The Trenton Freedom was a professional indoor football team based in
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Professional Indoor Football League
The Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) was a professional indoor football league that played four seasons from 2012 to 2015. Like the Lone Star Football League, the PIFL was mainly composed of teams formerly part of Southern Indoor Foot ...
(PIFL). The Freedom began play in 2014 as an expansion member of the PIFL. The Freedom played their home games at the
Sun National Bank Center
The CURE Insurance Arena is a multipurpose arena in Trenton, New Jersey. It hosts events including shows, sporting events and concerts.
The arena seats 7,605 for hockey and other ice events, 8,600 for basketball and up to 10,500 for concerts, fam ...
.
Franchise history
2014
In August 2013, Owners Dennis Williams and Michael Schubiger announced their intentions to bring an indoor football team back to
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784. The owners held name the team contest, and picked the name "Freedom," as well as named Adam Turkel to be the team's first head coach and general manager. When looking for a league to play in, Williams and Schubiger both were lobbying to become members of the
Professional Indoor Football League
The Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) was a professional indoor football league that played four seasons from 2012 to 2015. Like the Lone Star Football League, the PIFL was mainly composed of teams formerly part of Southern Indoor Foot ...
(PIFL). In September, the team officially became the 7th member of the PIFL for the 2014 season. In November 2013, the team announced that they were replacing Turkel with Kevin O'Hanlon as the team's inaugural coach.
The Freedom began their inaugural season on March 30, 2014 at home, defeating the
Richmond Raiders
The Richmond Raiders were a professional indoor football team located in Richmond, Virginia the Richmond Coliseum as their home arena. The Raiders began play in the 2010 as an expansion team of the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA). The ...
52–17. Quarterback Warren Smith threw for four touchdowns and ran for two more. Defensive Back Domonic Joseph was named PIFL Defensive Player of the Week. The Freedom lost their first road game, 48–47 at the
Lehigh Valley Steelhawks
The Lehigh Valley Steelhawks were a professional indoor football team based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The Steelhawks began play as an expansion team in the Indoor Football League (IFL) in 2011.
The Steelhawks moved to the Professional Indoor ...
. Wide receiver Antoine Rivera caught 13 passes for 132 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The Freedom rebounded in their second home game for a 66–63 win over the
Columbus Lions
The Columbus Lions are a professional indoor football team based in Columbus, Georgia and are a member of the American Indoor Football Alliance. The were a founding member of the National Arena League (NAL) for the 2017 season. The Lions were f ...
. The Freedom suffered their second road loss, 42–36 at Lehigh Valley April 26, but linebacker Jeffery Morgan earned the franchise's second PIFL Defensive Player of the Week honor by scoring a pair of touchdowns. Success continued at home May 3, as the Freedom rallied with 16 points in the last two minutes to edge Richmond, 33–32, with Marques Slocum earning PIFL Defensive Player of the Week. The winning trend at home continued May 11 with a 52–39 triumph over the
Harrisburg Stampede
The Harrisburg Stampede were a professional indoor football team based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The Stampede participated in several different leagues over their history: the American Indoor Football Association in 2009 and 2010, the Southern ...
as William Hollis was named PIFL Defensive Player of the week, the team's third straight selection.
With a 52–42 win at Richmond, May 17, the Freedom recorded the franchise's first-ever road victory. The following week, back at home, the Freedom avenged two earlier losses to Lehigh Valley with a 55–42 victory to push their record to a PIFL-best 6–2 atop the National Conference.
The Freedom, with a 57–49 win at Harrisburg June 7, clinched a PIFL playoff berth in its first season in moving to 7–2.
With a 49–47 comeback win over the defending PIFL champion
Alabama Hammers
The Alabama Hammers were a professional indoor football team based in Huntsville, Alabama. The team played in the Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) from 2012 to 2015. The Hammers originally began play as an expansion team in the Southern ...
June 14, the Freedom clinched the regular-season National Conference title and a home playoff game in the franchise's first season.
The Freedom dropped a 52–49 decision to the
Georgia Fire
The Georgia Fire were a professional Indoor American football, indoor football team based in Rome, Georgia. They were members of the American Conference in the Professional Indoor Football League (2012), Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) ...
in the team's final regular-season home game.
The Freedom finished the regular season with an 8–4 record, the 2nd best in the league, but were defeated by the
Lehigh Valley Steelhawks
The Lehigh Valley Steelhawks were a professional indoor football team based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The Steelhawks began play as an expansion team in the Indoor Football League (IFL) in 2011.
The Steelhawks moved to the Professional Indoor ...
in the National Conference Championship Game by a score of 49–38.
2015
On August 26, 2015, the Freedom announced that they wouldn't be returning to play in 2016.
Players of note
Final roster
Awards and honors
The following is a list of all Freedom players who won league awards:
All-League players
The following Freedom players were named to All-League Teams:
* QB Warren Smith
* FB Melik Brown (2)
* WR Richie Martin
* OL Lavon McCoy (2), Malcolm Speller
* DL Gerrard Bryant, Michael Atunarse
* LB Jerome Hayes
* DB Mike McMillian
* Iron-man Melik Brown (2)