Anchor Down -- Vanderbilt University Commodores (NCAA Football 09)

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Vanderbilt Announces James Franklin As New Football Head Coach

Nashville, TN -- Vice Chancellor for Athletics David Williams has announced today that former Kansas State Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks coach James Franklin will replace Bobby Johnson as the Head Coach of the Vanderbilt University football program. Franklin, who has also held positions at Maryland, Idaho State and the Green Bay Packers, is already planning to make drastic changes to the culture of Vanderbilt football.

"I’m not a 6-5 guy. I’m not a 7-5 guy. No part of this program will settle," stated Franklin with an inspiring confidence not seen from a VU Head Coach in decades. "I have a plan that I’m very confident in. We are going to reflect this university."

Franklin clearly has his work cut out for him. Part of the ultra-competitive Southeastern Conference, Vanderbilt has not attended a bowl game or finished with a winning record in 26 years and has never made back-to-back bowl appearances. But that won't stop Franklin.

"The next phase that has to happen is that we need the Commodore nation, fans, community of Nashville to be ‘all in.’ We are going to do some special things, but we can’t do it alone. We need everybody all in. It’s time for this community to come together.”

***

(Note: Franklin actually became Head Coach in 2010, but I am implementing him now for reasons which will become clear much later on down the road. In 2008, under Bobby Johnson, Vanderbilt actually did have a decent season and made it to a Bowl Game, but then suffered two straight 2-10 seasons before Franklin took over.)

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Vanderbilt Commodores Depth Chart - 2008
Regular Offense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
WR	George Smith (81)	Alex Washington (75)	Chris Reinert (73)	John Cole (67)
TE	Jake Bradford (75)	Justin Green (73)	Chris Reinert (64)
LT	Thomas Welch (80)	James Williams (73)	Kyle Fischer (73)
LG	Ryan Custer (79)	Ryan Vance (75)	Nick Forte (74)
C	Bradley Vierling (78)	Joey Bailey (71)	James Williams (66)
RG	Drew Gardner (77)	Ryan Vance (75)	Nick Forte (74)
RT	Eric Hensley (76)	James Williams (73)	Kyle Fischer (73)
WR	Sean Walker (78)	Justin Wheeler (75)	Udom Umoh (71)
QB	Chris Nickson (84)	Mackenzi Adams (83)	Jared Funk (73)
FB	Ryan Van Rensburg (71)	Matt Bubis (69)	Jeff Jennings (60)
HB	Jared Hawkins (83)	Jeff Jennings (83)	Gaston Miller (76)	Jermaine Doster (74)
Base 4-3 Defense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
LDE	Broderick Stewart (82)	Theron Kadri (73)	Teriall Brannon (72)
LDT	Greg Billinger (77)	Derrius Dowell (68)	Colt Nichter (60)
RDT	Adam Smotherman (75)	TJ Greenstone (66)
RDE	Steven Stone (81)	Theron Kadri (73)	Teriall Brannon (72)
WLB	Austin Newton (76)	Nate Campbell (79)	Patrick Benoist (77)
MLB	Chris Johnson (76)	Patrick Benoist (73)	Nate Campbell (71)	John Stokes (68)
SLB	Brandon Bryant (80)	Nate Campbell (79)	Patrick Benoist (77)
CB	DJ Moore (80)	Myron Lewis (76)	Darlron Spead (75)	Alan Strong (70)
SS	Reshard Langford (86)	Joel Caldwell (76)	Al Owens (71)
FS	Ryan Hamilton (79)	Brent Trice (78)	Casey Hayward (71)
CB	Josh Allen (76)	Jared Fagan (75)	Jamie Graham (74)
Special Teams
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
K	Bryant Hahnfeldt (76)	Brett Upson (72)	Ryan Fowler (54)
P	Bryant Hahnfeldt (78)	Brett Upson (74)	Ryan Fowler (55)
PR	George SMith (95)	Jared Hawkins (93)	Sean Walker (92)	Alex Washington (91)
KR	George Smith (95)	Jared Hawkins (93)	Sean Walker (92)	Alex Washington (91)
LS	Bradley Vierling (78)	Joey Bailey (71)	Thomas Welch (70)

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Vanderbilt Commodores 2008 Schedule
DATE	OPPONENT	RESULT
Aug 28	at Miami University	Won, 45-39 (OT)
Sep 4	vs #20 South Carolina	Lost, 45-35
Sep 13	vs Rice	Lost, 34-28
Sep 20	at Ole Miss	Won, 33-13
Oct 4	vs #16 Auburn
Oct 11	at Mississippi State
Oct 18	at #1 Georgia
Oct 25	vs Duke
Nov 8	vs #5 Florida
Nov 15	at Kentucky
Nov 20	vs #19 Tennessee
Nov 29	at #25 Wake Forest

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Preseason Outlook

NCAA Football Rankings - AP Top 25 - Updated: Aug 27, 2008
RK	LW	TEAM (VOTES)	W	L	POINTS
1	-	Georgia	0	0
2	-	Oklahoma	0	0
3	-	Ohio State	0	0
4	-	USC	0	0
5	-	Florida	0	0
6	-	LSU	0	0
7	-	Missouri	0	0
8	-	West Virginia	0	0
9	-	Wisconsin	0	0
10	-	Texas	0	0
11	-	Clemson	0	0
12	-	Texas Tech	0	0
13	-	Penn State	0	0
14	-	Arizona State	0	0
15	-	Kansas	0	0
16	-	Auburn	0	0
17	-	Virginia Tech	0	0
18	-	Illinois	0	0
19	-	Tennessee	0	0
20	-	BYU	0	0
21	-	South Carolina	0	0
22	-	Alabama	0	0
23	-	Oregon	0	0
24	-	Cincinnati	0	0
25	-	Wake Forest	0	0

Heisman Watch - Updated: Aug 27, 2008
NAME	POS	SCHOOL		SEASON STATS
Tim Tebow	QB	Florida
Chris "Beanie" Wells	HB	Ohio State
Percy Harvin	WR	Florida
Chase Daniel	QB	Missouri
Michael Crabtree	WR	Texas Tech

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Franklin Stands Tall After OT Thriller

Oxford, OH--James Franklin said he didn’t want Vanderbilt to be a 6-5 or even a 7-5 team when he took over. Today, he took one step toward quieting the critics who mocked that statement, with Vanderbilt’s record standing firm at 1-0.

QB Chris Nickson threw for 2 TDs and no interceptions and three separate running backs ran for Touchdowns as Vanderbilt overcame career performances from Miami’s Daniel Raudabaugh and Eugene Harris.

On the second play from scrimmage, Raudabaugh threw a duck to Vanderbilt’s DJ Moore, who returned the interception 40 yards for Vandy’s first score of the year. Miami of Ohio responded with a field goal before the teams exchanged several punts. Andre Bratton eventually caught a pass in the second quarter and made a few beautiful moves in order to score a 27 yard TD, but Vanderbilt’s Chris Nickson responded by leading his team down the field, ending with a 33 yard strike to Justin Wheeler. Vandy got the ball back with 1:30 left, and thanks to a big connection between Nickson and George Smith, took a 17-9 lead with merely 16 seconds left. However, a big play by Miami set Trevor Cook up for a 41 yard Field Goal as time expired to cut the lead to 5 at halftime.

Vanderbilt didn’t let the positive atmosphere in Miami’s home stadium last long, as Nickson rolled out wide on second down and found his TE Jake Bradford, who caught the pass and beat his man, running a full 59 yards for the touchdown. Miami responded late in the third by capitalizing on a blown coverage by VU to cut the lead back down to one score. This scored seemed to change momentum, as Miami’s Harris caught another pass and broke several tackles en route to a school record 79 yard touchdown, giving Miami a one-point lead at the end of three quarters. Nickson responded by leading his team on a 13 play, 62 yard drive which ended with a 1 yard rush by the Fullback Ryan Van Rensburg and put Vandy up by a touchdown. Miami caught a break, however, when George Smith caught a punt at his own 10 and fumbled, giving Miami of Ohio the ball in a goal-to-go situation with 3 minutes remaining, which they quickly turned into 7 points. With 2:45 left, Chris Nickson was handed the ball on his own 29 yard line in a tie game. However, a dropped pass by his receiver on third down meant the ball was headed back to Miami possession a mere 38 seconds later. Poor coverage by a Vanderbilt defender led to Harris’ third touchdown catch of the game and a 39-32 lead. This time, Nickson wasn’t letting the game get away. He orchestrated a masterful march down the field, and completely caught Miami off guard with a draw play to Hawkins on 4th and 2, on which Hawkins walked in for the TD. With only 0:14 left, Miami was unable to produce a score, and the game headed to OT.

Miami got the ball first in overtime, but three incomplete passes led to a 42 yard field goal attempt, which Trevor Cook shanked right, putting destiny in Vanderbilt’s hands. The running backs took over, as Hawkins came alive and pounded away on five straight runs to set up teammate Jeff Jennings to pound the ball in at the goal line for the victory.

New Vanderbilt Coach James Franklin was understandably impressed after the OT thriller. “There are a lot of things we need to work on…but the heart and unwavering dedication and perseverance the boys showed out there is indicative of the new brand of Vanderbilt football that we’ve been working toward and take pride in. The top ranked SEC teams better be prepared for us to play them as tough as we did Miami today.”

Vanderbilt Commodores at Miami (OH) RedHawks
Aug 28, 2008	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	OT	SCORE
Vanderbilt Commodores (0-0)	7	10	7	15	6	45
Miami (OH) RedHawks (0-0)	3	9	13	14	0	39

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		VAN	M-OH
6:30	(VAN) D. Moore interception return for 40 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	7	0
4:52	(M-OH) T. Cook 33 yard FG attempt is good	7	3
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		VAN	M-OH
5:35	(M-OH) D. Raudabaugh pass to A. Bratton for 27 yard TD (T. Cook PAT is no good)	7	9
3:12	(VAN) C. Nickson pass to J. Wheeler for 32 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	14	9
0:16	(VAN) B. Hahnfeldt 29 yard FG attempt is good	17	9
0:00	(M-OH) T. Cook 40 yard FG attempt is good	17	12
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		VAN	M-OH
5:57	(VAN) C. Nickson pass to J. Bradford for 59 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	24	12
1:56	(M-OH) D. Raudabaugh pass to E. Harris for 31 yard TD (T. Cook PAT is good)	24	19
0:13	(M-OH) D. Raudabaugh pass to E. Harris for 79 yard TD (2-pt failed)	24	25
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		VAN	M-OH
4:29	(VAN) R. Van Rensburg runs for 1 yard TD (C. Nickson to J. Hawkins for 2-pt)	32	25
2:52	(M-OH) A. Bratton runs for 1 yard TD (T. Cook PAT is good)	32	32
1:37	(M-OH) D. Raudabaugh pass to E. Harris for 38 yard TD (T. Cook PAT is good)	32	39
0:14	(VAN) J. Hawkins runs for 6 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	39	39
OVERTIME SCORING		VAN	M-OH
--:--	(VAN) J. Jennings runs for 3 yard TD	45	39

Vanderbilt Commodores PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Chris Nickson 19/33 278 2 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Jared Hawkins 33 73 2.2 1 Jeff Jennings 7 11 1.5 1 Chris Nickson 6 30 5.0 0 Ryan Van Rensburg 1 1 1.0 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD George Smith 6 72 12.0 0 Jared Hawkins 6 50 8.3 0 Jake Bradford 2 76 38.0 1 Justin Wheeler 2 43 21.5 1 Sean Walker 2 30 15.0 0 Alex Washington 1 7 7.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Josh Allen 7 0 0 0 DJ Moore 6 1 1 1 Myron Lewis 6 0 0 0 Ryan Hamilton 6 0 0 0 Reshard Langford 6 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Bryant Hahnfeldt 1/2 4/4 7 29 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD George Smith 4 96 24.0 0 Jared Hawkins 3 66 22.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD George Smith 3 34 11.3 0

Miami (OH) RedHawks PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Daniel Raudabaugh 26/38 423 4 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Andre Bratton 19 66 3.4 1 Daniel Raudabaugh 4 -5 -1.2 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Eugene Harris 8 200 25.0 3 Andre Bratton 8 109 13.6 1 Dustin Woods 5 56 11.2 0 Jamal Rogers 2 36 18.0 0 Armand Robinson 2 16 8.0 0 Jake O'Connell 1 6 6.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Robbie Wilson 12 0 0 0 Jordan Gafford 12 0 0 0 Jeff Thompson 9 0 0 0 Caleb Bostic 7 0 0 0 Joe Coniglio 2 1 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Trevor Cook 2/3 3/4 9 40 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Eugene Harris 3 84 28.0 0 Dustin Woods 3 78 26.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Dustin Woods 2 21 10.5 0

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Week 1 Review

Week 1 Featured Matchups
Results	Hi Passing	Hi Rushing	Hi Receiving
#21 South Carolina 49, NC State 10	C. Smelley - 309	J. Eugene - 126	K. McKinley - 145
#7 Missouri 50, #18 Illinois 28	C. Daniel - 395	J. Jackson - 76	A. Benn - 104
#4 USC 48, Virginia 12	M. Sanchez - 283	S. Johnson - 107	J. Miller - 118
#11 Clemson 48, #22 Alabama 31	J. Wilson - 345	J. Davis - 195	M. McCoy - 135
#23 Oregon 31, Washington 25	C. Kempt - 226	J. Hasty - 83	E. Dickson - 83
Louisville 31, Kentucky 28	H. Cantwell - 277	G. Stripling - 99	D. Lyons - 133

NCAA Football Rankings - Coaches' Poll - Updated: Aug 31, 2008
RK	LW	TEAM (VOTES)	W	L	POINTS
1	1	Georgia (37)	1	0	1501
2	2	Oklahoma (21)	1	0	1428
3	3	Ohio State (2)	1	0	1358
4	4	USC (1)	1	0	1309
5	5	Florida	1	0	1221
6	6	LSU	1	0	1156
7	7	Missouri	1	0	1114
8	8	West Virginia	1	0	1029
9	9	Wisconsin	1	0	969
10	10	Texas	1	0	910
11	11	Clemson	1	0	862
12	12	Texas Tech	1	0	796
13	13	Penn State	1	0	742
14	14	Arizona State	1	0	690
15	15	Kansas	1	0	639
16	16	Auburn	1	0	590
17	17	Virginia Tech	1	0	556
18	19	Tennessee	0	0	452
19	20	BYU	1	0	409
20	21	South Carolina	1	0	368
21	23	Oregon	1	0	291
22	24	Cincinnati	0	0	255
23	18	Illinois	0	1	246
24	25	Wake Forest	1	0	231
25	26	Fresno State	0	0	188

Heisman Watch - Updated: Aug 1, 2008
NAME	POS	SCHOOL		SEASON STATS
Tim Tebow	QB	Florida		354 Yds, 3 TD, Rush TD
Chris "Beanie" Wells	HB	Ohio State		120 Yds, 2 TD, Rec TD
Percy Harvin	WR	Florida		82 Yds, 1 TD
Chase Daniel	QB	Missouri		395 Yds, 6 TD
Michael Crabtree	WR	Texas Tech		16 Yds, 0 TD

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Vanderbilt Falls In Home Opener To #20 South Carolina

Nashville, TN--James Franklin's home debut in Vanderbilt didn't go quite as well as VU fans had hoped, as #20 South Carolina rolled in and rolled over the Commodores.

South Carolina took a 10 point lead in the first quarter and never relinquished it. Jared Hawkins ran for a touchdown to give Vanderbilt its first points and make it a game, but three consecutive scores by SC put the game out of reach.

The 'Dores didn't give up hope, however, and with Jeff Jennings replacing Hawkins at starting Halfback in the second half, Vanderbilt mounted a spirited comeback, eventually cutting the lead by two scores.

"Jared was working hard, but things just weren't working for him out there," commented Coach Franklin, who suffered his first loss as a head coach. "We'll take a look at what we've got from all of our backs and re-assess for next week against Rice."

That game will be an important one, as Vanderbilt will be hosting visits for three potential recruits including Ernest Todd, the #3 ranked Center in the nation.

South Carolina Gamecocks at Vanderbilt Commodores
Sep 4, 2008	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#20 South Carolina Gamecocks (1-0)	10	14	14	7	45
Vanderbilt Commodores (1-0)	0	7	7	21	35

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		SCAR	VAN
1:13	(SCAR) R. Succop 25 yard FG is good	3	0
0:24	(SCAR) C. Smelley pass to F. Brown for 16 yard TD (R. Succop PAT is good)	10	0
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		SCAR	VAN
4:58	(VAN) J. Hawkins runs for 1 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	10	7
1:58	(SCAR) M. Davis runs for 5 yard TD (R. Succop PAT is good)	17	7
1:12	(SCAR) F. Brown runs for 1 yard TD (R. Succop PAT is good)	24	7
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		SCAR	VAN
4:49	(SCAR) K. McKinley returns punt for 80 yard TD (R. Succop PAT is good)	31	7
2:21	(VAN) C. Nickson pass to A. Washington for 10 yard TD (2-pt failed)	31	13
0:51	(SCAR) C. Smelley pass to C. Culliver for 19 yard TD (R. Succop PAT is good)	38	13
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		SCAR	VAN
5:07	(VAN) C. Nickson pass to S. Walker for 12 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	38	20
3:40	(VAN) C. Nickson pass to C. Reinert for 3 yard TD (2-pt is good)	38	28
2:20	(SCAR) C. Smelley pass to K. McKinley for 13 yard TD (R. Succop PAT is good)	45	28
0:53	(VAN) C. Nickson pass to A. Washington for 11 yard TD (B. Hahnfeldt PAT is good)	45	35

South Carolina Gamecocks PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Chris Smelley 31/42 436 3 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Mike Davis 12 35 2.9 1 Freddie Brown 2 4 2.0 1 Bobby Wallace 1 8 8.0 0 Chris Smelley 1 -1 -1.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Kenny McKinley 7 113 16.1 1 Mike Davis 6 75 12.5 0 Chris Culliver 6 74 12.3 1 Jared Cook 5 127 25.4 0 Freddie Brown 4 37 9.2 1 Moe Brown 2 4 2.0 0 Bobby Wallace 1 6 6.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Carlos Thomas 4 0 1 0 Damien Wright 14 0 0 0 Rodney Paulk 12 0 0 0 Emanuel Cook 9 0 0 0 Jasper Brinkley 7 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Ryan Succop 1/2 6/6 9 25 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Freddie Brown 4 118 29.5 0 Kenny McKinley 1 26 26.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Kenny McKinley 4 122 30.5 1

Vanderbilt Commodores PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Chris Nickson 25/36 226 4 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Jared Hawkins 22 50 2.2 1 Jeff Jennings 17 57 3.3 0 Chris Nickson 5 16 3.2 0 Alex Washington 1 12 12.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Sean Walker 6 49 8.1 1 Alex Washington 5 69 13.8 2 Jeff Jennings 5 40 8.0 0 George Smith 3 20 6.6 0 Chris Reinert 2 13 6.5 1 Jared Hawkins 2 24 12.0 0 Ryan Van Rensburg 1 8 8.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Broderick Stewart 1 1 0 0 Chris Johnson 4 0 1 0 Austin Newton 2 0 1 0 Ryan Hamilton 9 0 0 0 DJ Moore 7 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Bryant Hahnfeldt 0/0 3/3 3 0 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Jared Hawkins 5 122 24.4 0 George Smith 3 119 39.6 0

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Week 2 Review

Week 2 Featured Matchups
Results	Hi Passing	Hi Rushing	Hi Receiving
#18 Tennessee 34, UCLA 9	J. Crompton - 389	A. Foster - 85	A. Rogers - 104
#24 Wake Forest 36, Ole Miss 6	R. Skinner - 190	J. Adams - 122	C. Brinkman - 98
#2 Oklahoma 29, #22 Cincinnati 10	S. Bradford - 282	D. Murray - 97	J. Iglesias - 162
#5 Florida 52, Miami 17	T. Tebow - 222	K. Moore - 75	P. Harvin - 59
#19 BYU 49, Washington 21	M. Hall - 337	J. Hasty - 65	M. Reed - 207
#14 Arizona State 45, Stanford 21	R. Carpenter - 267	D. Nance - 122	J. Williams - 78

NCAA Football Rankings - Coaches Poll - Updated: Sep 7, 2008
RK	LW	TEAM (VOTES)	W	L	POINTS
1	1	Georgia (36)	2	0	1500
2	2	Oklahoma (24)	2	0	1439
3	3	Ohio State (1)	2	0	1354
4	4	USC	1	0	1285
5	5	Florida	2	0	1216
6	6	LSU	2	0	1150
7	7	Missouri	2	0	1086
8	8	West Virginia	2	0	1042
9	9	Wisconsin	2	0	962
10	10	Texas	2	0	920
11	11	Clemson	2	0	845
12	12	Texas Tech	2	0	806
13	13	Penn State	2	0	736
14	14	Arizona State	2	0	684
15	15	Kansas	2	0	633
16	16	Auburn	2	0	585
17	17	Virginia Tech	2	0	538
18	18	Tennessee	1	0	506
19	19	BYU	2	0	462
20	20	South Carolina	2	0	420
21	21	Oregon	2	0	369
22	23	Illinois	1	1	260
23	24	Wake Forest	2	0	260
24	26	Texas A&M	2	0	206
25	22	Cincinnati	0	1	167

Heisman Watch - Updated: Sep 7, 2008
NAME	POS	SCHOOL		SEASON STATS
Tim Tebow	QB	Florida		576 Yds, 8 TD, 2 Rush TD
Chris "Beanie" Wells	HB	Ohio State		251 Yds, 3 TD, Rec TD
Percy Harvin	WR	Florida		141 Yds, 3 TD
Chase Daniel	QB	Missouri		720 Yds, 9 TD, 136 Rush Yds
DeMarco Murray	HB	Oklahoma		229 Yds, 2 TD, Rec TD