Was Vanderbilt's 2008 football season an aberration? The Commodores recorded three victories over ranked opponents for the first time in program history, recorded their first postseason victory in 53 years and enjoyed their first winning season since 1982. With 19 returning starters overall, an established defense and a change of philosophy on offense to the no-huddle, Vanderbilt is determined to prove last season wasn't a fluke.
"This offseason has been successful," fifth-year senior center Bradley Vierling said Wednesday during SEC Football Media Days in Hoover, Ala. "That really comes off the bowl game victory. Everyone's confidence is really high. Everyone wants to get better. Everyone wants to get to another bowl game."
Even if the Commodores only had to look both ways and cross the street to beat Boston College, 16-14, in the Music City Bowl in their hometown of Nashville, Tenn., the victory has certainly energized the program.
"The repercussions of our season from last year, you know, obviously I think it was the next stage we had to take our program, which was to go to a bowl," head coach Bobby Johnson said Wednesday. "It was a bonus to win it. We're very pleased with that. I think it's helped the attitude of our players, our fans, our donors, our head coach, everybody.
"It was very enjoyable."
In more ways than one.
Vanderbilt, the lone private school in the SEC, has also enjoyed a recruiting surge, collecting 18 non-binding verbal commitments in the class of 2010 compared to just seven at this time last year during the 2009 recruiting period. That also means the Commodores staff has been securing some of the program's top targets on its board. The program's two highest rated commitments, according to recruiting analysts, are the Marietta, Ga., duo of Grant Ramsey (40th-ranked offensive tackle) and Kyle Woestmann (45th defensive tackle).
"Right now, I think we're being received very well in the recruiting battles," said Johnson, the 2008 SEC Coach of the Year. "We think we've recruited well the last two or three years ... we're much better on the food chain right now as far as recruiting is going."
Of course, the trick is making sure Vanderbilt isn't among the smaller fish in the SEC food chain when it opens it season at home on Sept. 5 against Western Carolina.
Plus, thanks to a scheduling quirk, the Commodores play 12 consecutive weeks, punctuated by an October lineup that includes league games against Ole Miss, Georgia and South Carolina and non-conference dates against Army and Georgia Tech.
Vanderbilt opens its SEC schedule in its second game of the season at LSU Sept. 12.
"I'm really not happy about it," Johnson said of playing 12 consecutive games. "I don't think there's anything anybody could do to avoid it. We certainly would have if we could have. It is a challenge to play 12 straight games. You have to plan for it, you have to be smart in the pre season, not just work 'em to death."A key to surviving the SEC is consistency from start to finish. Last season Vanderbilt opened with five consecutive wins, but it was nearly derailed when it dropped six of its next seven games -- four by 10 points or less, including a non-conference home loss to Duke of the ACC. The bowl victory over BC helped the Commodores feel good about their season and progress.
"As good as we can get at Vanderbilt, our program is going to have to perform at a high level every week to have a chance to win consistently in this league," Johnson said. "You can probably say that for most teams in this league. If you have a bad game, maybe some of 'em can overcome it. I don't think we can right now. But we'd like to build our program that we can get it where one play doesn't keep us from winning or one bad quarter doesn't keep us from winning. If we can do that, that would be huge for our program."
The Commodores (7-6 overall, 4-4 SEC last year) will once again look to their defense for support.
They return nine starters from a unit that ranked among the SEC and NCAA leaders in numerous categories last season, highlighted by 20 interceptions (second in the SEC and tied for eighth nationally). They return every starter with the exception of All-America cornerback D.J. Moore and four-year safety starter Reshard Langford. Senior linebacker Patrick Benoist is expected to anchor the unit after finishing fourth in the SEC with 109 total tackles in 2008.
However, it's Vanderbilt's offense that will sink or float the Commodores' boat. The unit hit rock bottom last year, ranking 117th in total offense (256.2 yards per game), 112th in passing (122.6) and 108th in third-down conversion percentage (31.5 percent).
The offensive line returns every starter, paced by Vierling and fellow fifth-year senior Thomas Welch. Senior Mackenzie Adams and redshirt sophomore Larry Smith -- two of three rotating quarterbacks last season -- and redshirt freshman Jared Funk will compete for the starter's role behind center. Receiver Jamie Graham could follow Moore's footsteps as a two-way player, while Jared Hawkins is the leading returning rusher with 593 yards.
The Commodores could turn to a new offensive look this season.
"Right now we just changed to the no-huddle," Vierling said. "I don't really know how to describe what we are. Whatever we did last year just wasn't working. We were one of the worst teams in the nation when it came to offensive production."
Vierling also thinks Vanderbilt's depth and experience -- the team's lettermen count includes 20 seniors and 20 juniors -- will help it weather the storm of late-season collapses in past years. Those numbers also equate into better competition across the board.
"We are very old. We're an older team now, which is weird for us because we've always been a younger team," Vierling said.
"Last year we were a younger team. We have a lot of seniors in the locker room. We have a lot of backups coming back, which is huge for us. It's always been Vanderbilt's story that we always start well but falter towards the end and that we never had enough depth. Now we finally have that. We have starters coming back and reserves coming back. We have backups pushing for starting spots. It's more competitive than it's ever been."
Ranked for a four-week stretch in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time in team history last season, Johnson believes his team's success has helped strengthen the program's resolve, not to mention given players an attitude adjustment.
The Commodores want to post winning seasons more than once every blue moon.
"Well, I think it was satisfying, but it was also necessary I think for our program to move forward," Johnson said. "Any time you do better than what you have been doing in the past, I think it's satisfying, sort of a way to test your program to see if you're making progress.
"We probably had some chances the two previous years before that to make that step, and didn't quite get it done, take advantage of our opportunities to do it. But I was really proud of the team last year. They stepped up when we had a lull in the middle of the season, came back, became Bowl eligible. I think they know what it takes."
