Aug. 27, 2002
Introducing: Jason Fraser
Over the course of the next six weeks, villanova.com will feature individual profiles of the members of Villanova men's basketball Class of 2006. In the spotlight this week is 6-10 center/forward Jason Fraser of Amityville, N.Y.
BY MIKE SHERIDAN
VILLANOVA, Pa. - On the eve of his first official day of college life, Jason Fraser is in a quandary. Only hours away from his first class, he has misplaced a text he views as vital.
The predicament this college freshman finds himself is not unusual. No doubt countless other newcomers across the land have or will endure similar moments of panic as they go about the business of acclimating themselves to college life.
Several telephone calls are placed to no avail. It is Sunday evening and most area bookstores have closed.
At a barbecue welcoming the Villanova men's basketball team back to campus later that night, Fraser mentions his predicament to a few people. One of those individuals is Villanova University Vice President for Student Life, Rev. John Stack, O.S.A. Stack, formerly Villanova's dean of students, knows a bit about the texts that help comprise Villanova's curriculum and it isn't long before he has a simple solution to the problem.
By night's end, Fraser's wide smile is a symbol of his relief.
A pre-owned New American Bible has been temporarily secured until Fraser can locate his own Kings James version.
Thus is solved the first great issue confronting one of Villanova's most notable new arrivals.
The Jason Fraser most Villanovans and college basketball fans have come to know is a highlight reel. Some may have heard of how he led a small Long Island school to three New York state championships. Others may know of his prodigious shot-blocking exploits at the prep level. Still more may know that he was a McDonald's All-American who appeared - and looked quite comfortable on - Rosie O'Donnell's nationally syndicated talk show last April.
But to paint this newcomer on such a small canvas only begins to tell the story.
There is, quite simply, so much more.
"The thing about Jay," says head coach Jay Wright, "is that he wants to experience all facets of Villanova. He wants to be involved in campus ministry, he wants to be an outstanding student, he wants to interact with and absorb as much of campus life as he can. There is just so much he wants to do and basketball is just a part of who he is."
If others see college as a way station to the next level, Fraser views it as a cornucopia of sights, sounds and experiences.
"I am fortunate in that I was raised to appreciate everything around me," says Fraser. "It's kind of a family trait. My Uncle Paul is someone who knows a little about a lot of different things."
For Fraser, that process began at Villanova during the course of the recently completed four day orientation program.
"It was exciting," he states. "Coming here, I didn't really know what to expect. In the beginning I was almost too shy to speak. But slowly everyone started to open up. It was as though we were all a very thick seal. Once that was broken, we all bonded together. I have enjoyed meeting people from all kinds of backgrounds."
To those who have known Fraser for any length of time, the notion of him at a loss for words seems impossible to comprehend. Outgoing does not begin to describe the Fraser his friends and family have come to know.
"Jay," notes Wright, "is a great person above and beyond what he can do on the basketball floor."
Born on April 18, 1983 in Harlem, Fraser's roots are Jamaican. His mother Edmarie settled in Amityville, N.Y., and it was there that her eldest son began to make his mark in athletics.
It was in the seventh grade that a rapidly growing lean youngster got his first taste of organized basketball in the Catholic Youth Organization of Long Island. At St. Martin's High School, Richard Cronin was Fraser's coach and it wasn't long before he had become something much more to his prize pupil.
"Without a male figure in my life, he became more like a mentor to me than just a coach," says Fraser. "He taught me a lot about life and morals. It meant a lot to me."
By the time Fraser entered the tenth grade his skills were beginning to take shape. Blessed with size and athleticism, Fraser could affect a game almost immediately at the defensive end. But where many youths rely only on those tools, this youngster was determined to put his mind to use. Fraser studied the game as best he could on television and paid close attention to his opponents. If some of his blocked shots and rebounds were owed to his athletic gifts, many more were the product of the power of observation.
As Fraser piled up the points, rebounds and blocked shots and took Amityville High School, under the direction of head coach Jack Agostino, to new heights, college coaches watched him intently. Wright, then the top man at Hofstra, was in the mix. So too was Seton Hall and assistant coach Fred Hill. Villanova assistant coach Joe Jones, another Long Island native, was chasing Fraser too, hoping that the visits Fraser had made to the Villanova Basketball camps in the early days of his prep career would make the Main Line appealing.
"We were very fortunate with Jason," recalls Wright. "(VU assistant coach) Brett Gunning and I had known Jason for years and were recruiting him at Hofstra. Fred Hill was recruiting him for Seton Hall and Joe was doing the same for Villanova. So when we came here, everything fell into place. Jason knew our entire staff very well and that certainly didn't hurt us."
The summer of 2001 was a hectic one for Fraser. In July, he and future teammate Curtis Sumpter led the Long Island Panthers AAU team to a national championship in Las Vegas. It was a performance that sent Fraser's stock soaring even higher than it had been in the spring as coaches marveled at his defensive presence and will to win.
A wave that frequently submerges elite athletes was the crest of a lifetime in Fraser's eyes. And he elected to ride it fully into shore.
"I did enjoy the recruiting process," Fraser says while seated in a chair in Wright's office. "It caused a lot of stress but it was a good kind of stress. By the time we came to November I was really torn. Even good stress takes a toll. So I did what I always like to do in those situations. I kneeled down and prayed. A voice inside me told me that Villanova was the place for me.
"I felt like a 10,000 pound elephant had been lifted from me."
To those who wonder about second thoughts from a choice made as a deadline for the early November signing period approached, Fraser swats it away as if it were an off-balanced shot in the lane.
"I have no doubts," he says. "When He speaks to you, it's something you feel inside."
Now Fraser enters a new place in both his life and career. His engaging personality has already been a hit on campus. Of all Villanova's newcomers, it was no surprise that Fraser was the last to arrive at the barbecue. His delay was the product of a bit more chit-chat with some of his new friends in the class of 2006.
Of course, it is impossible for Fraser or any of his teammates to ignore the hoopla surrounding the arrival of this crop of hoops newcomers. Every scouting service of note lists the contingent of incoming freshmen - which also includes Randy Foye, Allan Ray, Curtis Sumpter, Mike Claxton and Baker Dunleavy - as one of the best in America. In tandem with experienced hands such as Gary Buchanan, Derrick Snowden, and Ricky Wright, this lineup has generated more enthusiasm than any group in the past half-decade at Villanova.
Expectations then are high, especially for Fraser, the most touted of all the fresh faces.
But this freshman seems to have a perspective on it all that belies his youth.
"Coach says it a lot, but it's true - we are like a family," says Fraser of the 2002-03 Wildcats. "All of us coming in have similar approaches. We just want to try to fit in and try to build chemistry. There are lots of examples of teams that had great talent and didn't have that chemistry. If we can build that, then everything else will fall into place."
As for his individual goals, Fraser's, as you might expect, are unique.
"I'm looking to be the best player I can be," he says. "I also want to make the Dean's List. And, before my career here is done, I would like to serve on the NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee."
One of the more prominent basketball players of recent vintage who served on that committee was former Duke All-American Shane Battier. There is a fitting parallel between the two that goes beyond basketball. (Indeed, there could be few more ambitious basketball resumes to attempt to match than that of Battier.) For even in their earliest days in college, both had an uncommon maturity, dedication and thirst for knowledge that causes those around them to pause.
Is this, our cynical world forces us to ask, too good to be true?
In Battier's case it was not. And those who know Fraser best are convinced that the package marked Total Jason will make for compelling viewing over the next few years.
"Jason isn't perfect," says Jay Wright. "None of us are. He will make mistakes and his exuberance sometimes gets the better of him.
"For a young program like ours, though, he is a great addition and I don't just mean because of his basketball skills. He is the kind of young man I think our fans are going to love have represent Villanova because of the kind of person he is.
"Is it corny?
"Maybe. But Jason is very real and I think people are going to thoroughly enjoy having him as a part of the Villanova family."
For his part, Fraser is content to enjoy the ride. Like a patient traveler, he wants to take his time browsing the aisles of Villanova's diverse university. No need to rush. No need to fret about when or where his next stop may come.
And if he gets ahead of himself, there are those ready to rein him in, as Stack did not long after Fraser's arrival at the barbecue.
"So," Rev. Stack deadpanned, "I understand you made a big dunk in the McDonald's game."
Fraser laughed immediately at the very real memory of dunking the basketball into the wrong team's basket before a national television audience at Madison Square Garden last April.
"I got caught up in the game and just lost my bearings," says Fraser. "The next thing I know, (teammate) Amare Stoutamire is running up to me saying, 'you dunked it in the wrong basket.' I don't think I've ever laughed so hard. It was one of the funniest things I've ever done.
"People bring it up all the time and I don't mind. I mean, it's funny and you can't beat yourself up over it. You have to be optimistic. Look at Abraham Lincoln. He is one of our most famous presidents and he had so many setbacks. How would he have become a success if he didn't remain optimistic?"
With the interview concluded, a team meeting complete and a Bible on the way, Fraser exits the barbecue into the warm summer night. There are 1,360 days separating the class of 2006 and graduation day. It's quite clear that this newcomer plans to make the most of them.
