One true freshman replaces another at starting wide receiver for Vanderbilt

True freshmen continue to shine. On Saturday, Jordan Matthews stepped out of the starting lineup at wide receiver because of tendonitis and was replaced by Johnathan Krause. Chris Boyd is also a player. Tight end Fitz Lassing and linebacker Chase Garnham are both making late bids for playing time. In the secondary, Andre Hal and Steven Clarke are duking it out for playing time at corner, and Kenny Ladler is fending off Karl Butler and Andre Simmons at safety.

Looking over reports from preseason camp, here are some key developments at each position:

QUARTERBACKS
Coach Caldwell says Larry Smith has just about wrapped up the starting job. Jared Funk, who’s making a strong bid to be his backup, fired a 70-yard touchdown to John Cole in Saturday’s scrimmage. Jordan Rodgers has returned to practice, and he and Charlie Goro are still splitting reps with Smith and Funk.

RECEIVERS
Jordan Matthews, the freshman who has been practicing with the first team for more than a week, sat out Saturday’s practice with tendonitis and was replaced by another true freshman, Jonathan Krause, who made some acrobatic catches. Chris Boyd also made some tough catches in heavy traffic. John Cole and Udom Umoh continue to look like starters.

RUNNING BACKS
Warren Norman has a swollen knee and is getting an MRI on Wednesday, and Zac Stacy, while wearing full pads today, is still taking it easy and may or may not be ready for the season opener. Wesley Tate is running sprints but still has not practiced with the offense since reinjuring his foot. That leaves senior Kennard Reeves, who got plenty of work on Saturday, especially in the passing game. He struggled early, but showed some nice hands and open-field moves later.

TIGHT ENDS
Brandon Barden got some light work on Saturday and then was replaced on the first team by true freshman Fitz Lassing, who seemed like a lock to redshirt but may be working his way onto the depth chart. His main competition, redshirt frosh Mason Johnston, had numerous catches in heavy traffic during the scrimmage.

OFFENSIVE LINE
With Joey Bailey sitting out with injury, true freshmen James Kittredge and Logan Stewart got plenty of work at center. Caldwell said Kittredge, who converted from defensive tackle last month, has cracked Vandy’s seven-man rotation on the offensive line and may even take Bailey’s center job.

DEFENSIVE LINE
Not much word out of camp on these guys. I’m very interested to hear how one of my favorite Commodores, Vince Taylor, is doing. He and another true frosh, Jared Morse, are battling a bunch of redshirt sophomores — Lohr, Nichter, Loftley and Jelesky — for the opportunity to play alongside or spell junior T.J. Greenstone. Vandy doesn’t traditionally play more than four DTs. At end, three upperclassmen — junior Tim Fugger and seniors Theron Kadri and Teriall Brannon — appear the most game-ready, but there’s a bunch of talent fighting for the second backup slot.

LINEBACKERS
The battle among all those redshirt sophomores continues. DeAndre Jones, whose stock seems to have slipped the last year or so, looked strong on Saturday with several key stops in short-yardage situations. Redshirt freshman Blake Southerland made a diving interception, and true frosh Chase Garnham continues to show excellent speed in pursuit and a nose for the football. He hasn’t gotten much ink this preseason but by all accounts is having a strong camp. While he may play this season, he’s still a bit light and could follow Walker May, who turned heads in camp last season as a true frosh but still redshirted to put on some weight.

CORNERBACKS
With starting cornerbacks Jamie Graham and Casey Hayward sitting out Saturday’s practice, true freshmen Steven Clarke and Andre Hal continued to wage their battle for playing time. Clarke had three pass deflections on Saturday, including a dramatic leaping end zone break-up on the day’s last play. Hal displayed solid cover skills, strong run support and returned a kick 89 yards for a touchdown.

SAFETIES
All-star candidate Sean Richardson and projected starter Jay Fullam got light work on Saturday, giving three true freshmen time to shine. The front runner for playing time, Kenny Ladler, returned a pick 60 yards for a touchdown. Karl Butler continued to make a name for himself as the hardest hitter on the team, and Andre Simmons looked solid too.

KICKER
While everybody’s been talking about freshman kicker Carey Spear’s strong leg, sophomore Ryan Fowler continues to nail all his field goals, including a 47-yarder on Saturday.

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.

Vandy gets a receiver named Jordan to go with its new quarterback named Jordan

Days after signing JUCO quarterback Jordan Rodgers (did we mention he was Aaron Rodgers' little brother?), the Commodores got a verbal commitment from wide receiver Jordan Matthews of Madison, Ala.

So Jordan could be throwing passes to Jordan. Maybe.

A lot can happen. We've had hot-shot transfers before — there's Richard Kovalchek from Arizona, of course, but don't forget Tim Olmstead from Florida about 10 years ago. Olmstead was a 4-star or maybe even 5-star prospect lured to Florida by Steve Spurrier. But Spurrier was also in the process of developing or signing Doug Johnson, Rex Grossman, Jesse Palmer and Brock Berlin, and he happily let Olmstead transfer to Vandy, something that whipped the Commodore fan base into a frenzy and then left them scratching their heads when Olmstead couldn't beat out Greg Zolman.

Jordan Rodgers isn't nearly as hyped. He just has good bloodlines. Maybe he'll beat out Larry Smith and maybe he won't. And if he doesn't win the job, maybe he'll beat out Charlie Goro (who after all, was a Parade All-American) and maybe he won't. If he does, then maybe Larry Smith will get hurt and he'll get to play and maybe he won't.

As for Jordan Matthews, he's an unknown. Dore fans are chirping on chat boards about his size (6-3, 190), his speed (4.5 40), his basketball skills (20 points in the state championship game). Sounds kind of like Akeem Dunham, a former hoops star who couldn't catch a pass last season as a redshirt freshman.

Oh, except that the fellows over at VSL are saying that Matthews is kin to Jerry Rice. Cool.

He's certainly flying under the radar. Matthews is unrated by all the major recruiting services, and at least on paper is a much less-regarded prospect than the other four wide receivers from whom we've received commitments (Bradley Roby, Jonathan Krause, Chris Boyd and Trent Pruitt). Matthews had offers from Jacksonville State and Tulane. He's also listed by scouts.com as a safety.

We seemed to still have a chance to grab more three-star receiving prospects, including Julian Horton, a gifted athlete who's been holding out for Alabama. So Matthews' announcement on Christmas Eve comes as something of a surprise.

Five receivers are an awful lot for one signing class. Of course, Boyd could play H-back, Pruitt could be an all-purpose back and Roby is also highly rated as a cornerback. I expect that some of the receivers currently on the roster won't return. Turner Wimberly, for example, could go ahead and graduate like Justin Green has already chosen to do. After the football season ends, decisions like this often go unannounced until the spring roster is released and you can figure out who's no longer on it.