Jordan Matthews leads the pack of Vanderbilt freshmen

Coach Caldwell says he's about to decide who wants to play this season and who doesn't — or in the case of the freshmen, who's ready to play and who's not.

With camp heating up, it's a good time to rate the true freshmen and to see whether they're meeting expectations.

1. JORDAN MATTHEWS (FAR EXCEEDS): Initially ranked 2-3 among the freshmen receivers, Matthews has exploded on the scene and has a serious shot at starting.

2. KENNY LADLER (FAR EXCEEDS): One of only two true freshmen listed on the pre-season depth chart, Ladler's making the most of his early enrollment and is giving redshirt freshman Jay Fullam a run for his money at free safety.

3. CHRIS BOYD (FAR EXCEEDS): Though highly rated, many figured the gangly receiver would struggle early, but he looks bigger than advertised and may be better than highly touted redshirt freshman Brady Brown.

4. JONATHAN KRAUSE (FAR EXCEEDS): Though not as physical as Matthews and Boyd, the speedster has dazzled with his leaping catches and will surely play right away.

5. LOGAN STEWART (FAR EXCEEDS): Initially rated behind Grant Ramsay, Stewart has grabbed the backup center position and is getting a ton of reps in preseason camp.

6. VINCE TAYLOR (FAR EXCEEDS): Coaches noted Taylor was leaning on the wrong hand in his stance during camp. Turns out he had broken his hand and didn't want anybody to notice. The kid is tough and has a motor that doesn't quit.

7. STEVEN CLARKE (FAR EXCEEDS): A big-time sleeper out of Miami, Clarke was overshadowed by secondary recruits like Andre Hal and Karl Butler, but he's awed spectators in camp with his athleticism and looks too good to redshirt.

8. CAREY SPEAR (EXCEEDS): While passed off as a punter, Spear is a natural kicker and is listed as Ryan Fowler's backup on the preseason depth chart. Whether he actually plays this year remains to be seen, but he'll seriously contend for kickoff duties.

9. JAMES KITTREDGE (FAR EXCEEDS): Expected to get lost in crowd at defensive tackle, Kittredge has moved to fill the staggering losses on the offensive line and has been a pleasant surprise, outplaying highly rated guard Grant Ramsay.

9. KARL BUTLER (EXCEEDS): A big and strong kid who can play corner but is likely headed to safety, Butler hasn't disappointed and will be ready to play if called upon.

10. ANDRE HAL (STEADY): A little guy with shut-down potential at cornerback, Hal has lacked the preseason flash of Clarke but remains a contender for playing time.

11. JARED MORSE (EXCEEDS): Looks the part at defensive tackle, with a good motor and a nasty streak, as evidenced by his recent clash with hulking offensive tackle Mylon Brown.

12. KYLE WOESTMANN (STEADY): In great shape and brimming with confidence, Woestmann has a great future but may not be able to crack into the two-deep this season.

13. GRANT RAMSAY (STEADY): A big guy and a great prospect, Ramsay is a step behind Stewart and Kittredge for playing time but still has time to catch up, and with all the injuries, all of them may play this season.

14. FITZ LASSING (EXCEEDS): Moved from tight end to linebacker and back again, Lassing's getting plenty of reps since the injury to Austin Monahan and just may play as a true freshman, something that wasn't expected.

15. ANDRE SIMMONS (STEADY): Appears to be a bit behind Ladler and Butler at safety, but remains a fine prospect and has time to close the gap.

16. CHASE WHITE (EXCEEDS): A lanky tackle prospect, White seemed a sure-fire redshirt but has been in the two-deep rotation since day one.

17. ANDREW BRIDGES (STEADY): At 240 pounds, he should be the last true freshman lineman in line to burn his redshirt, but has a huge frame and is an exciting prospect for the future.

18. TRENT PRUITT (BELOW): Expected to challenge for playing time and to possibly be more game-ready than any of the other true freshman receivers, Pruitt hasn't made much of a splash in camp so far and could be ready for a redshirt.

19. CHASE GARNHAM (STEADY): While everybody remains wowed by his sub-4.4 40 times, Garnham will likely need a year to mature and hasn't grabbed any headlines in camp.

20. ANDREW EAST (STEADY): The longsnapping prospect continues to fly below the radar and may redshirt.

21. BLAKE GOWDER (BELOW): Like Pruitt, Gowder has great offensive skills and posted huge numbers in Georgia high school, but is a ’tweener who hasn't settled into a clear role and will likely redshirt.

22. THOMAS RYAN (BELOW): With all the talent at defensive end and overshadowed by roommate Kyle Woestmann, Ryan hasn't made much noise in camp and is likely headed for a redshirt.

Poll: Jonathan Krause most likely to play, but Chris Boyd most likely to start

So you think Jonathan Krause is the player most likely to play as a true freshman, but you also think Chris Boyd has the best chance to be the third starting receiver. Hmmm. So you didn't fill out the polls at the same time.

Anyway, we've kept some polls going for the past few months, and you voted for the following:

MOST LIKELY TO PLAY AS A TRUE FRESHMAN:
• Jonathan Krause, WR

PROBABLE STARTING RECEIVERS:
• Udom Umoh
• John Cole
• Chris Boyd
• Jamie Graham (will play DB instead)
• Brady Brown

PROBABLE STARTING OFFENSIVE LINE:
• Jamie Williams (currently injured)
• Ryan Seymour (currently injured)
• Kyle Fischer
• Joey Bailey
• Wes Johnson

Here are the complete lists:

FRESHMAN PLAYING TIME

1. Jonathan Krause, WR (43%)
2. Chris Boyd, WR (34)
3. Rajaan Bennett, RB (deceased) (28)
4. Kenny Ladler, S (21)
5. Jordan Matthews, WR (20)
6. Vince Taylor, DT (18)
6. Kyle Woestmann, DT (18)
6. Carey Spear, K/P (18)
9. Grant Ramsay, OL (17)
10. Andre Hal, CB (15)
10. Chase Garnham, LB (15)
12. Trent Pruitt, WR (12)
12. Blake Gowder, TE/HB (12)
14. Jared Morse, DT (10)
15. James Kittredge, DE/DT (07)
16. Andre Simmons, S (06)
17. Fitz Lassing, TE/LB (4)
18. Logan Stewart, OL (3)
19. Chase White, OL (1)
19. Steven Clarke, CB (1)
19. Karl Butler, CB/S (1)
19. Thomas Ryan, DE (1)
23. Andrew Bridges, OL (0)

WIDE RECEIVERS MOST LIKELY TO START

1. Udom Umoh, RJr (73%)
2. John Cole, RSo (71)
3. Chris Boyd, Fr (50)
4. Jamie Graham, RJr (45)
5. Brady Brown, So (33)
6. Jordan Matthews, Fr (23)
7. Jonathan Krause, Fr (20)
8. Akeem Dunham, RSo (16)
9. Tray Herndon, RJr (15)
10. Turner Wimberly, RSr (13)
11. Trent Pruitt, Fr (8)
12. Charlie Byrge, RSo (0)
12. Jameson Sackey, RSo (0)


OFFENSIVE LINEMEN MOST LIKELY TO START

1. Jamie Williams, RJr (94%)
2. Ryan Seymour, RSo (89)
3. Kyle Fischer, RJr (83)
4. Joey Bailey, RSr (70)
5. Wes Johnson, RFr (48)
6. Caleb Welchans, RSo (40)
7. Mylon Brown, RFr (24)
8. Jabo Burrow, RSo (18)
9. Chris Aaron, RSr (16)
10. Justin Cabbagestalk, RFr (8)
10. Grant Ramsay, Fr (8)
12. Richard Cagle, RSo (5)
13. Rob Ashabranner, RJr (2)
16. Logan Stewart, Fr (0)
16. Chase White, Fr (0)
16. Andrew Bridges, Fr (0)

Chris Boyd becomes a starter in Vandy fan poll, but does he really want to be a Yellow Jacket?

Look at our poll to the right and see who the Moral Victory! audience thinks will start at wide receiver in 2010 for the Commodores.

John Cole and Udom Umoh, of course. But who's the third starter?

Why, it's Chris Boyd, the 6-foot-5, 190-pound high school senior from Roswell, Ga. He gets 50 percent of the vote, followed by junior corner Jamie Graham (44%), sophomore Brady Brown (41), and two more true freshmen, Jonathan Krause (25) and Jordan Matthews (22).

But don't pencil him into the starting lineup just yet. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Boyd got a phone call last night from Paul Johnson, along with a scholarship offer to Georgia Tech. Now he's taking an official visit this weekend, and he says, "Right now, I’m still committed to Vanderbilt. I’ll have to wait until I visit Georgia Tech.”

Ouch. Bradley Roby had a great chance to start for Vandy as a true frosh, and he jumps ship to Ohio State a couple of weeks ago. Now Boyd is flirting with his hometown team.

He's not the only recruit taking visits since he committed to the Commodores. Here are the other road warriors:

• Jerrell Priester, athlete: Kentucky on Dec. 5; still committed.
• Sharrod Golightly, safety: Georgia Tech on Jan. 22 and South Carolina this weekend.
• Andre Hal, cornerback: Nebraska on Oct. 16 and Louisiana Tech on Dec. 12 (and now Louisiana Tech's coach is at Tennessee); still committed.
• Kyle Woestmann, defensive tackle: South Carolina on Jan. 22.
• Nash Nance, quarterback: Tennessee on Jan. 22.

Hey, our signing class can't shrink below two. Jordan Rodgers and Kenneth Ladler have already enrolled in school.

Chris Boyd ready to join Vandy receiving corps

Dang it. Five Vandy recruits played in the Georgia high school all-star game yesterday in my hometown. And I was at work.

Receivers Bradley Roby and Chris Boyd, linemen Grant Ramsay and Kyle Woestmann, and safety Sharrod Golightly were on the roster. All three-star guys, and Ted Cain personally recruited four of them.

The word from scouts was that Woestmann looks like a big-time player.

Oh, and about Chris Boyd, the 6-foot-5 receiver:

Got open in the end zone, quarterback threw him a nice pass...

And he dropped it. He'll fit right in.

I know, I know, it's only one drop. I'll look forward to seeing what he can do.

Ted Cain's key to a better offense: Better talent

Say what you want about Ted Cain, the man's pulling in offensive recruits from the Atlanta area.

He recruited Chris Boyd, the 6-5 receiver from Roswell who committed to the Commodores yesterday, and was also responsible for nabbing another receiver, Jonathan Krause, a speedster from Snellville.

He was the lead recruiter for quarterback Nash Nance of Calhoun and lineman Grant Ramsay of Marietta, and he worked with Rick Logo to get defensive tackle Kyle Woestmann, also of Marietta.

Over in South Carolina, he teamed up with Robbie Caldwell to get a verbal from offensive lineman Logan Stewart.

We've all heard — and have probably helped generate — criticism about Cain's playcalling. One argument in his defense has been that he hasn't had the offensive talent to work with.

Two of the most exciting athletes for the Commodores last season were D.J. Moore and Myron Lewis, both of whom were listed as wide receivers when they showed up on campus. And a guy who seemed to step up and give us a spark running and catching and even throwing the ball was Jamie Graham, who's being moved to cornerback this season.

Yes, the team is built around defense and special teams, but last season proved that even if you've got the greatest defense and special teams in the world, you still need to generate some offense. It's still incredible to me that Vandy had the second- or third-worst offense in America and still had a winning season, finished in the top half of the SEC and won a bowl against the team with the longest bowl-winning streak in college football.

Of course, that's got to change. And to Ted Cain's credit, he's doing all he can to get better talent to work with. Now if he can just keep them on the offensive side of the ball.