SPEAKER_00 0:04

You're listening to the Hanging with the AD podcast, where we break down hot topics in athletic administration and listen to words through leadership. Now, here are your hosts, Josh Matthews and Don Baker.

SPEAKER_02 0:17

Today's guests will educate, motivate, and inspire you to be a better leader. Maurice Freeman of Brooks County High School in South Georgia has worn both hats as the athletic director and head football coach for the Trojans and has found great success in both roles. Coach Freeman is a multi-generational leader in a small town that knows the definition of servant leadership and has leaned on his ability to serve and connect with others in both good and bad times, as we will discuss today. His philosophy of bring that hammer has transformed not only his school, but his community, and we have no doubt that it will change you after our conversation today. Let's settle in and get to know Coach Maurice Freeman.

SPEAKER_03 1:09

Coach Freeman, we're glad to have you joining Don and I for today's episode of Hanging with the AD. Ladies and gentlemen, the hammer has joined Hangin with the AD. So we're awful glad and awful lucky to have Coach Freeman joining us from down in Brooks County. Coach, thanks for taking time to be with us today.

SPEAKER_01 1:27

Well, I appreciate it. We were scheduled to go on last week, but I had some emergencies, and thank you guys for understanding and assisting and getting back with me.

SPEAKER_03 1:34

Yes, sir, absolutely. Uh, we know being in a school system, those things come up all the time, especially during COVID days. But uh for our listeners, Maurice Freeman is the head football coach at Brooks County High School in Quitman, Georgia. Coach Freeman has served two stents as the head football coach there at Brooks County. In his first stint, in his very first year back at Brooks County in 1994, his team won the Single A State Championship. And then Coach Freeman came back to his hometown of Quitman in 2008 to be the athletic director and head football coach. And just recently, he uh has just serving as head football coach, uh, as we mentioned, but he has assumed what he is titled as the director of football operations. So that's his role at Brooks County today. But I'm gonna stop right there. I'm gonna let Coach tell us a little bit more about his journey through athletics. Coach Freeman, we like to start our show with what we call the back of the baseball car bio, just a short bio of our guests. So if you could tell us and our listeners, what would the back of Coach Maurice Freeman's baseball car look like?

SPEAKER_01 2:39

Oh man, it would say um, it would say 34 years in the business, in the in the teaching and coaching business. It would give you stance as an elementary school teacher at Hamilton Elementary in Macon, Georgia. Uh, it would give you a uh health teacher, health dance teacher at Northeast High School in Macon, Georgia. I like it. Um then it would take you down to Brooks County in 1994 as the head football coach, head track coach, and assistant basketball coach until uh 98. Then I moved to Southwest High School, where I became the head football coach, athletic director um of that school. And um in 2002 I left there and went to uh Brunswick High School from 2002 to 2000, the beginning of 2008 as head football coach. And then I um uh came back to Brooks and uh was head football coach and eventually ended up being head football coach, athletic director, and um uh then uh released that title. But I am also the GACA uh vice president, will turn into the president in a few months, and I'm also the G A C uh GADA Georgia Athletic Directors Association board member um next in line to be vice president unless something strange happens and then you know in a couple years be president of that organization.

SPEAKER_03 4:00

That's great. I know uh you and I got to know each other a little bit through the GADA, and I knew you would leave this part out, so I wanted to give a few stats, just a couple stats. By my count, 27 years as a head coach uh through the 2020 season. 23 of those seasons, you had a 500 or better record. Uh and you mentioned being at different schools, that's quite impressive. Only four seasons under 500, 223 victories. So uh that I just say that to let our listeners know success follows Maurice Freeman wherever he goes. So uh that's worth mentioning.

SPEAKER_02 4:38

Thank you. Now, Coach, I know Josh mentioned it early. Let's go ahead and start off with what you're all about. Let's bring the hammer. Some of us know you, uh, follow what you have done there at Brooks County. Some of our listeners are just here and bring the hammer for the very first time. Uh, when you say bring the hammer, what does that mean?

SPEAKER_01 4:54

Bring the hammer to me uh is is is not just uh a motto, it's a movement for Brooks County in our actual school system. Brooks County High School says bring the hammer and leave with a tassel. So it is caught fire in every part of our program, and we're certainly enjoying it. But bring the hammer means giving us everything you have, and then we know there's still something left. And it's our job to get what's left out of you so that you can have the pride, to be excited, to be pumped up, to really understand what Brooks County High School means, Brooks County football means, Brooks County Trojans mean, and give us everything you got. And at the end of the day, when you look back, you know, you'll say to yourself, Job well done. I gave more than I thought I had.

SPEAKER_02 5:42

And like you said, we notice it's not just on your Twitter site, it's not just the motto of the football team. It's featured on the Brooks County High School webpage. I mean, it transcends athletics into the entire community, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_01 5:55

It certainly has. And I'm certainly glad that we were able to do that. And that our principal asked us, hey, look, we want to get in on this too. We want to buy in on it. Our elementary and middle schools buy into it also. Our alternative school certainly buys into it. So it is something that has caught fire in Brooks County, um, so much so that my dog name is Hammer. My tag, the tag on my truck is Hammer. So we truly, truly, truly believe in bringing that Hammer.

SPEAKER_03 6:21

That's great. That's good. Love, love the motto. But since you you kind of talked about the community, you led us into the next question. Being a community leader as a head football coach and athletic director in a small community is different, I think. Um it's different than what we do up here in the Atlanta area. And to give everyone some perspective, your high school population by the last GHSA count was 475 students, nine through 12. You are the only high school in the district there, just north of Florida, the Florida state line. What responsibilities come with being a key influential leader in a community like Brooks County? And I know with responsibility comes accountability. Two big words in leadership, right? So sometimes in smaller communities, like I mentioned, the accountability is greater than it is in the larger communities, like up here in the Atlanta area. There's there's a lot more. And forgive me if this is a bad analogy. Uh it may be Hollywood, it may be me, I may be out of line. If I am, I'm sorry. But I think of the movie radio when I think of small town accountability. Those small, that small coaching staff, they had to go to the barbershop after the game, and all the dads came and they talked about what went well and what went not so well. To me, that that's accountability right there on the spot. Pretty tough. Brooks County may not be Hannah High School, but I imagine there's a uniqueness with responsibility turned into accountability in a smaller community like Brooks County.

SPEAKER_01 7:51

Well, I get often teased about being the mayor of Brooks County. Um I get often, my wife and I often get teased about being the Obamas of Quentin and Georgia. Um, so uh it is it is it is something big here. Um you're expected to be at every event, um, regardless of what's going on. Uh we have this Skillet Festival. You're expected to be there. You're expected to speak at every Martin Luther King program. Um, any program that's there, you're expected to be at the majority of the academic programs. You're expected to speak at a ton of organizations and organizational programs. Um even kids that don't play football, uh, you're expected here to be able to jump in and advise and and and mentor those young people, regardless if they play sports or not. Uh, and and it's something that I've I've bought into and I understand and I'm willing to do my part.

SPEAKER_02 8:46

Coach, let's talk about motivation for a minute. As an outsider looking in, it appears that this is definitely a gift that you've been blessed with. I know that following the state championship game this past season, you were quoted as saying, when you got kids that'll fight like hell for you, you can't be anything but proud of them. Uh, I have also heard you tell your team, if you can't fight for me, I'll fight for you. Well, in your opinion, how does a leader get a collective group rallied behind a singular goal? And could you speak to the differences that are needed when getting kids to follow your vision as opposed to adults because you lead both?

SPEAKER_01 9:22

Well, I think it's a little easier with adults because they see the success and they want to have the same success that you have. So they see the numbers, they see the patterns, and they want to be that. So they're willing to go to battle and do the same thing. I think with young people, you've got to catch them early. Uh, I've had some success early here, but the great thing about it is I live right here in Brooks County in Quitman, Georgia. And when I go to Harvey's our local grocery store, there are always young men that are saying, Hey, coach, I want to play for you. Well, what grade you answer? I'm in the third grade, I'm in the second grade. Hey, uh, I'm in the fourth grade. Uh, I'm 56 years old, so chances are they may not play for me. But the fact is that they say, Coach, I want to play for you. So the first thing I say is how your grades. And then they'll tell me about the grades. And if there's a young lady beside them, a sister or a cousin or something, I'll ask the young lady, hey, is his grades good? Is he doing what he's supposed to do at home? Um, mama, tell me, yeah, is he doing what he's supposed to do at home? She's got all A's, then I'll say, Look, hey, ask your teacher to email me, tell me what time your lunch period is. I'll come eat with you on Friday. Because I certainly appreciate you doing your schoolwork. Now, tell me what position you play, um, since since you're doing so well in school, and and let me keep track of you. I come to your little league game to see you play. And I want to see you bring that hammer now. If you don't bring that hammer, we got trouble. Coach, don't worry, I'm gonna bring that hammer. Coach, he don't know nothing about that hammer. Yes, I do. So you got a little quick argument there. Um, so that is part of recruiting the young people. So over the years, you get to coach daddies, and then all of a sudden, now at my age, I've coached a dad and I've coached a son. So when you when you when you do that, there's a level of trust that comes in there where these parents are saying, hey coach, this is my son. What time y'all get through with practice? And they leave and they trust you to do the right thing with their child, with their with their student athlete. And me and my staff, we're gonna do the right things with that.

SPEAKER_02 11:21

You know, I think that that's a a great point. That relationship piece doesn't start when they're in the ninth grade.

SPEAKER_01 11:27

No, it does not.

SPEAKER_02 11:28

Yeah, that doesn't start when they get to you. It is much longer before that that that relationship piece and that that trust piece is there so that you can get and find that success, that end goal. I think it's great.

SPEAKER_03 11:41

Now, coach, um Don mentioned the state championship this past December in 2020. That was your second uh state championship appearance in a row. So congratulations. Once again, just more evidence of the success that you brought down there to Brooks County. So congrats on that. But we saw a video, uh, I think it was a Georgia Public broadcasting preview going into the state championship, uh, the 2020 game, and it was with some of your players. And your players, instead of talking about the state championship game and what they hope to do and win a ring and all that stuff, they talked about how you had taught them what it means to be a man. Now, what do you do specifically to implement, to teach lessons beyond the football field to your guys? And you just mentioned it earlier about teaching others who don't play football in your community. How do you teach them the same lessons when they don't play football for you?

SPEAKER_01 12:38

Well, the ones that play football for me, first of all, I want to teach them how to be servants. So as a head coach, um, every year we take them on trips somewhere, take our seniors out. And um I always go back to the Bible of Jesus washing the disciples' feet. So I wash their feet to get them to understand that I truly am a servant. Now, watch me all year and watch what I do. I will carry ice, I will bring water, I'll tape, I'll do whatever it takes to show you that I'm a servant and try to convince you and get you to understand that yes, you are a senior. That doesn't mean you sit on your butt and dictate. That means you are a servant first. You you make sure that everybody's okay. When we eat, I eat last. I make sure everybody's got their place, and then I'll go get mine. But you make sure that they are served correctly, and that teaches them how to continue to serve the right way as they continue to get older. And the next group will get a chance to see it, the juniors and the sophomores and the freshmen. So there are expectations in this program that everyone must follow. So you must know your role, and then you must fit into your role. And when it's your turn, then it's time for you to take pride in being a servant, pride in being a great player, pride in being the right kind of person. And I and these young people in this community, you know, I uh one of the things I enjoy with them is hey, if you're that good in school, help come help tutor some of my players. Uh, give you some sideline passes or give you some passes to get in the game. Let me know if somebody's in trouble. Call me. If you see any trouble at all with my players, here's my number. You call me and I'll show up. I'll make sure. And I appreciate you trying to make sure that they don't get in trouble. So you call me. Don't let that fight happen. Don't let them be racing, don't let them be doing graffiti, don't let them be smoking and things of that. And it's you call me. I will not give your name, but I want to make sure that they do the right thing. And in turn, I'm gonna make sure you do the right thing also. So I will advise young people that are probably swaying the wrong way with games and things like that. Hey, you're going the wrong way now. Come on out here in the football field. Let me try to help you. Be a manager, be a video guy. Uh the things that you can do in this program in basketball or any sport, but get involved in something that's gonna keep you going in the right direction. And that's what's gonna make Brooks County great.

SPEAKER_02 15:01

Coach, that's that's excellent. You have said that once you began playing athletics, that is when you truly began to quote unquote learn people. I think that that is a great quote. That before that time, for you, it was pretty much just school and home. And I think that many times, as funny as it may sound, too many leaders haven't learned people. They don't know what makes them tick, they don't know how to read them when they have to, and as a result, they fail. What would you tell those listening who struggle in this area of having the ability to read people, read environments, read situations, and how vital is it to being a successful leader?

SPEAKER_01 15:40

Well, any program without a great foundation is gonna fail. So you've got to build that foundation first, and then you've got to find the right people that will continue holding that foundation, and then you, as the leader, have to look around and see what's going on, make sure that the the stakeholders feel good about themselves first. If they feel good about themselves and what they are doing, and make sure you recognize them and what they are doing to assist in that program, they will they will certainly continue to strengthen that that foundation and make that program a much better program. Now, in turn, if you're uh not allowing folks to grow, you're not telling them what they're doing good, not trying to redirect them on things that are probably not the right way to do it, and you're not recognizing them for the for the great things that they do, then they're not gonna feel as good about that program, which means you're not gonna be the leader that you want to be. So they've got to feel good about what they do. You've got to love on them, you've got to give them hard love, you've got to give them soft love. You gotta listen to them. You gotta hear them cry. You gotta know the good parts of their lives, you gotta know the bad parts of their lives, you gotta understand that and say, listen, I know these things are tough, but you can still make it. Life is tough. Life is just like football. It's four quarters of hell. Now, if you can play this great game of football for Brooks County, surely you can be successful in life. Just apply the same things. You're sick, you practice. You're sick, go to work. Stomach hurts, you practice. Stomach hurts, go to work. Apply those same things to your job, to your career, and you will be successful. And as a leader, and as a leader, when they see these things come and say, Coach is right, this is going the right way, then they'll tell someone else, man. Let me tell you something. You're having trouble, then go see Coach. Coach can help you out.

SPEAKER_03 17:37

Man, that's good. Good stuff right there. Now, coach, you mentioned in another interview that you had a vision for Brooks County when you came back. And that vision included upgrading facilities and athletic teams there at Brooks County, bringing them up to par with others in the area. I think having and communicating a vision is something athletic directors fall short of in a lot of situations because we get overwhelmed by the daily minutiae of the job. Molly Fletcher just recently uh said we get caught up in executing the inbox. I know for me, I'll get in that email and I get stuck, and now I'm I'm I've chased rabbits that I didn't need to chase, and I haven't done anything purposeful that day. Talk about having a vision as an athletic leader and the importance of that. And where are you with your vision? What steps have you taken to enact your vision as the leader of the Brooks County Athletic Department and community?

SPEAKER_01 18:34

Well, you know, the biggest thing is sitting in that office going through those emails. When you finish with those emails, you got to go get in that truck, you got to turn that music off, and you must ride around and look at your facilities and evaluate your facilities. And you must do that on a regular basis. And you must say, look, these are the things that look good, these are the things that look great, these are the things we want to improve on, these are the things we have to fix. Hey, coaches, tell me what's going on. Is everything okay? Is everything okay with facilities? Is everything okay with equipment? And they all they they can assist you in a big way because every baseball, basketball, soccer, every football coach knows the ins and outs of his program, what needs to be done and what doesn't. And you in turn take that, write it down, get in that truck, turn that music off, and ride around and look and look at your facilities. Are you, when you ride around, look, are you proud of your facilities? If not, you need to jot down the things that you need to improve on. If you are proud of them, you need to jot down the things that can improve. So in 2008, we had a plan here at Brooks. And uh when I came in, they had a plan on what they want to do. Uh it's 2020 now. We're at this time what we're doing is building a new field house. It'll be done in March or April, a new baseball field, and a new softball field. So uh those things and a new practice football field. Well, a few some years back, we did a lot of work on our football field or on our game field. So we've got a brand new school. In 2008, we opened a new school, um, or 2010 rather. We opened a new school, so we got that. So now we're finally getting these facilities to catch up as far as new softball facility, new new baseball facility, new football field house, new practice field, brand new track. So those things, another soccer field. So those things are now, and a new band field, and also a new fine arts building. It is huge, it is gorgeous. So riding around, and I ride a motorcycle, so if it's not raining or real cold, then I make that trip every Sunday to kind of look and see what's going on and what we need to improve on, and making sure that everything is going well. So the dream is still alive. It's coming, it's coming up now, and we're seeing where it's coming right closer to the end, and we're certainly going to be proud of what we have. But um again, continue consistently evaluating what you have and making sure that it's up to par and it's something that you and your community and your your athletic facilities, uh your your coaches are very proud of.

SPEAKER_03 21:09

Yeah, that was great. Um I think the one thing that you said there that every leader needs to hear, at least I needed to hear, if we're gonna accomplish anything, and that question was about facilities, but if we're gonna accomplish anything, when you said get in a truck and turn off the radio, I heard turn off all the noise. There's a lot of noise out there. Turn the noise off to focus on what you want to get done, right?

SPEAKER_01 21:33

That is absolutely right.

SPEAKER_02 21:35

Coach, we can't talk to you without discussing a very famous phrase of yours. Kiss my bass. All right. Now we got to know what is kiss my bass. We love seeing those videos. Were you sitting on the pond? You're doing something that you obviously enjoy, but there's a message, you know, that we just have to know. So who is the fish hawk? What is kiss my bass? And if I told you right now, could you catch? One fish with one cast, could you do it?

SPEAKER_01 22:02

As a matter of fact, I could dig a hole, put some water in it, come back an hour later and catch a fish out of that hole with one cast. How about that?

SPEAKER_03 22:09

Yes, sir.

SPEAKER_01 22:12

Kiss my bass. I'm a fisherman. I love fishing. I used to fish with my grandmother. She taught me how to fish. Fish with my uncle. I'm from a single parent home, so my uncle would take me often. And the great thing about that is when he got old, before and I became a man, I started to take him fishing to thank him for all the years that he took me fishing. So very seldom do you get a chance to repay people that do great things for you. My mother died at 53, so I didn't get a chance to really repay her for all the things that she did for him. But my Uncle Dudley took me fishing all those years. So for the last, and I lost him a couple of years ago, but for about 10, but when I came back in 2008, I started taking them fishing on a regular basis. And it turned into him taking me fishing, and I was a child, me taking them fishing, and he was acting like a little kid. He was just as happy as he could be. From there, I started posting um film now with the with the uh one cast, one cat. Somebody stole my boat out of my yard. Never found that boat. And so uh that day I went fishing, I was mad about that. But I was just on that day. It was on, so I decided to turn on the camera, and uh they were hitting so well. I said, you know what? I think I can one cast, one catch this thing. And I jumped out there and one cast, one cast, boom. I think three or four times, one cast, one catch. Yeah, it was it was amazing. And then uh one of my college classmates, a guy named Dwayne Drisdom that lives in Florida, he's an avid fisherman, also. I messed around and saw one of his videos, so I called him out. He said, Man, you can't fish, man. You just talking all this noise. And so he calls himself Vader Lee Darth Vader. He's a Los Angeles uh uh Raiders fan. Um so uh so we decided we challenged each other. So we'd go fishing and call each other out. Then all of a sudden, we ended up showing up one day fishing together. First time he beat me off, man. I could have jumped out the boat. I got beat. Uh, but from that point on, I spanked his butt real good. We made a few videos together. Um, we're playing to fish again uh in March. Um, so that is where we get to kiss my bass from. I'm actually talking to him every time I catch a bass. I'm telling him, without saying Dwayne Drism, I'm saying kiss my bass. Uh just a slap in the face with the fish tail is what it is.

SPEAKER_03 24:43

That's good. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. So there's a lot of good uh uh learning professional development in this conversation, but that's the question I was I was waiting for the most. So that was worth the price of admission right there. So, coach, I'm gonna flip it back and do some leadership now. Let's talk about the media. Not in terms of how a lot of people are talking about the media nowadays, but let's talk about dealing with the media. So, to be completely transparent, when Don and I do the have these conversations, we try to research and find out as much about our guests as we possibly can. And one thing we learned about Coach Maurice Freeman is there is a lot of media out there with you in it. Uh there's a lot of people that want to know about Brooks County, they want to know uh what you're doing down there, and you mentioned using social media. So there was a lot for us to uh watch and learn. Tell us how you deal with the media, the media requests you get. Why is it important to take advantage of those opportunities? And how do you prepare for the media? I know the media always has an agenda, they always want a story, but with their wishes, how do you also get across the message you want people to hear about you and Brooks County in those uh conversations?

SPEAKER_01 25:57

Well, be it good or bad, whatever the media wants, I'm I'm willing to participate because I want everyone to know about Brooks County. I want you to know about Brooks County athletics. I want you to know about Brooks County High School. I want you to know that we have great students here, great student athletes. So my door is always open, even for the difficult questions, even for the tragedy of BC3, even for the young man that we lost this summer that got shot, even for those tough things there. Those things the media wants to know, the community wants to know, uh, society wants to know. So I am willing to give you that information, and there's a right way to do it. You don't have to have a lot of dark information. You can do it and be proud of it. So I'm always proud of the information that I'm gonna pass through to the media. I always welcome them in. I always speak to them about the great things, and then when it's something that's that's tough, I'm prepared to answer those questions. So uh normally they'll call and say, hey coach, we're on our way, we want to talk to you, and uh talk to a couple of your athletes. So I've kind of got myself prepared for that. Uh uh, had some great teachers in high school and at Florida and them that taught me public speaking. So I'm pretty decent at it. So when they come, normally they'll let you know what they want to talk about so it doesn't throw you really off base. Um, and you know, the only thing that was tough was answering questions right after the BC3 accident, those three young men we lost. Now, those questions, because nobody that is a coach is trained on how to handle death. There's no classes in college for that that we take. Um that teaches you how to handle a family, two families, three families, a community, a state. People still call to this day when they lose athletes. Hey, man, you need to call Freeman over there at Brooks. So uh uh so I've had to go speak at a lot of places before proms and and when the accidents, some coaches called and say, hey man, what are you doing? How do you get through this? This is killing me. How do you get through this? So I give them my story. I've got two or three little stories about that on Facebook and uh on YouTube. So we give them the stories so that they'll see the direction that they possibly need to go. And again, we got to address these issues straightforward. So I'm gonna tell the truth to them.

SPEAKER_03 28:20

That's good. And I know just a minute, you kind of set up our next question or Don's next question about dealing with that as a coach and a leader. But before we get to that, I did want to follow up uh with the media. You uh you mentioned putting your fishing expeditions out there on YouTube and on film. You use YouTube, Twitter, Facebook. You've done that for a long time now. What compelled you to join those services, that social media uh platform? How did you learn that those were valuable to what you do as a coach and a leader? And then have you had any discernible direct results or connections that came from your social media interactions?

SPEAKER_01 29:01

Well, I um sometimes, sometimes fans and people think that that coaches uh are well above their level, and they just sometimes quote, he thinks he's all that. Sometimes you get that. They think you're untouchable. So I decided that uh one, that I would you know show them my family. So uh if you pop over my Facebook, you see my wife and you see my kids. So you see you see that. So I really try to show you.

SPEAKER_03 29:30

I think you uh you just re-posted a Facebook video today of a special uh uh uh special time with you and your wife in the gym, I believe, right?

SPEAKER_01 29:38

Yeah, right. That is that is one of the things I use to teach my young men how to be romantic.

SPEAKER_03 29:43

There you go.

SPEAKER_01 29:44

Um so uh so I believe in teaching life lessons along with being a tough coach. I show them the softer side of me. I really take my time to show them when I hurt, when I'm sick, uh, when when my wife and I have had a disagreement, I'll let them know because they need to understand that these things go on. Don't think it's a Cinderella type situation or that it's a that every kiss is a fourth of July kiss. It is not. Marriage is work. Marriage is just as much as work as your job, it's just as much work as you practicing and playing this great game of football. So I took all of that, started to post it on social media, and continue to try to post all the good stuff. And then we had an accident, and um, I started to post the accident and my feelings, my true feelings on what happened, how we were gonna fight through this, how we were gonna make it. Um and then it just continued to really grow where folks started to expect to see things. So I'm gonna post when it's good, I'm gonna post when we lose, I'm gonna post and talk to you about our needs, our wants, our success, our dreams, our kids going to college, uh, the pandemic, how tough it is now trying to get kids into college because no seniors are leaving colleges now. So now all of a sudden, colleges don't need as many players, and it's tough on these seniors. You know, you try to show the parents, hey, look, these this ACT, because sometimes they don't read the letters that you sent on, but they'll look and see what I've said on Facebook or Remind 101 or Twitter or even Instagram. And and and those things will really assist you in what you want to accomplish with your program.

SPEAKER_02 31:30

You know, Coach, you talk about those tough, those tough times and those tough topics, uh topic that unfortunately has been part of your experience, like you said, as an athletic leader. I'm specifically talking about the BC3 that you mentioned. Uh, for those of you who do not know, uh, there are three young men uh who you and the Trojans tragically lost in a car accident in 2013. We recently spoke with another guest who unfortunately has lost student athletes as a coach in AD. And we discussed that the fact of the matter is if you're in this business of teaching and coaching long enough, the loss of a child is something that you more than likely will experience on some level. Uh, we know that the BC3 are always on your heart. Uh, you've spoken of that often. Uh, like you said, uh, then then, like you just mentioned just last year, you lost another young man. There are some in our profession that thankfully for them, they've never had to learn this lesson, but quite possibly will experience a loss before their career is over. Like I said, as the leader of the athletic community, and quite frankly, in your case, the entire community, how do you process losing student athletes? How do you grieve while leading your team, your school, your colleagues, your community through that process? What role do you as the athletic leader play in that recovery?

SPEAKER_01 32:43

Well, first, you you gotta show concern and you must show love. Don't be afraid to hug. And that is something that uh a lot of coaches uh take for granted. Don't be afraid to tell your players that you love them. Now, if you're telling them that you love them, you better mean it. Right because young people can see through it. You gotta touch them, you gotta put your hands on them, you gotta sometimes you gotta be a little silly. Uh, sometimes you gotta just listen to them, especially in their times of need. Listen instead of arguing with them all the time. Hey man, what's wrong? I know something's wrong. Uh and here's the thing that's probably the most important thing when it comes to trying to get young coaches, which I have a mentors program with my young coaches meet with me every Friday, and we have a list of questions that we have to go through. So we burn them every Friday. Um, it's a couple we call it a little coffee club mentors program. But one thing that I pride myself in, I can turn my back, and every junior, senior, and sophomore, all he has to do is say coach, and I can tell you who has said it. So I learn my players. It's a little tougher on the freshmen, they don't talk as much, and you don't talk as much to them. But sophomores, juniors, and seniors, I know your voice. I know when your voice is upset, I know when it's pain, I know when it's disappointed, I know when you're angry. And when you start to learn those things about your young people, they start to love you back. Now, sometimes you're gonna get tough love. Sometimes I'm gonna have to feed you. Sometimes I may just need to give you a pair of socks because I notice that your socks are a little dirty. I'm gonna do the things that is gonna capture your attention where you'll say, This man does. I think he's crazy, but I know he loves me. Look at him, man. He he's looking after me. He's telling me right from wrong, and he's saying, This is wrong, but I'm here with you. This is right. Congratulations, you're doing a great job of it. Now, look, you're gonna learn from these things. So those are the keys to success there when it comes to being a great leader and leading a program and leading an anti-program and leading an athletic department. As the leader of the athletic department, you've really got to get to know your coaches. It has to go beyond just being professional. There are times when I'll have a fish fry. Hey, coaches, man, y'all come on over. I got a fish fry. We're gonna sit there and eat, and we're gonna just talk about things. And we're gonna pick at each other and we're gonna have a good time. And that lets their guard down, and they see that my guard is down, and they can say what they really need to say to me. So, Coach Man, I hey man, I need to talk to you, Coach. Some of you said, Coach, that I kind of took the wrong way. I felt kind of bad about it. Good, I'm glad you said that. Let me explain to you what I really meant. And uh, and then in the end, they'll normally say, I'm glad we had this conversation. Coach, you're you're a pretty good dude, man. You call it like you see it, but man, I tell you, anytime I need you, you back me up. And that is the that is uh something big that we as leaders have to do. And once they see that you not only are the leader, but that you trust them, you are gonna allow them to do their job the way they feel like they need to do it, as long as it's in the realms of being right, then that program starts to grow. That will in turn spill into the kids because those coaches that you lead will say, Man, how does he get their attention like that? Why are they playing so hard for him? I'm glad you asked. And then I can explain it to you, and I get the kids around. And I tell you what, I shouldn't have a door on my office because my door is always open. My kids don't they don't have to knock to come in my office. They can walk right in, hey coach, hey coach. I normally got a box over there with Pop Tarts or potato chips and things like that, whatever I can scavenge you up from different folks. So they're always hungry. Once you feed them, they want to talk. So you spend time talking to them, and then you can add in the leadership thing with all the ones that want to be leaders. You can encourage the ones that are not doing as well as you want. You can talk to young people that are thinking about games, and hey, you gotta you can't go that route. You gotta get out of that. All of those things entail being a good leader, also.

SPEAKER_02 36:57

Coach, uh thank you so much for you know sharing your heart, allowing us to learn from your experiences. We know that when you you build those relationships so that when the tough times come, you know what to do. You've kind of you've built some some equity there that you can kind of lean on. And when if others, you know, they they go through similar times, you know, whether they're heading into a storm in that storm currently or coming out of it, like we've heard you say. Now, before we move on from this topic, I believe that you guys have established a scholarship foundation to remember these young men in Brooks County. Uh, what is the scholarship foundation and how could someone contribute to it if they felt led?

SPEAKER_01 37:35

Okay, uh, it is it's called a BC3, which is the three young men that that we lost that lost their lives. And what we do is we choose a male and a female every year, and we try to give from $500 to $1,000 to that young person. But what we do is we make sure that they're enrolled in school, uh, be it technical school, uh, trade school, or college or junior college. And once they enrolled, then now they've got all they've got credit cards for everything. So we can send the money directly to the school. It applies directly to that credit card so that they can buy the things that they need yearly. That scholarship is is um is housed right at Brooks County High School. Our school secretary keeps the books on that, so she makes sure that it stays the right way. So if anyone wants to contribute to it, which we always desperately need, I'd love to do more than two young people a year. Um there's so many deserving people uh in the in our school system that that needs it. But uh if if you just send it to Brooks County High School in care of Maurice Freeman or Coach Freeman, uh, but BC3 Scholarship, and it goes directly to that scholarship, and we make sure that that is what that money is spent on.

SPEAKER_02 38:44

That's excellent. Coach, uh several of the ADs that we've spoken to on this podcast have talked about the coaching and A D life as being a lifestyle. When we talk about finding downtime or finding time for your family, and how being at the ballpark or stadium, you know, that's just kind of part of it. That that's just kind of part of the deal. I know that being a coach's kid, I grew up at football practices and gyms uh as well, but you may be the only coach who has his daughter as his get back coach. Okay. Uh how did she do a good job too now? She did now. She she does a good job. How did that come to be? Uh, would you encourage other coaches to follow suit? I know that's a big responsibility. That's a very that that's a that's a high profile spot, uh, but at the same time, a terrific way to bring your own children into your world as a coach and allow you to connect with them.

SPEAKER_01 39:32

Well, I I you know she is my get back coach, but I did not see her until someone sent it to me a couple of days later, and it really touched my heart. So I've got it on my phone, man. I tell you, as a bigger guy, 6'5, 285, that that made me cry. I really cried when I saw she was in sync with me. Did you see her? She was right there bouncing, just like I was. And we were losing. We were getting our butts whooped, and my quarterback had broke his ankle, and things were looking tough. And I was just trying to encourage my guys, you gotta fight, you gotta keep fighting. And I thought they fought to the last second on that clock. And I, and I really appreciate that. But my child, Hallie, is has been a ball girl. She's you know, I think she started coming to practice every day because I had a golf cart at practice. So that was her way to learn how to drive. Um, she's even ran over one of my football players as a when she was a youngster. Uh so she's been around the game all of her life. Now, the one thing you can't do is if she's in no stands, talk about her daddy. Because boy, it's gonna be trouble. She's gonna she's gonna turn around and say, hold on now. Let me tell you something. My daddy's coaching, he's not playing. Address your son. You're not gonna address my daddy like that. So she's got a lagoon in her too. But I would, you know, it is special times. Those are the times they get to, you know, they get to see you coach, and they get to see you be dad, but she gets a chance to come into the locker room to see pregame speeches and things like that. So, so, and my wife gets a chance to come in the locker room a lot. As a matter of fact, my wife is the state championship game is normally on the sideline also, but she's not gonna be close to me, but she's on that sideline. She's in that locker room. I've shared some pictures on Twitter of my wife and I with some quiet times before the state championship game. So I get a chance to love on them that way. I encourage all coaches to make sure your children and your wife understand what you're doing, how tough it is, but find a way to give them some time during your job, while you're on that job. Love on them while you're on that job, because they are just as important and she'll be more important than that job. But if you show them that on that job, then that will assist with your time that's missing at home, because you really are giving up a lot of home time because you're on that job, especially if you're a head football coach and athletic director, then there's no off-season for you. You're at basketball games, you're at soccer games, you're at the baseball, you're at the track, you're at tennis, you know, you're at all of the wrestling. So you're always in the street somewhere with young people that are not really related to you as a son or a daughter, unless your children play. So I encourage you to bring them. My wife normally would bring in and hang around for a little while, then take her. But then there were some days when I thought with light days that I would say, leave her, and I'll bring her home so she can ride with me and get a chance to sit in staff meetings and poot around and get to know other coaches, to know other kids. And and you know, coaches are gonna make them do the right things. The other players are gonna, I have an autistic son. My son's name is Maurice also, and that that's one thing that's dear to my heart. My son, um, he suffers, he suffered through sudden infant death syndrome and survived. So he's autistic M O M H, which is moderate, which is the severe kind. Maurice at this time is 30, but he's kind of like a seven-year-old, six-year-old kid. Um, so he he he visits the field often, and my guys know who he is, and and they don't pick on him, they don't pick at him, they make sure I know where he is, they make sure that he does the right things. And even if he's doing something wrong, like one day find one of my coaches' gum. Maurice loves gum. Coach had a pack of 12 packs of gum. Maurice sat there and ate all that gum. And um, one of my players said, Hey, coach, uh, Maurice is in there eating all the coach gum. You might want to go and want to go get them. So um, they'll let you know, they'll keep up with those kids, and and and they make sure that your kids learn their names. So Maurice knows all of my football players' names uh and who they are, and and what he knows some of them positioning, even though he cares nothing about football, but uh he he he knows quite a bit of them. Hell, he knows them all. And um, and she is that social media person also. So if something is going on unique, she'll say, Hey, you need to talk to this guy. I need to talk to that guy. You didn't hear from me, but you need to talk to him because uh, you know, he may be slipping or hanging. With the wrong people. So you gotta spend that time with your children. Let them come hang out with you. Be a real dad. Show them that you're a football coach or whatever sport you coach, athletic director. Show them that part, but also show them the daddy part, also.

SPEAKER_03 44:14

Man, it's clear, coach, that it's not the Maurice Freeman show down there, but the Freeman family play a huge part in leadership and the success Brooks County's having. So uh just that that's great to hear about you and your family. Now, I know you've already mentioned you talked about showing them about Jesus, washing their feet and serving them like Jesus served. And it's obvious to hear that what kind of man you are through your uh your discussions about loving your kids. And there was a video devotion that you posted last July during the pandemic. I know you spoke at the FCA breakfast at uh the GADA one year when you shared about the BC3. First time I'd heard that story and was really touched and uh gotten to know you a little bit since then. But obviously your heart is about Christ and about Jesus. And in that devotion that you shared uh back in July of 2020, one of the points that you had, I think you had 11 or 12 different points, great little devotion to go watch. But you said, remember that we are all in the boat at the same time. And I thought that was great. I think it's something we need to hear at this point, this moment in time in history. Uh, it's a valuable statement to hear. Hey, we're all in the same boat. And I think when you mean boat, you mean life. We're all going through the same life together. So help us understand how we as citizens, not just leaders or people, as citizens and a group of people are all in the same boat at the same time in this moment in history. I don't mean, you know, Pope and Cobb County and Brooks County. I mean that Maurice and Don and Josh and all citizens, or as Dr. Martin Luther King said, all mankind, we're all on the same team. We're all going through the same lessons or same issues at this same time. Uh so take a minute, talk to us about how to do the right thing as we are all in the boat at the same time.

SPEAKER_01 46:14

I've learned that that before I was a closet Christian coach. I kind of kept my religion to myself, and I didn't share with my players as much as I needed to through hardships and some good and bad times. I learned that I had to give them more information on what I believed in, which is Jesus Christ. So from there, you must show them a lot more love, a lot more being a servant. But you you you have to it's life skills. What you do in whatever sport you coach, what you do in that, it's a life skill, but also you you've got to let it spill over into everything else. This is a great nation, the United States of America. George is great. It can stay great if we as leaders, if we as the good people of each community will teach every young person, because they in turn will be in their 40s and 50s one day when we're old, old, old. And if we don't teach them the right way, how can this country continue to be great? You know, back in the 60s, we had so much trouble with racism. Now, racism is not gone, but it is not as bad as it was, and I think if we continue to emphasize what goes on in racism and how we can flatten that out, we can get much better. It's the same thing with education. Uh, in the 60s, kids weren't probably as educated as we are now. There are so many kids now that have more opportunities to go to college and get a quality education, get master's, six-year, doctoral degree, that it is amazing. But it is our job to encourage the ones that have no clue that they want to do that. We can see the young people, we can see what they are capable of before they do. And it is our job to challenge them. Not only that, to encourage them, not only that, it's to help them dream. They must dream big. We have to teach them how to dream big, and we have to teach them to have the guts to continue to dream good, and sometimes you're gonna fail. But you're certainly gonna learn a lot when you fail. You learn a lot more when you fail than when you're successful, I think. That's my opinion. So if you continue to teach them and reach and pull and push, then it spills over into your athletic department, it spills over into the school, it spills over into the community, it spills over into the county, it spills over into the state of Georgia, it'll spill over into the United States of America. So we must continue to encourage our young people because they will they will soon be our age. I remember when I was in high school, my teacher told me she was 32. I was like, man, you really old. Now I'm 56. Man, I'm like, wow, but and I'm happy to be 56 because my mother and my father, neither one made it to 56. So when I got to 53 or 54, I was really nervous because my mother died at 53, my dad died at 55. I got 56, I'm like, whoo! Um, but you you you still gotta continue to teach, and you still gotta talk to them about those things. You gotta talk to them about their health and and how to be successful in health, your health, how to be successful in life, how to be successful in your community. You gotta give back, come back because I was one of those that didn't want to come back to Quitman. But my mom insisted that I give back to my community, and that is the reason why I came back and became the head football coach, was because my mother.

SPEAKER_03 49:53

Thank you so much. Uh, I love it. I think if we sit there and listen to that one more time, or at least one more time, we uh we've got some real stuff to take and make ourselves better, make our communities better. And like you said, that spills over to higher levels than that. So, well, ladies and gentlemen, I think it's safe to say we know what bring the hammer means because that right there was a great conversation with one of Georgia's best ADs or leaders in athletics, uh, Mr. Maurice, Coach Maurice Freeman down at Brooks County. Coach, appreciate it. Appreciate your honesty, transparency, and the experiences you share, lessons you shared right there, because uh you definitely made us better. Now, we got one more part of the show here. It's uh kind of a fun, fast-paced far uh part. We call it the two-minute drill. I'm gonna turn it over to Coach Baker.

SPEAKER_02 50:42

All right, coach. So uh we're gonna hit you with some rapid fire questions. We want you just to tell us the first thing that comes to your mind, okay?

SPEAKER_01 50:49

All right, I'll give it a shot.

SPEAKER_02 50:51

What was the first job you ever had ever in your life?

SPEAKER_01 50:55

First job, cropping tobacco.

SPEAKER_02 50:58

Oh, did that for two days and realized I did not want to do that?

SPEAKER_03 51:03

All right, what profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

SPEAKER_01 51:07

I would like to be a physical therapist. What profession would you not like to do? I would not like to be a police officer.

SPEAKER_03 51:15

All right, here's a question. I think you got cut off on another fast-paced interview, but we'll let you answer it today. What would be your number one travel destination?

SPEAKER_01 51:25

I'd love to go to Hawaii.

SPEAKER_03 51:27

Oh, nice.

SPEAKER_02 51:29

What advice would you give your younger self?

SPEAKER_01 51:32

Listen to your elders.

SPEAKER_03 51:35

What sound or noise do you love?

SPEAKER_02 51:38

Water, the ocean. Amen. Now, being a coach's kid and a coach who gave a lot of nicknames, what is the best nickname you have ever given a kid?

SPEAKER_01 51:48

Cast Iron Skillet.

SPEAKER_03 51:51

Was that for a shortstop who couldn't catch a ground ball?

SPEAKER_01 51:54

No, that was one of the toughest midget receivers I've ever had.

SPEAKER_03 51:59

I've heard it on the baseball side for somebody who couldn't catch a ground ball, they got like skillet hands. There you go. It's not very nice. All right, what is the biggest bass you have ever caught?

SPEAKER_01 52:11

I caught a 12-pounder out of a farm pond, but the bass that I claimed the most, I caught a nine and a half-pound bass on my fly rod.

SPEAKER_02 52:19

Oh wow. Well played, sir. What is your biggest pet peeve?

SPEAKER_01 52:24

Biggest pet peeve is kids with a lot of talent that don't like to work. I hate that.

SPEAKER_03 52:33

All right, from a son of a dad who loves John Wayne, what is your favorite John Wayne Western?

SPEAKER_01 52:41

Rooster Coburn.

SPEAKER_02 52:42

All right, there you go. There you go. Who has had the biggest influence on your career?

SPEAKER_01 52:47

Um my head football coach at uh Florida and M, Rudy Hubbard.

SPEAKER_03 52:53

Who is your favorite social media follow, person or organization?

SPEAKER_01 52:59

Oh, man, that's a tough one. Um, I I follow uh um my fraternity, Five Beta Sigma. We have a lot of different guys in there, and they pour out a lot of uh information, a lot of good information. So out of that fraternity, I get a lot of Five Beta Sigma.

SPEAKER_02 53:15

All right, coach. The 1994, 2019, and 2020 Brooks County Trojan football teams walk into a room together, but only one of them can come out. Okay? So we we've got all teams play for a state championship. 94 won it, and I'm about to get you in trouble. Okay? Yes, you are. So all three of them go in. Which one's coming out? 2020.

SPEAKER_03 53:42

Okay, okay. All right. Hopefully, not everybody listens to the uh to the podcast down there pocket in.

SPEAKER_01 53:51

I hope nobody down here listens because I'm gonna be the album. Yeah. He got some grown man mad at him now.

SPEAKER_03 53:58

That's good. All right, coach. We're gonna finish with this question, our trademark question today, Coach Maurice Freeman. You've been hanging with the ADs, but let's say you can hang out with anyone. Who would that be and why?

SPEAKER_01 54:09

I would I would like to hang out with Bill Belichick. Um, he's had a ton of great seasons, but this year was awful. It was a tough season on him. So I'd like to know the adjustment, the logic, uh, because you can learn a lot of stuff from guys that win all the time, but when they go through hardships, I want to know the adjustments, when, the whys, and things of that nature.

SPEAKER_03 54:32

You like to learn, don't you, Coach?

SPEAKER_02 54:34

I'd love to learn. Coach, thank you so much for the pleasure of your time today. Josh and I wish you and the Trojans continued success, and I know our listeners are going to benefit from our time together uh today. So thank you so much.

SPEAKER_03 54:46

Brandon Hamlet. A question we have probably all asked ourselves at some point in time. Why did we get into this profession of athletic administration? I bet if we were to answer that question sincerely, the answer would come in some form of molding lives while developing a positive culture within a community. Being a leader in a community. Well, that is exactly what Coach Maurice Freeman has done at Brooks County. We had some fun talking with a fish hawk or the hammer, talking about those stories, but make no mistake, Coach Freeman has made men out of boys, implemented a progressive vision, and fostered a hard working yet positive culture in this small South Georgia County. He has brought bright lights to his community while serving others to help them achieve their big dreams. If you want to know what Coach Maurice Freeman is about, look no further than the community motto of Bring the Hammer. As he said, it's about work. It takes work to show others that you truly love them, and when speaking to Coach, it was very clear his passion is to love and grow the people in Brooks County into champions. Why may you ask? Because at the end of the day, Coach Maurice Freeman is not just a championship coach, he is a champion of life. Coach Freeman, thank you for spending your time today hanging out with Don and I. As we always ask, please take a minute and comment on this episode on the platform you're listening from or on social media, Twitter or Instagram at hanging with the AD. And until next time, thank you for spending your time hanging with the ADI.