Georgia Magazine - August 2023 - 34

Hometown HEROES
By Amber Lanier Nagle
Coach Maurice
Freeman:
mentoring
young athletes
I
n the South Georgia town of Quitman, legendary
head football coach Maurice Freeman charges
along the sidelines of the Brooks County High
School (BCHS) practice field, shouting directions and
encouraging his players with a familiar rallying cry-
words the young men hear on and off the field.
" I'm known for saying, 'Bring that hammer!' " he
says. " It means to give everything you've got to what
you are doing at the time, whether it's football, school
or life. Attack it and give it your all. "
His fiery mantra personifies the hard-hitting,
tenacious style of coaching that has carried Freeman
and his teams to more than 250 wins-including two
state championship titles and five regional victories-
in his 20 years at BCHS. But Freeman says he finds
more joy in guiding young people as they grow and
become better versions of themselves.
Indeed, mentoring is his true calling, and
Coach Maurice Freeman, left, holds the 2021 Georgia High School Association
State Championship football trophy while standing beside his dear friend, the late
Coach Marvin Mitchell who " always brought that hammer. "
coaching gives him an opportunity to love people and
touch lives, as does volunteering with New Hope Baptist Church
in Valdosta. Freeman has influenced more than 10,000 kids in
his lifetime-on the football field, in the hallways at school, on
the banks of ponds while fishing and just wherever they are.
" Kids today aren't learning morals and values at home, and
Freeman has influenced
more than 10,000 kids
in his lifetime.
we've taken [morals and values] out of the school system, too, "
Freeman says. " It's
important that [young
people] learn to work hard
and that they understand
right from wrong. Some of
us-coaches, teachers and
other adults in their lives-are the last line of defense before
they go out into the world. It's up to us to teach them. "
Freeman's philosophy grew from his own life experiences
growing up poor in Quitman.
" My mother, Carrie Freeman, gave and gave and gave, " he
says. " We were poor, but she'd feed anyone who stopped by our
house-even when we didn't have much food ourselves. I
learned so much from her. "
Two of his high school coaches recognized his potential
and pushed him to be his best. He went on to play football at
Florida A&M University in Tallahassee. After college, Freeman
34 Georgia Magazine August 2023
could have gone anywhere, but Quitman football coach Marvin
Mitchell persuaded him to move back to his hometown.
" He gave me my first coaching job at Brooks, " Freeman
says. " We were more than friends. He was my brother until the
day he died [in May]. Even when he was at his weakest, when he
couldn't stand up, he didn't miss work. He showed all of us how
to fight and how to bring that hammer. "
Freeman, a born leader, sees every day as a lesson, a
blessing and an opportunity to serve his community with
passion and vigor.
" Coach your kids as hard as you possibly can, " he says.
" But love them even harder, and, most of all, teach them to bring
that hammer. "
Amber Lanier Nagle is a freelance writer living in
Adairsville.
Coach Maurice Freeman's catchphrase, " Bring that hammer, "
means to always attack life with an unyielding force. He has a dog
named " Hammer; " his license plate reads " Hammer; " he wears a
chain with a hammer pendant; and he gives out wristbands that
read " Bring that hammer! " Follow Freeman's " Bring That Hammer "
page at twitter.com/m14free.
DAMON WILLIAMS PHOTOGRAPHY
http://www.twitter.com/m14free
Georgia Magazine - August 2023

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