Crazy days for Crusaders: After Bobby Frasor quits as Brother Rice’s coach, ‘stunned’ star guard Ahmad Henderson commits to Niagara.
Henderson #Henderson
When Bobby Frasor met with his Brother Rice players last week and let them know he was stepping down as their coach, star senior guard Ahmad Henderson was certainly caught off guard.
To say the least.
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“I was definitely stunned,” Henderson said. “Nobody really saw it coming. Coach Frasor taught me a lot about how to be a more efficient leader and how to be a better leader. He taught me how to be a professional.
“We’re going to miss him.”
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Frasor, a Brother Rice graduate who went on to play at North Carolina, returned to his high school alma mater in 2015 and went 143-57 over seven seasons, winning a pair of regional titles and two Catholic League Blue championships.
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Despite having a loaded roster set to return next season, Frasor decided it was time for a change. He said he’s leaving for a job outside of coaching in the “corporate world,” an opportunity too good to pass up.
“It was a difficult decision, but ultimately I think it will be for the best,” Frasor said. “A lot of it is age — a quarter-life crisis, midlife crisis, whatever you want to call it. You get to a point where eventually you want to have kids and start a family, and there are certain things in life you want to be able to provide to them.
“There are things I want to do in life that were not going to be possible at Brother Rice, as much as I loved it there.”
Having the opportunity to coach the Crusaders is something Frasor said he will always treasure.
“It’s meant a lot,” Frasor said. “Choosing to go to school there, I loved my experience as a student. Being able to come back and if I could give a glimmer of the experience I had as a student-athlete there to some of the guys I coached, that meant everything to me.
“It was a blast.”
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For Henderson, meanwhile, the bad news was the start of a wild few days. He visited Niagara last weekend and decided Tuesday to commit to the Purple Eagles, a Division I program that competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.
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“It was good after that letdown with coach Frasor leaving for me to have this happen and be able to commit,” Henderson said. “It was definitely a good moment for me.”
Henderson also made it clear he was committed to Brother Rice.
Believing there may be speculation about players transferring in the wake of Frasor’s departure, Henderson tweeted a photo Monday of him in a Crusaders uniform and a message that he was “locked in.”
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“We have a good group coming back,” Henderson said. “All of us guys are staying at Brother Rice because we all believe in each other.
“A lot of people think this is going to tear us apart and break us up, but we all really came together. We still want to do big things next season.”
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Frasor said he had a tough time leaving behind such a talented team, with Henderson and sharpshooting guard Nick Niego set to lead a deep group.
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Although he won’t be coaching them, Frasor said he will be paying attention.
“It probably would have been my most talented team,” Frasor said. “They have depth, length, size. I think they can really do special things this year. Of course, I’m going to be supporting them, following them, cheering them on.
“I’ll be around. You might see me in the student section cheering them on with the Crusader Crazies.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.