What is a true freshman in college football?

Answer 1

True freshman is a term used in collegiate sports, indicating that an athlete is playing the sport in his first year of college, rather than redshirting for one or more years to protect future college eligibility. In football, freshmen usually are redshirted because they do not have as much of a chance of starting or getting playing time for a team as a sophomore, junior, or senior, and could allow them to play an additional year or years later on in their collegiate careers when they are more experienced and physically mature. Redshirting is used less frequently in other sports. According to Wikipedia.com.

Answer 2

You are probably referring to a redshirted freshman. In football you receive a redshirt by not playing in any games in a given season. Also by receiving a redshirt it does not count against your years of eligibility. So a redshirt freshman or rFrosh can still play 4 years just like a true freshman can.