Brett Igbinoba brings speed to Cheney gridiron

Four years ago, when Brett Igbinoba started playing football at Cheney High School, then assistant coach Jason Williams knew he could be something special someday.

“You could kind of tell he had an extra gear that we hadn’t seen before, or we had seen it and it gave us a general confidence that he was relatively fast,” Williams said. “That’s the biggest thing I saw when he first came in.”

Four years later, for Greater Spokane League opponents, maybe the only thing tougher than catching Igbinoba is pronouncing his name (it’s Ah-bean-ah-ba). The Blackhawk senior running back has been one of the top rushers in the GSL all season, averaging more than 100 yards a contest.

However, if you check the official GSL program this year, you’ll find Igbinoba listed as a defensive back, the position he played his entire career at Cheney. In fact, after seeing some action at running back his freshman season, Igbinoba was exclusively in the secondary his sophomore and junior years.

When Williams took over the Blackhawk program last season, he kept Igbinoba at safety but made the decision to move him to the backfield before this year.

“You need to get the best player on the team the ball in his hands as much as possible,” said Williams. “That’s where we felt we could get him the ball the most.

“He helps us out on defense, but I think he does more damage for us as a tailback. We’re getting the ball in his hands 80 percent of the time.”

Igbinoba had been returning kicks for the Blackhawks, but moving back to the offensive side of the ball full time was an adjustment. As for how much, it depends on whom you ask.

“You could tell early in camp that he was not quite sure where the holes were, or where the seams might be,” said Williams. “When you run in the ‘I’ formation, you’re back there seven yards, and you have to feel a little bit more as compared to a wing-T offense.

“Throughout time, he’s been able to really kind of feel the seams, and he’s kind of getting comfortable running in there. It’s amazing to me to watch him progress over each game.

“There are things he does, I just go, ‘Wow, OK, he’s starting to really feel it.’ “

“It wasn’t really hard,” said Igbinoba. “I kind of naturally knew.

“I had good coaching. We’d work on my cutbacks. I go with the offensive line to watch films, and I just know what they are going to run.

“I know where each guy is going to block and how the fullback is going to go, so they make it pretty easy for me.”

Igbinoba, who also runs the sprint events for the Blackhawk track team, has also transformed himself, using weightlifting to put on 20 pounds since his freshman year while keeping his sprinter speed.

“When I get hit, it doesn’t hurt as much,” Igbinoba said. “Right now I’m not even sore after games.”

“When he first came in, he always had a lot of natural speed,” said Williams. “From his freshman to his senior year, it’s not so much that he wasn’t tough before, but his maturity and strength – he’s gotten a lot more physical.

“He’s really matured and gotten a lot stronger.”

Igbinoba’s running style may be traced to another running back who used to run over Woodward Field, former Eastern Washington University and current San Diego Charger running back Jesse Chatman.

“It’s cool to see someone from around here go down and play pro,” said Igbinoba. “He was really fast and quick, but he would just run over people.

“That’s what I’ve tried to do more of this year. In ninth grade I always tried to run around people and try to miss the hits, but this year I just bring ‘em on.”

Igbinoba, who’s undecided on whether he’ll continue to play football in college, hopes to power the Blackhawks into the 3A playoffs with a win at Clarkston. Whether Cheney wins or loses, his development at running back has helped put his team in position to move on to the postseason.

“It’s interesting to watch his progression,” Williams said. “Coming from his freshman year and imagining the possibilities, and as a senior coming through – to see that progression further itself and develop like you’d hope it would, as a coach, it’s pretty rewarding.

“His maturity level – he’s a great student – and just seeing him grow on and off the field, as a coach that’s nice to see.”