by Barca Blog - I hope you enjoyed VUcommodores' 2008 Rewind series. The final episode (below) features Myron Lewis' game-clinching interception in the Commodores' 16-14 victory over Boston College in the Music City Bowl.
You can view all seven videos here.
Showing posts with label 2008 rewind. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2008 rewind. Show all posts
Friday, September 4, 2009
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Hearing victory
by Barca Blog - While Bryant Hahnfeldt’s game-winning field goal in the Music City Bowl will go down as one of the biggest sports moments in Vanderbilt history, one thing often gets overlooked: two walk-ons, snapper David Giller and holder Thomas Carroll, played a significant role in that moment.Sure, most Commodore fans may be unfamiliar with these two guys, but maybe that's not such a bad thing considering players at these positions usually only get attention when something goes wrong. So, I thought it would be cool to speak with Giller about what it meant to be involved in that special moment. Here’s a short Q&A:
Down by one with three minutes left in the fourth quarter, what was going through your head as you took the field for the game-winning field goal?
“Everybody says, ‘Oh, it’s a big situation,’ but with how repetitive special teams is, you can only go about it like it’s any other deal. I knew Thomas (Carroll) was going to get the ball, I knew he was going to get a good hold, and I knew Bryant (Hahnfeldt) was going to kick it right down the middle. I just knew it would be automatic every single time, and that’s what it should be. We just went out there and executed everything we needed to do and got it done.”
As a walk-on, talk about having the chance to effect Vanderbilt history on that play.
“A lot of those feelings of accomplishment, not only for me but for the program, came after we had won the game because if we hadn’t, no one would have talked about it.
“We all had faith in each other. Even though Thomas and I were walk-ons, we knew that we were going to get it done. We just knew it. It was just like any other field goal at any particular point in any game. It just happened to mean a whole lot more after the fact.”
After you snapped the ball, did you get a chance to see it go through the goal posts?
“I knew it was going to be dead-center just because usually I can tell that when Bryant hits it good, it just sounds pretty. Then, I could see from my upside-down vantage point that the snap and hold were good, and then it came down to Hahnfeldt to knock it through. I heard it, it sounded great, and I looked up, and sure enough, it was right down the pipe.”
Sunday, August 30, 2009
2008 Rewind: No pressure
by Barca Blog - If you made your first career start in Vanderbilt's biggest game in decades, you'd feel the pressure, right?
That wasn't the case for quarterback Larry Smith.
"I was surprised that I wasn't really nervous," he admitted.
On his very first play from scrimmage in the Music City Bowl, Smith set the tone by connecting with senior receiver Sean Walker down the sidelines for a 51-yard gain.
"After that, I just settled down and played my game," Smith added.
Smith, who rotated with senior Chris Nickson, completed 10-of-17 passes for 121 yards and also rushed for 25 yards in the Commodores' 16-14 victory over Boston College.
Watch our latest 2008 Rewind video below.
That wasn't the case for quarterback Larry Smith.
"I was surprised that I wasn't really nervous," he admitted.
On his very first play from scrimmage in the Music City Bowl, Smith set the tone by connecting with senior receiver Sean Walker down the sidelines for a 51-yard gain.
"After that, I just settled down and played my game," Smith added.
Smith, who rotated with senior Chris Nickson, completed 10-of-17 passes for 121 yards and also rushed for 25 yards in the Commodores' 16-14 victory over Boston College.
Watch our latest 2008 Rewind video below.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
2008 Rewind: Hawkins won't be stopped
by Barca Blog - Vanderbilt had the chance to make an early season statement in 2008 when No. 24 South Carolina rolled in to town for a nationally televised Thursday night contest on ESPN.
We now know the final outcome of the game, but there were two plays that I'll always remember.
With Vanderbilt looking to add to its 17-10 lead in the fourth quarter, tailback Jared Hawkins rushed for eight yards into the Gamecocks' red zone. It seemed like a normal play, but during the tackle, Hawkins fell into the legs of one of his blockers, wide receiver Chris Reinert.
Reinert was down for a extended period of time as the sold-out crowd sat in silence. With spirits low as he was taken off the field with a broken leg, Reinert created an eruption in the stadium by waving his arms in support of his teammates.
Following the emotional moment, Hawkins took the next snap to the house for 13-yards, avoiding four different Gamecock tacklers on his way to the end zone. The reaction of the crowd after the score was one of those moments you wish you could bottle forever.
VU held off USC for a 24-17 victory to move to 2-0 on the season. Watch Hawkins talk about his TD run below:
We now know the final outcome of the game, but there were two plays that I'll always remember.
With Vanderbilt looking to add to its 17-10 lead in the fourth quarter, tailback Jared Hawkins rushed for eight yards into the Gamecocks' red zone. It seemed like a normal play, but during the tackle, Hawkins fell into the legs of one of his blockers, wide receiver Chris Reinert.
Reinert was down for a extended period of time as the sold-out crowd sat in silence. With spirits low as he was taken off the field with a broken leg, Reinert created an eruption in the stadium by waving his arms in support of his teammates.
Following the emotional moment, Hawkins took the next snap to the house for 13-yards, avoiding four different Gamecock tacklers on his way to the end zone. The reaction of the crowd after the score was one of those moments you wish you could bottle forever.
VU held off USC for a 24-17 victory to move to 2-0 on the season. Watch Hawkins talk about his TD run below:
Monday, August 24, 2009
2008 Rewind: Marve saves the day
by Barca Blog - Of all the great moments in 2008, Chris Marve's goal-line strip at Ole Miss might have been the biggest play of the regular season.
With Vanderbilt clinging onto a 20-17 lead late in the fourth quarter, the Rebels drove 80 yards in five plays highlighted by Dexter McCluster's 56 yard reception to the Commodores' 7-yard line. On the very next play, McCluster took a direct snap up the middle for what looked to be the go-ahead score... but Marve saved the day by forcing McCluster to fumble into the end zone.
"I knew he had a chance of crossing the goal line, so I just went for the strip," Marve recalled. "God-willing, it came out."
I remember standing in the opposite end zone during that drive with that uneasy feeling in my stomach, not knowing if the 'Dores would extend their record to 4-0. Marve's heroics cemented the fact that it was going to be a special season.
"I felt that a play needed to be made," Marve added. "I saw the opportunity, so I went for it."
I think we're all happy he did.
The Commodores would tack on a field goal to win the game, 23-17. Watch the clip below:
With Vanderbilt clinging onto a 20-17 lead late in the fourth quarter, the Rebels drove 80 yards in five plays highlighted by Dexter McCluster's 56 yard reception to the Commodores' 7-yard line. On the very next play, McCluster took a direct snap up the middle for what looked to be the go-ahead score... but Marve saved the day by forcing McCluster to fumble into the end zone.
"I knew he had a chance of crossing the goal line, so I just went for the strip," Marve recalled. "God-willing, it came out."
I remember standing in the opposite end zone during that drive with that uneasy feeling in my stomach, not knowing if the 'Dores would extend their record to 4-0. Marve's heroics cemented the fact that it was going to be a special season.
"I felt that a play needed to be made," Marve added. "I saw the opportunity, so I went for it."
I think we're all happy he did.
The Commodores would tack on a field goal to win the game, 23-17. Watch the clip below:
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
2008 Rewind: Hamilton picks off Rebels
by Barca Blog - We just released our second 2008 Rewind feature on VUcommodores.com.
Vanderbilt's 3-0 start to the season was in jeopardy after a rocky start in Oxford, Miss. Ole Miss took a 10-0 lead after scoring on a field goal and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown on consecutive possessions in the opening quarter.
Jared Hawkins then fumbled on the first play of the next series, putting Ole Miss at Vanderbilt's 20 yard line with a chance to deliver a knockout blow.
On the very next play, safety Ryan Hamilton stepped up and provided the next highlight... his first of three interceptions that resulted in him being named the Football Writers Association of America/Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week.
"I had the opportunity to just read off their quarterback's eyes," Hamilton recalled. "I saw what the receiver was doing and just made a great break on the ball and luckily I caught it.
"I felt that play helped everyone realize that the game could turn around at any second, and all we had to do was keep playing hard to set the offense up for good opportunities to score."
The rest is history as the 'Dores went on to win, 23-17.
Vanderbilt's 3-0 start to the season was in jeopardy after a rocky start in Oxford, Miss. Ole Miss took a 10-0 lead after scoring on a field goal and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown on consecutive possessions in the opening quarter.
Jared Hawkins then fumbled on the first play of the next series, putting Ole Miss at Vanderbilt's 20 yard line with a chance to deliver a knockout blow.
On the very next play, safety Ryan Hamilton stepped up and provided the next highlight... his first of three interceptions that resulted in him being named the Football Writers Association of America/Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week.
"I had the opportunity to just read off their quarterback's eyes," Hamilton recalled. "I saw what the receiver was doing and just made a great break on the ball and luckily I caught it.
"I felt that play helped everyone realize that the game could turn around at any second, and all we had to do was keep playing hard to set the offense up for good opportunities to score."
The rest is history as the 'Dores went on to win, 23-17.
2008 Rewind: Adams' risk pays off
by Barca Blog - In case you missed the first 2008 Rewind segment from last week, here it is.
With ESPN College Gameday on campus and the Commodore Nation abuzz, quarterback Mackenzi Adams came off the bench to rally No. 19 Vanderbilt past No. 13 Auburn 14-13 to improve to 5-0 for the first time since 1943.
Adams threw two touchdowns in the game, the second one serving as the following rewind clip. With the ball at the Tigers 1 and the 'Dores trailing 13-7, Adams ran a roll out play to the right and found his second option, tight end Brandon Barden, in the back of the end zone for the game-winner.
"Barden made some big plays during the season," Adams remembered. "He's a guy with some big play abilities, so when I saw him in the back of the end zone with his hands up, I went ahead and took that risk. It turned out good for us."
With ESPN College Gameday on campus and the Commodore Nation abuzz, quarterback Mackenzi Adams came off the bench to rally No. 19 Vanderbilt past No. 13 Auburn 14-13 to improve to 5-0 for the first time since 1943.
Adams threw two touchdowns in the game, the second one serving as the following rewind clip. With the ball at the Tigers 1 and the 'Dores trailing 13-7, Adams ran a roll out play to the right and found his second option, tight end Brandon Barden, in the back of the end zone for the game-winner.
"Barden made some big plays during the season," Adams remembered. "He's a guy with some big play abilities, so when I saw him in the back of the end zone with his hands up, I went ahead and took that risk. It turned out good for us."
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