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Auburn players back QB Frazier
By: Ryan Wood | Opelika-Auburn News
Published: September 13, 2012 Updated: September 13, 2012 - 10:02 PM
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AUBURN - Leaving the field Saturday, Auburn defensive end Dee Ford put an arm around his quarterback, pulled him in and started to talk.
Sophomore Kiehl Frazier had his head down. Ford’s words were inaudible, but the junior clearly was showing some encouragement.
Some time between then and now, right guard Chad Slade made sure Frazier kept his head up. Slade knew his quarterback took Saturday’s loss at Mississippi State hard. Frazier said he made mistakes on 75 percent of plays – a ratio coaches refuted.
Still, Frazier’s 13-of-22 passing, 125 yards, five turnovers and zero touchdowns brought plenty of justified criticism from fans.
“We don’t listen to the outside world,†Slade said. “I told Kiehl we’re always going to have his back. No matter what anybody says, we’re going to rally together with him. So they can say whatever they want to say to him, but I know as an offense we’re going to support Kiehl.â€
One by one, Auburn players showed their support this week. It came from everywhere – offense and defense, youngsters and veterans, no matter the position. Some went out of their way. Other did it quietly, subtle by nature.
Auburn coach Gene Chizik said the bottom line is clear: Frazier’s teammates have his back.
“The quarterback’s world is different from the offensive guard’s world and the defensive end’s world,†Chizik said. “So that comes with the territory, and a lot of our guys are very supportive of Kiehl and they believe in him. They’re all trying to be very encouraging.
“Our team is close. They’ve got a lot of care for each other. That doesn’t surprise me.â€
Frazier can get all the backing in the world from teammates. It’s not going to make his numbers better.
When Auburn plays Louisiana-Monroe at 11:21 a.m. Saturday in the Tigers home opener, Frazier said he hopes he can reward his teammates’ confidence.
“I take a lot of responsibility for that loss,†Frazier said of Mississippi State. “But the guys on the team are saying, 'Hey, it's not all your fault.' Those guys are still supporting me.
“It's the first time I've ever been through playing that bad. It's kind of new for me. I'm just ready for the ULM game to get here.â€
New or not, it needs to change.
While Chizik was proud of his team’s response to its leader, he’s not going to sit idly by and watch blunder after blunder unfold. There isn’t a coach with a job who would look at Frazier’s stats Saturday and call it a good performance.
For the first time, Chizik admitted this week a quarterback change is possible if Frazier doesn’t improve, even pointing to what happened last year when Clint Moseley replaced Barrett Trotter midway through the season.
But when the coaching staff committed to Frazier, Chizik said a decision was made to ride through tough times.
“Part of a young quarterback's journey, he's got to play through tough times,†Chizik said. “That's part of a young guy's journey. That doesn't mean down the road … If we think that that's something that we need to consider, we will. (Saturday), he had to get through a tough time.
“He's our quarterback.â€
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