Vanderbilt practiced this morning from 8-10:15. Vanderbilt did some live work today as the Commodores won't practice again until after spring break. Vanderbilt did a ton of situational work today with 2-minute offense/defense, 4-minute offense/defense, red zone work, and more. The offense had a much better today, and that had much to do with the live sessions. I thought the running backs had a solid day in the run game.
Quarterback
This was much better today for the quarterbacks. I don't remember seeing any interceptions on the day which is much different than the other day. Swann was much more accurate today, and he did a good job of using the tight ends as a safety blanket for most of the day. I'll cover the tight ends more later, but they had a big day. I thought Seals had a better day today, and he completed a beautiful ball down the sideline to Wilson Long for a 50+ touchdown. Seals didn't push the ball much down the field, but I don't think the defense was giving him that today. Dickey had another solid day, but he wasn't as sharp as Tuesday. In a goalline situation, Dickey barely missed two what could have been TD's. The QBs were live for portions today, and Dickey handled that well. He had one scramble for a first down, and he also escaped a would be sack and threw a laser to a wide receiver on the sideline. He's an athlete. Walter Taylor was a little more decisive today. He was throwing it on time, and he throws a good deep ball. He sticks out physically. He's legit 6-foot-6.
Running back
Running back was much better today. I left Tuesday thinking that Ray Davis' production was going to be hard to replace. That still may be the case, but I was impressed with what I saw today. Patrick Smith showed off the speed and broke one run off early. He made a good cut and hit it in between the tackles. He had several good runs, and he's got some home run ability. The other running back that flashed today was true freshman Sedrick Alexander. His body type reminds me of a taller version of Jerron Seymour. He's short and did a job of hiding behind his offensive lineman. On one particular play, he pressed the hole hit backside put a good move on Kane Patterson and accelerated in the hole for a 8-yard gain. Both Chase Gillespie and Dylan Betts-Pauley also had some solid runs today. It was a better judge today with live running.
Tight End
Justin Ball got it started well with a TD catch in goalline situation. He caught at least 5+ balls in the scrimmage settings. He did a good job of using that big 6-foot-6 and 245-pound frame to box out defenders and showed consistent hands today. I noticed that Ball blocked well on the perimeter as well. Cole Spence showed up in the pass game as well and had a few good catches catches. Ball and Spence are big targets at 6-foot-6+. Logan Kyle didn't do much early, but he started making plays again later in practice. He's a definite mismatch in the passing game against linebackers and safeties. He had one great catch down the sideline. The key to Kyle is that he is getting consistent separation. He's going to be involved offensively. It was a good day for this group.
Wide Receivers
This group is still lacking in scholarship bodies. Will Sheppard and Quincy Skinner both made several plays today, and there's no doubt that these two are the go-to guys. I thought Daveon Walker made several plays today. He's much better as an outside wide receiver. As @Chris Lee has mentioned, the walk-on wide receiver trio of Wilson Long, Hutch Baird, and Landon Wells is better quality than what they have had in the past. Wilson Long had a long touchdown reception. He can run and will likely contribute somehow especially on special teams.
Offensive line
I wrote pretty extensively on this group last time, and I didn't get to see a ton of them as they were on the other side of the field for the most part today. I do think they have eight offensive linemen that have separated themselves from the others in Bradley Ashmore, Julian Hernandez, Gunnar Hansen, Delfin Castillo, Junior Uzebu, Gage Pitchford, Grayson Morgan, and Leyton Nelson. Morgan and Nelson still need to add some mass, but they have enough mass to compete now. Kevo Wesley continues to transition back to offensive line. I tried to watch redshirt freshman Levi Harber a bit. He's a bit more athletic than I anticipated, but he's another that needs to add mass. He's got potential, but I'm not quite sure he's there just yet. David Siegel is one that I'd like to see, but he is injured. He's been doing light work on the side.
Defensive line
Darren Agu and Aeneas DiCosmo continue to jump out here. DiCosmo seems to have a nose for the ball, and Agu continues to be disruptive. There wasn't any Daevion Davis today, and this group wasn't as active today. Yilan Outtara had a would be sack and made some plays. Devin Lee and Nate Clifton made several plays. Brayden Bapst made his presence known in the scrimmage sessions, and he gives some position flexibility as a guy that can play with outside or inside. Linus Zunk got some more reps in there today, but I didn't see him make many plays. Michael Spencer is another DL that got some reps, and he's noticeably much bigger. Jailen Ruth got a welcome to the SEC moment today from Bradley Ashmore. On one rep, Ashmore got a hold of Ruth and pushed him just a hair past the whistle and pancaked the true freshman. Ruth is getting plenty of snaps and has some quick twitch to him.
Linebackers
I thought Kane Patterson was exceptional today. He seemed to be around the football all day. As we know, he can run. If someone is going to replace the production of Orji, I think that answer is Kane Patterson. If he stays healthy, I think he will have a good year. After Barr/Patterson, I still think it Bryce Cowan and Langston Patterson. Langston Patterson didn't practice today. He was working on the side. Bryce Cowan got a ton of reps, but he didn't flash as much today. Ethan Crisp made a couple of plays today, and he continues to pop out a bit. I'm not sure he contributes as a true freshman, but he's shown playmaking ability.
Secondary
Jaylen Mahoney and De'Rickey Wright have been consistent at safety. Ja'Dais Richard continues to be at one corner. Today, Tyson Russell played the other corner. Trudell Berry, Tacko Wright, and Gumbo Gaskins got a lot of work at the corner positions as well. Jeffrey Ugo was out there today, and he was active for the most part. The defensive backs didn't have as good of a day as Tuesday. It'll be interesting to see who ends up with the corner spot opposite of Richard. BJ Anderson is the likely leader, but he wasn't practicing today. Russell definitely had his struggles last season, but he was good today especially against the run. From the looks of it, I still think Trudell Berry factors into the corner position somewhere.
Quarterback
This was much better today for the quarterbacks. I don't remember seeing any interceptions on the day which is much different than the other day. Swann was much more accurate today, and he did a good job of using the tight ends as a safety blanket for most of the day. I'll cover the tight ends more later, but they had a big day. I thought Seals had a better day today, and he completed a beautiful ball down the sideline to Wilson Long for a 50+ touchdown. Seals didn't push the ball much down the field, but I don't think the defense was giving him that today. Dickey had another solid day, but he wasn't as sharp as Tuesday. In a goalline situation, Dickey barely missed two what could have been TD's. The QBs were live for portions today, and Dickey handled that well. He had one scramble for a first down, and he also escaped a would be sack and threw a laser to a wide receiver on the sideline. He's an athlete. Walter Taylor was a little more decisive today. He was throwing it on time, and he throws a good deep ball. He sticks out physically. He's legit 6-foot-6.
Running back
Running back was much better today. I left Tuesday thinking that Ray Davis' production was going to be hard to replace. That still may be the case, but I was impressed with what I saw today. Patrick Smith showed off the speed and broke one run off early. He made a good cut and hit it in between the tackles. He had several good runs, and he's got some home run ability. The other running back that flashed today was true freshman Sedrick Alexander. His body type reminds me of a taller version of Jerron Seymour. He's short and did a job of hiding behind his offensive lineman. On one particular play, he pressed the hole hit backside put a good move on Kane Patterson and accelerated in the hole for a 8-yard gain. Both Chase Gillespie and Dylan Betts-Pauley also had some solid runs today. It was a better judge today with live running.
Tight End
Justin Ball got it started well with a TD catch in goalline situation. He caught at least 5+ balls in the scrimmage settings. He did a good job of using that big 6-foot-6 and 245-pound frame to box out defenders and showed consistent hands today. I noticed that Ball blocked well on the perimeter as well. Cole Spence showed up in the pass game as well and had a few good catches catches. Ball and Spence are big targets at 6-foot-6+. Logan Kyle didn't do much early, but he started making plays again later in practice. He's a definite mismatch in the passing game against linebackers and safeties. He had one great catch down the sideline. The key to Kyle is that he is getting consistent separation. He's going to be involved offensively. It was a good day for this group.
Wide Receivers
This group is still lacking in scholarship bodies. Will Sheppard and Quincy Skinner both made several plays today, and there's no doubt that these two are the go-to guys. I thought Daveon Walker made several plays today. He's much better as an outside wide receiver. As @Chris Lee has mentioned, the walk-on wide receiver trio of Wilson Long, Hutch Baird, and Landon Wells is better quality than what they have had in the past. Wilson Long had a long touchdown reception. He can run and will likely contribute somehow especially on special teams.
Offensive line
I wrote pretty extensively on this group last time, and I didn't get to see a ton of them as they were on the other side of the field for the most part today. I do think they have eight offensive linemen that have separated themselves from the others in Bradley Ashmore, Julian Hernandez, Gunnar Hansen, Delfin Castillo, Junior Uzebu, Gage Pitchford, Grayson Morgan, and Leyton Nelson. Morgan and Nelson still need to add some mass, but they have enough mass to compete now. Kevo Wesley continues to transition back to offensive line. I tried to watch redshirt freshman Levi Harber a bit. He's a bit more athletic than I anticipated, but he's another that needs to add mass. He's got potential, but I'm not quite sure he's there just yet. David Siegel is one that I'd like to see, but he is injured. He's been doing light work on the side.
Defensive line
Darren Agu and Aeneas DiCosmo continue to jump out here. DiCosmo seems to have a nose for the ball, and Agu continues to be disruptive. There wasn't any Daevion Davis today, and this group wasn't as active today. Yilan Outtara had a would be sack and made some plays. Devin Lee and Nate Clifton made several plays. Brayden Bapst made his presence known in the scrimmage sessions, and he gives some position flexibility as a guy that can play with outside or inside. Linus Zunk got some more reps in there today, but I didn't see him make many plays. Michael Spencer is another DL that got some reps, and he's noticeably much bigger. Jailen Ruth got a welcome to the SEC moment today from Bradley Ashmore. On one rep, Ashmore got a hold of Ruth and pushed him just a hair past the whistle and pancaked the true freshman. Ruth is getting plenty of snaps and has some quick twitch to him.
Linebackers
I thought Kane Patterson was exceptional today. He seemed to be around the football all day. As we know, he can run. If someone is going to replace the production of Orji, I think that answer is Kane Patterson. If he stays healthy, I think he will have a good year. After Barr/Patterson, I still think it Bryce Cowan and Langston Patterson. Langston Patterson didn't practice today. He was working on the side. Bryce Cowan got a ton of reps, but he didn't flash as much today. Ethan Crisp made a couple of plays today, and he continues to pop out a bit. I'm not sure he contributes as a true freshman, but he's shown playmaking ability.
Secondary
Jaylen Mahoney and De'Rickey Wright have been consistent at safety. Ja'Dais Richard continues to be at one corner. Today, Tyson Russell played the other corner. Trudell Berry, Tacko Wright, and Gumbo Gaskins got a lot of work at the corner positions as well. Jeffrey Ugo was out there today, and he was active for the most part. The defensive backs didn't have as good of a day as Tuesday. It'll be interesting to see who ends up with the corner spot opposite of Richard. BJ Anderson is the likely leader, but he wasn't practicing today. Russell definitely had his struggles last season, but he was good today especially against the run. From the looks of it, I still think Trudell Berry factors into the corner position somewhere.
