University of Pikeville where he was a member of the Esports program.  He was a team captain and shot caller during his two years with the Bears.  Ball graduated from Pikeville with a Bachelors of Biology.

The Patriots Esports season is set to begin in September with the conference slated scheduled to extend into the spring semester.

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