Les Miles slammed former commitment Gunner Kiel for not coming to LSU. Kiel committed to Indiana then backed out and flirted with Vandy before deciding on LSU. After he gave his verbal to Miles he backed out and enrolled at Notre Dame.
According to Mile Kiel “Didn’t have the chest or ability to lead a program”.
That’s some pretty harsh words for an 18 year old kid.
Vanderbilt made an impression on the national media yesterday when they hauled in some big name recruits like Brian Kimbrow. The Commodore War Room was the place to be yesterday and Vandy has done a good job of making their War Room and National Signing Day into a big deal. Now that the kids are locked in and set for next Fall it starts all over for next year’s recruits.
Vandy landed one of the most coveted linebackers in Alabama today when Harding Harper sent his letter of intent in to the University this morning. Harper had been considering Arkansas but ultimately chose to become a Dore.
Harper was named to the postseason First Team 6A All-State Team after his performance in the playoff this year. Also during his Senior year at Carver High Harper had 108 tackles and 2 interceptions. One of the picks was returned 100 yards for a touchdown.
In addition to Harper the Commodores received letters of intent from other linebackers, Ja’karri Thomas, Stephen Weatherly, Darreon Herring, and Jake Sealand earlier today. James Franklin wanted depth at linebacker and now he has it.
David Williams and University of Memphis Athletic Director R.C. Johnson have had talks about possibly having the two schools meet in 2013. Memphis is trying to shuffle it’s schedule around according to the Commerical Appeal to make the game happen. There is no word whether or not the game would take place in Nashville or Memphis.
Memphis played Vandy a few times in the 80s with the Tigers coming out on top. But that was in the Watson Brown era and things are much different on West End now.
Memphis has traditionally held games with SEC schools such as UT, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State but doesn’t have any schools from the conference scheduled until 2015.
I’m all for a matchup with Memphis. The Tigers have been rebuilding for several years now and it would be a favorable matchup for the Dores that could hopefully lead to a win and another bowl game for James Frankin’s team. Memphis played Vandy a few times in the 80s with the Tigers coming out on top.
Terrence Jones took over in Baton Rouge today as the Wildcats rolled LSU at home 74-50. Jones poured in 27 in the win. Kentucky stays undefeated in SEC play at 7-0. The Cats will play the Vols at home on Tuesday.
Johnny O’Bryant III had 12 in the loss and snagged 9 boards for the Tigers.
We jumped the gun yesterday reporting that Kevin McCoy was coming to Vandy. Our apologies go to Kevin and we hope he lands in Nashville but if he chooses UCF we know he will do big things there as well. McCoy tweeted yesterday that he hasn’t made his final decision but it was down to Vandy and UCF.
Guys….Im srrry but I am still UNDECIDED….#UCF vs #VU!!! Havent committed!
— Kevo McCoy (@K_McCoy78) January 28, 2012
After seeing some of his tweets yesterday we thought McCoy had made the decision to come to West End.
#DORE State of Mind! #BlackNGold! Im bout to #AnchorDOWN!!! #VU!
— Kevo McCoy (@K_McCoy78) January 27, 2012
@chiucfgal I will never….I BLEED Black&Gold!
— Kevo McCoy (@K_McCoy78) January 27, 2012
McCoy is supposed to be in Nashville this weekend so hopefully he will decide he likes it and will want to stick around for four years.
Armwood RT Kevin McCoy has chosen Vanderbilt over Central Florida. McCoy will be in Nashville this weekend on an official visit. McCoy broke the news on Twitter today;
#DORE State of Mind! #BlackNGold! Im bout to #AnchorDOWN!!! #VU!
— Kevo McCoy (@K_McCoy78) January 27, 2012
McCoy is a high school teammate of backup QB Josh Grady so the Vanderbilt connection must have paid off. The big right tackle played on a very good team and was being pursued by Auburn and Louisville before he whittled his decision down to UCF and Vandy.
Signing day is Feb. 1st and this is the most anticipated signing class in recent Vanderbilt history. James Franklin has done a great job snapping up recruits from other big name schools.
A shakeup at defensive coordinator at Arkansas costs the Razorbacks a linebacker. Jakarri Thomas decommited from Arkansas after Willy Robinson left the program last month. After a visit to Nashville last week Thomas decided to commit to Vanderbilt. He will sign his letter of intent on Feb. 1st with the rest of the recruits James Franklin is bringing in.
Thomas played linebacker and with a 4.5 40 he could convert to safety and make an immediate impact in the secondary.
Chris Moody from Henry County High School in McDonough, Georgia has decided on Vanderbilt. The 3 star athlete made his decision during an official visit over the weekend. Moody is a versatile player who could play corner, safety, or possibly even quarterback.
Moody picked the Commodores over South Carolina, North Carolina State, Clemson, and Virginia Tech. National Signing Day is on Feb. 1st. That’s when Moody will put the pen to paper and officially become a Dore.
Back in 2008 the gang here at VandyPride conducted some interviews from some notable competitors in the SEC. Terrence Jones was a linebacker at Alabama under Mike Shula. We talked to Terrance about his time in Tuscaloosa and playing in the SEC.
Terrence, thanks for talking to us today. Tell us what you’ve been up to lately?
Lately I’ve been finishing up my degree at the U.A. I graduate in August. I’m considering following Joe Kine to Texas A&M to be a graduate assistant to him if I don’t make any football team whether its the NFL, AFL, Canadian, or AAFL.
Tell us a little about the AAFL.
The AAFL is a football league comprised of former Division 1 athletes who have recieved a four year degree. It’s different from the NFL because it will be played in the spring time.
Why did you decide to come to Alabama? Surely you had other schools pursuing you what was special about Tuscaloosa?
I came to Alabama for a few reasons. One reason was that I was going to have the opportunity to play in front of my family, friends, and people who have followed my career through high school. Secondly because of the rich tradition of playing at the University of Alabama. Alabama always had a reputation of producing pretty good linebackers and that also lured me to stay home. Thirdly, I just wasn’t an Auburn fan. Auburn may have recruited me the hardest. I tried to convince myself that Auburn was the place for me but my heart was with Alabama. I had pretty much every school in the SEC after me and big schools from other conferences but Alabama was the place for me. Finally, one of my best friend at the time Leron McClain also was going to Alabama. We had been playing together since the 8th grade and I thought it would be cool to play college together also.
What are you most proud of from your time at Alabama?
I am most proud of the fact that I helped to maintain the football program. I came in at a time when we were going through so much. I had gotten recruited by Fran, committed to Price, and played for Shula. Although our record wasn’t good like we would’ve hoped. I am proud to say I played at the University of Alabama.
Do you keep in touch with your former teammates?
I keep in touch with a few of the guys on a regular basis. I talk to Demeco Ryans, Freddie Roach, and Juwan Simpson like everyday. Ken Darby calls whenever he is in town. I ran into Leron the other day in the mall. By me still being in school here i am able to be with the guys who signed with me but redshirted like Matt Cadell, Demarcus Waldrop, Tyrone Prothro, also a couple younger guy like DJ Hall,Antoine Caldwell. Lionel Mitchell and Nick Walker. I developed many friendships with alot of guys on the team. Many of us became like brothers. We did a lot of things together. I guess you can say I’m just a cool guy that everyone likes.
What did you think of Alabama’s decision to schedule Hawaii as it’s last game in 2003 since we couldn’t go to a bowl game?
I thought by scheduling Hawaii was a good idea. It gave us players the opportunity to go to Hawaii first of all and the chance to make something out of a miserable season.
I’d like to ask you about some of the games you played in.
You were there for Prothro’s infamous catch against Southern Miss. in 2005 What did you think when you saw it that night?
When I saw Prothro’s catch I said “unbelievable, he is the real deal”. It’s the best catch I have ever seen.
Also in 2005, your junior year we crushed #3 Florida at home 31-3. What did that game mean to you?
That Florida game made our season. I knew when we beat them that we had a pretty good team. That was by far to me the best Bryant Denny atmosphere I have ever played in.
A few weeks later was the huge game game at home against UT. I remember UT was about to score and then all of the sudden their fulback fumbled the ball out of the end zone. What were you thinking as you watched that unfold in front of you?
Watching them drive the ball down there about to score I was thinking “man here go our season”. Then Roman goes and knocked the ball loose and it was crazy. I couldnt believe it.
The LSU overtime game that year was heartbreaking. You actually came off the bench and had pretty good game. What do you remember about playing against JeMarcus Russell that afternoon?
I was pumped for this game. Coach Kines had said it was going to take everybody and he looked right at me when he said it. I just remember him sending me on a blitz every play. I got to JaMarcus a couple of times. The tackle held me a few times but it never got called. We were one play away from winning that game.
Your senior year you had a big game against Vandy. For some reason Vandy always plays us close. Do you remember what you were thinking when Tiffin kicked that field goal with a few seconds left to win the game?
Yeah Vandy always plays us close for some reason. Vandy had a pretty good team and that game came down to the wire. I was holding my breathe hoping that Tiffin would nail it for us. It was a big win for us. Glad that Tiffin was able to pull it out.
What do you remember about the Bowl game with Oklahoma State? Coming back from 14 down in the 4th quarter to tie it I was sure we were going to win.
This is one game that I hate the most and blame myself. I went on the blitz the running back chipped me and then rolled out and caught the screen. I couldnt get to him when he chipped me then when I was finally going to get him a lineman came and cut me. I took this loss personal. It was the first time when I felt like I caused us the game.
Thanks again Terrence, is there anything else you’d like to say to the Crimson Tide fans out there?
I want them to not look at the 2003-2006 seasons as failures. There were a lot of young men who loved Alabama and put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into that progam. We gave it all we had.
Roll Tide!!!
