Catching up with da local boys...

By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com

When Harrah wrestling coach Bryan Miller started to tell me about his fund-raising event more than a month ago, I was pretty excited.

Not necessarily for the event but because of the names I was hearing. It was going to give me a chance to check in with some of the former Oklahoma high school standout wrestlers.

It was a blast from the past in one aspect and then a look at the future in another at the Harrah Fight Night on Saturday.

I was at Shawnee during Gary Frazier’s senior season. I’m happy to hear he is landing on his feet. He’s still quite the presence. Frazier was a two-time state champion for Shawnee and won his MMA bout by first-round TKO.

Former teammate Aaron Smith also was a two-time champion and went on to Oregon. Frazier told me Smith is thinking about heading into the MMA world, even coming to the gym last month.

The two used to battle each other and both were made the better for it. Frazier said they used to play “toetaps” where you see who can tap the other’s toe from the standing position. He said it really helped out in footwork and movement.

Smith is shooting for a degree in petroleum engineering, so he has a future somewhere, be it there or in MMA.

Frazier trains with Matt Grice and said his favorite fighter is Anderson Silva. Good choice. He said Silva because of the way he can attack with the knees.

Also spoke with Harrah product Tony Quintero. He’s hoping to go to Bacone to wrestle, but he looked impressive in his first-round TKO on Saturday.

Quintero has a solid, compact frame and said his favorite fighter is B.J. Penn. Penn is not just his favorite, he’s Quintero’s all-time favorite. He’s trying to model his game after Penn, but you know that’s not easy to do.