Freeman the man for Episcopal plan

Episcopal Collegiate's game plan has been simple since Richie Marsh became the Wildcats' coach in 2013.

Give Allie Freeman the ball early and often.

The junior has been among the top wide receivers in the state this season, catching 84 passes for 1,810 yards and 22 touchdowns for the Wildcats (11-1), who have advanced to the Class 3A quarterfinals and will play at Mayflower (9-3) on Friday night.

"He's great to have on the squad because he's so smart and he's able to play so many positions for us," Marsh said. "He plays two or three positions on offense and a couple of positions on defense. He returns kicks. He's on all of our special teams. He's blocked a couple of kicks this year.

"He's open-minded about doing different things rather than just sitting out there at receiver and catching screens all day. It's a pleasure to coach him."

Freeman calls his situation at Episcopal Collegiate, a private school in Little Rock, humbling.

"I take it all in and don't take it for granted, because it can all be taken away like that," Freeman said.

Freeman is the son of former University of Arkansas basketball player Allie Freeman, who played for the Razorbacks in 1984-1988, but he said his father has helped him avoid any comparisons between the two.

"My dad always tells me don't get caught up in people telling me you have to live up to your dad's expectations," Freeman said. "My dad tells me to be myself. You be who you are."

Freeman, who has received NCAA Division I interest from Arkansas and Missouri, is averaging 150.8 receiving yards per game this season.

"That's what so impressive about Allie, it's every week," Marsh said. "He'll have 150-200 yards receiving, and he'll have 150-200 return yards. It's just a steady performance.

"It's never a guessing game about how he's going to produce that night."

Freeman caught 7 passes for 214 yards and 2 touchdowns in the Wildcats' 47-16 victory over Mountain View last Friday.

"I was on that night," Freeman said. "It's all for my team. Nothing for myself. I keep them first because I want to do it for them. Without my team, I wouldn't be able to be as good as I am."

Freeman, who had 1,639 receiving yards as a sophomore last season, credits Marsh for the Wildcats' success the past two seasons.

"We trust the system," Freeman said. "Come Friday night, we're ready to play. The coaches put it in our minds and hearts if we stick to the system and do everything we're supposed to do, there's no way we can be beat. We try to keep our confidence alive and heads up high. We keep everyone together."

Episcopal Collegiate is in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive season. Freeman and the Wildcats are hoping for a better result this season after they lost 36-15 at Smackover a year ago.

"Last year, we went into the quarterfinals and we weren't as prepared as we are this year," Freeman said. "Last year we were in shock we made it that far. It was happening so fast. This year, we're a veteran team. We're more prepared and we're more focused. We're a lot hungrier than we were last year."

The Wildcats and Mayflower are former 5-3A Conference rivals, so Freeman is familiar with the Eagles.

"We see them in basketball, football and baseball," said Freeman, who was a guard on Episcopal's Class 3A state championship basketball team last season. "It's a very hostile environment. We have to be focused and ready to play.

"I believe that just knowing them and playing them so many times, it helps us. We know what they like to do and go with the football. We feel like we're really prepared for this game."

Sports on 11/26/2014