Vanderbilt Recruiting Updates: Franklin Drops One adds Two

Vanderbilt head coach James Franklin continues to work miracles on the recruiting trail for the Commodores. After years of relative futility attracting SEC caliber talent, Vandy has 22 verbal commitments, all with a 3-star ranking or better.

With only one year of head coaching experience under his belt, Franklin caught college football by surprise in 2011 and made a statement to all SEC teams that Vanderbilt will no longer be an easy win for any team.

The Commodores are a team on the rise and recruits from all over are jumping on board.

Franklin’s message has helped recruits like 3-star quarterback and Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year Patton Robinette from Maryville, TN to switch his commitment from North Carolina to Vandy.

Former Arkansas commitment Jakarri Thomas, a 3-star linebacker from Tallahassee, FL committed to the Commodores on Jan. 26.

Reports are former Razorback defensive coordinator Willy Robinson was high on Thomas. Once Robinson was released from his duties the Hogs cooled on Thomas.

A loss for Arkansas becomes a valuable gain for Vanderbilt.

Chris Moody, a safety and quarterback prospect from McDonough, GA, committed to the Commodores on Sunday Jan. 22, after taking an official visit to the campus the weekend of Jan. 20.

Moody is taking his last official visit to South Carolina before National Signing Day on Feb. 1. He visited University of Central Florida and South Florida previously.

The lone recruit no longer committed to Vanderbilt is 3-star wide receiver Andre McDonald from Minnetonka, MN. McDonald, rated as the third best prospect in the state of Minnesota, committed to the Golden Gophers on Jan. 26.

The only known soft verbal commitment on the Commodores list is 4-star defensive end Josh Dawson from Tucker, GA.

University of Georgia has aggressively recruited Dawson over the past weeks after he officially visited the Bulldogs on Jan. 13.

Minnesota is not ranked in Rivals.com top 50 while Scout.com has the Gophers ranked No. 62.

With three scholarships remaining Franklin hosted Dawson, 3-star linebacker Harding Harper from Montgomery, AL, 3-star offensive tackle Andrew Jelks from Paris, TN, Vanderbilt commitment Will Holden, 3-star wide receiver Herbert Waters from Homestead, FL, and Vanderbilt commitment Jaborian McKenzie the weekend of Jan. 20.

3-star offensive tackle Kevin McCoy from Seffner, FL is scheduled to visit this weekend.

Scout.com has Vandy ranked No. 33 in the nation which places them No. 10 out of the current 12 SEC teams with Kentucky at No. 34 and Ole Miss tied for No. 60.

Rivals.com rates Franklin’s haul much higher- No. 25. The bump in rankings on Rivals.com places Vandy at No. 9 in the SEC ahead of Mississippi State at No. 30, Arkansas at No. 31, Ole Miss No. 41, and Kentucky which is not ranked.

New SEC members Texas A&M and Missouri, come this summer, are ranked nationally at No. 10 and No. 49 respectively.

Here’s a list of the 22 current verbal commitments:

QB Patton Robinette, 6’5”, 200 pounds, 3-star, Maryville, TN

RB Jaborian McKenzie, 5’9”, 180 pounds, 3-star, Natchez, MS

RB Brian Kimbrow, 5’9”, 165 pounds, 4-star, Memphis, TN

WR Cory Batey, 5’11”, 180 pounds, 3-star, Nashville, TN

OT Andrew Jelks, 6’6”, 260 pounds, 3-star, Paris, TN

OT Will Holden, 6’6”, 271 pounds, 2-star, Green Cove Springs, FL

OT Blake Fromang, 6’8”, 280 pounds, 3-star, Orlando, FL

OT Barrett Gouger, 6’4”, 275 pounds, 3-star, Chattanooga, TN

OG Adam Butler, 6’5”, 285 pounds, 3-star, Duncanville, TX

CB Torren McGaster, 6’0”, 180 pounds, 2-star, Daphne, AL

CB Brandon Banks, 5’11”. 170 pounds, 3-star, Brandywine, MD

FS Chris Moody, 6’0”, 197 pounds, 3-star, McDonough, GA

SS Paris Head, 5’10”, 170 pounds, 3-star, Buford, GA

DE Ladarius Banks, 6’2”, 263, 2-star, Dallas, GA

DE Stephen Weatherly, 6’4”, 190 pounds, 2-star, Atlanta, GA

DE Josh Dawson, 6’4”, 225 pounds, 4-star, Tucker, GA

DE Caleb Azubike, 6’5”, 240 pounds, 3-star, Nashville, TN

DE Torey Agee, 6’4”, 250 pounds, 3-star, Opelika, AL

LB Jakarri Thomas, 6’1”, 195, 3-star, Tallahassee, FL

OLB Jacob Sealand, 6’1”, 220 pounds, 3-star, Tucker GA

OLB Darreon Herring, 6’2”, 195 pounds, 3-star, Stone Mountain, GA

K Colby Cooke, 6’3”, 175 pounds, 2-star, Goochland, GA

All commitments are verbal and non-binding. National Signing Day is February 1. 

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SEC College Football Preview: Predicting Outcomes for Every SEC Game in Week 11

Last week the SEC accomplished a feat they had never done before, they gave college football fans two games in the same week featuring four top ten teams. This week the excitement is not as great on a national level but there is plenty of intrigue as mid-level teams continue to fight for bowl eligibility.

The matchup of the weekend pits cross-divisional teams No. 24 Auburn at No. 14 Georgia. 5-4 Florida travels to No. 15 South Carolina in hopes of becoming bowl eligible and 4-5 Vanderbilt hosts 4-5 Kentucky in a must win game for both teams.

LSU, Alabama, and Arkansas all play non-ranked teams with Bama traveling to Mississippi State. No surprise that each team’s fan base is praying for a shocking loss for the other’s programs.

Ole Miss welcomes Louisiana Tech in the first of three farewell games for soon to be departing head coach Houston Nutt.

Auburn versus Georgia

The Auburn versus Georgia game will pit the strength of each team against the other, running the ball. Auburn holds an edge here with sophomore running back Michael Dyer.

Dyer is second in the SEC in total rushing yards with 989 and third in rushing touchdowns having collected nine scores.

Bulldog true freshman running back Isaiah Crowell is sixth in the SEC in total rushing yards with 689 despite missing Georgia’s last game due to a suspension.

The pivotal point between the two teams will come down to quarterback play. The edge swings back in Georgia’s favor here.

Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray is second in the SEC in total passing yards having thrown for 2,060. His 23 passing touchdowns leads the SEC. Murray’s eight interceptions is second in the conference to departed Gamecock quarterback Stephen Garcia.

Tiger quarterback Clint Moseley will make his third career start against a Bulldog defense ranked 7th in the FBS. Moseley threw for 160 yards, his season high, against Ole Miss two weeks ago. He finished the game 12-15 with four passing touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Auburn is coming off a bye thus they should be rested and ready. But Georgia should get some quality contributors back on the field this weekend too when wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell and running back Carlton Thomas return from an injury and suspension respectively.

Between the two teams Auburn is more battle tested having played six teams currently ranked or ranked at one time during the season to Georgia’s four.

Auburn has the 75th rated defense in the country to Georgia’s 7th ranked defense.

Georgia has the momentum riding a seven game winning streak with a solid opportunity to wrap up the SEC East division title.

Final Score

Georgia 28, Auburn 21

Florida versus South Carolina

Revenge game, new rivalry game, whatever you want to call it these two teams will get after each other come Saturday. Both teams have season goals and bragging rights riding on the outcome.

If South Carolina wins they stay alive in the race for the SEC East divisional title. Should they lose, Georgia wins the SEC East and the Gamecocks will have to fight for a better bowl bid and/or play spoiler to in-state rival Clemson during the last weekend of the season.

A win by 5-4 Florida makes the Gators bowl eligible and takes some of the heat off of first year coach Will Muschamp and his infamous offensive coordinator Charlie Weis.

Gamecock quarterback Connor Shaw is expected to play this week after taking a vicious hit from Arkansas defensive end Jake Bequette in last week’s game. Shaw was suffering from concussion-like symptoms after the game.

Florida is also expecting their starting quarterback John Brantley to play after injuring himself against Vanderbilt last week as well.

Florida’s defense is stingy against the run which is what the Gamecocks need to do well in order to beat the Gators. Against the Hogs the Gamecocks were held to 79 total rushing yards.

The Gamecocks entered the Arkansas game only allowing 135.88 passing yards per game. Quarterback Tyler Wilson piled up 299 passing yards with two scores against the vaunted Gamecock defense. What can Brantley do against the same defense especially if safety DeVonte Holloman is not cleared to play for USC?

The Gators are hoping senior running back Chris Rainey will return to the lineup after injuring his ankle against Georgia.

The wheels seem to be coming off for Steve Spurrier and his Gamecock team. Can he keep his team together for three more regular season games?

Florida becomes bowl eligible on Saturday.

Final Score

Florida 24, South Carolina 21

Kentucky versus Vanderbilt

Looking over the SEC schedules before the season started the Wildcats vs. the Commodores game is not one of the games most fans circled. Yet the game holds heavy importance for both teams.

4-5 Kentucky is riding a five-game bowl appearance streak with three games left to play. 4-5 Vanderbilt is looking to go bowling for only the fifth time in the team’s history and the first time since 2008.

Head coach Joker Phillips is in his second year with the Wildcats. James Franklin is a first year head coach for the Commodores. Both coaches are trying to build a solid SEC program and need a win this weekend to keep their bowl hopes alive.

Phillips will call upon true freshman Maxwell Smith (Granada Hills, California) for the third game in a row to lead his team. Smith has played well in the place of injured quarterback Morgan Newton. Newton is healthy enough to play this week but will serve as the team’s second string quarterback.

The missing element from Kentucky’s offense this year has been a passing attack. Smith threw for 283 yards on 19 completions with two touchdowns against Ole Miss last week igniting hope for Wildcat fans that they can finish the season strong.

With the passing game elevated the running game has responded as well. CoShik Williams had a game-high 111 rushing yards on 25 carries finding the end zone twice against the Rebels.

Vanderbilt has continued their maturation process this season. The Commodores were a couple of plays away from possibly beating Georgia, Arkansas, and Florida over their past four games. Franklin’s young team has not learned how to win yet. The SEC East better watch out for this team next season.

Jordan Rodgers continues to impress after taking over for senior quarterback Larry Smith. Rodgers has started the last three games and finished last week’s game against Florida with 297 yards passing, two touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Commodore running back Zac Stacey was held to 23 rushing yards after back-to-back 100-yard performances against Army and Arkansas.

The game will come down to which defense can make the other team’s offense make mistakes. This heavily favors Vanderbilt.

Vanderbilt has the 30th ranked defense in the nation despite not having much support from the offense for most of the season.

Vanderbilt keeps their bowl hopes alive.

Final Score

Vanderbilt 28, Kentucky 17

Alabama versus Mississippi State

After last week’s “game of the century” most college football fans want to see how Bama will respond. Will they have a let-down game or will they come out and prove a point by punishing MSU? Either way LSU and Arkansas will be interested in the final outcome as their season’s final outcome could be made easier with a Bama loss.

On paper this game is a mismatch heavily favoring Alabama

Mississippi State allows 349 yards of total offense per game. Alabama is the top ranked defense holding teams to 187 total yards.

Alabama has the best rush defense in the country averaging 56.33 yards per game, Mississippi State 161.22.

Alabama averages 214 rushing yards per game, MSU 187 yards.

5-4 Mississippi State hosts Bama this week, travels to Arkansas next week, and hosts Ole Miss on the final weekend of the season. This is a tough road to walk down for head coach Dan Mullen trying to get his team to the all important six win plateau.

Final Score

Alabama 38, MSU 7

Louisiana Tech versus Ole Miss

The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs are one of the more intriguing teams in college football. They easily could have won the four games they lost, Southern Miss 19-17, Houston 34-35, and Mississippi State 26-20 and be undefeated going into the stretch run of their Western Athletic Conference schedule. As it is the Bulldogs need this win against Ole Miss to become bowl eligible.

The game is not without some controversy as embattled Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt resigned on Monday which will be effective come November 26. After losing 12-straight SEC games how will his team respond this week? Will they rally around Nutt or have they already given up on the season?

The Bulldogs are on a four-game winning streak. Look for them to shock a SEC team on the road.

Louisiana Tech 34, Ole Miss 28

Western Kentucky versus LSU

It’s the top ranked team in the nation with one of the best defenses in the nation going up against a 5-4 Sun Belt Conference team that lost 14-3 to Kentucky during the first week of the season.

LSU sleepwalks through this one.

LSU 48, WKU 6

Tennessee versus Arkansas

Tennessee looks to do the near impossible this weekend by knocking off No. 8 Arkansas on the road.

Arkansas responded well to their home surroundings last weekend after playing four of five games on the road. The Hogs easily defeated then No. 10 South Carolina 44-28.

The Vols are coming off a feel good win over Middle Tennessee State, 24-0.

Tennessee’s defense is SEC caliber but the offense is not.

There is an outside chance that Tyler Bray may return for this game. At 4-5 Dooley may sit his starter in hopes of winning their final two games to become bowl eligible. Why risk an injury to Bray with post season hopes hinging on his play during the final two games?

Arkansas’ passing attack has remained solid all year long behind the play of quarterback Tyler Wilson. Wilson leads the SEC in passing yards and his top target, Jarius Wright, leads the SEC in receiving yards with 812 and receiving touchdowns with nine.

The one shining offensive production for the Vols has been wide receiver Da’Rick Rogers. Rogers has assumed the No. 1 wide receiver role after Justin Hunter tore his ACL earlier in the season. Rogers is second in the SEC in receiving yards with 780 and tied for second in receiving touchdowns with seven.

Hogs win their sixth game in a row in front of a happy Reynolds Razorback Stadium crowd.

Arkansas 45, Tennessee 17

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SEC College Football Recap: All Teams Week 3 in Review

The SEC had a rough week in out of conference action when Auburn and Kentucky lost their games to Clemson, ACC and Louisville, Big East respectively.

The rest of the SEC teams held their ground in preparation for this week’s big games: Arkansas vs. Alabama, LSU vs. West Virginia, and Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina.

LSU (2-0) vs. Mississippi State (1-1)

Mississippi State and their fans still had questions left over from their road loss to Auburn… LSU’s defense answered the rest of their questions. MSU is not ready to take that next step in the SEC as they lost 19-6 to the Tigers.

Vick Ballard was held to 38-yards rushing after averaging 150-yards rushing per game in the first two games of the season. MSU’s only netted 52 yards rushing for the entire game.

LSU’s defense harassed Chris Relf sacking him three times and sacking Tyler Russell once.

Jarrett Lee got the job done for LSU and answered his critics, yes he can win a big game on the road, by completing 21 of 27 passes for 213-yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Spencer Ware pounded the MSU defense 22 times for 107-yards rushing.

Ruben Randle was Lee’s go to guy hauling in six catches for 98-yards receiving with one score.

This week’s games:

LSU (3-0) vs. West Virginia (3-0)

Louisiana Tech (1-2) vs. MSU (1-2)

Ole Miss (1-1) vs. Vanderbilt (2-0)

James Franklin is all smiles after he led the Commodores past Ole Miss 30-7 in Nashville. Franklin has surpassed last year’s win total of two games and earned his first SEC in-conference victory in the process.

Vanderbilt’s defense gave the Ole Miss offense all they could handle picking off Zack Stoudt four times returning one of those picks for a touchdown. Ole Miss was held to 234-yards of total offense while Vandy amassed 387-yards, 281-yards rushing.

Junior Zac Stacy led the Commodores with 169-yards rushing on eleven attempts and one score. Larry Smith was efficient for Vanderbilt finishing 13 of 20 for 103-yards passing.

Ole Miss’ lone score was with 2:48 seconds left in the game on a 47-yard pass play from Stoudt to Donte Moncrief.

This week’s games:

Vanderbilt (3-0) vs. South Carolina (3-0)

Georgia (1-2) vs. Ole Miss (1-2)

Auburn (2-0) vs. Clemson (2-0)

Everyone was waiting to see if or when Auburn would lose their winning magic from the 2010 season. Clemson found a way to stifle the Tiger’s offense in the second half winning 38-24.

Tied at 21-21 going into halftime, Clemson struck first after halftime on their opening series on a 65-yard pass play from Tajh Boyd to Sammy Watkins. Auburn would respond with a field goal later in the third but the Clemson Tigers tacked on another Boyd to Watkins touchdown to pull ahead 35-24.

Tajh Boyd finished the day with four passing touchdowns and completing 30 of 42 passes for 386-yards.

Michael Dyer led Auburn with 151-yards rushing on 16 attempts.

Auburn’s defense allowed 624-yards of total offense.

This week’s games:

Florida Atlantic (0-2) vs. Auburn (2-1)

Florida State (2-1) vs. Clemson (3-0)

Coastal Carolina (2-0) vs. Georgia (0-2)

Georgia unleashed some early season frustration on the Chanticleers beating them 59-0.

Aaron Murray completed 69 percent of his passes for 188-yards and three passing touchdowns while adding one rushing touchdown against Coastal Carolina. True freshman running back Isaiah Crowell finished with a game high 86-yards rushing in his first start as a Bulldog.

Georgia shut down Coastal Carolina’s offense only allowing 10 different runners a total of 63-yards rushing. The Chanticleers finished the game with 49-yards passing.

This week’s games:

Georgia (1-2) vs. Mississippi (1-2)

Coastal Carolina (2-1) vs. North Carolina A&T (1-1)

Tennessee (2-0) vs. Florida (2-0)

Chris Rainey and Florida extended their six-game dominance over the Vols to seven games, winning 33-23 in the Swamp.

Rainey had 108-yards rushing, 104-yards receiving with one touchdown, and blocked a punt against Tennessee. Rainey’s performance has gained him additional national Heisman recognition with voters.

Florida’s defense was too much for Tyler Bray and the Volunteers to handle. Bray was sacked three times and threw two interceptions. The Gator defense dropped several would be interceptions throughout the game as the Vols offense was one dimensional during the game. Bray finished the game 26-48 for 288 yards-passing with three touchdowns.

Bray’s stat line was impressive but that was all the offense Tennessee could muster against the Gators. The Gators shut down Tennessee’s running attack not allowing any positive yards for the game (negative nine yards). Tauren Poole has not gotten on track during the 2011 season for Tennessee. Poole finished the game with 18-yards rushing on ten attempts.

Tennessee wide receiver Justin Hunter left the game with a torn ACL and will be out the rest of the season. He only had one catch for 12-yards before his injury.

John Brantley was not flashy but got the job done throwing two touchdown passes on 14-23 attempts for 213 yards.

This week’s games:

Tennessee (2-1) Bye

Florida (3-0) vs. Kentucky (2-1)

Navy (2-0) vs. South Carolina (2-0)

South Carolina hung on for a well deserved victory against Navy winning 24-21.

Both teams are known for their rushing attacks but the game came down to a fourth-down Midshipmen pass that was intercepted by the Gamecocks to stop Navy’s upset bid.

South Carolina ran their sophomore sensation Marcus Lattimore 37 times for a career high 246-yards rushing and three touchdowns in the game. Steve Spurrier did not have another running back carry the ball against Navy.

Stephen Garcia completed 72 percent of his passes finishing with 204-yards passing and one interception.

South Carolina’s defense held Navy to 274-yards rushing, 126-yards below their 400-yards per game average entering the game.

Navy held the lead twice during the game. The Midshipmen scored first leading 7-0 in the first quarter then regained the lead with 4:23 left in the third quarter on a two-yard touchdown run going up 21-17 over the Gamecocks.

Neither team lost a fumble during the game on a combined 91-rushing attempts.

This week’s games:

Vanderbilt (3-0) vs. South Carolina (3-0)

Air Force (1-1) vs. Navy (2-1)

Louisville (1-1) vs. Kentucky (2-0)

Louisville ended their four-game losing streak to the Wildcats winning 24-17 in Lexington.

Louisville’s passing attack was the primary concern for Kentucky going into the game but their rushing attack made the difference. The Cardinals ran for 181-yards to the Wildcats 35-yards rushing.

Louisville played most of the game without their starting quarterback, Will Stein. True freshman Teddy Bridgewater replaced Stein finishing the game with 106-yards passing and two touchdowns on 10 of 18 passing attempts.

Morgan Newton finally found a rhythm throwing the ball in the second half for Kentucky. Newton ran Kentucky’s no-huddle offense for a late touchdown in the fourth quarter to pull within 24-17. Perhaps Joker Phillips will use their no-huddle offense in upcoming games to help make Newton more effective in the passing game?

Newton finished with two passing touchdowns on 27-41 attempts for 255-yards.

This week’s games:

Florida (3-0) vs. Kentucky (2-1)

Louisville (2-1) Bye

North Texas (0-2) vs. Alabama (2-0)

Alabama ran past the Mean Green 41-0 in a tune-up game for the Arkansas Razorbacks. This was the first shut-out for Alabama since 2009.

Alabama’s backfield combo of Trent Richardson and Bo Lacy set an Alabama rushing record as both backs topped the 160-yard mark. Alabama has never had two backs rush for more than 150-yards each in a game previously. Richardson finished with 167-yards rushing on eleven attempts with three rushing touchdowns and Lacy finished with 161-yards on nine rushes with two scores.

Even though their defense was outmanned, the Mean Green stopped Alabama inside the red zone twice in the first half forcing them to kick two field goals. Bama’s offense gave up four sacks in the game, sacking AJ McCarron three times.

The Tide’s defense only gave up 169-net yards for the game.

This week’s games:

Arkansas (3-0) vs. Alabama (3-0)

North Texas (0-3) vs. Indiana (1-2)

Troy (1-1) vs. Arkansas (2-0)

Arkansas avoided a trap game with Troy before finally winning 38-28 in Fayettville, Arkansas.

Tyler Wilson added another 300-yard passing game and two more passing touchdowns to his collegiate resume against the Trojans. The Razorback offense seemed fairly basic in their final tune-up game before starting conference play against Alabama. The Razorbacks rarely stretched the field with their passing game instead choosing short yardage pass plays to help move the chains.

Ronnie Wingo Jr. had his best rushing performance of the season and his career with a game high 109-yards rushing and two scores. Wingo also had a six-yard touchdown catch for the first score of the third quarter.

The Razorbacks were up 31-7 in the third quarter before Corey Robinson and the Trojans made the game interesting. Troy did not give up against the Hogs as the Arkansas game was their last chance to defeat a major BCS Conference team during the regular season.

Robinson attempted 63-passes, completing 36, for 373-yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. The Trojans intercepted a Tyler Wilson pass which was returned for a touchdown making the score 31-21 Arkansas.

Arkansas would respond in the fourth quarter with a 56-yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Joe Adams (eight catches, 109-yards receiving). Robinson threw his third touchdown of the game with 47 seconds to play making the final score 38-28.

Arkansas looked flat at times against the up-tempo Trojan offense as they seemed to be looking ahead to this week’s game against Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

Robinson may be the best quarterback the Hogs will face during the regular season. Robinson is the fifth-rated quarterback in FBS and the eleventh rated quarterback in yards per game at 315.5.

This week’s games:

Arkansas (3-0) vs. Alabama (3-0)

Middle Tennessee (0-2) vs. Troy (1-1) 

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