LOGAN, Utah – Rodney Freeman II originally pursued coaching because of the impression his own coaches made on him as a college athlete at Stephen F. Austin and Abilene Christian. Now, he's acting as that same influence on the running backs at Utah State.
Freeman brings 12 years of coaching experience with him to USU and comes to Logan after serving as an offensive analyst for Michigan State during the 2022 campaign. Freeman joined the Spartans after stops at Colorado Mesa (2022), Klein Forest HS (2020-21), West Texas A&M (2017-19), Abilene Christian (2015-16), Missouri Southern (2013-14), Western State (2012) and Lutheran North HS (2011).
The Houston, Texas, native played collegiately at both Abilene Christian (2007-08) and Stephen F. Austin (2005-06). He helped lead the ACU Wildcats to a conference championship as a wide receiver and backup quarterback in 2008. Freeman graduated from Abilene Christian in 2009.
We recently caught up with Freeman II for a Q&A.
Q: What have the first few weeks on the job been like?
Freeman: It's been awesome. The staff's been great the players have been great. Just being able to come in and learn a new offense schematically has been seamless. I mean, it's things I've done before, just having to learn a new language. It's been a good adjustment. I'm excited for things to come and players that are here and the coaching staff, so it's been good.
Q: Did you have any connections with the current staff?
Freeman: Cooper (Bassett) and I worked together at West Texas A&M for three years. I ended up leaving and then always staying plugged in, staying connected. Our wives are good friends so when this opportunity happened, he gave me a call and asked me if I was interested. I was like, 'heck yeah.' Our offensive line coach at Michigan State and Blake (Anderson) are pretty good friends. They worked together for years and got us connected, interviewed, and it was a done deal.
Q: What interested you in Utah State?
Freeman: Being in Texas and knowing coach Anderson and the work that he did at Arkansas State when I was at Texas, and knowing the success that he has had and is having now at Utah State, I thought it was a great opportunity to get my own room and be in an offense I knew. It's a great opportunity.
Q: How is the offensive staff working together?
Freeman: I think it's a good group. It's an energetic group, so a lot of guys bring a lot of energy to work every day. And there are no egos in that room. It's an open forum where anybody can talk and speak, so I think that's the biggest thing because everything's welcome. And coach Anderson, with him being at the lead of it, he sets the tone and it's been awesome.
Q: What are your thoughts on how this offense can perform?
Freeman: It has the potential to be very explosive. It's going to be exciting for people to watch and it's going to be exciting for our players to play in because it's going to be fast and up tempo. It's going to give us a chance for a lot of big play opportunities. I know I'm excited about it for sure.
Q: What has been your impressions of this group of running backs?
Freeman: I've been really impressed. I've been impressed with how they've welcomed me in and taken the coaching that I've brought. I know it's probably a different style or different things that I brought to the table, and they've all been great and been coachable. Those guys have bought into things that I've done. It's going to be a process getting to know those guys, but I think this is a pretty good group.
Q: What are your takeaways from seeing the running backs group in practice and in an on-the-field setting?
Freeman: For me, as I'm trying to learn the offense, I'm just trying to hammer in technique. Having great ball security, making sure we're staying on our tracks and being able to fit in the pass protection. If we can protect, we have a chance to get the ball downfield. We have to be great in pass protection and then we will get a chance to rip a run. We've got to take advantage of it.
Q: What should fans expect to see from the running backs on a down-to-down basis?
Freeman: You're going to see a group that's going to be hard-nosed. They're going to work their tail off, they're going to work and claw and scratch for every yard, and then they're going to be explosive. They're going to be explosive and get the ball in the end zone. We will also be a physical group. We've got to be physical in pass protection and we've got to be physical when the ball's not in our hands. We've got to be great teammates.
Q: What is something that surprised you or maybe something that you didn't anticipate from this program?
Freeman: I would say the culture. Everybody, even the players, they might not even know my name, but they were "what's up, coach?" That was the biggest thing. Everybody seems really welcoming. When you say family, it's very cliché in a lot of places, but you can feel it and you can see it. And again, that's a testament to coach Anderson with the tone that he's set here.
Q: What originally got you into coaching?
Freeman: My college career, I went to Stephen F. Austin as a quarterback and my first three years there, I had three head coaches. It was an interesting time for me. I ended up transferring out and going to Abilene Christian and my head coach there was Chris Thompson. My offensive coordinator, Ken Collums and I, stay in contact with those guys today and they really showed me a different side of the profession. They poured into me as a young man and knew that Rodney Freeman was an important person, not just a football player. So that was the biggest thing that got me into coaching and that's the reason why I'm coaching now is because of those guys, and I still talk to those guys quite a bit.
Q: What do you like to do when you're not coaching football?
Freeman: Honestly, just recruiting. And being a dad and taking care of my family, hanging out with the family. Hopefully, I can go snowboarding and learn how to snowboard and hit these slopes a little bit. I love it here for sure.
