Three of the 16 seniors who will be recognized before Saturday's game won't be in uniform after suffering season-ending injuries.
And the overall injury list is much longer: four torn anterior cruciate ligaments, three shoulder surgeries and a total of seven or eight players who will finish the season on the sideline.
"Looking back from the beginning of the year, we've lost five starters for the year," Frye said.
"I'd say it's probably the most (injuries) that we've had. We've had some injuries before, but not this many."
Those who do get to play this week - particularly the seniors - will be charged with giving the Colonels something to build on next season.
"The thing I want this team to do as seniors is leave a legacy for our kids next year to build on," Frye said. "To think we could have a winning record with the adversity we had to overcome."
Aside from the injuries, Centre had to overcome a slow start that included a narrow victory and two losses in its first three games, during which the Colonels scored a combined total of 36 points.
"We started out slow. We were really immature offensively," Frye said.
Centre was held to 232 yards or less in four of its first six games and averages 249 yards per game after netting only 171 last week in a 36-6 loss at Trinity.
Conliffe making second start
Sophomore quarterback Grant Conliffe will make his second start after going 15-for-34 for 174 yards at Trinity. Conliffe, who was part of a two-man platoon with Jarrod Williams for much of the season before Williams was injured, is 51-for-106 overall for 657 yards and three touchdowns.
"I'm looking forward to seeing how Grant bounces back," Frye said.
The Colonels will also welcome back leading rusher Josh Ware, who has 439 yards but missed last week's game due to a concussion.
Centre leads the SCAC team statistics in only two categories, both related to the kicking game. Punter Chris Zimmerman has the Colonels at the top of the conference in that category with his average of 40.1 yards per kick, and kicker Jason Chadwick is a perfect 8-for-8 in field-goal attempts.
Zimmerman is ranked 22nd nationally in punting average, while linebacker Adam Hay ranks fourth in solo tackles and fifth in total tackles.
While the Colonels will try to secure a winning season, Colorado (4-5, 1-5) needs a win to finish at .500 in its first season in the SCAC.
The Tigers haven't found a win in conference play since beating Sewanee in their league opener. They suffered one-point losses to Rhodes and DePauw in consecutive weeks, but they gave up 669 yards last week in a 68-6 home loss to Millsaps, a team that defeated Centre 29-7.
Still, Colorado ranks third in scoring (30.3 points per game) and second in rushing offense (176 yards per game) in the SCAC.
"They're very good offensively," Frye said. "I'm really impressed with their skill positions. They have a very good quarterback, and they probably have the best tight end in the conference."
Quarterback Jon McDonald has completed 61 percent of his passes for 2,003 yards with 15 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. Tight end Nolan Swett is the Tigers' leading receiver with 59 catches for 787 yards and seven scores.
Colorado has scored at least 36 points in seven of its nine games.
"They put up points and they put up yardage," he said.
