Notes: 'The Train' firmly on track
Largely because of his physical nature between the lines, George Frazier endeared himself to Colorado fans during his redshirt freshman campaign in 2014. An off-the-field incident last off-season led to a slow start in 2015, though.
Frazier, who was nicknamed “The Train” by Buffs head coach Mike MacIntyre two years ago, is firmly back on track and optimistic about what he can bring to the new offense.
“It was frustrating to know that I put myself in a predicament where I hurt my team. It was something I did to myself, nobody else but me,” Frazier said when reflecting on the DWAI (driving while ability impaired) charge he plead to last off-season. “I definitely would never do anything like that again.
“I definitely grew a lot from that situation. It forced me to mature and open my mind and think before I make actions. I am not a kid anymore, there are consequences. ... I love this game and I am getting a lot of reps this spring so I believe my role might be expanded a little bit.”
While he is no longer splitting time between offense and the defensive line, Frazier will continue to be used as a versatile piece. He plays fullback, tight end and H-back.
“We're doing a lot of different things with George,” MacIntyre confirmed. “He plays on all the special teams, too. So George will play a lot in the game. It might not be 20 [plays] in a row, all the time, but he will play a lot.
“He is doing a lot of good things for us. I would say Sean [Irwin] and George have stepped up from where they were, and I thought they were good players last year. Now, I think they're really, really excellent. They're good weapons for us and we're finding ways to use them.”
With new co-offensive coordinator Darrin Chiaverini's fingerprints now on the offense, Frazier said he is doing “more downhill running and blocking.”
“This offense lets me get my body moving forward to hit somebody,” he explained. “It is also nice having a full-time [fullbacks and tight ends] coach now. When we had Klayton [Adams], he had to bounce back and forth between tight ends and the running backs. Coach [Gary] Bernardi is with us all the time.
“Coach Bernardi is hands on with us, and he is a great coach. He knows a lot and is super funny. We can all laugh with him but he still gets on us when it is time. We all know when it is time to go and when it is time to have fun. I am having a great time with him as my coach.”
Frazier's teammates don't typically call him “The Train,” but the nickname does get called out during practice from time-to-time.
“Sometimes when we call big personnel, they still call me 'The Train' and go 'choo-choo,'” he said. “The nickname didn't really stick too much but I love it.”
Frazier is most often used as a blocker, but he has made the most of his touches. On just 16 offensive touches the previous two seasons, he scored five touchdowns.
“When I have the ball in my hands, I am always trying to make sure my pads are moving forward,” Frazier said. “I believe when I am on the field, I should always be able to run through anybody. I love being 'The Train.' Trains don't stop for anything.”
Tuesday spring football notes:
*** The Buffaloes' 11th spring practice was moved from Monday to Tuesday because some players were "sick and throwing up" and some other players were "banged up with ankle" injuries to begin the week.
"The extra day helped us get some more guys back out," said MacIntyre. "It is easy in the spring because you don't have to prepare for a game right now. You couldn't have done that during the week of a game. You want to have as many guys out there because spring is about improving and getting everybody better."
MacIntyre confirmed sophomore safety Jaisen Sanchez, who has a torn ACL, is the only player that has suffered a season-ending injury so far this spring.
*** Because of Colorado's lack of depth at inside linebacker, MacIntyre said they will not split up two teams for this Saturday's spring game like they have done in recent years. It will instead be a standard offense vs. defense scrimmage.
“It is hard to split up two teams when you don't have enough guys. Because then one linebacker is going to play every single play and I don't think we want that for a spring game,” MacIntyre said. “You would have more of a chance of a guy getting injured."
*** Senior inside linebacker Kenneth Olugbode has been recovering well from the leg injury that forced him to miss the first half of spring ball.
"Kenneth has done well. Friday we still had him in a blue (no-contact) shirt but today he was in a white jersey thudding up. There were no issues whatsoever from what I saw today," MacIntyre said.
*** Former La Mirada (Calif.) High prep standout J.T. Bale, who joined the Buffaloes' program as a preferred walk-on last summer, is part of a two-man competition to replace the departed Wyatt Tucker Smith as the team's starting long snapper.
“[J.T. Bale] has had an excellent spring long snapping, so has Chris Hill," MacIntyre said. "[In the spring game] we'll get them out there in front of some fans and put them in some situations. We'll see how they handle that. I really have been pleased with JT Bale's snaps.”
