Ian Cameron, who spent seven years in the South Georgia Tormenta organization, including nearly five years as Manager of the USL League One team, resigned on Friday.

“After seven unforgettable seasons linked to this club, I’ll be stepping down as Head Coach of Tormenta FC,” Cameron said in a statement released by the team on Friday. “This has been far more than a professional role; it’s been a life chapter shared with remarkable people who have shaped me as a leader, teammate, and person.” 

Cameron compiled a 58-73-33 record in Statesboro, including leading South Georgia to the 2022 USL League One championship.

“Together, we built something meaningful. We lifted a championship trophy, we took bold steps in player development, and we created a pathway that launched careers,” he said. “My family and I will forever carry the pride of being part of a club that believed in building through purpose, perseverance, and people.”

In an interview Saturday morning, Cameron said he was ready for a new chapter in his life and professional career.

“I’ve been here a long time,” he said. “During that duration I’ve seen my eldest child born right before we arrived and now she’s going into first grade.”

He added “In sports, that’s a long tenure. So I’ll be looking for a new organization that may offer different experiences, different ideas so that I can grow and become the best coach I can be.” 

Cameron said he doesn’t have another job lined up but hopes to find a club at some point soon to continue his coaching career.

“I’m going to take a moment to reflect and recharge. I’m really passionate about coaching and soccer. I want to stay close to it and I’m open to new challenges and we’ll see where that leads.”

Cameron credited the organization with his development not only as a coach, but as a husband, father, leader and coworker during his time with South Georgia.

“Bittersweet is a word you hear growing up,” he said. “Sometimes you reach a juncture in your life where you really feel what bittersweet means. That’s the feeling I have in departing Tormenta,” he said.

Cameron said that while teams are currently still competing and fighting for a playoff spot in 2025, this is also the time teams start looking to next season and being determining which players to recruit. He said by stepping down now it will allow Tormenta time to find someone and have them in place to begin preparations for next season.

Tormenta Co-Owner and President Darin Van Tassell said it was Cameron’s decision to leave.

“While Ian’s decision to step down was not a direction the club was seeking, we remain steadfast in our support of all things Ian Cameron and his wife, Kelsey, and their two amazing daughters,” he said in a statement.

In a later interview, Van Tassell said things happened quickly as he was informed of Cameron’s decision on Wednesday. The coaching staff learned of the news on Thursday and the players were informed on Friday. The players gave Cameron a standing ovation following his announcement.

“Ian asked for a break,” Van Tassell said. “He asked for a reset. For some time to think about what’s next for him. Ian’s not sitting on a job offer. He’s not going somewhere although I have no question that job offers and going somewhere will be in his future. 

“I’ve had the good fortune over the past thirty years to observe and work with some of the finest coaches in the world - across multiple sports,” Van Tassell said. “I include Ian Cameron in the top one percent of that list.”

While stressing that the impact isn’t the same, Van Tassell likened Cameron’s tenure in Statesboro to that of legendary Georgia Southern football coach Erk Russell who won three national championships from 1985-1989 with the Eagles.

“Ian and Erk Russell went down the same path. They built something that wasn’t here before. Stadiums got built and championships got won and in much the same way, a city flourished,” Van Tassell said. “Listen, Georgia Southern football is way further down the road than Tormenta Football Club is at the moment, but having lived through both of those, I see so many of those parallels and similarities.”

While Tormenta did claim a title under Cameron, they have struggled to find that success in the following years. South Georgia missed the playoffs in both 2023 and 2024 and are currently outside the playoff picture with roughly 40 percent of the season remaining.

However, Tormenta saw success in the US Open Cup under Cameron, regularly upsetting teams from the second division USL Championship during his tenure in Statesboro.

Cameron said he takes the most pride in seeing the success of the players, coaches and front office staff who started at South Georgia and have moved up in the professional ranks to USL Championship, MLS or to leagues overseas to continue their professional careers.

McKeever Named Interim Head Coach

Tormenta announced former One Knox head coach Mark McKeever will serve as interim head coach as the team conducts a search for a permanent replacement. McKeever was hired last week to be an assistant coach and neither he nor Van Tassell had any indication that McKeever would end up serving as interim head coach. Tormenta assistant coach Jordan Bell was McKeever’s assistant coach in Knoxville in 2023 before joining Cameron’s staff in Statesboro in 2024. Bell will remain on the Tormenta coaching staff.

In 2023 there were allegations of physical and verbal abuse by McKeever against some of his players. 

“I knew about the allegations. I knew it went through the League and the League cleared him of such things,” Van Tassell said. “I’m very comfortable with Mark’s integrity.”

“Jordan Bell, our assistant here of course, coached with Mark in several different locations. So I’ve known Mark for a long time and I get to work with him now. Mark is in a setting I know he’ll be able to thrive in. Mark told me he learned a lot from One Knox. One can keep growing. He said ‘I have to grow.’ There were some things there that he wished he had done a little bit differently,” Van Tassell said.

He went on to say McKeever is the right man at the right time for Tormenta FC.

McKeever remained as head coach  at Knoxville until August of 2024 when he and the team “agreed to mutually part ways,” according to a statement from One Knox. 

Tormenta returns to action Sunday as they travel to face Westchester SC for the first time with kickoff set for 7 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.