Frazier 'doing a great job'
When tight end Brandon Frazier arrived at Auburn, expectations were high.
Hailing from McKinney, Texas, the former 3-star tight end was a top target for former head coach Gus Malzahn and offensive coordinator Chad Morris.
Listed at 6-foot-7, 267 pounds, while remaining athletic and being able to run routes, it’s easy to see why he was of interest for Auburn.
After being the early talk of fall camp as someone who was quickly making a name for himself, Frazier went down with an injury and didn’t make an appearance until the Tennessee game in late November.
Frazier finished the season with just two receptions for 13 yards.
But, new tight end coach Brad Bedell has seen Frazier come on strong in spring practice.
“He’s—the whole COVID thing and things like that, he had some other things—when you look at him and see how big and long he is, and he’s just getting more developed. You kind of look at him and go, 'Boy, what year is that kid?'” Bedell said. “And he's young. And so that's so exciting about it, and like I said, his length and his catch radius is getting stronger. And then just his overall physicality is really showing up, and he's another one that I think down the road can develop as a good leader within that room.
“And just development with him is going to be key. And he's doing a great job now, but like I said, you look at him and you're like, 'Wow.' I mean, he looks like he should be older than he is, and so now it's just developing and getting into those habits of studying and things like that, and he's doing a great job. He can be a really good one.”
Under the new offense led by Bryan Harsin and Mike Bobo, Frazier and the other tight ends are expected to be more involved in the offense.
With Frazier fully healthy, he could prove to be a potential matchup nightmare for Bo Nix this year.
Luke Deal, who considers Frazier one of his best friends, has seen him grow a lot from fall camp to now.
“Brandon when he got in, he was a little shy, a little worried about how he could develop in the offense. But now man, he’s thriving,” Deal said. “He’s catching onto things a lot quicker. He has gotten a lot stronger, more physical. And that’s really everybody’s problem when they get in, mine included when I first got here. You go over there, and you’re on that practice field and you get hit a couple times and you’re like, ‘Oh. I’m going to have to change some things.’ So I think he’s done a good job of that. He’s been really physical and working on his feet and his hand. And like I said, the whole tight end group, man, we’re excited to be in a physical, downhill offense and it kind of fits us better.”
Auburn practiced on Monday, with another practice set for Wednesday.
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