When the ball leaves his hand, the quickness and tightness of the spiral cuts through the air. The stands erupt as he makes his connection to the receiver, elevating the score. With his quick thinking and strong arm, it’s easy to forget that he’s only 15.
While most freshmen are still getting lost in the hallways, freshman Lincoln Frazier is leading the Wildkat football team through continuous victories and making a massive name for himself. His impressive stats earned him a nomination as midseason Freshman of the Year from sportingnews.com. Frazier came into this season knowing the triumphs he might face and let it all in the hands of the lord.
“I was prepared coming into this season, as I’ve been in this role for a while and know what comes with it,” Frazier said. “My mindset coming into this season was just to trust God, work as hard as I can, and to trust the people surrounding me.”
Coming into this season, many different factors played into prepping him for the first snap.
“A ton of mental reps in the classroom, watching video, and going over the playbook to start him off,” head coach Trent Miller said. “We then transitioned him into throwing drills with his teammates to get him comfortable with his timing. Constant repetition has paid off well for him.”
Just jumping onto a team with already tight bonds among the players as an underclassman, Lincoln has proved himself to be a valuable addition to the team.
“I think he’s grown as a quarterback very well, being that he was playing against eighth graders last year,” junior Daylen Wilkerson said. “He’s been able to make people forget that he’s only a fifteen-year-old freshman.”
Being related to 5-star recruit and former Wildkat QB DJ Lagway, coaches are already seeing similarities in their play between the two.
“Right now, his stature and preparation are the two biggest things I see the most that relate to DJ,” Miller said. “Linc is a big physical kid who will only get bigger and more physical, much like DJ. He is also a complete student of the game that puts a lot of focus into film study, just like DJ did.”
Lincoln still has an immense amount of room for growth within his next few seasons. He is expected to leave a lasting impact on the Wildkat football team.
“I think I need to improve on my speed and getting the ball out quicker,” Frazier said. “I look forward to continuing to grow my game throughout my high school career.”
