Just months after breaking his leg in November, West Virginia center Zach Frazier worked out today at the Big 12 Pro Day. Dane Brugler of The Athletic posted Frazier’s numbers on Twitter, which included a 5.24 40-yard dash and 28 1/2″ vertical jump.
It’s an impressive recovery from Frazier, who crawled off the field in November to save his team a 10-second runoff and help them beat Baylor in the season finale for West Virginia. With the Steelers needing a center, Frazier has been a popular name mocked to the team in the first two rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft. While he didn’t meet with the team at the Combine, the Steelers are nearby West Virginia and probably have done plenty of legwork on Frazier, as he’s regarded as one of the best center in the draft.
You can see some of Frazier’s workout in a video posted by WVU Football on Instagram, where it appears Steelers assistant offensive line coach Isaac Williams also makes an appearance.
Frazier, along with Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson, Georgia center Sedrick Van Pran-Granger and Duke’s Graham Barton are considered among the best centers in the draft. However, Barton could also play tackle in the NFL, but Frazier is regarded as the best option behind Barton and Powers-Johnson.
While Frazier’s numbers at the Pro Day don’t pop off the page, there’s certainly no issue with them and it’s pretty impressive that he was able to recover and get healthy enough to work out. While he didn’t work out at the Combine, he was ready just under a month later to perform at his Pro Day and show his health.
At the Combine, he expressed confidence that the injury wouldn’t hurt his draft stock and said that he just broke the bone and didn’t do any ligament damage, which also likely helped him recover quickly. He should be ready to participate fully at offseason workouts, and there aren’t any lingering injury issues with Frazier.
It’ll be interesting to see where he gets selected, but his fit with the Steelers is clear and there’s a chance he will be available with the team’s No. 51 overall selection in the second round. If the team opts not to take a center and Frazier is available in the second, it may be tough to pass up on him.
