CHARLOTTE, NC- One player that not only Greenbrier East football fans know well, but also fans around the state, is Spartan running back Ian Cline.
However, when school and the new 2023 season opens in August, Cline will have the title of ‘former GE running back’ as he is now a member of the Providence Day Chargers in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Cline holds multiple rushing records at East, some that may not be broken for a long time. Last season, he ran for 1,255 yards and 17 touchdowns, and as a sophomore in 2021, he exceeded the 1,600-yard mark and scored 18 TD’s on the ground.
Losing that type of production will be hard for the Spartans to overcome this season, but it was exactly that production that allowed Cline to be able to make this transfer to the Carolinas.
Providence Day is coached by Chad Grier, a proven winner and father of former WVU and current Dallas Cowboys quarterback, Will Grier. Chad Grier knows football about as well as anyone and has put together a coaching staff of former players that will help along the way, and Cline is excited about that.
“Coach Grier and his staff are incredible. They have all played collegiate or professional football and bring a ton of knowledge and tools to the game. It is honestly similar to a college level program. It is very intense and amazing development wise,” Cline said.
However, none of that made the decision for Cline to leave any easier, and he admits it is tough, but after going back-and-forth with his family, he feels the decision to go was best for him.
“Honestly, it’s hard to leave,” Cline said.
“I’m leaving behind my childhood friends and teammates. But at end of the day, my goal is to play division-1 level and unfortunately, exposure here is limited and colleges don’t really respect West Virginia (high school) football when it comes to recruitment. So, even doing things at the highest level here doesn’t translate to many division-1 colleges. This opportunity came about and we kind of explored it and my mom and I prayed about things and all the doors opened up, and it was just the right decision for my long-term goals,” he explained.
However, it was not just a decision for Cline to live with. He also had to tell Spartan coach Ray Lee that he was transferring to another school, and while Lee hated to see his star offensive player go, he understood.
“Coach Lee is a class act, and he means a lot to me. He and Coach (Aaron) Baker were both sad to see me go, but they also were very supportive and understood the opportunity and happy for me to go do my thing down there,” Cline stated.
This coming season would have been Cline’s last as a Spartan. But, at Providence Day, he will repeat his junior year again and have two years remaining. While to some, that may squash the whole plan, for Cline, it was one of the main reasons he pursued the opportunity.
“Reclassification was a big factor in why we explored this to begin with,” Cline said.
“That will give me more time to develop as an athlete and be ready to go year one in college. It’s a very complicated system and Coach Grier thought it would be a good idea to have two full years to master the system and playbook, and really develop me for where I want to go,” he added.
The talent that Cline will be surrounded by at his new school will be unlike anything he has experienced before. There will be multiple high-quality division-1 athletes at multiple positions. Still, Cline wants to prove he belongs on the field with them and hopes to make an impact with all the new people that will now watch him every Friday night.
“I hope they will be saying “where did this kid come from,” Cline joked.
“In all seriousness, I hope to be able to open eyes to my ability to play football at a high level against four- and five-star athletes and fit right in skill wise. I have several four- and five-star teammates that I will suit up with that are going to make me a better athlete. It’s a different world down there,” Cline said.
A good baseball player for East as well, Cline is hoping to play on the diamond in Charlotte this spring too.
“Yes, I’m planning on it,” he concluded.
