The football team is busy preparing for their 2014 opener on Aug. 28th at 9:15 PM ET/8:15 CT against Temple at Vanderbilt Stadium and preparations are going very well. The game will be televised on the new SEC Network and follows another classic opener with South Carolina hosting Texas A&M on the SEC Network @ 6 PM ET/5 CT. Another interesting game for VU fans will be on ESPN that Thursday night as Ole Miss plays Boise State in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta @ 8PM ET/7 CT. We play Ole Miss the second game of the season on Saturday, Sept. 6th, at LP Field in Nashville @ 3:30 PM ET/2:30 CT on ESPN. So we’ve got a challenging first two weeks.
But for right now, it’s all about getting the two deep rotation set at all positions and, of course, the quarterback position is the headliner. LSU transfer Stephen Rivers, redshirt freshman Johnny McCrary, and sophomore Patton Robinette are all competing for QB1. From what I’m reading, Johnny is making a serious run at the job, Stephen has been the favorite the first week and a half, and Patton is doing some good things too. I’m going up to practice next Tuesday and will be giving you guys my take on what I think. I’m not Derek, so of course I don’t have any input on the decision, but I’ll certainly give my opinions on who I see as the guy who ought to be taking the first snap against Temple on August 28th. I’ve heard really good things on Johnny lately. Johnny was a four-star recruit two years ago, so the talent is there. It’s still day-to-day. Very fluid situation. Derek is going to take it up to game week to decide who his number one guy will be. But we have three good options at quarterback, so that position should be in good hands. Johnny and Stephen would be making their first starts if one of those two gets the job, so they’ll be under the gun. Patton does have experience, but maybe not the accuracy of the other two. But Patton is an excellent leader and a tremendous young guy. You can win with those kind of guys. I really like Johnny, too. He seems like a total leader, confident yet humble, focused and very intelligent. Stephen sounds focused and is a leader. This will keep developing. Will go up next Tuesday, 8/19, and will have a full report either that Tuesday night or the following Wednesday morning.
Our offensive line is potentially dominating, outstanding. Guys like left tackle Andrew Jelks, guard Barrett Gouger, guard Spencer Pulley, center Joe Townsend, and right tackle Andrew Bridges are athletic and tough; and there is good depth and size behind them with guys like Delando Crooks, Sean Dowling, Will Holden, Kevin “Kevo” McCoy and freshman Cole Hardin backing them up. Jelks is 6’5″, 305 and was a four-star recruit two years ago. Gouger is 6’4″, 305, Townsend is 6’4″, 312, Pulley is 6’4″, 300 and Bridges is a little smaller at 6’6″, 285, but highly athletic and long. The depth behind them is all 300 +. Running backs look tough and fast. Jerron Seymour is not practicing due to an injury right now, but he should be good to go soon. Ralph Webb is lighting it up in practice. Ralph (5″10″, 196) is tough for his size and can take it to the house any time as he did with a 60 yarder in the spring game. Brian Kimbrow is always a threat to take it the distance. He’s bigger now too at 190. He was a four-star three years ago so the talent is there. Brian will give us a lot this year. Freshman Dallas Rivers (6″1″, 225) gives us power and speed. Really hearing good things about Dallas. ESPN had Dallas rated as a four-star last year, and Rivals and 247 had him as a a high three-star. He’s going to help us this season most likely. Derek King is 5″11″, 205 and has always been a good athlete. He can help us too in the backfield.
Wide receiver is going to be younger this season, but Jordan Cunningham is an emerging superstar. Jordan is 6’1″, 180, so he needs to keep adding some strength, but he catches everything in sight and can make a lot happen once he catches the ball. He’s got superstar potential written all over him. Jordan was a four-star a year and a half ago. Guys like Latevius Rayford (6″1″, 192), DeAndre Wooods (6″3″, 215), Gerald Perry, who’s a little on the small side at 5’10”, 170, but catches everything and is a game breaker, Chandler Dorrell, offensive coordinator Karl Dorrell’s son and a Stanford transfer, and Trey Wilkins are also going to make plays for us. Freshmen like Caleb Scott (6″1″, 180), Ronald Monroe (6’2″, 185) Trent Sherfield (6’0″, 185) and Rashad Canty (6″3″, 212) are probably too good to not use this year. I really want to see DeAndre Woods step it up. He was a highly prized recruit we landed late in the 2013 class along with Jordan Cunningham, and if he starts performing well in practice, he can be a big time player for us, like Jordan. Love his size. Another thing I like is total team player Josh Grady who has moved from quarterback to wide receiver. Josh (6’0″, 202) can really help us out there. Josh had an incredible spring game three years ago at wide out and I saw a potential star. He’s a leader, and he can do some great things on the outside. He’s really stuck it out and made an awesome decision to move back to wide receiver. I see Josh making some big plays for us this year.
Tight end will be excellent with Steven Scheu (6″5″, 250) and Nathan Marcus (6″5″, 238) as our starters most likely. Derek and Coach Dorrell will use our tight ends a lot, and these two are very good. Nathan is a tremendous pass receiver. Steven can do it all. We’ll have some depth there t oo, with Davis Dudchock, Mack Weaver and Dillon van der Wal. Really like Davis, the Stanford transfer, who is immediately available as a graduate player.
And I’m extremely pumped for this defense. Barron Dixon (6″4″, 295) and Vince Taylor (6″1″, 310) will man the inside switching off series in our 3-4 defense. Both guys are excellent, physical and disruptive. Adam Butler (6″5″, 305) and “Zu,” Caleb Azubike (6″4″, 280), should be premier players for us at defensive ends. And there is good depth there. Linebackers will be led by the superior Darreon Herring. Darreon (6″1″, 232) is the most underrated linebacker in the SEC. Just makes play after play not only with his consistent tackling ability, but also with his ability to make plays that can change a game. He’s a terrific athlete and will have three or four interceptions this year, and he’ll force and recover some fumbles. Love Darreon. He should hould be our leader on defense. Nigel Bowden (6’1″, 245) will be our other inside linebacker and he’s an absolute stud. Nigel was a four-star as well a year and a half ago, and he can bring the hammer on opposing running backs and wide outs. He’s another guy who will be a major wood layer, game changer, type player. Jake Sealand will be back. Would like to see Jake (6’2″, 232) really step it up this year. Think he will. Harding Harper (6’2″, 240) and Ja’karri Thomas (6’1″, 230) are two others who are highly talented and can bring the lumber too on the inside too. Zach Cunningham (6’1″, 235) is a four-star we got late in recruiting in 2013 along with Jordan Cunningham. Zach and Jordan signed on signing day 2013. Hearing really good things about Zach. On the outside we have the awesome Stephen Weatherly and Kyle Woestmann. Zu will play on the outsdie as well. We can probably move Ja’karri and Harding over there some too, and Zach is an athlete who can definitely play outside.
I’m really excited about our secondary. Tre Bell (5″11″, 176) and Darrius Sims (5’9″, 182) will be outstanding corners. They can be as good as anybody in the SEC. They’re not huge in height, but they are outstanding athletes and game changers much like Andre Hal was last year. And we have guys like Paris Head, Torren McGaster and Taurean Ferguson who are excellent corners as well and will keep challenging Tre and Darrius for the starting jobs on the perimeter. And at safety, Oren Burks, is really making a statement. Oren (6’3″, 212) is a punisher as a tackler and can really make plays in the backfield. He’s a stud. Andrew Williamson (6″1″, 208) is the other starting safety right now, but four-star freshman Emmanuel Smith (6’2″, 205) is really making a statement at practice. Jalen Banks (5’11”, 190) is another who wants to see the field and a guy I’ve always liked, Jahmeel McIntosh (6’1″, 205), could make an impact.
Our kicking game is a work in progress. Will have to see more of our kickers and punters next Tuesday before making a final call on those guys. Tommy Openshaw is our scholarship guy, but I’ve heard he’s struggled kicking the ball. Taylor Hudson was our punter most of last year, but Taylor can boom one and then shank one. Need to shore up those two spots. There are some walk ons who are doing a pretty good job and Tommy and Taylor just need to keep working and it may click before the season starts. Kickoff return game looks pretty stellar with guys like Darrius and Brian returning kickoffs. Punt returns I will have to see. Maybe Jordan Cunningham, Latevius Rayford or Gerald Perry. All are explosive. Kimbrow and Sims can definitely take it to the house on kickoffs. Darrius threatened to do that a lot last year and Brian has world class speed, so both are weapons in the kick return game.
We’ve got very good coaching. Coach Dorrell is smart, focused and experienced as an offensive coordinator with his NFl background–he was the Texans qb coach last year–and his head coaching experience at UCLA. Coach David Kotulski, our defensive coordinator, brings the Stanford toughness to the fold, and will be our inside linebackers coach. Derek is such a great guy. I love his passion, energy and I know the players love him. I hear our wide receivers coach, Coach Mark Lubick, is doing a very good job with our young receivers. They have been really good in practice, just attacking when they run their routes and go for the ball. Charles Bankins is the holdover from James’ staff from a year ago and he will coach the special teams and running backs. Really like Coach Bankins for staying with us. He’s good with the running backs and is an excellent recruiter. Coach Gerry Gdowski is our tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator. Kevin LIghtner is our o line coach and the results are very good so far. Frank Maile brings a toughness to our defensive line as coach. He was Utah State’s dline coach last year and I watched some film of him in action and loved his passion and intensity. Kenwick Thompson is our OLB coach and Brett Maxie is our secondary coach. Coach Maxie brings the NFL experience as he comes over from the Titans, where he coached their secondary last year. Derek will be heavily involved with the secondary as well, and Derek is a master at that. Richard Sherman may not be the most popular player nationally, but in my opinion, he’s the best cornerback in the NFL, and Derek was his coach at Stanford. Sherman is the extreme stud cornerback with the world champion Seattle Seahawks. Derek can really teach these guys how to excel. I expect a lot of interceptions this season with Coach Maxie and Derek in charge, and with the talent we have.
Temple will not be easy. They are young and hungry. Their coach, Matt Rhule, is 39, and he’s energetic and passionate. They would like nothing better than to knock off an SEC team on the road. That would be a statement for their program. I watched some film on them and they’ve got a pretty athletic, hard hitting team. Their quarterback, P.J. Walker (6″1″, 230) , is an athlete. He completed 152-250 (61%) for 2,084 yards, 20 TDS with 8 ints last season, and senior Connor Reilly, who started at the beginning of last year, will back Walker up. Running backs are a strength for them with Kenny Harper (136-646 and nine TDs) , Zaire Williams (101-556 and 3 TDs) and Jamie Gilmore. Harper is 6″0″, 225, and Williams is 5″11″, 195. Jalen Fitzpatrick (5’11”, 180) is an excellent wide receiver. He caught 38 passes for 429 and 3 TDs last year. On defense, linebacker Tyler Matakevich (6″1″, 230) led the team last year with 137 total tackles, three forced fumbles, one int, 11.5 tackles for loss and one sack. He is back. Also, linebacker Nate Smith (6’0″, 230) led the team in sacks with three and he will be back. They didn’t get a lot of interceptions last year, as their leaders were three guys with just one each, so maybe we can exploit them downfield. We’ve got to be able to run the ball, too. Their offensive line is their weakest position according to the Temple 247sports writer. Center Kyle Friend (6’2″, 305) is a very good player, but not sure how much quality they have up front. But we’ll absolutely have to be ready to play. Cannot overlook Temple. They’re the first game, so they are all that matters.
We picked up our ninth commitment on Saturday as high three-star Dare Odeyingbo pledged to Derek and the staff. Dare is 6’1″, 225 and is a very good defensive end/linebacker, but an amazing running back. He has rushed for 3,442 yards as a sophomore and junior, and has scored 46 TDs. Vanderbilt has shown signs of wanting Dare as a linebacker, but I absolutely love Dare as a running back. I watched some incredible film on him yesterday. We have got to have Dare as a running back. He’s powerful and a game breaker. Can take it the distance at any time and broke tackle after tackle on film. It’s up to Derek and the staff on Dare, but I’d love to see him as running back. Dare is our 9th commit for 2015. Four-star running back Ke’ Shawn Vaughn was visiting practice Saturday along with four-star offensive lineman Alec Givens. Would love to see both these mid-state Tennessee guys pledge to us. Vaughn really likes us and Givens is between us and Ole Miss. Would love to see Derek land these two. If Ke’Shawn comes aboard maybe that is why Derek is planning on putting Dare at linebacker. You need to get Dare on the field but Ke’Shawn is outstanding on film as well, and we already have a commit from running back Josh Crawford, a 5’11”, 214 pound solid three-star. I’ve heard excellent things about 2015 commit qb Kyle Shurmur. Watched Kyle on film. He’s terrific. Kyle, along with present freshman standout Wade Freeback, and the other young guys we have at quarterback, should make this a stellar group this year and in the ensuing three-four years. I like all of our recruits. Four-star linebacker commit Josh Smith is pumping up our program to other recruits throughout the region and the country. Josh, freshman safety Emmanuel Smith’s younger brother, is a stellar linebacker.
Jay had a nice game for the Bears on Friday night against the Eagles in a game the Bears won 34-28 over the Philly Eagles. Jay was 9-for-13 for 85 yards and a TD, a 10-yard strike to Zach Miller. Have the game on tape as I was watching the PGA and other stuff Friday night, so will give any other further details in the next couple of days, but a solid start for Jay. Jordan Matthews caught four passes for 14 yards for the Eagles. Will have more on JMatt too. Zac Stacy ran for 22 yards on four carries for the Rams in a loss to the Saints, 26-24. Thought Zac looked good though. Ran hard, looked very strong. Like where Zac is. Casey Hayward had a tackle for the Packers and Sean Richardson had two. Sean actually started. Good stuff there. Casey was hurt most of last year, so he has to earn his way back in the rotation this season. Andre Hal had three tackles for the Houston Texans and Wesley Johnson played in the second half for the Steelers and I heard he did well. Both Andre and Wes should do well. Thomas Welch started on the o line for the Saints and Chris Williams started for the Bills. I read where Kenny Ladler had five tackles for the Bills, but not sure about that. Will keep my eye out for Kenny in the upcoming preseason games.
Dave Price didn’t pitch his best for the Tigers yesterday, but I didn’t get to watch the game as I was watching the PGA. I will watch Dave and give a report in a blast tomorrow along with any loose ends I missed. Dave’s line was six innings, five hits, four earned including a two-run homer, three walks and six K’s. That’s unusual for David to walk that many guys. He rarely gives up one walk in a game. I want to check on this game to see how home plate umpire Bill MIller was calling balls and strikes. If I remember correctly, Miller has an extremely tight strike zone, and that could have really hurt Dave. He doesn’t throw a lot of balls unless the umpire has a tight zone. David threw 112 pitches with 76 for strikes and 36 balls, pretty good; but I want to watch Miller closely tonight. David pitched fine; maybe not his best though. He’s just been so good that the standard is probably unreasonably high. But that’s what David expects of himself because he’s such a great competitor. Dave’s still in very good shape this season. He’s going to be fine, actually stellar as usual. Tigers lost to the Blue Jays 6-5 in 19 innings despite getting 22 hits. That’s an outrageous number of hits to only get five runs. The clutch hitting must not have been there.
Sonny Gray on the hill tonight for the A’s at KC. The Tigers only lead the Royals by a half game as the Tigers have been struggling with some pitching injuries and the Royals have been on fire. Sonny and the A’s lead the LA Angels by four games. Will have Sonny, more Dave and Jay and JMatt stuff tomorrow. Mike Minor on the hill for the Braves tomorrow night against the LA Dodgers. Dan Harren (9-9, 4.57 ERA) will face off with Mike. Mike really needs a good outing. David, by the way, is now 11-8 with a 3.21 ERA with 26 walks and 205 strikeouts. I know I keep going to that walk/strikeout number, but it’s really phenomenal. Sonny is 12-5 with a 2.87 ERA with 53 walks and 131 K’s. Mike is 4-7 with a 5.42 ERA, with 29 walks and 87 K’s. Mike really needs a good showing. Pedro not playing much for the Pirates right now. Needs to just stay the course and keep working hard. Same for Ryan Flaherty. Curt Casali started for the Rays at catcher yesterday against the Cubs and went two for five. Curt doing an excellent job for the Rays though they did lose 3-2. The Braves did beat the Nationals 3-1 last night to move 3 1/2 back of the Nats in the NL East. They are two behind the Pirates for the second spot in the wild card. They’re only 2.5 back of the Cards for the top spot in the wild card. But there is a month and a half left in the season, so they are still competing hard for the NL East title.
Brandt finished tied for 13th at -10 in the PGA Championship which Rory won at -16. Outstanding tournament for Brandt. After an opening round 73, Brandt shot 68, 66, 67. Good sign. Brandt has a good shot this week at the Wyndham Championship at Greensboro, N.C., where he won in ’07, and he’s still in the hunt for the U.S. Ryder Cup team. The nine automatic qualifiers are in and captain Tom Watson will make his three captain’s picks on September 2nd, the day after the second leg of the Fed Ex playoffs, the Deutsche Bank Championship. Brandt still in the running for it. Brandt now 21 in the rankings. His new coach, Butch Harmon, is starting to click for Brandt.
Luke List finished tied 39th at the Price Cutter Charity Championship at Highland Springs Country Club in Springfield, Missouri yesterday on the Web.com tour. Luke needs a victory to get in the 25. He’s at 115 right now. He needs a couple of good showings in these last two regular season events, the News Sentinel Open in Knoxville, and the Winco Foods Portland Open in Portland, OR, to at least get in the top 75 and qualify for the Web.com playoffs. The playoffs will feature the top 75 players on the money list of the Web.com tour and the 126th-200th players on the PGA money list who will compete for 25 spots on the PGA tour in a four-tourney playoff beginning with the Hotel Fitness Championship in Fort Wayne, Indiana Aug. 28-31st. So these next two tournaments are critical for Luke. Jon Curran is safely in at No.9 on the 25, but he’s missed some cuts lately and needs to get his game going again. Big week for Luke this week at the News Sentinel and Jon needs to get it going again like he had it earlier in the season.
Will check back with you tomorrow.