Maybe you noticed it too. There on the sidelines, sending in various signals and dubious playcalls, were three quarterbacks.
1. Jared Funk — or Larry Smith, when Jared was getting the opportunity to get on the field and throw an interception.
2. Jordan Rodgers, who's likely redshirting after struggling with a shoulder injury.
3. Matt Casas, the walk-on who'll play in the event that hell freezes over.
Which begs the question, where was Charlie Goro?
I have no idea. Charlie's been on the sidelines doing the hand-signaling business in games past, but his No. 7 was nowhere to be seen on Saturday night.
Which means the rumors will start flying once again that he's transferring at the end of the semester. And unless he's in Nashville strictly for the academics, he's got to be wondering why he's here. He's a quarterback on a terrible offensive team that's desperate for a change. So what's he waiting for... to throw his first pass three years from now when he's a redshirt senior?
Sunday, October 31, 2010
So Jared Funk lost the game for us?
Why is it that when a team gets their butts handed to them in a football game, their fans want to pinpoint the exact moment or the exact person that cost them the game?
In the case of Vandy's 49-14 loss last night, it apparently all boils down to the moment Jared Funk took the field.
Greg M. even blasted me for saying I loved the idea. Well, I do love the IDEA. I love that somebody in our coaching brain trust was planning for the game and said, "Hey, we're having trouble scoring. Larry Smith can't even get a freaking pass out of his hand before he's on his back. Maybe that's because he doesn't have time but maybe it's also because he's not reacting quickly enough. Jared Funk's been moving the ball in practice. So let's let him play the third series of the game."
When you score once out of every 30 drives or whatever, and you go three-and-out on 25 of them, it's not like you're throwing away a sure touchdown by substituting your quarterback for one drive in the first half. Fans have been wondering for the past two seasons why Larry hasn't gotten a breather here and there and a chance to settle himself down.
So we plan to do that. And yes, I love the IDEA of doing it and planning for it. In fact, when I saw Funk enter the game, I wondered if perhaps Larry hadn't performed so well precisely because he knew he'd have two series before he came out. And Caldwell practically said as much after game.
Now would I have ACTUALLY pulled Larry after the Dores opened the game with two touchdowns? Probably not. But if you tell Funk you're going to play him regardless of Larry's performance but then you wait for Larry to screw up before you make the substitution then you're sending the wrong signal to both guys.
And it wasn't Jared's fault that Barden couldn't catch the ball.
Bottom line, we didn't lose the game because Jared replaced Larry on the third series. If Larry had taken us to two more scores, we'd have lost that game 63-28. Petrino called off the hogs early in the fourth quarter.
It's like last year's Georgia Tech game. We put up a surprising number of points early, which only served to jump-start the other team's offensive machine. We weren't going to outscore the Razorbacks in a million years.
We used every bullet in our holster on those first two drives, while getting lots of help from Arkansas in the form of poor tackling and stupid penalties.
We were outmanned and we were going to lose that game. But the reason things went downhill so fast? (1) Our coaching staff failed to make adjustments on offense. (2) We lack game-ready SEC linemen on both sides of the ball — we couldn't get past their mammoth offensive line to pressure Mallett, and we couldn't stave off their mammoth defensive line to protect Larry. We were outweighed by 30 or 40 pounds on either side of the ball.
Sure, we lost by 35 points because Jared Funk played one series in the first quarter. If that makes you feel better about having the inferior team, then go ahead and believe that.
In the case of Vandy's 49-14 loss last night, it apparently all boils down to the moment Jared Funk took the field.
Greg M. even blasted me for saying I loved the idea. Well, I do love the IDEA. I love that somebody in our coaching brain trust was planning for the game and said, "Hey, we're having trouble scoring. Larry Smith can't even get a freaking pass out of his hand before he's on his back. Maybe that's because he doesn't have time but maybe it's also because he's not reacting quickly enough. Jared Funk's been moving the ball in practice. So let's let him play the third series of the game."
When you score once out of every 30 drives or whatever, and you go three-and-out on 25 of them, it's not like you're throwing away a sure touchdown by substituting your quarterback for one drive in the first half. Fans have been wondering for the past two seasons why Larry hasn't gotten a breather here and there and a chance to settle himself down.
So we plan to do that. And yes, I love the IDEA of doing it and planning for it. In fact, when I saw Funk enter the game, I wondered if perhaps Larry hadn't performed so well precisely because he knew he'd have two series before he came out. And Caldwell practically said as much after game.
Now would I have ACTUALLY pulled Larry after the Dores opened the game with two touchdowns? Probably not. But if you tell Funk you're going to play him regardless of Larry's performance but then you wait for Larry to screw up before you make the substitution then you're sending the wrong signal to both guys.
And it wasn't Jared's fault that Barden couldn't catch the ball.
Bottom line, we didn't lose the game because Jared replaced Larry on the third series. If Larry had taken us to two more scores, we'd have lost that game 63-28. Petrino called off the hogs early in the fourth quarter.
It's like last year's Georgia Tech game. We put up a surprising number of points early, which only served to jump-start the other team's offensive machine. We weren't going to outscore the Razorbacks in a million years.
We used every bullet in our holster on those first two drives, while getting lots of help from Arkansas in the form of poor tackling and stupid penalties.
We were outmanned and we were going to lose that game. But the reason things went downhill so fast? (1) Our coaching staff failed to make adjustments on offense. (2) We lack game-ready SEC linemen on both sides of the ball — we couldn't get past their mammoth offensive line to pressure Mallett, and we couldn't stave off their mammoth defensive line to protect Larry. We were outweighed by 30 or 40 pounds on either side of the ball.
Sure, we lost by 35 points because Jared Funk played one series in the first quarter. If that makes you feel better about having the inferior team, then go ahead and believe that.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Commodores return to reality by halftime against Arkansas
Halftime and Commodores down 32-14.
Still, you gotta love the fact we came out and scored two touchdowns out of the gate. I know a lot of fans are going to whine about:
1. Funk coming in after Larry's two scoring drives and throwing a pick.
2. Larry fumbling in the end zone for a safety.
3. Our secondary surrendering 259 yards passing and three touchdowns.
I'm not whining about that. I love the idea of letting Larry sit for a series and watch the game, especially when he knows it's going to happen and is psychologically prepared for it. (But wouldn't it be nice to have a QB who doesn't have to be psychologically prepared for everything?) Barden dropped Funk's pass and it popped into the hands of a Razorback DB. Oh, and Mallett has no pressure. He'd torch any secondary when the D-Line isn't pressuring him.
We simply have zero error for margin. Our four-man rotation at defensive line, on average, gives up 30 yards to each Razorback offensive lineman. Thirty pounds! Eric Samuels rips off a great kick return and it's nullified by a bone-headed penalty from Josh Jelesky, who did a similarly stupid thing against Northwestern.
Yeah, Larry needs to unleash the ball sooner, but he's not getting much time. Mallett, as Caldwell likes to say, is eating a sandwich back there before he throws a pass. Our O-Line is missing a ton of assignments.
On the bright side of things, the Razorbacks are going to be sore after this one. Sean Richardson is laying the wood to those guys. Granted, he does it after they've gained 15-20 yards, but he's making them think twice about it. Marve is a beast, too.
And we're smarter than they are, too. Tyler Wilson, Arkansas' backup quarterback, was named the scholar-athlete of the week... for his 2.9 GPA in sports management.
A 2.9? In sports management? At Arkansas? Are we supposed to be impressed?
Hey, don't quit your day job — which apparently is playing football.
Still, you gotta love the fact we came out and scored two touchdowns out of the gate. I know a lot of fans are going to whine about:
1. Funk coming in after Larry's two scoring drives and throwing a pick.
2. Larry fumbling in the end zone for a safety.
3. Our secondary surrendering 259 yards passing and three touchdowns.
I'm not whining about that. I love the idea of letting Larry sit for a series and watch the game, especially when he knows it's going to happen and is psychologically prepared for it. (But wouldn't it be nice to have a QB who doesn't have to be psychologically prepared for everything?) Barden dropped Funk's pass and it popped into the hands of a Razorback DB. Oh, and Mallett has no pressure. He'd torch any secondary when the D-Line isn't pressuring him.
We simply have zero error for margin. Our four-man rotation at defensive line, on average, gives up 30 yards to each Razorback offensive lineman. Thirty pounds! Eric Samuels rips off a great kick return and it's nullified by a bone-headed penalty from Josh Jelesky, who did a similarly stupid thing against Northwestern.
Yeah, Larry needs to unleash the ball sooner, but he's not getting much time. Mallett, as Caldwell likes to say, is eating a sandwich back there before he throws a pass. Our O-Line is missing a ton of assignments.
On the bright side of things, the Razorbacks are going to be sore after this one. Sean Richardson is laying the wood to those guys. Granted, he does it after they've gained 15-20 yards, but he's making them think twice about it. Marve is a beast, too.
And we're smarter than they are, too. Tyler Wilson, Arkansas' backup quarterback, was named the scholar-athlete of the week... for his 2.9 GPA in sports management.
A 2.9? In sports management? At Arkansas? Are we supposed to be impressed?
Hey, don't quit your day job — which apparently is playing football.
Vanderbilt scores two touchdowns in the first quarter for the first time since...
When's the last time the Commodores scored two touchdowns in the first quarter?
Glad you asked.
It was almost two years ago, on Nov. 15, 2008, against Kentucky, when D.J. Moore grabbed a couple of TD passes from Chris Nickson.
The Razorbacks just scored to cut their deficit to 14-13 and everybody on both sides is kind of bracing for them to explode and win by 40, but you've got to love the plays Des has been calling. He's stuck with our best playmakers and brought Larry along slowly.
Warren carries and then Jonathan Krause takes it to the house, and then Zac and Warren run and then Larry hits Barden a couple of times, the last time for a TD.
So far, so good.
Glad you asked.
It was almost two years ago, on Nov. 15, 2008, against Kentucky, when D.J. Moore grabbed a couple of TD passes from Chris Nickson.
The Razorbacks just scored to cut their deficit to 14-13 and everybody on both sides is kind of bracing for them to explode and win by 40, but you've got to love the plays Des has been calling. He's stuck with our best playmakers and brought Larry along slowly.
Warren carries and then Jonathan Krause takes it to the house, and then Zac and Warren run and then Larry hits Barden a couple of times, the last time for a TD.
So far, so good.
Two touchdowns against Razorbacks would be an improvement for Vandy
Well, here I am once again posting at the last minute with today's Vandy pick. And once again, we're checking out our preseason pick. Hmmm, let's see. We picked Arkansas to beat Vanderbilt 38-27.
Ha ha ha ha ha.
If Vandy scores 27 points against a huge Arkansas defense, then we should make Des Kitchings offensive coordinator for life, unless the defense scores all three or four TDs.
We're going to need Mallett to have an off game. I was going to say get hurt, but did you see the numbers that Wilson, his backup, put up against Auburn?
Anyway, call it 31-14 Razorbacks.
I'm being optimistic. We've scored four touchdowns in four SEC games, or one TD in three games if you throw out the Ole Miss contest, which we most certainly aren't going to do.
But I'll be interested to see how young Des does tonight and if he makes any difference. It's at 6 p.m. central time on Fox Sports South.
Go Dores.
Ha ha ha ha ha.
If Vandy scores 27 points against a huge Arkansas defense, then we should make Des Kitchings offensive coordinator for life, unless the defense scores all three or four TDs.
We're going to need Mallett to have an off game. I was going to say get hurt, but did you see the numbers that Wilson, his backup, put up against Auburn?
Anyway, call it 31-14 Razorbacks.
I'm being optimistic. We've scored four touchdowns in four SEC games, or one TD in three games if you throw out the Ole Miss contest, which we most certainly aren't going to do.
But I'll be interested to see how young Des does tonight and if he makes any difference. It's at 6 p.m. central time on Fox Sports South.
Go Dores.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Vandy quietly building a talented, deep offensive line
Every now and then, a Vandy fan complains about how the coaches have let the offensive line fall into such disrepair. I disagree.
Fate has dealt the Commodores a cruel blow in the past year, with starter Reilly Lauer leaving school, starter James Williams an academic casualty, potential starters Chris Aaron and Justin Cabbagestalk suffering season-ending injuries and substitutes Richard Cagle and Rob Ashabranner leaving school. That’s six guys suddenly gone from your two-deep.
That’s why we’ve already burned the redshirts off two true freshmen offensive linemen this year.
But the coaches are not standing idly by. The recent verbal commitment from Jose Valedon — an underrated prospect with quick feet, long arms and the ability to play either tackle position — gives us a complete offensive line from our 2011 signing class:
• James Lewis, 6-5, 295, Arlington, Tenn., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• Jake Bernstein, 6-4, 276, Crystal Lake, Ill., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• Alex Barr, 6-7, 285, Fayetteville, Ga., 3 stars from ESPN, 2 from Scout
• Jose Valedon, 6-4, 270, Oak Ridge, Tenn., 2 stars from ESPN, Scout
• Spencer Pulley, 6-5, 277, Cordova, Tenn., 2 stars from ESPN, Scout
And this nicely complements the complete offensive line from our 2010 signing class:
• Grant Ramsay, 6-5, 280, Marietta, Ga., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• James Kittredge, 6-4, 260, Ramsey, N.J., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• Logan Stewart, 6-4, 270, Boiling Springs, S.C., 3 stars from ESPN and Rivals, 2 from Scout
• Andrew Bridges, 6-6, 245, Atlanta, Ga., 3 stars from ESPN and Rivals, 2 from Scout
• Chase White, 6-6, 260, Plano, Texas, 2 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
What does this mean? It means that we’ll have a deep line in 2011:
• Redshirt senior: Kyle Fischer
• Redshirt juniors: Ryan Seymour, Jabo Burrow, Caleb Welchans
• Redshirt sophomores: Wesley Johnson, Mylon Brown, Justin Cabbagestalk
• Sophomores: Logan Stewart, James Kittredge
• Redshirt freshmen: Grant Ramsay, Chase White, Andrew Bridges
• Freshmen: James Lewis, Jake Bernstein, Alex Barr, Jose Valedon, Spencer Pulley
And an even deeper line in 2012:
• Redshirt seniors: Ryan Seymour, Jabo Burrow, Caleb Welchans
• Redshirt juniors: Wesley Johnson, Mylon Brown, Justin Cabbagestalk
• Juniors: Logan Stewart, James Kittredge
• Redshirt sophomores: Grant Ramsay, Chase White, Andrew Bridges
• Sophomore: James Lewis
• Redshirt freshmen: Jake Bernstein, Alex Barr, Jose Valedon, Spencer Pulley
Not bad, huh?
Just remember that more than any other position besides maybe quarterback, offensive linemen must make the biggest adjustments physically and mentally to the college game. That's why Myron Lewis, D.J. Moore, Warren Norman and Earl Bennett play as true freshmen, while Chris Williams, Thomas Welch, Brian Stamper and Justin Geisinger don't.
Our freshmen, even the ones who've been thrown into the fire, are still far from where they'll be in a couple of years. And with Herb Hand and Robbie Caldwell coaching them up, I'm confident the offensive line is going to improve dramatically during each of the next two seasons.
Fate has dealt the Commodores a cruel blow in the past year, with starter Reilly Lauer leaving school, starter James Williams an academic casualty, potential starters Chris Aaron and Justin Cabbagestalk suffering season-ending injuries and substitutes Richard Cagle and Rob Ashabranner leaving school. That’s six guys suddenly gone from your two-deep.
That’s why we’ve already burned the redshirts off two true freshmen offensive linemen this year.
But the coaches are not standing idly by. The recent verbal commitment from Jose Valedon — an underrated prospect with quick feet, long arms and the ability to play either tackle position — gives us a complete offensive line from our 2011 signing class:
• James Lewis, 6-5, 295, Arlington, Tenn., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• Jake Bernstein, 6-4, 276, Crystal Lake, Ill., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• Alex Barr, 6-7, 285, Fayetteville, Ga., 3 stars from ESPN, 2 from Scout
• Jose Valedon, 6-4, 270, Oak Ridge, Tenn., 2 stars from ESPN, Scout
• Spencer Pulley, 6-5, 277, Cordova, Tenn., 2 stars from ESPN, Scout
And this nicely complements the complete offensive line from our 2010 signing class:
• Grant Ramsay, 6-5, 280, Marietta, Ga., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• James Kittredge, 6-4, 260, Ramsey, N.J., 3 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
• Logan Stewart, 6-4, 270, Boiling Springs, S.C., 3 stars from ESPN and Rivals, 2 from Scout
• Andrew Bridges, 6-6, 245, Atlanta, Ga., 3 stars from ESPN and Rivals, 2 from Scout
• Chase White, 6-6, 260, Plano, Texas, 2 stars from ESPN, Rivals, Scout
What does this mean? It means that we’ll have a deep line in 2011:
• Redshirt senior: Kyle Fischer
• Redshirt juniors: Ryan Seymour, Jabo Burrow, Caleb Welchans
• Redshirt sophomores: Wesley Johnson, Mylon Brown, Justin Cabbagestalk
• Sophomores: Logan Stewart, James Kittredge
• Redshirt freshmen: Grant Ramsay, Chase White, Andrew Bridges
• Freshmen: James Lewis, Jake Bernstein, Alex Barr, Jose Valedon, Spencer Pulley
And an even deeper line in 2012:
• Redshirt seniors: Ryan Seymour, Jabo Burrow, Caleb Welchans
• Redshirt juniors: Wesley Johnson, Mylon Brown, Justin Cabbagestalk
• Juniors: Logan Stewart, James Kittredge
• Redshirt sophomores: Grant Ramsay, Chase White, Andrew Bridges
• Sophomore: James Lewis
• Redshirt freshmen: Jake Bernstein, Alex Barr, Jose Valedon, Spencer Pulley
Not bad, huh?
Just remember that more than any other position besides maybe quarterback, offensive linemen must make the biggest adjustments physically and mentally to the college game. That's why Myron Lewis, D.J. Moore, Warren Norman and Earl Bennett play as true freshmen, while Chris Williams, Thomas Welch, Brian Stamper and Justin Geisinger don't.
Our freshmen, even the ones who've been thrown into the fire, are still far from where they'll be in a couple of years. And with Herb Hand and Robbie Caldwell coaching them up, I'm confident the offensive line is going to improve dramatically during each of the next two seasons.
Walker May makes a move on Vanderbilt's depth chart
Only one noticeable change to the latest Vandy depth chart: After catching everybody's eye since spring practice for his nose for the ball and motor, Walker May has cracked into the depth chart and has made second team, supplanting Teriall Brannon, a redshirt senior who started the season opener.
This is perhaps a small, unimportant change, but I believe it says volumes about (1) the young talent we have, and (2) the mindset of this coaching staff.
For the longest time, we've rewarded hard-working student-athletes by putting their names in ink on the depth chart, even when the team continues to struggle.
Early on, Jonathan Krause booted Turner Wimberly out of the starting lineup and Jordan Matthews bumped out the likes of Akeem Dunham and Brady Brown. Now Matthews needs to get more touches. He's got one this season, for 35 yards. Oh, and he needs to replace John Cole or Udom Umoh in the starting lineup.
Did you know John Cole has touched the ball more than any other Commodore except for our quarterback and two running backs. Why?
Krause needs to get the majority of Cole's touches, which come mostly on punt returns and against weaker competition because the guy can't get open deeper than three yards downfield against an SEC defense. And Umoh's caught nine passes in seven games.
It will be interesting to see who gets the ball this week as Des Kitchings takes over as offensive coordinator.
On the offensive line, freshman Logan Stewart may have been on track to replace senior center Joey Bailey by season's end but Bailey missed Saturday's game with injury, precipitating Stewart's baptism by fire. Caldwell, who's never been terribly impressed with Bailey, said Stewart struggled but did some things better than Bailey does. Expect Stewart to improve dramatically this week.
Lots of "or"s in our starting lineup:
• Norman or Stacy at running back: Those guys are co-starters anyway.
• Bailey or Stewart at center: Bailey not expected to return this week from injury.
• Greenstone or Nichter, Smotherman or Lohr at defensive tackle: Also depends on upperclassmen's ability to return from injury.
In addition to May, lots of young guys are making a move on defense:
• Chase Garnham began the season stuck behind five redshirt sophomores at linebacker, but now he's the fourth- or fifth-best linebacker on the team behind upperclassmen Marve, Stokes and Campbell, and even with sophomore Archibald Barnes.
• In the secondary, true freshmen Steven Clarke and Andre Simmons are on the move and getting more playing time on defense. Kenny Ladler has replaced Jay Fullam as the starting free safety.
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