It didn’t take long for Darius Stills to realize the potential of Zach Frazier.

The two played for one season together at Fairmont Senior and Stills was able to see just how advanced he was even at a young age with his understanding of the game and his physical abilities. At the time Stills was set to embark on his own journey as a college athlete, but the signs were there for Frazier.

“When he came in and started lifting 315-pounds like it was nothing. I knew he was special,” he said.

Of course, that didn’t necessarily come as a surprise to Stills as he watched Frazier routinely dominate the competition at the junior high level. Still, it didn’t take him long to acclimate in high school.

“He would destroy kids like it was nobody’s business,” Stills said.

Part of his advancement on the mental side of things can be attributed to his father, who played college football at Fairmont State. From the time Frazier was in pee-wee league, his dad taught him the fundamentals of the game and everything he needed to know to be successful.

That gave him an edge, but his work ethic did the rest.

Frazier recalls those battles between the Stills brothers as opportunities to get better. Competing against two future power five athletes let him know where he stood.

That was only the beginning as Frazier quickly made good on those projections and quickly developed into a high-level division one prospect in his own right on the offensive line for the Polar Bears. Scholarship offers from West Virginia, Stanford and Virginia Tech, just to name a few, followed before he ultimately followed in the footsteps of Stills and his brother Dante to Morgantown.

He made his presence known on the field in Morgantown in rather short order, too.

“The first snap he played here. He pancaked one of the other defensive linemen easily and I knew from then on he was going to be a great player here,” Stills said.

Unlike most freshmen offensive linemen, Frazier was already equipped with plenty of strength and an understanding of leverage and using his hands as a four-time state champion wrestler. That made him a possibility to see the field early in his career, especially with the current free year and the need up front.

There were of course challenges in learning the techniques and the plays, but he quickly found himself working at both center and guard. Quickly it was apparent that he was going to see time as a freshman.

Still nobody, not even Stills, could have seen what happened next.

While he was likely going to play regardless in the opener, suspensions elevated him into the starting lineup as a true freshman on the offensive line. It was a feat that hasn’t occurred in over 40-years in Morgantown as he slid into the starting center role in place of Chase Behrndt.

It was the first time he had ever snapped in a game.

“It was my goal coming in but even in camp I didn’t know if it was going to happen,” Frazier said. “I just got an opportunity and kind of went with it.”

That he did as Frazier played 56-snaps grading out as one of the top linemen on the team. He didn’t start the second contest, but did play, and has been a fixture in the starting lineup ever since at left guard.

Of course, it hasn’t all been easy as you’d expect for a true freshman adjusting to power five football, but Frazier has quickly discovered that he does belong and can play at this level.

While he has settled into his role at guard, Frazier still operates as the team’s second center which means he has been working on refining that aspect of his game. Something that used to be so foreign to him as now become second nature as he often takes a portion of the reps there in practice.

It’s been a learning experience for Frazier on so many levels, but the local product has more than held his own in his almost 500 snaps through seven games. And he can only get better from here as he continues to focus on improving his abilities at the position and adjusting to the game speed.

The Mountaineers even ran behind Frazier for the game-winning touchdown against Baylor when he was able to drive the defender into the A-Gap to provide Leddie Brown the avenue to score.

So far, no moment has been too big.

“I was comfortable. It was kind of what I worked for and my goal and dream, so I was excited to be out there,” Frazier said when tabbed as the opening game starter.

Frazier has made his name known early on in his career, but as he felt upon first watching him play at the high school level – Stills can’t help but believe his best is yet to come.

“Watch out for Zach. He has a chance to go to the next level,” Stills said.

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