 Cline on a 1951 football card | |||||||||||||
| No. 70, 30, 33 | |||||||||||||
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| Position | Fullback | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | (1925-12-31)December 31, 1925 Mount Vernon, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died | May 12, 2001(2001-05-12) (aged 75) Springfield, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Fredericktown(Fredericktown, Ohio) | ||||||||||||
| College | Ohio St. | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1948: 14th round, 122nd overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL/AAFC statistics | |||||||||||||
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Oliver Monroe Cline (December 31, 1925 – May 12, 2001) was an American professionalfootball player who was afullback for theCleveland Browns andDetroit Lions in the 1940s and 1950s. A standout high school athlete in his hometown ofFredericktown, Ohio, Cline playedcollege football for theOhio State Buckeyes starting in 1944. He became the football team's primary fullback that year as the school went unbeaten and was ranked second in the nation in theAP Poll. The following year, Cline was named themost valuable player in theBig Ten Conference, rushing for 936 yards as Ohio State built up a 7–2 record and was ranked 12th in the AP Poll. Following a brief stint in theU.S. Army at the end ofWorld War II, Cline returned to Ohio State for a final season in 1947.
Cline began his professional career by signing with the Browns, a team in theAll-America Football Conference (AAFC) coached by former Ohio State head coachPaul Brown. Cleveland won all of its games and the AAFC championship in 1948 while Cline served as a backup to fullbackMarion Motley. Cleveland traded Cline to theBuffalo Bills, where he spent the 1949 season, and joined the Lions in 1950 when the AAFC folded. The Lions won theNFL Championship Game in 1952 and 1953, beating the Browns both times. Cline then retired from football and earned amaster's degree in education. He later worked at a variety of school systems in Ohio andArizona. Cline was inducted into theOhio State Varsity O Hall of Fame and was named to theOhio State Football All-Century Team in 2000. He died in 2001.
Cline grew up inFredericktown, Ohio and attended the localFredericktown High School, where he played on the football team as a back.[1] In a 1942 game againstMount Gilead High School, he scored seven touchdowns and kicked two extra points, scoring 44 total points in a 79–6 victory.[1]
After graduating from high school, Cline attendedOhio State University and played on the school'sfootball team starting as afreshman in 1944.[2] Although he was overshadowed by teammateLes Horvath, who won theHeisman Trophy that year, Cline was the team's startingfullback and ran for 221 yards on 65 carries, scoring 39 points.[3] The Buckeyes won theBig Ten Conference championship with an undefeated 9-0 record and were ranked second in the country in theAP Poll.[3]
The 1945 season was the most productive of Cline's college career. He led the Big Ten in rushing with 936 yards, at the time a school record, and scored nine touchdowns.[3] Cline rushed for 229 yards in a November game against theUniversity of Pittsburgh, setting an Ohio State single-game record that stood for 27 years untilArchie Griffin broke it in 1972.[4] The Buckeyes finished with a 7–2 record for third in the Big Ten and were ranked 12th in the AP Poll.[3] Cline was awarded theChicago Tribune Silver Football, given to themost valuable player in the Big Ten.[3] He was named a second-teamAll-American by theAssociated Press and a third-team All-American by theFootball Writers Association of America.[3]
Cline was accepted for military service before the 1945 season, but was not called up for duty until the following February.[5] Cline, who had been passed over by theU.S. Army twice because of a punctured ear drum, was sent toCamp Atterbury, a training base inIndiana.[6] When the war ended, Cline returned to Ohio State in 1947 and rushed for 332 yards and two touchdowns in eight games.[3] The team finished the season with a 2–6–1 record.[3]
Cline decided to begin his professional career in 1948 despite that he had a year of college eligibility remaining.[7] The move upset some Ohio State supporters worried about the team's loss of talent, but Cline said he wanted to go pro because he was getting married and needed to start making money.[7] He had been drafted by theNational Football League'sChicago Bears, but signed instead with theCleveland Browns of theAll-America Football Conference (AAFC), a team coached by former Ohio State coachPaul Brown.[7] "I plan to be married in June," Cline said at the time. "I feel I have a great opportunity with the Browns, and I've always wanted to play for Paul Brown. I feel that I have made the only logical decision."[7] Although Brown's tenure as Ohio State coach predated Cline's career there, Brown said he had followed Cline with interest. "Ollie isn't big, as pro fullbacks go, but he can run – and I like 'em when they can run," Brown said.[7]
In the Browns, Cline joined a team that had won the AAFC championships 1946 and 1947 behind an offensive attack that featuredquarterbackOtto Graham, fullbackMarion Motley andendsDante Lavelli andMac Speedie.[8] Serving as a backup to Motley, Cline ran for 129 yards in 1948, when Cleveland went undefeated and won the AAFC championship for the third time in a row.[9][10]
Despite Cline's ties to Brown and Ohio State, Cleveland traded him to theBuffalo Bills after the season.[11] He responded by turning in the best year of his professional career, running for 518 yards and three touchdowns.[10] The Bills faced the Browns three times that year, tying twice and losing once in a playoff game.[12] Buffalo finished with a 5–5–2 record and did not reach the league championship game.[12]
The AAFC folded after the 1949 season, but three teams were merged into the NFL: the Browns,Baltimore Colts andSan Francisco 49ers. With the folding of the Bills, Cline was placed in the1950 AAFC dispersal draft and taken in the second round (No. 19 overall) by theNew York Giants, but was traded by New York to theDetroit Lions for end Kelly Mote. Cline played for the Lions for four seasons.[10] Led by quarterbackBobby Layne andhalfbackDoak Walker, the Lions won the NFL championship in 1952 and 1953, beating the Browns both times.[13]
After his playing career, Cline received amaster's degree in education from Ohio'sWittenberg University in 1965.[14] His educational career took him to posts at school systems inSpringfield, Ohio,Sidney, Ohio,Mount Vernon, Ohio andPrescott, Arizona.[14] By the early 1970s, he was principal ofNorth Union High School inRichwood, Ohio.[15] He also served as the dean of men atUrbana College inUrbana, Ohio.[14] Cline was inducted into theOhio State Varsity O Hall of Fame and named to theOhio State Football All-Century Team in 2000.[14] He died in 2001.[14] His hometown of Fredericktown declared January 20, 2001 "Ollie Cline Day" in his honor.[14]