MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Zach Frazier grew up a Miami Dolphins fan, his dad even naming him after linebacker Zach Thomas, but his professional aspirations might soon force him to change allegiances.
 
Frazier is considered one of the top centers in this year's NFL Draft and CBS Sports recently listed the Fairmont native as the 41^st-best overall prospect. In his latest prospect rankings, NFL.com draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah moved Frazier up five spots to No. 32.
 
This is what Jeremiah wrote about him:
 
"Frazier is a very physical center with average size and length. In the pass game, he is quick out of his stance, plays with a wide, firm base and immediately anchors. He has the lateral quickness to redirect and mirror while playing with excellent eyes/awareness. 
 
"He will occasionally get overaggressive, duck his head and put himself in a tough spot, but he's athletic enough to recover. In the run game, he locks on with strong hands, rolls his hips and uproots defenders. He is quick to the second level and adjusts well in space. He is a bulldog, collecting one knockdown after another to finish plays. 
 
"Frazier was a four-time state wrestling champion in high school, and he carries that tenacity over to the football field. He will be a Day 1 starter and tempo setter for the team that drafts him." 
 
What this means is Zach Frazier has got a great shot of working his way into the first round by the time the draft begins on Thursday, April 25 in Detroit. If that happens, it will make him the first Mountaineer player since safety Karl Joseph in 2016 to be taken in the first round.
 
Additionally, he is going to be the first WVU center selected since Mike Compton was picked in the third round by the Detroit Lions in 1993.
 
Frazier recently spent a part of his Saturday morning at this year's NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis fielding questions about his favorite pro teams, high school wrestling career and other pertinent topics such as the broken bone he suffered on the final drive of the regular-season finale at Baylor.
 
Frazier managed to hop off the field on one leg to preserve enough time to allow his teammates to score the winning touchdown.
 
"I didn't know what I did, I just knew something wasn't right," he said. "I was in a lot of pain, and I knew it wasn't just a sprained ankle.
 
"A lot of the teams were impressed with it," Frazier added. "In the moment, I was just trying to do whatever I could to help the team out. A lot of people tell me I won the game, but I don't really feel like that because our center came in (Brandon Yates) and had perfect snaps. I feel like I gave them a chance to win, but those guys executed on the last drive and scored."
 
Frazier was able to participate in most of the activities at the combine and said his leg is nearly back to 100% - and will be - by the time organized team activities (OTAs) begin for NFL teams.
 
"I feel like I've been able to recover pretty fast," he said. "As far as where I'm at, I can run a 40 and I can do the shuttle. I'm training for that now. I'm going to wait and run those at Pro Day, but I want to show my progress, so I did position drills here.
 
"I was lucky that I just broke the bone and didn't do any ligament damage. If I did do ligament damage that might have hurt it, but the doctors told me my bone is healed and I will be alright," he added.
 
Pro Day for Mountaineers players this year is being run by the Big 12 Conference and will take place in the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, at the end of this month. Frazier's position group will work out on March 29-30 and the four-day event will be televised nationally on NFL Network.
 
Frazier said he has already met formally with the Dallas Cowboys.
 
"It was a really good meeting, and I liked all their coaches. I had a good time with them," he said.
 
Other teams will be inquiring, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, who recently released starting center Mason Cole and has the 20^th pick in the first round this year. The Dolphins, one spot below Pittsburgh, and the Cowboys at No. 24, are also shopping for a center.
 
Frazier's father, Ray, grew up in Florida and made Fairmont his home after playing college football at Fairmont State. Zach's mother, Heather, is local and comes from a family of standout wrestlers, so Zach was exposed to both sports through them.
 
"I feel like it's the perfect combination," he admitted. "My dad was my football influence, so from a young age he taught me technique and worked with me to develop me and also helped grow my love for football at a young age. 
 
"My mom came from a wrestling family and all three of her younger brothers were state champions and her dad was too. Really, she taught me how to prepare for wrestling matches and football games from a mental standpoint," he said.
 
Frazier said his wrestling background has come up frequently in conversations with scouts and organization people with whom he's talked.
 
"It's something that I've talked about with every team I've met here," he said. "I think they take that as a positive."
 
Frazier describes himself as a physical player and a dedicated student of the game.
 
"My goal is to put people on the ground, but I'm also pretty level-headed because I have to make all the calls and study throughout the week," he said. "You have to make all the calls on the line, and you have to be able to communicate that from tackle to tackle and to the tight ends. For me, it's just the preparation throughout the week studying your opponent and trying to find little tells that give away blitzes and stuff like that."
 
Frazier admits he is his hardest critic.
 
"I don't feel like I do anything perfect, whether it's my hands, pad level or footwork. I can improve in every area," he said.
 
During last Saturday's media session, Frazier fielded several questions from Steelers beat writers attending this year's combine, and the team's proximity to Morgantown and his hometown of Fairmont make him a compelling local choice. In fact, one of the Steelers' radio network affiliates is WRLF in Fairmont.
 
This is going to be the second straight year the Fairmont Senior Polar Bears will have a player taken in the draft. Last year, former WVU defensive tackle Dante Stills was selected in the sixth round by the Arizona Cardinals with the 213^thoverall pick. 
 
Stills impressed in Arizona by having a very solid rookie season in 2023.
 
"We went to the same high school, obviously, and that's pretty special to go to the same high school, go to the same college and then to be here it means a lot, especially to our city where we came from," Frazier said.
 
As for his West Virginia University football career, Frazier has nothing but fond memories.
 
"I grew up in West Virginia, so you know how much WVU means to the people that live there and then to be able to play for them, you see it in the stands and it's a special feeling," he concluded.