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Call Him "Buttons" or "Free," He Just Makes Plays

Chris Hollenback — Thu, 29 Oct 1998 12:03:35 CST

Sure, his nickname has changed. And now he has a Super Bowl ring.

But sit down to talk with Packers wide receiver Antonio Freeman, shoot some hoops with him, or try covering him on a pro football field, and you'll see he hasn't changed a bit.

Just ask his high school coach.

"He was not a mouthy kid," former Baltimore Polytech coach Augie Weibel says. "He was easy to coach."

Any different today, Coach Cromwell?

"He lets what he does on the field talk for itself," says Nolan Cromwell, the Packers' wide receivers coach. "He practices hard every day. He plays hard."

To his family and friends, Antonio Michael Freeman will always be "Buttons." His mother called him Buttons because she thought he was "cute as a button" when he was born. His father called him Buttons after a baby monkey on TV.

Coach Weibel renamed a play from "98 Split-Out Carroll Dale" to "98 Split-Out Buttons Freeman." Then he retired Buttons' uniform, the only..

Where Are They Now?: Paul Coffman

Mon, 19 Oct 1998 14:04:28 CST

Former Packers tight end Paul Coffman has a field of dreams in his back yard.

It's nothing like the pristine Lambeau Field grass he used to play on on Sundays during his NFL days from 1978-1985.

On these 40 acres, it's his children - Chase, 11; Carson, 10; Camille, 8; and Cameron, 6 - who are diving for catches, spiking the ball and coming in for dinner with grass stains.

"It's so neat watching your kids develop," Coffman says. "Not only as athletes, but as people - learning the hard work and discipline." The three-time Pro Bowl selection is sure to hand down to his kids some of the grit he has displayed time and again in his life.

Coffman, nicknamed "Hog," majored in grain milling at Kansas State, and wasn't scouted much, despite his second-team All-Big Eight status. But when friend and former KSU teammate, linebacker Gary Spani, had a tryout for former Packers assistant coach John Meyer, Coffman showed up, too, and persuaded Meyer to take a look ..

A Quiet Leader

Chris Hollenback — Thu, 08 Oct 1998 12:04:45 CST

On the day Packers defensive tackle Santana Dotson was born, his father was on the Oakland Raiders practice field, rushing the quarterback.

"The Raiders' trainer, George Anderson, came over to me and said, 'You have a new son,'" Alphonse Dotson recalls. Alphonse, a one-time Packers draft pick who instead opted to sign with the rival American Football League, called his wife Caroline.

"She said, 'I named him already. My brother wants to name him Santana - for the musician.' I said, 'I'm more into the Indian Chief, who did a lot for his tribe, and worked for peace.'"

Chief Santana's philosophy was "with unity comes strength," and Alphonse and Caroline stressed the message with their young son.

"As a kid growing up, it meant a lot," Santana says.

"Santana was a good kid and a leader without trying to lead," Alphonse says. "I ended up with always a house full of neighborhood kids."

Santana remains a quiet leader today on the Packers. ..