Eltoro Freeman (born May 7, 1989) is a former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

Early life

Freeman attended

Benjamin Russell High School Alexander City Schools is the public school district of Alexander City, Alabama, established in 1879. Alexander City Schools serves 2,948 students and employs 170 teachers and 67 staff as of the 2020–2021 school year. The district includes t ...

, where he was an All-State performer and recorded 140 tackles and 10 sacks at linebacker his senior year, while taking 15 carries for 223 yards and three scores at running back. As a junior, he registered 100 tackles, including 52 for losses. Considered a four-star recruit by ''

Rivals.com Rivals.com (stylized as ''rivals'') is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was found ...

'', Freeman ranked No. 22 nationally at outside linebacker and the No. 8 overall recruit in Alabama. He originally committed to Auburn in 2007 but did not qualify academically.

College career

Mississippi Gulf Coast

For one-and-a-half years, Freeman attended

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (MGCCC) is a Public college, public community college with its main campus in Perkinston, Mississippi. It was founded as Harrison County Agricultural High School in 1912. MGCCC has three campuses and sev ...

Perkinston, Mississippi Perkinston is an unincorporated community in central Stone County, Mississippi, United States. It is situated along U.S. Highway 49, approximately five miles south of Wiggins. The community is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi, Mississippi M ...

, where he teamed up with All-American

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

Terrence Cody Terrence Bernard Cody, Jr. (born June 28, 1988) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide.. He was selected by t ...

. As a

true freshman The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

in 2007, he compiled 65 tackles, 17 tackles-for-loss, five sacks and two forced fumbles. Mississippi Gulf Coast finished the season 12–0 and was named 2007 NJCAA Co-National Champions, their first national title in 23 years. Freeman earned Juco All-American and MACJC South first team honors in 2007. He

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

the 2008 season to keep three years of eligibility.

Auburn

Freeman enrolled early at Auburn to participate in spring practice. After spring drill, he became an instant starter at outside linebacker. He played on the 2010 BCS National Champions Auburn Tigers. Freeman graduated from Auburn in 2011.

Professional career

Baltimore Ravens

Freeman went undrafted in the

2012 NFL draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

. He was signed by the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

in May 2012, but released only five days later.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

After not being signed by any football club for multiple years, Freeman had a chance to tryout with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

in late January 2015. About one month later Freeman and the Riders agreed to a contract. Freeman was released by the Roughriders on June 15, 2015, after appearing in the first pre-season game.

References

External links

Auburn Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freeman, Eltoro 1989 births Living people People from Alexander City, Alabama American football linebackers Auburn Tigers football players Players of American football from Tallapoosa County, Alabama Mississippi Gulf Coast Bulldogs football players Players of Canadian football from Alabama