The 2012 NCAA Women's Golf Championship is underway with the 24-team field participating in the opening practice round Sunday at Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tenn. Watch interviews with Commodore head coach Greg Allen and junior Lauren ...
Vanderbilt's 6-3 win against the Rebels of Ole Miss means Tim Corbin's Commodores will be playing baseball in June, an all but unthinkable scenario 6 weeks ago. The Commodores finished the regular season with a 29-25 record and a conference finish ...
Vanderbilt University and the Vanderbilt Legends Club will host the region's first NCAA Division I National Championship this Tuesday through Friday in Franklin, Tenn., and the following is a list of important information for those of you are ...
Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
The Vanderbilt baseball team closed the regular season with its first Southeastern Conference series sweep of 2012, defeating Ole Miss, 6-3, on Saturday at Charles Hawkins Field.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
Vanderbilt Head Coach Greg Allen was a guest on 104.5 The Wake Up Zone Friday morning to promote the 2012 NCAA Women's Golf Championship, which will be held at Vanderbilt Legends Club May 22-25 in Franklin, Tenn.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
The Vanderbilt baseball game against No. 22 Ole Miss is in a weather delay. Check back later for an update.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
Vanderbilt clinched the series with a 6-2 win over No. 22 Ole Miss on Friday night at Hawkins Field. The Commodores' offense came alive in the seventh to score four runs and tacked on two more in the eighth to win the team's fourth straight game and fourth straight series.
Source: SEC Football Blog
College Football Live's panel of experts preview Georgia's upcoming season.Source: SEC Football Blog
Nickolas Brassell was in a deep enough hole academically when Hugh Freeze took the Ole Miss job back in December that Freeze never counted on having Brassell on the field next season. Sure, Freeze was always hopeful and did all he could to help Brassell, one of the most dynamic freshmen in the SEC last season, but the official word came down Friday. Ole Miss announced that Brassell was academically ineligible and would transfer. Brassell, who became the first Ole Miss player since 1988 to start on both offense and defense, missed all but a few practices this spring to try and get his academics in order.Source: SEC Football Blog
Nickolas Brassell was in a deep enough hole academically when Hugh Freeze took the Ole Miss job back in December that Freeze never counted on having Brassell on the field next season. Sure, Freeze was always hopeful and did all he could to help Brassell, one of the most dynamic freshmen in the SEC last season, but the offcial word came down Friday. Ole Miss announced that Brassell was academically ineligible and would transfer. Brassell, who became the first Ole Miss player since 1988 to start on both offense and defense, missed all but a few practices this spring to try and get his academics in order.Source: SEC Football Blog
Chris Low discusses the new SEC-Big 12 bowl game.Source: SEC Football Blog
Edward Aschoff discusses how new Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze took big steps to improving things off the field for the Rebels.Source: SEC Football Blog
Derek Tyson and Jeff Barlis write: There are six or seven spots left in Florida's 2013 class and a few needs to fill. Some of the top prospects in the nation are considering the Gators, and it would be difficult to turn them away. GatorNation is ranking the top 12 uncommitted prospects for Florida over the next six weekdays, two-a-day style. No. 12 | No. 11 Michael DiRocco writes: ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach sees brighter days ahead for the Florida football team, which is why he has the Gators ranked No.Source: SEC Football Blog
The days of the Rose Bowl being the bowl of bowls could soon be coming to an end now that the SEC and the Big 12 have agreed on a five-year bowl partnership. The new deal, announced Friday, will have the champions of the Big 12 and SEC meet in a New Year's Day bowl game annually beginning with the 2014 season. So while it won’t have the tradition of the Rose Bowl, it’ll have the viewers and it’ll have the popularity. We’re seeing more and more how power is truly the most important component in college football, and this is a great example.Source: SEC Football Blog
Today, we dissect Auburn's schedule as the Tigers enter the 2012 season with a new offensive coordinator and new defensive coordinator: Nonconference opponents (with 2011 records) Sept. 1: vs. Clemson (10-4), in Atlanta Sept. 15: Louisiana-Monroe (4-8) Nov. 3: New Mexico State (4-9) Nov. 17: Alabama A&M (8-4) SEC home games Sept. 22: LSU Oct. 6: Arkansas Oct. 27: Texas A&M Nov. 10: Georgia SEC road games Sept. 8: at Mississippi State Oct.Source: SEC Football Blog
The SEC and Big 12 champs will meet in a New Year's Day bowl game annually beginning with the 2014 season, the conferences announced Friday. The five-year agreement will pit champions of each conference against each other "unless one or both are selected to play in the new four-team model to determine the national championship," according to a statement from both conferences. If that were to happen, another team from the conference(s) would be selected, ensuring that the game takes place every year.Source: SEC Football Blog
David Ching writes : Recruiting is always a boon for Georgia’s perpetual appearance in the preseason top 25, and this year is no different. Radi Nabulsi writes: After an exhaustive search over several months, Georgia hires longtime Peach State coach/AD Darly Jones as its new director of on-campus recruiting. Kipp Adams writes : UGA signee John Theus pens his own “Dawg Blawg,” and discusses his excitement for joining the Bulldogs amid a bittersweet last semester of high school.Source: SEC Football Blog
Our Friday offering of lunch links: Jeff Schultz of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that bowls and the BCS need to be kept away from a college football playoff. LSU doesn't want to forget its loss to Alabama in last season's BCS National Championship Game. Roger Goodell may also sentence former Alabama star linebacker Rolando McClain, writes Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News. How important will style of play be in Arkansas' search for its long-term head football coach?
Source: Anchor Of Gold by Christian D'Andrea
Jerron Seymour isn't expected to be a major contributor for the Commodores in 2012. That's probably just fine with Seymour - he wasn't supposed to be one in 2011 either. He finished his freshman campaign with five touchdowns that season.
Seymour has gotten caught in the middle of Vanderbilt's running platoon thanks to the emergence of Zac Stacy, the return of Warren Norman, and the arrival of Brian Kimbrow. The quark-back is an unheralded but valuable runner who played a big role for last year's
Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
Quick Slant will be taking a break for a few weeks as we host the NCAA Women's Golf Championship and attend the annual Southeastern Conference Spring Meeting.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- Here's the frightening news for 23 teams looking to topple reigning champ UCLA at next week's NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championships: the Bruins are coming to Tennessee with fond memories of the Vanderbilt Legends Club layout.Source: SEC Football Blog
Alabama is once again stepping up its nonconference game. The Crimson Tide and West Virginia, now of the Big 12, will meet for the first time ever when the two open the 2014 season in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta, bowl officials announced Thursday. “Alabama and West Virginia are consistently among the premier teams in the country and we’re thrilled to be able to host such a high-profile game with representatives from the SEC and the Big 12,” Chick-fil-A Bowl president and CEO Gary Stokan said in a statement Thursday.Source: SEC Football Blog
We're putting spring behind us and looking toward the fall with our post-spring power rankings: 1. LSU: The Tigers had one of the best springs around. Things were quiet off the field, and the offense rallied behind quarterback Zach Mettenberger. Coach Les Miles was very impressed with Mettenberger's play and maturity, and expects LSU's offense to be more balanced with him under center. LSU can still use four or five running backs as well. Defensively, the Tigers are stacked once again, especially up front with two potential first-rounders in ends Sam Montgomery and Barkevious Mingo.Source: SEC Football Blog
We're putting spring behind us and looking toward the fall with our post-spring power rankings: 1. LSU: The Tigers had one of the best springs around. Things were quiet off the field and the offense rallied behind quarterback Zach Mettenberger. Coach Les Miles was very impressed with Mettenberger's play and maturity and expects LSU's offense to be more balanced with him under center. LSU can still use four or five running backs as well. Defensively, the Tigers are stacked once again, especially up front with two potential first-rounders in ends Sam Montgomery and Barkevious Mingo.Source: SEC Football Blog
Cassidy Hubbarth and the college football bloggers bring you the best from the spring and what that means for the games in the fall.
Source: Vanderbilt Sports Line by Bobby O'Shea
Vanderbilt hadn't won the opening game of an SEC series heading into their finale against Ole Miss. As has come to be the case as of late, just because the Commodores hadn't done something all year didn't mean they couldn't do it. It just meant that hadn't done it yet.
Source: The Tennessean by Jeff Lockridge
Vanderbilt pitcher T.J. Pecoraro is 51 weeks removed from the right elbow injury that brought his freshman season to an abrupt halt at the 2011 SEC Tournament in Hoover.
On Thursday night, the sophomore earned his first win since Tommy John surgery in sterling fashion. Pecoraro (1-4) worked his first career shutout, issuing five hits and throwing 102 pitches, in a 3-0 win over Ole Miss at Hawkins Field.
The Commodores improved to 27-25, 14-14 SEC, and inched closer to securing an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament when the draw occurs on May 28. Ole Miss slipped to 34-20, 14-14 despite a strong start from ace Bobby Wahl (6-2).
Here is what Pecoraro, Vanderbilt Coach Tim Corbin and other Commodores had to say after the pivotal victory:
Tim Corbin
On Pecoraro …
“What can you say, really? It’s as well-pitched a game as we’ve had all year. He pitched really well last weekend, we just ran into a guy that was equally as tough. Two weekends in a row he’s gone the distance. He was efficient with his pitches. It actually looked like, after the second or third inning, kind of like last week. He just kept going and got into a rhythm. Very deliberate style. He forced contact. That’s a very good-hitting team. They’re very aggressive and they get off some good swings.
“You have to minimize damage, and the fly ball off a very good hitter and (Jack) Lupo getting the ball back in and Spencer (Navin) making a heck of a tag back to the plate to get that runner was an emotional play for us to get things going. But T.J., he did what we wanted him to do. We talked about forcing contact and playing safe defense, and we happened to do that tonight. We didn’t have a whole lot of things going offensively, but you’ve got to credit (Bobby) Wahl, and Wahl’s about as good as we’ve seen. Really got a good arm, mixes his pitches well. We’ve got to credit him, because he really did a good job of shutting us down.”
On Ole Miss’ aggressive approach …
“In some ways, but T.J. has to pitch to his strengths. We’ve talked about that before. You pitch to different sides of the plate, and you change rhythms if you can. You still have to throw the ball across the plate, and by throwing the ball across the plate, if you make a little bit of a mistake or elevate the ball, they can hurt you. They’re a very physical team. So we were fortunate. He just did a nice job of keeping the ball in the yard. He pitched to our yard, really. There were some hard-hit balls in the middle of the field, but we’ve got nice outfielders who can track those down. Tony (Kemp) had a good night, made a heck of a diving play at second base. Spencer made a good glove play and throwing play behind the plate. We’ve just been solid defensively. I’d have to say the last month and a half, we’ve kind of tightened things up defensively. From that aspect, we’ve given ourselves a chance to win games.”
Is T.J. a better pitcher now than before surgery? …
“He’s certainly more comfortable. He’s more advanced. He’s had a year. He had a good foundation last year, but now he’s pitching like he’s capable of pitching. It really is – I’m not going to say amazing, because that may not be the word, but it’s something to see. A year from this coming Wednesday, when the injury occurred, he’s already back and he’s pitched the way he has. I just think he’s starting to get more rhythm. The beginning of the year was like a spring training for him, but now we’re starting to see a kid who’s feeling comfortable and developing. He’s just a sophomore, so there’s a lot more to come. He’s going to get stronger and wiser, and smarter, and I’m just happy for him. It’s a great, great thing to see kids who work hard through the rehabilitation process and force themselves to come back to what you can gain from it. And he’s a team guy. He pitches for the team for sure.”
Is it just a matter of him throwing strikes? …
“No, I think he’s throwing strikes with a lot of different pitches. He’s not just throwing strikes with a fastball, he’s throwing a fastball on both sides of the plate, he’s elevating it, he’s throwing it downhill, and then the breaking ball and change have helped him out a lot, too. They’re all good pitches for him when they’re thrown for strikes, and I just think that’s the deal. He’s just throwing more strikes with all three pitches.”
On Mike Yastrzemski’s steals that led to the first run …
“That was a big run for sure. It was one of those games that looked like it could go 0-0 into the eighth or ninth inning, because their guy was sailing along. We just had to crack something, and yeah, that’s manufacturing that run actually, stealing second and then we were fortunate that he went on the inside move when I was yelling, ‘Back!’ but you know, sometimes, you’re lucky. He just took off and got in the throwing lane and forced a little bit of a wild throw, and then (Anthony) Gomez just did a good job of making contact up the middle more than anything else, but a nice job that way. Gomez’s hit later on was big to score that run. One run, I didn’t think, was going to do it with (Ole Miss). Expecting a shutout against Ole Miss, I think you’re expecting too much. That was just a well-pitched game. To me, Ole Miss is one of the best teams in this conference. Defensively, they don’t hurt themselves. They can pitch, and they really can hit, which makes T.J.’s performance even better.”
RHP T.J. Pecoraro
On his arm …
“It feels great, especially after that win.”
On getting ahead of hitters …
“We talked about I’ve been struggling of late, getting the first-pitch strike, getting ahead of the hitters. The past two starts I’ve really been focusing on that and it’s helped me out a ton.
“I just tried to mix up my pitches, keep them off balanced and see what they do with the ball. After I got a couple good pitches, I started rolling.”
On getting out of the sixth-inning jam …
“Once hitters started to get on I thought, ‘Hey, I’m not going to let these guys score no matter what. I’m going to give my team a good chance to score and win.’ I did just that.
“I had a pretty good view (of the play at the plate when Navin tagged out Tanner Mathis). It was a close play but it worked out for us pretty good. I believe (Navin got him).”
On getting ahead in the series …
“The first game is always the big one. You definitely have some momentum going into the rest of the weekend and we look forward to keep momentum going.”
On not having much to show statistically before tonight …
“Something kind of clicked and I’m going with it. It’s always tough coming out here, playing against the best competition in the country. When I get a win, I’ll take it.
“It’s always tough. You come out here and guys aren’t hitting right away so you get a little nervous, but I’ve tremendous confidence in all my teammates to come through for me in the end.”
SS Anthony Gomez
On Ole Miss starter Bobby Wahl …
“Everything looks the same out of (Wahl’s) hand. I mean, he really has a great mixture of three pitches and guys are chasing a lot of pitches just because they all look the same.”
On taking advantage of opportunities …
“We had to. We got a few breaks. Having Yaz being able to get to third base was huge. That kind of relaxed everyone even though we had no hits. We still had a 1-0 lead which kind of put the pressure on them. That was big.”
On Pecoraro finally breaking through for his first win …
“I told him yesterday, I said, ‘You know what? If you throw the way you did last weekend, you’re SEC Pitcher of the Week.’ You know, you have to tip your hat to (LSU’s Kevin) Gausman. Tonight, I think that’s what happened to (Ole Miss starter Bobby) Wahl. He threw a great game himself and then you just have T.J. throw a little better.”
On Pecoraro’s comeback from surgery …
“It’s unbelievable. It’s tough for him to be 0-4 going into this game where we all know that he’s so much better than that. He doesn’t deserve to be 0-4. We haven’t hit behind him and today was the first day we were actually able to get him a win. Actually, he got himself a win by shutting them out.”
On getting the series opener …
“It’s huge. Obviously, this is a huge series for us. Winning on Thursday night is a real notch on your belt and you relax, but you still have to attack them. They’re a great hitting team and obviously they’re a great pitching team, too.”
RF Mike Yastrzemski
On getting the first run …
“With a guy like Gomez hitting behind you where you know he is going to put the ball in play, all you’ve got to try and do is get to second base and let him work. That’s all I was trying to do in that situation.”
On advancing to third after essentially being picked off …
“I just try to get in the third baseman’s eyes and try to make sure it wasn’t an easy out. You know, sometimes you get lucky.”
On Bobby Wahl …
“He mixed all his pitches pretty well. He threw his fastball, change-up and curveball all for strikes. When a pitcher can do that you’ve just got to battle, grind it out, try to put the ball in play and see what happens.”
On Pecoraro’s performance …
“Unbelievable. I can’t remember the last time I’ve (played defense) behind a complete game (shutout). Seeing him go out and do that it’s awesome from his recovery, just watching him grow back into how unbelievable he can be. He throws all three of his pitches for his strikes whenever he wants and wherever he wants him. I can’t say enough about his performance.”
On getting ahead in the series and what it means …
“I hope we just keep the same mentality because that’s all we need to do. If we play like we did tonight, we’ll be perfect.”
Source: Anchor Of Gold by KingJamesIV
ESPN's Keith Law opinion is the gold standard.
Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- T.J. Pecoraro tossed a complete-game shutout to lift Vanderbilt to a 3-0 win over Ole Miss Thursday night at Hawkins Field.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
You never know what you're going to find in a golfer's bag. Andrew Boggs was up to the task earlier this week, visiting with Vanderbilt sophomore Rene Sobolewski about its contents.Source: SEC Football Blog
Chris Low discusses receiver Marcus Lucas' spring and the way he emerged as the Tigers' deep threat.Source: SEC Football Blog
Tennessee will be taking part of its preseason camp on the road. The Vols will practice from Aug. 9-15 at Milligan College in Johnson City, Tenn., which is about a two-hour drive from Knoxville. "The week in Johnson City will provide a unique opportunity to build team unity and limit distractions,” Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said. “The opportunity to train away from campus also allows for a more efficient move into our new football training center and will reduce the wear and tear on our practice fields.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
Head Coach James Franklin joined Kevin Ingram and Mark Howard on 104.5's The Wake Up Zone Thursday morning at E|SPACES Cool Springs.Source: SEC Football Blog
Our look at the SEC's most productive returning players in 2012 continues with a look at the league's top returning placekickers. Past producers: Quarterback Running back Wide receiver Tight end Sacks Tackles Interceptions The SEC returns eight of the top 10 kickers from last season. We decided to go by field goals made over percentage, because a few players had higher percentages, but didn't have as many attempts. The top kicker is back, but when it comes to field-goal kicking, the crown is always always up for grabs.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
The Vanderbilt track and field team will send six athletes to the NCAA East Preliminary Round to be held in Jacksonville, Fla., May 24-26. The event will be hosted by the University of North Florida.Source: SEC Football Blog
ALPHARETTA, Ga. -- When Florida defensive tackle Leon Orr violated the terms of his deferred prosecution agreement for his misdemeanor marijuana possession charge by being cited for knowingly driving with a suspended license on Monday, he became the ninth Florida player arrested and the 11th overall arrest during Will Muschamp's short coaching tenure. Though Orr wasn't taken into custody, his citation did count as an official arrest. With that, there's a growing perception that Florida has an off-field discipline problem.Source: SEC Football Blog
Just about every week in the SEC, you could pick out a must-see game. That's life in the toughest football conference in the land. A year ago, the Alabama-LSU game in Tuscaloosa was billed as the latest version of the "Game of the Century." Well, those two teams will square off for the third time in a year this coming Nov. 3 in Baton Rouge. The Tigers are still smarting from their 21-0 beating at the hands of the Crimson Tide in January's BCS National Championship Game.Source: SEC Football Blog
Radi Nabulsi writes : Twenty-nine invitations recently went out to elite Georgia high school players for the annual Georgia Junior Bowl, presented by the Rising Seniors Program. An early camp allowed several players, who otherwise might not have gotten enough notice, to earn the chance to play in the coveted postseason game.Source: SEC Football Blog
Some of what's happening around the SEC: An Alabama-West Virginia game is in the works for 2014. Athlon has Arkansas ranked No. 13 in its preseason poll. Is Alabama's flirtation with Georgia quarterback recruit Brice Ramsey over? John Adams of The Knoxville News-Sentinel writes that it's time for Tennessee to retire its criteria for honoring players. Where does Auburn's Gene Chizik rank among the nation's head coaches? Lafonte Thourogood, one of Vanderbilt's prized signees in James Franklin's first class, has been released from his scholarship and plans to transfer.Source: SEC Football Blog
"College Football Live's" panel of experts preview South Carolina's upcoming season.Source: Anchor Of Gold by Christian D'Andrea
The SEC's Top QB-WR Combos: #1 - The Jordan Connection (ESPN INSIDER)"It might seem odd to put a Vanderbilt duo at the top of this list, especially since these two only worked together for about half of the 2011 season, but that half-season made quite an impact. Maybe the best way to illustrate this is by noting how their YPA totals would fare against the YPA figures posted by the top wide receiver prospects in the 2012 NFL draft.
The Rodgers/Matthews overall YPA total is higher than all but two of the wideouts in that article, and the vertical/stretch vertical figures compare nearly
Source: SEC Football Blog
I'll be back in the chat room today at 1 p.m. ET and looking forward to taking your questions -- the good ones and the bad ones. Nah, I was always taught that there's no such thing as a bad question. Well, maybe sometimes.Source: SEC Football Blog
We're taking a look at some of the breakout SEC players from this spring: Marcus Caffey, CB, Kentucky: Caffey spent his first year on Kentucky's campus looking up at the rest of the running backs on the roster. But the coaches didn't want to waste his talent, so he moved to cornerback, a position in desperate need of bodies. The Caffey experiment worked, as he immediately adapted to his new position and left spring with one of the starting corner spots.Source: SEC Football Blog
Today, we dissect Arkansas' schedule as the Hogs look to break through in the Western Division: Nonconference opponents (with 2011 records) Sept. 1: Jacksonville State (7-4) Sept. 8: Louisiana-Monroe (4-8), in Little Rock Sept. 22: Rutgers (9-4) Nov. 3: Tulsa (8-5) SEC home games Sept. 15: Alabama Oct. 13: Kentucky Oct. 27: Ole Miss, in Little Rock Nov. 23: LSU SEC road games Sept. 29: at Texas A&M Oct. 6: at Auburn Nov. 10: at South Carolina Nov.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
Senior men's golfer Adam Hofmann has officially withdrawn from the NCAA Regional at Bowling Green due to injury.Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
Rising senior forward Tiffany Clarke is spending the month of May studying abroad in Paris. While overseas, Clarke will periodically keep Commodore fans updated with her experiences on VUCommodores.com.Source: Anchor Of Gold by VandyImport
The Tennessean is now making it official: Lafonte Thorogood, possibly the most heralded name in the whirlwind 2011 James Franklin recruiting derby, is leaving the Commodores. Thorogood, who was described at the time by one knucklehead blogger as "the four-star recruit with the five-star name," started off as the future of the QB position for the 'Dores - but when Jordan Rodgers broke out big,
Source: Vanderbilt Official Site
The Commodores welcome Ole Miss to Nashville for the first time since 2009 when the Rebels took two-of-three at Hawkins Field. The teams have not played since 2009 with Ole Miss winning six of the last eight games between the two teams dating back to a series sweep in Oxford in 2008. Vanderbilt is 46-50-2 against Ole Miss all-time in a series dating back to the Dores' 6-5 win in 1900.Source: SEC Football Blog
Edward Aschoff talks about Mississippi State defensive end Denico Autry's progression this spring.Source: SEC Football Blog
Our look at the SEC's most productive returning players in 2012 continues with a look at players that grabbed the most interceptions. Past producers: Quarterback Running back Wide receiver Tight end Sacks Tackles The SEC returns four players that ranked in the top 10 in the SEC in interception. The top pick man returns this season, though he'll have to sit to start the season. Here's a look at No. 1: Bacarri Rambo, S, Georgia: He had eight interceptions and defended eight passes last season.
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