Scott Newman has resigned as Shaw football coach, and assistant Jamie Fox has replaced him.

Newman will remain as athletic director and a physical education teacher, he confirmed Wednesday.The voluntary resignation came after Shaw opened the season 0-6 and after several conversations between the coach and Shaw principal Jim Arnold, Newman said.

“The program wasn’t going in the direction we wanted it to go, and we had some kids not doing the right things,” Newman said. “We talked and decided it was time for a change.”

Newman began coaching at Shaw in 1998 under Charles Flowers. He took over the head coaching reigns for the 2007 season after Craig Fitts resigned. Newman’s record was 15-15.

Arnold confirmed he and Newman discussed the need for a change in leadership but said the outcome reflected more on the team’s current situation than on Newman’s abilities as a coach.

“It wasn’t all about wins or losses,” Arnold said. “Coach Newman came in here in 1998, and that directly corresponded with when we started winning. But, sometimes, for whatever reason, you get someone in that position who was doing well but then it stops working out. Maybe if it had been two years later or five miles down the road, things would have been different.”

Fox was Shaw’s offensive coordinator the previous three seasons but did not initially return to the team this season, instead choosing to go back to college. He returned to Shaw as an assistant several weeks ago and was given the head coaching position after Newman’s resignation.

Fox, who is in his ninth season in some capacity as a Shaw coach, said taking over midseason is not an enviable task, but he hopes keeping a positive outlook will make the transition — and the Raiders’ remaining four games — go smoothly.

“It’s hard because I’m friends with Scott Newman and I coached with him for a long time, but we just have to move forward with things,” Fox said. “The biggest thing is just making sure we think about what’s best for the kids, and hopefully we’ll see some improvement.”