Southern Scribes: Kyle Frazier Conquers Cancer

STATESBORO - The transition from high school sports to playing at the collegiate level is never easy. Athletes have to overcome all kinds of obstacles—both athletically and academically—in order to excel at the highest level. Kyle Frazier was challenged with more than just change in his transition to playing college ball. He had to overcome cancer. 

Kyle Frazier was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma just months before his high school graduation in 2019. Kyle had already committed to playing Division II football at Savannah State University in the fall. Despite his diagnosis, Kyle was determined to play college football. He and his mother spent time with the doctors discussing their options before they decided to undergo a more aggressive chemotherapy than most. Kyle’s body responded well to the treatment, and just four months later, in August of 2019, he was declared cancer-free.

“It had to do with a lot of the paperwork side, and you know, just talking to my doctor,” Kyle explained. “So, during that time, it was supposed to be a stint, you know, you can stint it out based on your body. I just wanted to come back and play ball as quickly as possible. My doctor was like, ‘We can up the dose and see how it does well in your body.’ So, we started upping the doses, and it was like that would lead to the cancer decreasing more and has the ability to shorten the process. I ended up being there for less than four months. It could have been from six or even 12 months, depending on how you did it. But I was rolling; I was goal-chasing right then. I had a great team of doctors, a great team of nurses, and my mom is in the medical field; that's my backbone right there. My girlfriend, all my family, my father, everybody was around during that time. And during that time, I had some dark times with everybody leaving and going off to school. But the family and that structure and that backbone I had, you know, kept my mind right.”

Throughout his battle with cancer, Kyle was focused on one thing: he wanted to get back to football. Those around him encouraged him to use that goal as his motivation to beat cancer and to work hard throughout the process. At the end of the day, Kyle believes that having this goal and driving force is what helped him to beat cancer.

“I used football as my fuel,” he stated. “Talking to a lot of elders that were getting treatment at the same time as me that at the time were like, ‘Kyle, you have some you're fighting for. You have got to use that as fuel.’ They didn't have family left, or family didn’t come to see them; they were there by themselves, but they were like, ‘Kyle, you use that as a goal, as a marker. You have something you're battling for.’ So, football was, during that time, my passion. My goal. I was fighting for that. I believe that helped me beat cancer.”

Being declared cancer-free was not the end of this journey for Kyle. He still had a long uphill battle to get back to fulfilling his dream of playing college football. Chemotherapy is not easy on your body and Kyle also underwent three surgeries during his treatment. When Kyle arrived on campus, football training was already in full swing and the still recovering player jumped right in.

“What I came into at Savannah State was like, still those are my brothers still to this day, you know, they came and welcomed me with open arms,” he said. “I came back. I was a defensive lineman, like 250 pounds, but I got right into it with my coach. They welcomed me with open arms. Everybody helped me; I was a little light, I was tripping and falling at practice, and I was getting right back into it. But they never batted an eye. They helped me. They encouraged me all the way and led me to where I am at right now.”

He admits that it was a struggle at first to get back into football. Kyle wasn’t as strong or as big as he was before, and he had to work hard in his transition back to playing. Not one to give up easily, Kyle’s determination carried him through the tough times, but he couldn’t do it alone. He credits his coaches and teammates at Savannah State with helping him overcome the initial rough patches to become the best player he could be. He was able to get back to his favorite part of football—being a part of something bigger, a brotherhood.

“The passion of camaraderie, the brotherhood, you know, especially for away games, those are my favorite moments,” Kyle told us. “You spend the long summers, long springs, long fall camp, and then that time your boys are battling together, you know, just that camaraderie.”

In 2020, after a season of playing and developing at Savannah State, Kyle was able to fulfill his Make-A-Wish request of meeting Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald. Due to the pandemic, he talked with Donald over Zoom, and Kyle says the conversation was key in pushing him to continue recovering and make the transition to playing as an offensive lineman. 

In 2023, Kyle was able to fully experience his Make-A-Wish request. He met the future Hall of Famer in person, worked out with Donald, and signed a one-day contract with the Rams to experience an NFL game from the sidelines.

Kyle Frazier made a mark on Savannah State, getting named to the SIAC All-Conference team twice during his career there before he decided to move on after the 2023 season. 

He talked about how he was looking for a structure and an already-built program that he could walk into. He was excited about the opportunity that Southern provided to be a part of a tradition and a hard-working culture.

“I’m not disrespecting anything; I love Savannah State. All the team and the honors were just because of them,” Kyle began. “I had a great coaching staff. It's a beautiful environment with loving folks over there. But I was just looking for more of a structured type of standard-setting family. You know what I mean? Something I could come into that already had this, already had that tradition, and already had that structure set. So, when I was seeing Georgia Southern, my folks always called them the mini-Bama. You know, they're not so flashy. They're just downright, and they play hard, fight hard, and have good standards set. They were just hard-working guys. It was just something I would love to be a part of. So that’s what led to my decision.”

During his treatment and recovery, Kyle highlighted the support structure that his family built around him, specifically his mother. After playing at Savannah State, Kyle wanted to find that structure again in a football team, and he saw it in the team here at Southern. Kyle made the decision to transfer to Georgia Southern in January and will play his final season of college football as an Eagle.

When Kyle got to Georgia Southern in January, he told us that it was a tough transition. Lucky for Kyle, he is no stranger to adversity. He has been working hard ever since to be a part of the Eagle Family and is looking forward to continuing that work into the fall.

“It’s definitely a different level. It’s definitely a commitment and definitely hard work,” Kyle admitted. “They work very hard here. It was a big transition, especially when it comes to the resources and how hard you work. Like here you work hard because you have those resources. You know what I mean? So that was a big thing I was excited for. We had some things at Savannah State, don't get me wrong, but it's two different levels. Here, you can tell they have the resources because they work so hard. And it was two different levels now. I came here, and it was a struggle. But again, it's a family environment. There are some great dudes in our locker room. I have some great coaches. I get encouragement all the way, and those bad times I had starting off here, they didn’t bat an eye.”

Going into the last hurrah of his collegiate career, Kyle wants to focus on playing football. Playing collegiate football has always been Kyle’s dream, and he wants to make an impact on the sport that motivated him to beat cancer. Wherever his journey takes him, he wants to make sure that football is a part of it. 

“My goal for myself is just to be a great teammate and make a big impact,” Kyle was quick to say. “You know, a lot of people, especially at this level, going to the next level, that's the dream. It’s a dream, but it’s a secondary dream of mine; college football was always first: I loved it. Yeah, the NFL is the goal, and if not, you know, give back and hopefully become a coach.”

After everything he has been through on his journey to being an Eagle, Kyle is grateful for the opportunity to be a part of Eagle Nation for his final year.

“I love it here,” Kyle said. “I know it's way different than HBCUs, but the alumni bases are strong. I get hit up every day on social media. I'm loving it here. I got stopped at the grocery store. I get stopped everywhere. I love Eagle Nation. I'm glad to be a part of this. I can't wait to play in Paulson for the first time. I went to one game, and it was electric. My cousin graduated here in 2016. I went to her graduation, and I sat in those stands and said, ‘I can see myself playing here.’ “

See Eagle Nation football back in action in Paulson Stadium for the Spring Game on April 20.

Addy Burrow, the author of this piece, just wrapped up her career on the Georgia Southern rifle team as a two-time All-American. She will graduate in May with her Master's degree in professional communication and leadership.