Henry Frazier guides Prairie View Football from worst to first
 |
Coach |
What would make a grown man so happy that he breaks out with his Omega Psi fraternity brothers in a step dance in front of thousands of spectators? If you’re Henry “Hank” Frazier, head coach of Prairie View A&M University, you have every reason to cut a big rug after you watched your team go from worst to first in the span of six years.
And on December 12, the Panthers defeated the Bulldogs of Alabama A&M 30-24 to capture the 2009 SWAC Championship. An observation of both sides of Birmingham, Alabama’s Legion Field suggested strongly that the lion’s share of the 20,218 fans in attendance were Panther faithful who had taken that long 718.32 miles (11 hours by car) to witness a game their school hadn’t been part of since 1964.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Frazier told reporters following the history-making victory. Winning that game can’t be considered an apex to the coaching career of the Washington DC native but it’s a safe bet it’s damn close.
The journey to one of the most coveted titles in Black college football was a long one for Frazier, who began charting x's and o's not long after graduating from Maryland’s Bowie State College in 1993. From stints as a graduate assistant and high school coach, he landed his first college coaching job in 1999 and ironically back at his alma mater. He rolled up his sleeves and turned the Bulldogs into winners and contenders in the CIAA. In 2002, Frazier led the ‘Dogs to their first CIAA divisional title and an appearance in that conference’s title game.
After his fourth winning season in 2003, Frazier set sights on another challenge and looked westward. “I called the athletic director at Prairie View and told Charles McClelland that I could turn their football program around. I asked for that challenge and most of my friends thought I had lost my mind.”
McClelland, however, went with another candidate, CL Whittington who was fired after his first year and got himself in a spot of trouble for striking two players during summer practice. Remembering Frazier’s desire to come, he hired him December 20, 2004. “McClelland is at Texas Southern now,” Frazier said in a post-game interview following the SWAC title game. “But I will always be thankful to him for giving me the break.”
But turning around a program that hadn’t had a winning season since 1976 and went on an unenviable 80 game losing streak from 1989 to 1998 was no snap. In fact, Frazier suffered through three losing seasons from 2004 to 2006 before finally turning things around in 2007 when the Panthers went 7-3 for their first winning season in 31 years.
Then came 2008 and a 9-1 record (6-1 conference). The boo-birds took flight, McClelland, labeled a heel for hiring Frazier, became a hero and talk around company water coolers centered on what “our” Panthers and “our” coach Frazier would do in 2009.
Winning ballgames has also yielded big rewards for Frazier. He has now been named SBN/Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year twice; in 2008 and 2009. In 2007 he as named Coach of the Year by The Black College Sports Page. That same year, he was named Coach of the Year by the Sporting News as part of its’ annual “Fabulous 50” college football team. And in December of 2009, Frazier became the first coach from a Historically Black College or University to be named the top coach in Football's Championship Subdivision (FCS). He has also been courted by other Division I programs but has said it “would take an incredible offer” to leave Prairie View.
“It took 45 years to get back to the SWAC championship,” said Frazier. In 1964, nobody on this coaching staff or this team was even born. But in 2009,God saw fit to bring together these coaches and players to make history. I believe this is the greatest story in college football this season.”
