Tommie Frazier

Tommie James Frazier Jr. (born July 16, 1974) is an American former college football player who was a quarterback for the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

After several years in which the Cornhuskers had suffered blowout losses in bowl games, frequently in Orange Bowl matchups against the University of Miami Hurricanes and the Florida State Seminoles, head coach Tom Osborne changed his recruiting strategy in the early 1990s and began to recruit faster players at all positions.

Osborne reportedly shed tears upon receiving the news of Frazier's decision to accept a scholarship from Nebraska.

Frazier, rated as the No. 3 college recruit in the country by analyst Tom Lemming, led Nebraska to four consecutive New Year's Day bowl games.

Tommie Frazier joined the Nebraska football team as an 18-year-old true freshman in the summer of 1992, at 6-1 and 190 pounds, and began as a backup to senior Mike Grant.

Nebraska started the season with a 4–1 record under Grant, but an early 29–14 loss to the second-ranked Washington Huskies set up Frazier's opportunity to take over as the starting quarterback.

He did so at Missouri on October 24, a 34-24 Nebraska victory.

Frazier gained national recognition with the following two games, both blowout wins broadcast nationally in evening time slots on ESPN.

He led the team on Halloween to a 52–7 win against a powerful Colorado team that carried a 9-1-1 record and was led by quarterback Kordell Stewart.

Frazier threw sparingly, completing 4 of 12 passes for 55 yards and two touchdowns, but rushed 16 times for 86 of Nebraska's 373 rushing yards.

Frazier's arm was showcased the following week, November 7, in a 49–7 win over Kansas.

Play-action fakes resulted in long touchdown passes of 36 and 46 yards, and Frazier finished the game with 6 of 11 passes completed, for 161 yards and three touchdowns.

Nebraska finished the season with a 9–3 record, and Frazier registered seven starts at quarterback.

Frazier played in nine games during the 1992 regular season, and completed 44 of 100 passes for 727 yards and only one interception.

He rushed for 399 yards, and scored 17 touchdowns, rushing and passing.

His longest run was 52 yards, against Iowa State on November 14.

Frazier helped the Cornhuskers to edge past UCLA on September 18 in what appeared to be a pivotal win that season.

He completed 13-of-19 passes for 145 yards and an 11-yard touchdown pass in a 14–13 victory over the Bruins, who had the Pac-10's top pass defense.

He played well in the FedEx Orange Bowl on January 1, 1993, against an 11-1 Florida State team led by quarterback Charlie Ward, wide receiver Tamarick Vanover, and linebacker Marvin Jones.

Florida State took an early 20–0 lead, but Frazier, who started the game in a shotgun formation, responded with a 41-yard touchdown pass to Corey Dixon and a red zone touchdown pass to Gerald Armstrong.

The Seminoles won the game, 27–14.

This enabled Nebraska to achieve an undefeated record during the regular season in 1993.

Frazier rushed for over 1,000 yards through the regular- and post-season, though the official total is lower due to negative yardage from sacks.

Frazier led his team to consecutive national championships in 1994 and 1995, and is one of six quarterbacks to have done so since the 1950s: Oklahoma's Steve Davis, Nebraska's Jerry Tagge, USC's Matt Leinart, Alabama's A. J. McCarron and Georgia's Stetson Bennett being the others.

He was named Most Valuable Player of three consecutive national championship games, the only player ever to accomplish that feat.

He earned consensus All-American honors in 1995.

The 1995 Nebraska football team is considered to have been one of the most dominant in the history of American college football and, in a 2006 ESPN.com poll, was voted the best college football team of all time.

Frazier was selected by Sports Illustrated in 1999 as a back-up quarterback in their "NCAA Football All-Century Team."

He was one of six Nebraska Cornhuskers on this 85 man roster, along with Johnny Rodgers, Rich Glover, Dave Rimington, Dean Steinkuhler and Aaron Taylor.

In 2013, Frazier was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.

Frazier was not drafted by the NFL due to a blood clot in his left leg, a side effect of Crohn's disease.

He played professionally for one season with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL).

He became a coach after his playing career.

Frazier grew up in Palmetto, Florida, and attended Manatee High School.

He was an option quarterback at Manatee High School who in his final two seasons ran for 1,600 yards and 33 touchdowns, and passed for 2,600 yards and 30 touchdowns.

Frazier is married to Andrea Stephens Frazier, originally from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The couple has a son named Tommie James Frazier III, and a daughter named Ava.

Frazier is a member of Iota Phi Theta fraternity.

He was the host of Tommie Frazier's X's and O's and of The Husker Express Radio Show with Tommie Frazier, which aired on ESPN 590 AM in Omaha, Nebraska.

Frazier received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, and played for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team.