Frazier among several region players with Shrine Bowl aspirations
By BRIAN LINDER, T&D Sports Editor Tuesday, October 27, 2009 Kendrick Frazier is a big, fast man who can play with bad intentions.
Last week, Frazier’s football coach at Denmark-Olar High School, Butch Jacobs, got a call from coaches on the South Carolina Shrine Bowl team asking him for a little more film on the Vikings’ star. In years past, that call might not have been made because Frazier comes from little, low-profile Denmark which, thanks to a 38-0 win over Branchville Friday night, has one win on the season. Frazier put himself on the map over the summer when he showed up at the Shrine Bowl Combine in Irmo, all 6-1, 241-pounds of him, and posted a 4.49, 40. Now, it’s just not the Shrine Bowl coaches that are calling the standout defensive end.
“I’m getting calls (from colleges) every now and then,” Frazier said Monday. “People want to know what I’m doing and where I’m going.”
The answer to the latter is simple. Frazier hasn’t decided yet. He plans on attending South Carolina State’s homecoming this weekend, and has designs on getting to Coastal Carolina for homecoming, but his list of offers features bigger names than that. He claims 12 offers with schools like South Carolina, Kentucky, N.C. State, Maryland, Wisconsin, Tulane, Buffalo, Tennessee and Virginia Tech in the mix.
“Awe man, it’s just marvelous,” Frazier said of the attention.
What would top everything off for Frazier would be one final high school game. Frazier hopes that game is the Shrine Bowl, and with the North Carolina and South Carolina teams scheduled to be announced at 1 p.m. Thursday he has his fingers crossed.
“I really have high hopes,” he said. “I’m really, really wishing I could make it to the Shrine Bowl. I think it would show our underclassmen that, although we had a bad season, that doesn’t mean you let yourself and your teammates down. You go out there and do your assignments like your coaches tell you to do and you can have a great outcome.”
Frazier, who competed in an Under Armour combine in Atlanta as well over the summer, said he would like to see how he fares against the rest of the top talent from South Carolina and North Carolina with pads on.
“I just want to show them that just because a person is from a small school that doesn’t have a good record, that doesn’t mean they don’t have talent,” he said. “I just want to go out there, play hard, and try to start.
“If I don’t make the Shrine Bowl, it will be kind of hard,” he added. “But, hopefully, if I don’t make the Shrine Bowl, I can still make North-South. That’s another big game, and it will be good to play with some of the other local players that I know. I’m just trying to have one more game after Bamberg-Ehrhardt. That’s what I’ve been trying to do since I started playing football this year, just get another game after Bamberg.”
Frazier is not the only T&D Region player with Shrine Bowl credentials. A handful of players, all coming from the Class A ranks, could potentially find themselves on the South Carolina roster this season. Here is a look at those players and why they might make the state’s most prestigious All-Star game.
Eric Mack
School: Calhoun County
Position: Offensive Line
Why Mack Could Make It: Mack is one of the state’s highest-profile offensive lineman. A soft verbal commitment to the University of South Carolina, the Under Armour All-American is a big (6-4, 315) mauling machine that is also very agile.
Brandon Golson
School: Calhoun County
Position: Defensive Line/Linebacker
Why Golson Could Make It: Golson has blazing speed that has made him a nightmare for opposing offenses coming off the end of Calhoun County’s defense. With only two seasons under his belt, he played just six games last year, Golson has 34 sacks. He is also an Offense-Defense All-American who has committed to the University of South Carolina.
A.J. Cann
School: Bamberg-Ehrhardt
Position: Offensive Line
Why Cann Could Make It: Cann is listed by several recruiting services as one of the top center prospects in the nation. An Under Armour All-American who has committed to the University of South Carolina, Cann is a fierce blocker who locks up defenders and drives them down the field.
Justin Henderson
School: Bamberg-Ehrhardt
Position: Defensive Line
Why Henderson Could Make It: Henderson may be a longshot for the Shrine Bowl, but will likely get some consideration because he is a physical defensive lineman. A Kentucky commitment, he has 45 tackles, three sacks and two forced fumbles this season.
D’twane Fulmer
School: Hunter-Kinard-Tyler
Position: Wide Receiver
Why Fulmer Could Make It: Fulmer may also be a longshot to make it because he plays for a low-profile, Class A school. However, as is the case with Frazier, he may very well make it based off of combine performances. Fulmer is a big target (6-3, 195) with strong hands. He catches the ball well and plays physical in going up and getting balls down field.
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