SEC Media Day

By Weinman --

We're on our way back from SEC Media Day in Birmingham. A great time was had by Coach Robbie Caldwell, linebackers Chris Marve and John Stokes, and running back Warren Norman -- all first-timers in this circus who represented the university with pure class.

We'll have plenty of content coming later, but for now you can whet your appetite on the SEC's Media Day page: http://www.secsports.com/sport_stats/football/mediaday/index.html -- they currently have quotes up and should b adding video shortly. More soon.

2010 football posters

by Barca Blog

Just a follow-up to David Rutz's story on Vanderbilt's marketing campaign for the 2010 football season.

Here's a look at the four schedule posters, which match the players featured in the commercial campaign -- Warren Norman, Jamie Graham, Brandon Barden, and Zac Stacy.

Pick up your favorite design at the McGugin Center Ticket Office during regular business hours, or at summer promotional events in Nashville.

Click here for season ticket information.

Norman named SEC Freshman of Week

by Barca Blog - Congrats to tailback Warren Norman for being named SEC Freshman of the Week for his performance against Tennessee on Saturday. Believe it or not, this is the first time the conference has recognized Norman during his record-breaking rookie season.

A couple of bullet points on the Tennessee game:

• Norman accumulated 152 all-purpose yards at Tennessee, breaking an SEC freshman all-purpose yardage record, in the Commodores 31-16 loss at Tennessee.

• Norman finished the season with 1,941 all-purpose yards, breaking a mark set by Georgia’s Herschel Walker in 1980.

• Against the Vols, Norman had 73 rushing yards on 17 carries and three catches for 18 yards. He also had three kickoff returns for 61 yards.

• Norman also is Vanderbilt’s single-season all-purpose leader and ranks 11th in SEC history.

Read the Official Press Release on VUcommodores.com.

Norman sets SEC Freshman Record

By Travis Young - With 5:34 left in the first quarter, Vanderbilt's Warren Norman returned a kick-off 23 yards to the VU 38-yard line, setting the SEC Freshman Record for All-Purpose Yards. Norman now has 1,825 all-purpose yards, passing Georgia's Herschel Walker's 29-year old mark of 1,805.

Two minutes later, on a third and three situation from the Tennessee 21-yard line, Norman scampered six-yards to get the first down and putting him all alone in the Vanderbilt school record books. With that six-yard run Norman passed Corey Harris' 18-year (1991) single season all-purpose yardage record of 1,827.

Norman now has 1,878 all purpose yards with nine minutes to go in the second quarter. The Stone Mountain, Ga. native, has 88 all-purpose yards (37 rushing, 16 receiving, 36 return) through a quarter and a half tonight.

Norman closing in on Herschel

by Barca Blog - Let's look at the records freshman tailback Warren Norman has a chance to break in tonight's season finale at Tennessee.

*With 17 yards, Norman can break the SEC freshman mark of 1,805 all-purpose yards set by former Georgia great Herschel Walker in 1980.

*He needs 39 all-purpose yards to break the Commodores' single-season all-purpose yardage record set in 1991 by Corey Harris (1,827 yards).

*He needs 89 rushing yards to break Kwane Doster's Vanderbilt freshman record of 798 yards set in 2002.

Norman already has become the SEC's all-time leading single-season kickoff returner and tied a conference record with three touchdowns on kickoff returns in a season. He also leads the SEC in all-purpose yardage this season with 162.6 yards per game.

Taking it to the top

by Barca Blog - It has been a record-breaking year for freshman tailback Warren Norman.

Browsing through Vanderbilt's all-time charts, the Stone Mountain, Ga., native has already surpassed Kwane Doster's mark for all-purpose yardage as a freshman, and topped D.J. Moore's record for single-season kickoff return yardage.

Norman's also closing in on Doster's freshman rushing record (needs 206 yards with 3 games remaining) and on pace to shatter the team's modern kickoff return average.

The records don't stop there, though. Last Saturday against Georgia Tech, Norman became only the second player in SEC history with three kickoff returns for touchdowns in one season. He needs only 51 yards to break the SEC single-season record for kickoff return yardage set by Dennis Johnson (Arkansas, 2008).

But even more impressive than that is the tidbit Chris Low offered in his latest blog on ESPN.com. Low wrote:

Norman leads the SEC with 1,526 all-purpose yards and has a shot to break Herschel Walker’s SEC freshman record for all-purpose yards in a season (1,805). Norman is averaging 169.6 yards per game, which would place him among the top 10 in the SEC all-time in terms of season average, just ahead of Deuce McAllister’s 169.2 yards per game in 1999 and Bo Jackson’s 169 yards per game in 1985.

Even though the Commodores won't be eligible for postseason play, Norman's run towards history will be one of the storylines worth following in the final three weeks.

To read Low's article, click here.

(Photo by John Russell)