Mississippi State Sports Blog

So with the Bulldogs hosting Vandy this weekend, I decided to get in touch with some fellow SEC Power Poll blogs that cover vandy sports for a little guest blogger Q & A. Since there are 2, I will post the first one here and the other in a seperate post. Up first, the fine folks over at Save The Shield.

You can read my responses to the questions they sent me as well.

1. Since Bobby Johnson’s arrival, the Commodores have consistently improved each year. What has he done to turn the program around in recent years?

I’m obviously not a college football coach, but if I had to list the reasons, they’d be (in order): continuity, recruiting, and redshirting.

The core of this coaching staff has been together for 7 years now. As much as VU fans (including this one) complain about some of the individual coaches or coordinators from time to time, I think the fact that we’ve employed the same system for that long goes rather unnoticed when chalking up the reasons for our increased success. It’s a family, and everyone in it knows exactly what’s expected of him—that helps.

Recruiting has obviously gotten better. This staff is, quite frankly, outstanding at player evaluations. Every year, the recruiting services rank Vanderbilt’s class last in the conference, but pretty much every year since Johnson & Co. have been in Nashville, the program has gained ground on the rest of the conference. Something about those two facts doesn’t jive, and I believe the explanation is that the coaches are great at finding (and developing!) 3- and 4-star-caliber football players from off the beaten recruiting path. Also, of course, with more success comes more national recognition, so you’re starting to see some of the highly ranked players that everyone knows about give more than a passing glance to the VU program, as the 2009 class attests to.

Finally, Johnson’s commitment to redshirting has done a lot. Early in his tenure, that commitment (thanks to some patience on the part of the administration, which stuck with him and his plan even after three consecutive 2-win seasons) paved the way for what we’re seeing now. As strong as the coaches are at recruiting, they realize that VU is never going to have the 5-stars lining up, and thus in most cases, the guys they recruit are going to need a couple years to develop before they’re capable of being impact players in this conference. I haven’t actually researched this, but I would be shocked if Vanderbilt didn’t have more redshirted players on its roster than any other school in the conference, and I’d be pretty surprised if the next-highest number were anywhere close.

2. What does Chris Nickson bring to the table offensively and how much would it hurt for him not to play against Mississippi State?

He’s a faster runner than Mack Adams, and he has a stronger throwing arm. It looks to my relatively untrained eye that he’s not as accurate with his throws as Adams is, especially on the short and intermediate routes, but I know there are VU fans who argue otherwise.

Chris is also a great leader and, from anecdotes I’ve read and heard, a calming influence in the huddle. He generally doesn’t try to make throws he can’t make, and as a result, he doesn’t turn the ball over a whole lot.

As for how much his absence will hurt, honestly, I’m not really sure. He’s a year older than Adams, he has a good bit more game experience—though Mack certainly has what should be *enough*—and the coaches obviously think he’s the best option for the offense or they wouldn’t have been starting him…but Adams looked pretty darn good against Auburn, better than Nickson has looked in any game this season. I am somewhat more concerned about turnovers with Adams in the game than I would be if Nickson were playing. Honestly, I don’t expect much of a drop-off, and I don’t think the coaches do either.

3. What players should the Bulldogs be on the lookout for, both offensively and defensively?

I think everyone knows about DJ Moore, and you might have to look out for him on both sides of the ball (and on special teams), although the coaches haven’t given him much offensive duty in the last couple of games because of (a) a hip injury suffered early against Ole Miss, and (b) the emergence of Jamie Graham. DJ is the game-breaker, though.

Offensively, I’d guess that tailback Jared Hawkins and tight end Brandon Barden are the two MSU should (and will) focus on stopping. Defensively, I’m assuming you’ll try to pound the ball and avoid our elite secondary, every member of which you should be looking out for. If that’s the case, Pat Benoist and Chris Marve, our two best linebackers, are the names to watch for there.

4. After this weekend, the schedule gets pretty tough for Vandy with road trips to Georgia and Wake Forrest and Florida and Tennessee at home in Nashville. What do you see the final W-L record being this year?

Well, as a matter of fact, we get Florida at home, although I don’t expect that to make much of a difference. I’ve gone on record elsewhere suggesting that Florida looks to be the only really unwinnable game on the schedule. I just don’t think we match up well with the Gators, and I don’t see us winning that one unless there’s a serious Tebow injury between now and then.

At this point, after what we’ve shown we’re capable of, as strange as this sounds, I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t be a little disappointed not to manage at least 8 wins this season. At the same time, I would feel like I’m getting carried away a little bit by predicting more than 3 wins against a group that includes y’all, UGA, Duke, Florida, UK, Tennessee, and Wake. With Cutcliffe in Durham now, none of those are easy. As if any VU victory is every easy…

Anyway, I guess what I’m saying is that 8-4 is my best guess, with 7-5 being more likely than 9-3. And I’d be delighted with that, to say the least.

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