First of all, what a great way to start the new year off, congrats on the new position. You will join your former South Dakota State coach as his Offensive Coordinator and QB Coach at Washington State University. So what, if anything, do you know about Pullman, Washington?
Thank you! We’ve played in eastern Washington a few times in my career, it’s a beautiful part of the country with rolling hills. I also know the people in Pullman have great support of Washington State and love their Cougs.
So in two years and some change you went from Grand Forks, ND (UND), to Brookings, SD (SDSU) to Pullman, WA (WSU). After a decade plus in Grand Forks, it has been mobile time in your career. Was that by design?
When we moved from UND to SDSU, we knew there would be a greater likelihood of mobility. We didn’t anticipate it would happen again this quickly. We loved our time in Grand Forks – I went to school at UND, my wife is from Grand Forks and our 3 kids were born there. It was going to take the right people and opportunity for us to leave there. We got that in Coach Rogers, the staff and their families when we jumped on at SDSU.
And anyone in your profession is keenly aware that your movement equates to the movement of your family. There is little doubt that a football family knows that mobility may be part of the equation, but talk a little about the support you have received in making this move at this point in your career.
The support from my wife, kids and our families means everything. I wouldn’t be able to do this job if Ann wasn’t fully committed to being a part of it. The two moves in 12 months has its challenges, but I know my wife is awesome and able to handle a lot throughout the whole process.
My cousin lives in Barnesville, MN, just across the line from Fargo and he tells me that people who end up in “The Dakotas” love it there and never want to move. How hard was it to leave that special area of the country?
It was hard to leave that area of the country because of the people. There are so many genuine, compassionate, hard working people in “the Dakotas” and our family felt at home there. The support for the universities and athletics is very strong.
You are joining a team in a very fluid Pac-12, with NIL changing the landscape of college athletics and a transfer portal system that has coaches recruiting their own roster annually, How are you finding this new era of the College Football environment?
The new era of college football is different and constantly changing. It’s exciting and you have to be able to adapt and change with it. But it’s also still about developing people and creating relationships in recruiting and on your team that make people want to be a part of it.
You are gaining in reputation, as one of the great offensive minds in the game, and the numbers of the offenses you put on the field back those statements up every Saturday…what’s the special sauce when it comes to moving the football?
When it comes to being explosive on offense, I think it’s about putting your players in the best positions to have success. That might look a little different every year, but it’s about finding creative ways to run the football and attack in the pass game while keeping it simple for your players. It’s important to recruit and develop the right guys, and a lot of that has to do with the staff and work they put in.
I know first hand, when it came to the playbook, your dad, the great Bob Freund, changed the playbook weekly…sometimes daily. He said, “how can they know what we got coming when I don’t even know yet what we got coming”. How much does your play calling mirror that “adaptability” concept?
A lot of how I coach can be traced back to my dad and his approach – I spent many years on the sidelines and in locker rooms with him and his teams, some of the best times of my life and also the reason I’m coaching today. Whether it’s scheme or how to motivate and coach the group, I learned a lot from being around him and the amount of respect his teams and staff had for him.
Speaking of the great St Joe’s Head Coach and Hall of Famer, Bob Freund, he’s gotta be off the chain excited for this opportunity for you and proud beyond comprehension.
My dad is fired up, along with my entire family. I know he’s looking forward to heading out to Pac-12 country to watch the Cougs and hang out with the grandkids.
How often do you think back about playing against Coach Bob Hyland and St Mary’s Springs at Ameche, throwing it all over creation…to Heller mostly? And how did those times contribute to where you have made it to today?
I think about my high school years often – some of the best memories of my life competing at St. Joe’s with some of my best friends. We had some great years in football and on the hardwood as well. Those years gave me the opportunity to continue to play in college and develop at a great university.
KTown just had Gavin Lux win another ring with the Dodgers and now Danny Freund might be the closest person with KTown roots to winning the hometown another ring. Now that, of course, is a tall order, but do you feel any pressure or just the pride and love coming from the folks back here in KTown?
It’s awesome the pride and love I get from Kenosha. It’s a special and loyal community. I’m humbled by the support I get and I’m really excited to continue to represent the city the right way.
Thanks for taking the time to give KSE readers a little insight into what your life has been like the last few years and the last few weeks…this place is as loyal to its own as any place in the country and your success is KTown’s success. I speak for myself and at least a couple dozen regular readers when I say “Run it up Herman…leave no doubt!!!”.
