LINCOLN — Tommie Frazier can't remember anything about his debut as a Nebraska quarterback.

“It all happened too fast for me to think,” he said.

A refresher: Frazier played his first collegiate game against Utah, a 49-22 NU win. He threw one pass, an incompletion. He rushed twice for 14 yards. It was Sept. 5, 1992 — 17 years to the day before Cody Green ran on the field with 12 minutes left Saturday in the Huskers' 49-3 win over Florida Atlantic.

No other Nebraska quarterback of note has played in the season opener as a true freshman. Walk-on Ryan Goodman did it in 2004 but never appeared in another game; he doesn't count.

Frazier, of course, won a pair of national championships, finished as the Heisman runner-up in 1995 and left NU with an unmatched legacy.

It's outrageously early to compare Green to Frazier. In his debut, though, Green rushed for 50 yards, including a 49-yard gallop on his first carry. He scored a touchdown and completed 2 of 3 passes.

Their connection is undeniable.

Frazier, 35, lives in Lincoln. He watched Green closely on Saturday and left impressed.

“I thought he handled himself very well,” Frazier said. “He's more prepared than I was at that age, and his maturity level is far beyond what mine was.”

Frazier, no doubt, was plenty mature. He won the starting job from Mike Grant after five games in 1992. Green figures to take an alternate path. On Saturday, offensive coordinator Shawn Watson equipped him with a 15-play package, while starter Zac Lee, according to Green, was ready to operate about 320 plays.

“We're going to have a lot of close games,” Green said Tuesday, “and (Lee) is going to take all the snaps in those. And I know that. If I get in, great. But if not, learn as much as possible on the sidelines.”

Today's Green and the Frazier of 1992 share many traits — a deep-rooted desire to lead, rare athletic gifts, a strong grasp of the game and a natural feel for how to play.

Their personalities, though, present a contrast.

Let tight ends coach Ron Brown explain.

“Tommie was authoritative,” said Brown, who coached the Nebraska receivers in 1992. “His authority level was very, very unique. He literally took it in his hands to be the coach out on that field. And that started from the first day of practice.

“A lot of kids struggle with that. Tommie did not. Right away, he let everybody know, ‘I'm the quarterback. When I'm in the huddle, you listen to me.'”

Count Green among those who struggle. He's more laid-back than even the mellowed Frazier of today.

Last spring as he practiced with the Huskers after graduating early from high school, Green got a tip from senior center Jacob Hickman: You'll have to take command in the huddle and earn our respect, Hickman told the young QB.

Green took it to heart.

“I have a deep voice, and you've got to command it,” Green said. “You've got to command their attention at all times. Off the field, that's just the type of person I am — I'll listen to older people. That's how you learn. But on the field, you do have to have a sense of, ‘I'm in charge. All right, now, you've got to listen to me, because I'm the director.'”

Green got another piece of advice in the spring. From Frazier. He called Green after getting the kid's number from an old friend, former Baylor QB Odell James, another Texas schoolboy legend who's known Green's family for years.

Frazier advised Green simply to be himself.

“It takes all different types of personalities to play quarterback,” Frazier said.

The former phenom told the current one to call any time. Green said he would surely oblige.

Green has heard people compare him to former Texas quarterback Vince Young and Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor. The NU freshman could do without such talk.

“I'd rather be myself,” he said.

One comparison he'd appreciate? Frazier. His name and that legendary No. 15 are stamped high above Memorial Stadium as one of 16 retired jerseys in school history.

Before their conversation in April, Green said he knew little about Frazier.

“Really, the only thing I've heard about are those rings that he had,” Green said. “The name, his legacy here, you can only dream to live up to that.”

Contact the writer:

402-473-9587, mitch.sherman@owh.com

« Sports - Big Red Today

Share