DaytonDailyNews.com

TROTWOOD — Chris Freeman wasn't little even when he was little.

As a seventh-grader, he said he was 6-foot-5 and weighed 250 pounds. What he wasn't was a football player.

"I was just a basketball player," said Freeman, now a 6-9, 340-pound Trotwood-Madison senior left tackle. "My parents didn't want me to play football because they thought I'd get hurt."

Freeman and his parents, Michael and Tishia, did have a nerve-wracking medical scare this week. On Tuesday, Aug. 26, Freeman collapsed while at practice. He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital, had his football helmet and pads cut away and was held overnight for tests.

Late Wednesday afternoon, Freeman was released and cleared to play in Trotwood's football game in Irving, Texas, on Saturday night.

The death of Trotwood freshman Lamar Davis while he played pick-up basketball on Oct. 6, 2007, was on Michael Freeman's mind. Davis had an enlarged heart, something doctors tested for with Freeman.

"That's the first thing I thought when I got the call at work," Michael said. "I couldn't help but think about Lamar Davis."

Freeman's father said doctors found out that Chris has asthma. That limited the amount of oxygen in his lungs and put pressure on one side of his heart. With some temporary breathing treatments and an inhaler, Freeman should be fine. His father said Chris had never passed out before.

"It (had been) tough, because of the unknown, just not knowing," Michael said. "I told him, if it comes down to it, it's just one game. ... That's my kid. I want to make sure he'll be able to lead a normal life."

One-game season

Even before this latest chapter, Freeman's story has reached near mythical status. He only became eligible before Trotwood's final playoff game against Cincinnati Turpin last season.

It was the first football game of his life.

"It was exciting," Freeman said. "A lot of people were expecting me to be nervous, but I went out there and hit it head-on and took it as it was. And loved it."

From that singular game, Trotwood coach Maurice Douglass and his staff created a "highlights" tape of about 40 plays.

Offers poured in from nearly all of college football's heavyweights.

"He will be a pretty good offensive tackle," Douglass said of Freeman's college and pro potential.

"In four or five years he has an opportunity to get his name called (at the NFL draft). You don't find bodies like that that are that mobile."

Fancy footwork

Despite two fractures to his feet (one from hitting a tree while sledding his freshman year and the other during basketball), Freeman has nimble footwork.

"It's all based off of his feet; it's not just his size," Douglass said. "He has outstanding footwork. He's so agile. He's got long arms, so he's a natural left tackle."

Experience from making pivots and boxing out in basketball plus learning some boxing training moves from a buddy's father have made him quick for his size.

"He's still the biggest unknown commodity in the state," recruiting analyst Duane Long said of Freeman. "He has physical tools that you can't coach.

"The offers are just on the physical tools he brings to the table. How hard (schools) push him to commit depends on how he does this fall."

Ohio State has not offered, probably preferring to see more video. Plus, Long said offensive linemen take a while to develop, and some schools may be concerned about someone who started so late.

Finding football

But with a current top five of Wisconsin, Michigan, West Virginia, Florida and Tennessee, Freeman is happy and bewildered about his recruitment.

"How?" he wondered. "I knew a lot of people said I'd get something off of my size. I guess a lot of coaches like my footwork and everything.

"It just shocked me. I guess it kind of came easy to me at first, but then it makes me want to start working harder and harder."

That includes in the classroom, where poor grades kept him ineligible last season. He now says school work is under control.

"I was just being a little bit childish in a couple classes," Freeman said. "Being a knucklehead."

Freeman has a big smile and looks 7-feet tall in his helmet and cleats. He hopes to get his weight down to 315 or 320 so he can move quicker. And right now, he plans to play basketball for new coach Mark Baker.

But he finally found football — or it found him — and he knows left tackle is where his future lies.

"I love it," Freeman said. "I wouldn't want to play any other position."

Chris Freeman

Position: Left tackle

Grade: Senior

Height: 6-foot-9

Weight: 340 pounds

Football career: Two varsity games

Top 5 college choices: Wisconsin, Michigan, West Virginia, Tennessee, Florida