Latest news with #AntonioFreeman
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Son of Packers Hall of Famer named to 60-man preliminary U.S. Men's Soccer roster for summer competitions
Son of Packers Hall of Famer named to 60-man preliminary U.S. Men's Soccer roster for summer competitions (WFRV) – He made his arrival earlier in 2025 by scoring his first goal in his first start, and now he's earning more recognition amidst a stellar Major League Soccer campaign. Alexander 'Alex' Freeman, the 20-year-old son of former Packers Hall of Famer and Super Bowl winner Antonio Freeman, was named to the United States Men's National Team's preliminary 60-man roster ahead of summer competitions, FOX Sports' Doug McIntyre reported. Advertisement Packers proposal to ban the tush push is back on the table at the spring owners meetings Freeman, a defender for MLS's Orlando City SC, has scored three goals and assisted another in 14 matches in 2025. While it's only a preliminary roster spot, the young fullback has shown his prowess as a 20-year-old. In his most recent appearance, he posted 90 minutes with a shot on target, a successful clearance while completing 32 out of his 39 passes. Those came on May 18 against the Lionel Messi-led Inter Miami, a match that Orlando City won 3-0. While his father was making circus catches in overtime for the Green Bay Packers, Alex Freeman is showcasing his talents in a different kind of football, and now he's headed towards a potential U.S. Men's National Team debut this summer. Advertisement Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton.
USA Today
22-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Former Packers WR Antonio Freeman's son is rising star in American soccer
Former Packers WR Antonio Freeman's son is rising star in American soccer The son of former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Antonio Freeman is becoming a rising star in American soccer. As noted by Paul Tenorio of The Athletic, Alex Freeman -- Antonio's 20-year-old son -- is emerging as a breakout player while with Orlando City of the MLS and has caught the eye of the United States men's national team. Freeman, who plays a defensive wing position with attacking responsibilities at right back, was included on a 60-player preliminary roster ahead of the CONCACAF Gold Cup and could play in friendlies for the USMNT next month. Freeman has appeared in 17 games and scored three goals for Orlando City over the last three seasons. He's made 14 appearances and scored all three of his goals during the 2025 season, when he rose into a starting position at right back and quickly became a breakout player in the top American soccer league. From Justin Ruderman of MLS: "Before the 2025 campaign, the Orlando City homegrown fullback had a mere 10 minutes of MLS action under his belt. This year, he's already exceeded 1,200 minutes by appearing in all 14 Lions matches (starting 13), while being arguably the most dangerous attacking fullback in the league. Just 20 years old, Freeman has already scored three times and given an assist to support Orlando's devastating attack." The big-time national stage is next. Freeman has previously appeared in games for the age-limited national teams, including six games for the under-19 team and five for the under-23 team, but he could make his national debut soon. USMNT coach Maurico Pochettino called up Freeman on the training camp roster before June matches against Turkey and Switzerland. Freeman is one of eight defenders on the 27-player roster. "I think all the players that are for the first time with us, I think all deserve to be there, deserve to have the chance. … I am so clear about that," Pochettino said. "After it's about not to lose the possibility when you have the chance." Freeman's father was a decorated receiver for the Packers. He won Super Bowl XXXI and was an All-Pro and Pro Bowler in 1998. He also set the Super Bowl record for longest touchdown reception (81 yards, since broken), led the NFL in receiving yards in 1998 and ranks eighth in franchise history with 6,651 receiving yards and sixth in receiving touchdowns with 57. He played nine NFL seasons, including eight in Green Bay (1995-2001, 2003).
New York Times
19-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Alex Freeman runs his own route, right onto the USMNT's radar
It would have been easy for Orlando City right back Alex Freeman to feel pressure to follow in his father's footsteps. Former Green Bay Packers All-Pro wide receiver Antonio Freeman certainly had dreams of teaching his son the art of route-running in the backyard. 'Of course, every dad's dream as a former athlete is that I'm going to have my hands on him, I'm going to teach him, I'm going to show him the nuances and the tricks of the trade,' Antonio Freeman recalled in a phone interview with The Athletic. Advertisement But Alex Freeman wanted to kick every ball around him. And his mother, Rochelle Hinkle, threw him into every sport. In fact, tennis looked like a potential path for him at one point. In the end, however, the tendency to put the ball at his feet prevailed. Soccer was the right path. Freeman is in the midst of a breakout season with Orlando City. Another strong outing in a 3-0 win over Inter Miami on Sunday night — he created four chances, including two big chances, had 0.8 expected goals and 0.34 expected assists — reinforced his impact this year. The 20-year-old right back has won the starting job under Óscar Pareja, and his effectiveness on the ball in possession and getting forward and contributing in the attacking end has put him on the radar of the U.S. men's national team. Freeman, who has three goals and one assist this season, was a surprise name on Mauricio Pochettino's 60-man preliminary roster for next month's Concacaf Gold Cup. He's an intriguing prospect at a position of need for the U.S., and his inclusion on the list is confirmation of his progress. For Freeman, it's all validation for the path that he is forging on his own. 'It's kind of good to create my own story,' Freeman said last week. 'To be able to maybe step away from the fact that my dad was a professional football player and just try to create my own narrative.' The Freemans always wanted to make sure the son never felt any paternal pressure. They thought about naming him Antonio Freeman Jr., but they opted against that to avoid those sorts of comparisons to the Super Bowl XXXI champion and Packers Hall of Famer. Alex picked up nearly every sport he tried. Rochelle said she thought basketball would be the path, and that tennis coaches told her Alex could pursue a pro career in that sport, too. In the end, he started to lean toward soccer, the sport in which his stepfather, Jake Hinkle, was his first coach. Advertisement The whole family started to get baptized into soccer life at the youth fields, where they became fixtures. Rochelle is now a Liverpool fan and jokingly called Alex, 'my little Trent Alexander-Arnold.' Antonio Freeman recalled his own exposure to soccer growing up in Maryland at a camp run by John Murdock, a well-known coach and mentor in East Baltimore. He laughed that his career ended at age 12, when he stopped going to Murdock's camps, and said he felt like he had picked things up when he finally understood the offside rule while watching his son at a tournament in Dallas. 'The more they watch it, the more they're trying to tell me stuff,' Alex Freeman said, laughing. 'And I'm like, come on.' The all-in moment came during the COVID-19 pandemic. Alex tried out for Inter Miami's academy but didn't make the team. His former coach at Weston FC, Javier Carrillo, convinced him to come play in Orlando City's academy. Rochelle hesitated at the idea of sending her 15-year-old son three hours away in the midst of the pandemic, but ultimately allowed him to go live with the family of another player on the team in 2020. In Orlando, Alex, who had largely played as a winger and forward, started his transition to right back. He won an MLS Next Cup U-17 championship in 2021, then signed a homegrown deal in 2022. After spending three seasons with the club's reserve side, Orlando City B, with three MLS regular-season first-team appearances in 2023 and 2024 combined, Freeman won a starting job with the first team this season. 'I feel like everyone has a different journey,' he said. 'I wanted to be a professional soccer player, and at a very young age I was offered the opportunity to be one. I knew maybe I wouldn't play right away, but that I could be able to play for the first team eventually. 'Playing with OCB for about three years improved me a lot. … And now that I finally got to the point where I want to be at, it's about not taking anything for granted and just keep giving 100 percent.' Advertisement There have been moments this season with Orlando that keep drawing your eye to the young right back. In the 75th minute of a draw against the Philadelphia Union in April, Freeman held the ball away from Philly defender Nathan Harriel with his right foot. Then, as midfielder Jovan Lukić approached from the other side, Freeman calmly pulled a Cruyff turn between the two of them to break free, then ran at the Union back line and set up a shot by forward Luis Muriel. Against the Galaxy a few weeks earlier, Freeman recognized how he could create space by carrying the ball inside and then playing it wide. He kept his run inside in the channel and accelerated past a defender to get into space for a dangerous cross. Against NYCFC, he stayed alert and in position and was able to clear the ball off the goal line on an overhead kick after a Pedro Gallese save. Then, of course, there are his goals, including his first career goal in his first career start. Freeman waited until gameday to tell his parents that he was starting. Rochelle said she's perpetually late and that Alex told her to try to be on time for this one. Antonio missed the first two minutes because he accidentally parked near the Citrus Bowl for a car show instead of near Orlando City Stadium. He sprinted through the neighborhood to get to the stadium, but missed the walk-out, which was the big moment in his mind. Then, Alex scored, in a moment Antonio captured jubilantly on social media. A post shared by End Zone with Antonio Freeman (@endzonewithfree) For his parents, it was a payoff for the work they saw him putting in to try to get to that first-team level. 'He is very passionate, he's always worked so hard off the field, even when he's not practicing he would be in the gym or working out or watching other games,' Rochelle Hinkle said. 'He's just so focused. It's amazing. It took him a minute to get to this level, but it looks like he's ready. Watching him play these last few games, I am not surprised, but he has risen to the occasion.' Advertisement Freeman still has plenty of work to do, especially on the defensive side. But his confidence and ability going forward are on display in nearly every game for Orlando City. Pareja, who consistently produced young homegrown talent at FC Dallas, said he wouldn't have put Freeman into the lineup if he didn't think he was ready to take this next step. 'Alex is putting all the pieces together,' Pareja said. 'Defensively, he is working much better understanding the function and the responsibility that he has as a fullback. Offensively, I think he's understanding much better, as well, his connections with his midfielders and also his winger on his side. All those parts are growing. 'He has the intuition, the intelligence to (come inside to play). I like it because he's not forcing it. It's natural. He comes especially as a false winger with a very natural way. He allows us to make some movements that convert Alex into a very functional player. That ability that he has to combine with his teammates around him just caught my eye.' If Freeman can continue to progress as a defender, his profile will certainly be attractive at higher levels. And while he's forging his own path, he made sure to say he takes enormous pride in adding to his father, and his family's, legacy. 'To have someone that's always there for me, he has impacted my life a lot,' he said. 'It just shows how he came from so little, and he was able to do so much for his family and give back to them. And not only that, but he was able to succeed. He beat the odds. 'I feel like in life, you're gonna have odds against you. You're gonna have to work and try to beat them. You're gonna have stuff that you're gonna have to overcome. As a person, not even just as a parent, but as a person, he's done that a lot. So he's definitely someone that I look up to every day.
