Eye on the U

B-Rad First-Team All-ACC; Football roster making space; McDermott on Rimington Watch List.

Bryan Radziewski was not his usual self during his last regular-season start, but he was amazing all season -- coming off shoulder surgery nonetheless.

The left-handed junior was among five starting pitchers named to the 2013 All-ACC First Team on Monday.

B-Rad, as he is called by his fans and teammates, ended the season ranked among the conference leaders in nearly every statistical category. He ranked third in ERA (1.64), tied for second in wins (eight), tied for second in complete games (two), third in strikeouts (96) and first in batting average against (.175).

Radziewski is one of three pitchers in the ACC averaging more than 10 strikeouts per nine innings (11.27). The former Baseball America Freshman All-American has recorded 204 Ks over 33 starts and has a 19-4 career record and career ERA of 2.64. 

Miami begins its quest for an ACC title at 3 p.m. Thursday, when it meets No. 1 seed North Carolina in a Pool A matchup in Durham, N.C.

UM lost in the title game to Georgia Tech last year.

RICARDO WILLIAMS OFFICIALLY OFF FOOTBALL TEAM

   Chris Yandle, director of communications for UM athletics, just confirmed to me that 6-5, 251-pound defensive end Ricardo Williams is no longer on the team. A redshirt sophomore, Williams is out of Homestead Senior High. Williams played in one game last year -- against North Carolina. 

   Williams' name has already been removed from the football roster.

   Wide receiver Robert Lockhart Jr., who also has been granted his release, according to Canesport.com, is still on the roster.

    "As far as Robert Lockhart, I have not been informed about anything,'' Yandle said.

   Lockhart is a 6-1, 183-pound redshirt sophomore out of Fork Union Military Academy, via West Boca Raton High.  Lockhart was a four-star recruit by Rivals.com and ESPN. As a high school senior he had 34 catches for 686 yards and six touchdowns. He chose UM over Virginia Tech. Lockhart played in two games last season -- UNC and FSU -- but sustained a season-ending knee injury.

 SHANE McDERMOTT ON RIMINGTON WATCH LIST   

     UM center Shane McDermott is one of 44 players named to the 2013 Rimington Trophy spring watch list. The award is presented annually to the nation's top collegiate center.

    McDermott, a junior, missed spring practice after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery.

     An All-ACC honorable mention selection in 2012 by league coaches, McDermott started all 12 games at center for UM. UM had the ACC's third-best passing offense (295.4-yards-per-game average) and fifth-best total offense (440.2). As a redshirt freshman in 2011, he played in 10 games, allowing no sacks and not being flagged for any penalties.

    McDermott is from Lake Worth. He was awarded the Walter Kichefski Endowed Football Scholarship at the most recent UM Sports Hall of Fame induction banquet. He will earn his bachelor's degree this summer.

    McDermott's younger brother (I won't say "little'' brother as he's 6-6 and approaching 300 pounds), Kc McDermott, has already pledged his commitment to UM for the Class of 2014, a huge get for the Canes.
 Kc is a four-star lineman, according to Rivals.com, and is listed as the 40th best player overall, regardless of position. He is listed as the fifth best tackle in the Class of 2014.

   Notre Dame also wanted Kc, and actually still wants him, but Kc said he's not budging from his commitment to the Hurricanes.  

     SUSAN MILLER DEGNAN

Daughters of Ron Fraser share poem he wanted them to see once he was gone

This is the longer version of my story that will appear in Tuesday's editions of The Miami Herald

At one point before Alzheimer's disease began taking its toll, Ron Fraser saw a poem he liked, copied it down and put it in his briefcase -- a message he hoped would be delivered at the right time.

Monday morning, as the late father of University of Miami baseball was being remembered and honored with eulogies and choir songs, his three daughters shared the poem with a congregation of hundreds who gathered for Fraser's funeral mass at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in Southwest Ranches.

The title of the poem Fraser had intended for his daughters to see once he was gone: "I'm Free."

"[Fraser's wife of 24 years] Karen found it. It talked about being free and don't grieve for me and that while they're are things I've left undone, God wants me and I'm with him now," Fraser's youngest daughter, Elizabeth Fraser Kraut, said fighting back emotion.

"It was left for us from Popie to help us deal with the grief of losing him. We hoped it would help the congregation get through their grief -- because we are all family. I can't even express to you in words how wonderful the outpouring of support has been."

Fraser, who passed away a week ago Sunday at age 79, will continue to be honored in the coming weeks.

The University of Miami has planned "A Celebration of the Life of Ron Fraser" for Saturday, Feb. 23 on campus with another event scheduled later that night during the baseball game against Milwaukee. The Ron Fraser Wizard Fund plans on honoring the Hall of Fame coach with a bronze statue at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field. Current UM baseball coach Jim Morris said the program is committed to dedicating the season to Fraser in other ways not yet announced. Kraut said a private burial service will then take place in her father's hometown of Nutley, N.J. in March or April.

Monday's two-hour long mass -- as well as Sunday's eight-hour visitation at Stanfill Funeral Homes in Miami -- provided an opportunity for those closest to him to share stories and remember not just the man who was dubbed "The Wizard of College Baseball" but who served as a father figure for many young men, said Kraut and close friends.

UM Sports Hall of Famer Mike Fiore, part of Fraser's second and last national title team in 1985, was the first of five men who delivered a eulogy Monday. The others: former Catholic priest Leo Armbrust, longtime friend and former UM baseball sports information director Rick Remmert, current coach Morris, and family spokesman and TV personality Tony Segreto. Fiore, now the vice president for the company of famed baseball agent Scott Boras, called Fraser a "life coordinator."

"The family asked me to speak about him as a coach and what he meant to players like myself," Fiore said of the morning service. "I told one story today about how one time when we were playing Florida State my freshman year, down one run, late in the game, I'm standing on third thinking 'Do I let the ball go through? Do I run home if it gets past the catcher?'

"He walks up to me and looks at the crowd of six, seven thousand and says 'How many hamburgers and hot dogs do you think we sold tonight?' It was his unique way of alleviating stress from me, his way of saying I trust you, trust the way you play, go ahead and react. That was the greatest thing about coach Fraser. He always made you feel comfortable."

Fraser, who amassed a 1,271-438-9 record at UM and coached the Olympic team after retiring following the 1992 season, began coaching at UM for a $2,200 salary. He took a cow pasture for a field and raised the money for a ballpark with fundraising and marketing genius -- and not much financial help from UM.

Remmert, now UM's Director of Alumni programs, recalled how when Fraser first became coach of the Hurricanes he took a second job as athletic director of the Coral Gables youth center and borrowed equipment from there because UM didn't have any. The team's first uniforms, Remmert said, Fraser got those through his U.S. Military Academy connection.

"They took the A, R and Y off [the uniforms] and left the M on," Remmert said. "That's where the famous M came from.

"One of the first promotions he had after getting lights and fences for the baseball field and charging $1 for tickets was the 'Baseball from Outer Space.' The plan was to have a parachute jumper come in with a neon colored ball. The jumper got caught up in the wind and ended up landing in the old serpentarium instead. Coach also brought the first mascot to college baseball with the Miami Maniac.

"He saw the modern game of college baseball and what it could look like. [Former LSU coach] Skip Bertman said Ron was 30 years ahead of his time and proved to athletic directors baseball could be a revenue sport."

Kraut said she heard stories about her father on Sunday and Monday she hadn't heard before and that it has comforted the family.

"The phone calls, the tweets, text messages, the Facebook postings," Kraut said. "it's amazing how much people loved Popie and how much they've taken us under their wings."

UM men's hoops team jumps up 11 spots to 14th in AP poll -- highest ranking since 2002; Scott named ACC Player of Week

Jim Larranaga and the red-hot Miami Hurricanes men's basketball team has moved up 11 spots this week in the Associated Press poll to number 14 -- one of the biggest jumps in recent memory following blowout wins over No. 1-ranked Duke and rival Florida State. UM is also ranked 15th in the Coaches Poll.

It's the highest the program has been ranked since Feb. 2002. According to AP writer Tim Reynolds only four teams have gone up more spots in the rankings in one week since 1989.

The Canes (15-3, 6-0 ACC) hadn't cracked the AP poll until last week and were only receiving votes in the coaches poll before their big victories this past week. It's the first time the Hurricanes have been ranked in the Coaches poll since Dec 8, 2008 when they spent a single week at number 25. 

What's the highest UM's men's basketball team has ever been ranked? Eighth in the AP poll (March 1, 1960). They finished 10th.

Since the program was brought back, the highest the team was ranked was ninth -- back on March 1st, 1999. The Hurricanes didn't finish the season ranked in the AP poll.

The Canes travel to Virginia Tech on Wednesday and play at 19th-ranked N.C. State on Saturday. The Wolfpack (16-4) and Blue Devils (17-2) are the only other teams from the ACC ranked in the AP poll.

DURAND SCOTT HONORED

Guard Durand Scott was named the ACC's Player of the Week for the second time this season Monday.

Scott averaged 18.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in UM's two home wins last week.

In Wednesday’s 90-63 win against the Blue Devils, Scott had 25 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in 36 minutes. He was 9-of-14 (.643) from the field, 3-of-4 from three-point range and 4-of-5 on free throws. In Sunday’s win against the Seminoles, Scott had 11 points, four assists and two turnovers as UM rolled to a 71-47 victory.