Nate Schneider
Sports Scene
Cameron Amine is carrying on the proud tradition of his family’s namesake in the sport of wrestling in impressive fashion at Detroit Catholic Central.
The rich history of the Amine family in the sport of wrestling goes back generations to when Cameron’s grandfather, Nazem Amine, was a two-time Olympian wrestler for Lebanon and won a bronze medal in the 1960 Olympics
Nazem died last summer at the age of 90, but not before passing on the torch to two of his nine children, Mike and Sam, who became all-time great wrestlers at the University of Michigan.
Sam, Cameron’s father, was a successful head coach at several different high schools and won a state title at Warren Lincoln back in 1994.
The wrestling gene was passed on to a third generation as Cameron’s older brother Jordan was a standout at Brighton High School and is now a redshirt senior at Michigan. Additionally, two cousins in Malik and Myles starred at Detroit Catholic Central before continuing their careers currently at Michigan.
“I think Cameron’s wrestling IQ definitely comes from his dad,” Shamrocks head coach Mitch Hancock said. “And then he certainly looked up to and watched his older brother and cousins wrestle successfully for so many years and it motivated him to get after it that much more.”
Now it is Cameron’s turn to shine on the prep mats.
After winning back-to-back individual state championships at 125 pounds as a freshman and 145 as a sophomore last year, he is turning his attention to a bigger division this season as he has fluctuated between 152 and 160 pounds.
Amine has only lost twice this season, once in a close decision against the top-ranked 152-pound wrestler in the country in Brayton Lee of Brownsburg (Ind.). The other came against Connor Brady of St. Paris Graham High School (Ohio), who is also one of the top-ranked wrestlers in the country.
Hancock sees a wrestler in Cameron, despite being a junior, who is not afraid to be vocal and give direction to teammates where he sees fit. In fact, he has even earned the moniker of “Coach Amine” for his attributes as an extra teacher in the room.
“First and foremost when I think of Cam, what comes to mind are his leadership abilities,” Shamrocks head coach Mitch Hancock said. “He’s a workaholic and takes it to a level I’ve seen very few times before. Our guys in the room knows he’s our engine and they follow his lead in the practice room. His desire to win and compete is really, really strong and higher than most wrestlers at any level. But his leadership is incredible. He’s a great influence for our younger wrestlers, but also for our upperclassmen.”
Detroit Catholic Central recently moved up to ninth in the national rankings and will go after its sixth Division 1 state championship since 2010 later this month.
While the Shamrocks are stacked with talent from top to bottom in the 14 weight classes, Amine will undoubtedly be one of those at the forefront as DCC completes its postseason push.
“Wrestling is a part of who the Amine’s are,” Hancock stated. “It’s not who they are, but it plays a big part in their family. The character it develops and the work ethic and so on, that is what you see in Cameron.”
Hancock is a firsthand recipient as Sam Amine was an assistant coach at Detroit Catholic Central under Mike Rodriguez in the late 1990s when the current Shamrocks head coach was coming through the ranks.
“Sam had a huge impact on my life,” Hancock added. “I knew Cameron when he was a little guy. When I was at Central Michigan, I used to come back and run camps at Brighton for Sam. At that point, Cam was only six or seven or younger. I remember staying at the house when I was doing the camps and I was always messing around wrestling him. So it’s really special to me right now have the opportunity to coach him in high school. So I’m grateful for Sam and Tonya for allowing Cam to attend Catholic Central.”