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WRESTLING: Doug Rine resigns as Chambersburg's head coach after 20 years


It was not a decision taken lightly or done as a spur of the moment thing.

Doug Rine looked at the decision from all sides and took his time. But when he handed in his resignation as the head coach of the Chambersburg wrestling program Friday, he knew he had made the right decision at the right time.

Rine had led the Trojan program for the last 20 years and the last five years have been the best in program history.

"I refuse to be that guy that people are going to say about him, 'Why is he still there?'" Rine said. "I've always told my wife that I'll know when it's time. I knew if I ever felt that I didn't have that same fire in my belly as I've always had, then it'd be time. And I don't think I do anymore.

"It's been a great run, and I don't know if there is anywhere I could have been treated any better than Chambersburg – from the administration to the fans to the parents to the kids."

In his 20 years, the Trojans had a dual meet record of 185-180. The team has done pretty well recently, too, qualifying for its first two District 3 Team Championships in the past three years, including a runner-up finish in 2013, the same year Chambersburg made its only PIAA Team Championships appearance.

But what has really been impressive in the past few years is the individual success of quite a few Trojan wrestlers, especially at that state tournament. Garett Hammond won a pair of PIAA titles and three other Trojans have combined for nine places since 2011. Chambersburg finished sixth as a team at states in 2011 and third in 2012.

That can be attributed to many things, but Rine should get a lot of the credit for helping to develop the youth program and the Lincoln Highway Club program and helping to make the booster club strong.

Hammond said, "Coach Rine built it from top to bottom. He was always so invested in wrestling."

Rine got started in wrestling in high school at Shippensburg and obviously has a great love of the sport.

"What I said at our banquet on Thursday was this: Wrestling is a struggle," Rine said. "Making weight is a struggle, practice is a struggle, going from match to match and tournament to tournament is a struggle. Wrestling forces you to struggle. But when you respond positively to that struggle, in time you become a better person.

"I've been involved in wrestling for 33 years and the people who do this have such strength. Not necessarily at the beginning, but for those who persevere, they will be people of character, and those are the kind of people I like to surround myself with – like the booster club now."

Rine said he had started thinking about the possibility of resigning as far back as last summer.

CASHS athletic director Jeremy Flores said, "I know Doug had been thinking about this for a while. I told him I wasn't going to make the decision easy for him because I wanted to keep him around. I only had one season with Doug, but I'm glad I at least had the opportunity for that one season.

"He's leaving the program in a really good place – we had eight district qualifiers last year (and three finalists), which is the most ever. And Doug said he won't be completely absent from the program."

Rine agreed with that.

"I don't plan to disappear, but it's time to step back," Rine said.

Rine will leave behind a lasting legacy and plenty of memories.

Hammond said, "The best thing was how much he really cares about the kids. He's passionate about the sport and the program, but he was almost like a second dad to the wrestlers. He could help you with the problems in your life and you could trust him."

"This was one of the five toughest things I've ever had to do," Rine said. "For a while, I won't know who I am – my name has always been just Coach."

No need to worry.

"He was a huge part of my life," Hammond said, "and I'll always call him Coach."