As Cam Newton prepares to quarterback Auburn for possibly the final time in Monday night’s BCS championship game, a mini-Cam awaits his opportunity on the Plains.
Kiehl Frazier put up Newton-like numbers this past season for Shiloh Christian in Springdale Ark., throwing for 2,975 yards and 42 touchdowns and rushing for 1,164 yards and 22 scores. The comparisons grew as the weeks progressed, with Newton winning the Heisman Trophy and Frazier being tabbed USA Today’s national offensive player of the year.
“It’s always cool to be compared to a Heisman winner, because that means people think real highly of you,” Frazier said Friday, two days after directing the winning drive in the Under Armour All-American Game. “I’m just going to go to Auburn and do what I can do. We’re similar in a lot of ways, but we’re not exactly alike because I’m not 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds and running people over.
“I’ve run a few guys over, but that wasn’t on an SEC level.”
Frazier, whose first name is pronounced “Kyle,” committed to the Tigers last May. His reason for choosing Auburn is offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, who once coached Springdale High and gave Frazier his first scholarship offer when he was Tulsa’s offensive coordinator in 2008.
Though he isn’t as towering as Newton, Frazier is plenty solid at 6-3 and 212 pounds.
“He’s big-time,” longtime analyst Jamie Newberg said. “I’m not going to sit here and say he’ll be another Cam Newton for the Tigers, but he has a chance to be pretty special in an offense that is really designed for him. Nobody knows how quickly it could happen for him, but that’s a perfect marriage right there.”
Malzahn was offered Vanderbilt’s head-coaching job last month but declined, which briefly caused Frazier some discomfort. But he said he had no intention to open his recruitment had Malzahn departed, because he had formed relationships with head coach Gene Chizik and some other assistants since committing.
Shiloh Christian coach Josh Floyd, a former quarterback for Malzahn at Springdale, said it’s natural to want to compare Frazier to Newton.
“They’re both great athletes who can make plays with their feet, and Kiehl gets mislabeled sometimes like Cam in that he’s got a big-time arm, can make every throw and is a passer first,” Floyd said. “People act like he’s a runner, and he is a runner, but he threw for more than 100 touchdowns here at Shiloh. He’s definitely like Cam in that when a play breaks down, he’s at his best, so you would almost be better off just letting him throw the ball to somebody.”
In addition to owning a strong arm and shifty feet, Frazier also has the intangibles it takes to be successful. In the quarterfinal round of the 2009 Class 4A playoffs, when Frazier was a junior, Shiloh Christian trailed Nashville High 35-0 four minutes into the second quarter.
Then Frazier threw four touchdown passes, rushed for two scores and returned an interception for a touchdown, leading Shiloh to a 51-49 win — an even larger comeback than Newton engineered at Alabama this past November.
“Kyle has all those physical tools that you need to have, but in the same way he’s a winner,” Floyd said. “He’s 40-3 as a starter here with three straight titles, and he’s been MVP of the state title game three years in a row. He’s got a 26 on the ACT, makes good decisions, and he’s at his best when the game is on the line.”
Frazier, who will arrive at Auburn this summer, has talked to Newton at least once a week the past few months. He is debating whether to call him before Monday’s game against Oregon, admitting Newton “might be a little nervous before this one.”
He believes differences between the two are greater off the field.
“I’m a lot more shy,” Frazier said. “Cam is out there. He’s like a grown-up 13-year-old. I’m not nearly as outgoing as him.”
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.