Women's Basketball preseason photo shoot

by Barca Blog - As I promised the other day, here's a preseason photo gallery of the 2009-10 Vanderbilt women's basketball team. View John Russell's Pictures

And don't forget, women's basketball season tickets start at only $32. Reserve your seats today by clicking here.

Tim Corbin Speaks at Mt. Juliet Rotary

by Eric Jones - Head baseball coach Tim Corbin took a break from his daily morning ritual of eating at Waffle House to speak at the Mt. Juliet Breakfast Rotary on Tuesday morning at Victory Baptist Church. He's even getting comfortable in the community as he braved the backroads to his destination some 19 miles from Hawkins Field. The appearance in Mt. Juliet is one of several speaking engagements that Corbin will do in the off-season. If you haven't gotten a chance to hear him speak, put it on your bucketlist to do.

It is always easy to hear the pride in Corbin's telling and re-telling of the stories of David Price's maturation as well as Sonny Gray's emergence as a leader on and off the field for the Dores. Corbin gets high marks for not only winning on the field, but for his ability during the recruiting process to find student-athletes with high character.

Incidently, Mt. Juliet has become a mini-pipeline for the Vanderbilt Baseball program in recent years. The brothers Shao, Matt and Stephen, were among the first in the Corbin era to contribute from Mt. Juliet High School. Caleb Cotham, a 2006 MJHS alumn, emerged to lead the Dores in wins (7) last year, while limiting opponents to a .222 batting average which was also tops on the staff. His loss will be felt in the weekend rotation after he signed in August with the Yankees as their fifth overall pick. Taylor Hill, fresh off of an impressive summer in the Cape pitching for Chatham, may be poised to take over for his prep and college teammate as the next Mt. Juliet product to shine on the diamond, perhaps even as an SEC weekend starter.

Nashville ranked among best sports cities

Press release courtesy of Sporting News

Nashville takes its place among the elite at No. 12 in the Best Sports Cities rankings released by Sporting News on Tuesday afternoon.

“Nashville is an underrated sports town,” said Sporting News chief of correspondents Bob Hille, who has coordinated the rankings since their expansion 13 years ago. “Everyone knows about the Titans, who had a great season in 2008, but there’s NHL hockey with the Predators, and pretty darn good college football and basketball in the city, too.”

This year’s Best Sports Cities list features almost 400 cities and towns in the U.S. and Canada, ranked by a system that assigns points to a variety of categories, including a city’s number of teams, their regular-season won-lost records, playoff berths, bowl appearances and tournament bids, championships, applicable power ratings, fan fervor, attendance and more.

The full list can be found by clicking here.

SEC Football Week 6 Matchups

Click Here for SECsports.com's Preview; All Times Central

Saturday, October 10

Vanderbilt (2-3, 0-3) at Army (2-3)
11 a.m.; CBS College Sports (Ryan and Sehorn)

No. 17 Auburn (5-0, 2-0) at Arkansas (2-2, 0-2)
11 a.m.; ESPN (Griese, Spielman and Pasch)

Georgia (3-2, 2-1) at Tennessee (2-3, 0-2)
11:21 a.m.; SEC Network (Neal, Ware and Capuano)

Houston (3-1) at Mississippi State (2-3, 1-2)
11:30 a.m.; ESPNU (Collins and Huard)

Kentucky (2-2, 0-2) at No. 25 South Carolina (4-1, 1-1)
11:30 a.m.; FSN (Rathbun, Archer and Hildreth)

No. 3 Alabama (5-0, 2-0) at No. 20 Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1)
2:30 p.m.; CBS (Bolerjack, Beuerlein)

No. 1 Florida (4-0, 2-0) at No. 4 LSU (5-0, 3-0)
7 p.m.; CBS (Lundquist, Danielson and Wolfson)

Where in the world...

by Barca Blog - Former Vanderbilt guard Dan Cage sent me an email last week with a list of former Commodores that are playing overseas this season.

Ross Neltner and Corey Smith - Finland
Shan Foster and Alex Gordon - Turkey
Dawid Przybyszewski - Poland
Dan Cage - Spain
Matt Freije - Lebanon
Julian Terrell - Portugal
Alan Metcalfe - England
Dan Langhi - Puerto Rico

The best place to track these guys is at Eurobasket.com. If anyone out there knows the status of any other Commodores still playing professional basketball, please let me know.

(Note: I mentioned it in the blog a few days ago... Derrick Byars is trying to make the Chicago Bulls opening day roster.)

Men's Basketball preseason photo shoot

by Barca Blog - With men's basketball practice less than 10 days away, I decided to go through John Russell's photos from the Commodores' recent preseason media guide/poster shoot.

Click here to get your first look at the 2009-10 team including images of Vanderbilt's only incoming freshman, guard John Jenkins. Check back for a gallery on the women's basketball team in the next few days.

(Don't forget... men's basketball season tickets start at only $104. Reserve your seats before it's too late.)

How to watch the Army game

by Barca Blog - The Vanderbilt-Army game on Saturday (11 a.m. CT) will be available to Commodore fans with access to either DirecTV and Dish Network.

The game, broadcast by the CBS College Sports Network, will be shown on channel 613 on DirecTV and channel 152 on Dish Network. It will not available to Comcast subscribers in Middle Tennessee.

CBS College Sports will also offer the game via online pay-per-view for $14.95 in All Access.

GQ Model

By Travis Young - While its a cool and rainy day on West End right now, I thought I would share a photo of a Vanderbilt Athletic Communications staffer that I found in the latest GQ magazine. At first some people had mistaken him for Tom Brady's replacement but Tom was unable to attend due to his Sunday game against the Ravens. The first person to guess the celebrity below will receive a prize courtesy of Vanderbilt Athletics.

WBB teaches healthy habits

By Weinman - Three seniors from the women's basketball team -- Lauren Lueders, Merideth Marsh and Jessica Mooney -- headed to Coopertown Middle School in Robertson County this morning to deliver a quick message about healthy habits during a Children's Health Week presentation.

A few hundred kids in grades four through eight got advice on staying hydrating, getting plenty of sleep and making smart eating choices. The Commodores also asked some healthy eating trivia questions (What fruit has 200 seeds on every piece...? Answered in the Photo Gallery), taught the children some pre-activity stretches and hosted a quick relay race.

For excerpts from each of the student-athletes' presentations and highlights of the relay race, check out the following video:

Week 6 Injury Report

by Barca Blog - Head coach Bobby Johnson gave an update on a couple of Commodore injuries during his Monday media session.

"I think Sean Richardson (torn tendon) will be able to play. He played a little bit against Ole Miss.

"John Cole (broken hand) might have a chance to play. It's just going to depend on how much he can tolerate with the ball hitting his hand.

"Steven Stone (broken foot) is not ready to come back.

"Zac Stacy (sprained ankle) is feeling better but I don't think he's ready to come back."

Watch Johnson's entire press conference by clicking here.

Week 5 Game Notes and Depth Charts

by Barca Blog - I just posted Vanderbilt's and Army's game notes and depth charts on our Gameday Central page.

Go here and look at the drop down menu underneath the team logos of the left side of the page.

NFL Week 4 Recap

by Barca Blog - Check out how these former Commodores performed in Week 4 of the 2009 NFL season:

Chicago Bears: Defeated Detroit, 48-24
QB Jay Cutler - Started, 18-28 passing, 141 yds, 2 TD
OL Chris Williams - Started at right tackle
WR Earl Bennett - Started, Rec 2-32, Punt returns 4-63
LB Hunter Hillenmeyer - Inactive
DB D.J. Moore - Inactive

Tennessee Titans: Lost to Jacksonville, 37-17
DT Jovan Haye - Started, One tackle

Buffalo Bills: Lost to Miami, 38-10
LB Marcus Buggs - Started, Nine tackles

Washington Redskins: Defeated Tampa Bay, 16-13
TE Todd Yoder - Played but no stats recorded

New York Giants: Defeated Kansas City, 27-16
LB Jonathan Goff - One tackle on special teams

Finishing drives

by Barca Blog - Although Vanderbilt ranked near the bottom of the nation in total offense last season, they were able to put points on the board when given the opportunity, something this year's team has struggled to do so far.

The difference has been execution in the red zone. The Commodores have been their own worst enemy, killing themselves with unforced errors at critical times. You name it, it's happened: penalties, fumbled snaps, dropped passes, turnovers, missed field goals, and so on.

"We have moments where we get our offense going, and then we hurt ourselves," center Bradley Vierling said of the Commodores three losses, all in conference play. "It's kind of been the staple of every loss we've had. We definitely have opportunities to win, but we're not taking advantage of the opportunities when they're given to us."

Through five games, VU ranks last in the SEC in red zone efficiency (14-of-21, 66.7%), while the 2008 squad finished the season third in the conference (31-for-35, 88.6%). In Saturday's 23-7 loss to Ole Miss, the 'Dores had several chances to mount a comeback but couldn't overcome a 1-for-5 effort on trips inside the 20.

"We definitely need to started putting it in," Vierling added. "Three points is not enough in the SEC. We need to go down there and get six consistently. We were atrocious in the red zone (against Ole Miss) and that trend needs to stop."

Video of the Day: If you were too frustrated to get behind the wheel after Saturday's loss, you might have wondered, "Who's gonna drive me home?"

Georgia kickoff time announced

by Barca Blog - Just announced by conference officials... Vanderbilt's homecoming game against Georgia on October 17 will kickoff at 11:20 a.m. on the SEC Network.

This will be the Commodores' first home game during the day in 2009. Tickets are still available - click here to purchase.

Players of the Game - Ole Miss

by Barca Blog - Each week during the season, Vanderbilt's football staff recognizes outstanding player performances on the gridiron. Here's the list of honorees for the Ole Miss game:

Offensive Player of the Game

RB Warren Norman

Defensive Player of the Game
S/LB Brent Trice

Specialist of the Game
RB Warren Norman

(photo by John Russell)

Johnson's Presser, Call-In Show Monday

by Barca Blog - Two quick Monday reminders...

*Coach Johnson will field questions from the press about this week's matchup vs. Army today at noon CT. We will webcast the event live on VUcommodores.com.

*The Bobby Johnson Call-In Show, presented by Martin and Zerfoss Insurance and Auto-Owners Insurance, will be broadcast tonight at 6:30 p.m. CT inside the Holiday Inn Vanderbilt. For out-of-towners, the show can be heard live on VUcommodores.com. Click Here

Week 5 - SEC Scores, Standings

Results - October 3
No. 21 Ole Miss 23, Vanderbilt 7
No. 3 Alabama 38, Kentucky 20
No. 4 LSU 20, No. 18 Georgia 13
South Carolina 38, S.C. State 14
Arkansas 47, Texas A&M 19
No. 25 Georgia Tech 42, Miss. State 31
Auburn 26, Tennessee 22

Updated Standings - SEC Record (Overall)
Eastern Division

Florida 2-0 (4-0)

Georgia 2-1 (3-2)

South Carolina 1-1 (4-1)

Kentucky 0-2 (2-2)

Tennessee 0-2 (2-3)

Vanderbilt 0-3 (2-3)

Western Division

LSU 3-0 (5-0)

Alabama 2-0 (5-0)

Auburn 2-0 (5-0)

Ole Miss 1-1 (3-1)
Miss. State 1-2 (2-3)

Arkansas 0-2 (2-2)

Final: Ole Miss 23, Vanderbilt 7

by Barca Blog - Watch postgame interviews with Coach Johnson, Myron Lewis, Warren Norman, Bradley Vierling and Larry Smith following the Commodores 23-7 loss to Ole Miss. Click Here

(Photo by John Russell)

Photo: Star Walk

by Barca Blog - We're less than 40 minutes away from Vanderbilt's matchup with No. 21 Ole Miss. Here's a photo (click to make bigger) of Brent Trice and Jared Hawkins carrying the anchor at Star Walk 15 minutes ago. The Commodores are sporting all-black uniforms for the third straight time at home this season.

Time to turn it up

by Barca Blog - I just snapped this photo of the Commodores arriving at Dudley Field.

We're only two and a half hours away from kickoff... you can follow the action live on VUcommodores.com starting with Joe Fisher's pregame show at 5 p.m. CT.

By the way, it's a beautiful day here on West End. We have clear skies with the sun shining down on the star logo at midfield. Weather.com predicts it will be a cool 66 degrees at kickoff (6:06 p.m. CT) with only a 10 percent chance of rain. If you're coming to the game, bring a jacket (and your voice)!

Ole Miss Gameday Prep

No. 21 Ole Miss (2-1, 0-1) at Vanderbilt (2-2, 0-2)

Kickoff: 6 p.m. CT

Location: Vanderbilt Stadium (39,773) in Nashville, Tenn.

TV: ESPNU (Collins, Huard), GamePlan not available

Radio: 104.5 the Zone, XM 199, Sirius 214 (More affiliates)

Web: Live Audio, Live Stats, Twitter, ESPN360 not available

Weather: High 72/Low 48/0% Chance of Rain

Series: UM leads 46-35-2 (UM leads 27-15-2 in Nashville)

Last Meeting: VU won 23-17 in 2008

Commodore Gameday Central: Click Here

Other Games in the SEC (CT): Live Stats
No. 3 Alabama at Kentucky, 11:21 a.m. (SEC Network)
No. 4 LSU at No. 18 Georgia, 2:30 p.m. (CBS)
S.C. State at South Carolina, 6 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
No. 25 Georgia Tech at Miss. State, 6:30 p.m. (CSS)
Texas A&M at Arkansas, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Auburn at Tennessee, 6:45 p.m. (ESPN)

Byars in camp with Bulls

by Barca Blog - Derrick Byars had a solid start in his 2009 NBA preseason debut with Chicago Friday night.

The former Commodore contributed 12 points and five rebounds to help the Bulls top Indiana 104-95. He went 4-for-11 from the field including 2-for-5 from three-point range in just under 24 minutes of action.

Byars, who is wearing Ben Gordon's vacated No. 7, was invited to the Bulls' camp with Chris Richard (Florida), Curtis Stinson (Iowa State) and Steven Hill (Arkansas). Hill and Stinson were waived in the last two days to reduce the Bulls' roster to 15.

Chicago will have to finalize their roster (minimum of 13, maximum of 15) before the regular season opener on October 29. Anything can happen between now and then with seven preseason games left on the schedule, but for now, it's good to know that Byars was able to survive the first round of cuts as he tries to make it into the NBA.

Mooney, Silvers at Cedar Grove Career Day

By Weinman - Senior women's basketball student-athlete Jessica Mooney and assistant director of marketing Jason Silvers took part in a career day this morning at Cedar Grove Elementary School in Smyrna. Mooney talked about what it takes to be a Division I student-athlete, while Silvers discussed marketing for sports teams.

A product of Nashville's Hillsboro High School, Mooney has made a point of giving back to the community that helped shape her. What's her motivation to send a positive message to the youth of Middle Tennessee?

"I really appreciated when people did it for me," Mooney said. "I love kids, and it's important for me to be able to give back."

Travisodes: Helmet Sticker Answer

by Barca Blog - Thanks to all of you that submitted your guess to this week's Dore Prize Contest... How many helmet stickers did Chris Marve earn in 2008?

The answer: 51.

One Commodore fan came up with the right answer, so we'll send you an official anchor sticker in the mail.

Stay tuned for more giveaways.

If the shoe fits...

by Barca Blog - In case you're interested… Piro has just unveiled a new Vanderbilt-themed shoe (pictured above), which is now available at the Holiday Inn Vanderbilt Gift Shop for $45.99.

I’ve been told that these aren't running shoes, but rather comfortable athletic shoes.

More retailers may be added in the future.

Loud and clear, captain

by Barca Blog - In Friday's edition of The Hustler, senior co-captain Bradley Vierling delivered a simple message to the Vanderbilt student body from the football team.

"We're 0-2 in the SEC right now so number one, you want to get an SEC win," Vierling told David Rutz of InsideVandy.com. "Next it's against Ole Miss which is a rivalry for us. We've beaten them the last two years and we definitely want to make it three.

"It's a big game for us. We want the fans to be out there. We want the student section to be filled."

While Vierling reminded the students about the importance of showing up for the game, I think he would say the same for the rest of the fan base... come out early, be loud and make a difference.

If you don't have tickets, you're in luck... Less than 1,000 seats remain, so call the ticket office at 615.322.GOLD today. More Info

Video: Basketball commercial

by Barca Blog - Only two weeks until basketball practice begins.... have you purchased your season tickets yet?

Vanderbilt men's basketball season tickets are available for as low as $104, and women's season tickets start at only $32. Click Here to reserve your seats today.

Video of the Day

by Barca Blog - Sometimes you just need a good laugh. And in the mid-80's, Tom Hanks was one of the best at providing the punchline.

It's easy to forget that the Oscar-winning actor began his career doing comedies such as Splash, Bachelor Party and so on. One of my favorites was his 1986 comedy The Money Pit, where Hanks' charatcer finds out that being a homeowner is never as easy as it sounds.

I should credit my dad for posting this classic clip on Facebook (yes, my dad is on Facebook)... so I thought I'd pass it along as well.

SEC Football Week 5 Matchups

Click Here for SECsports.com's Preview; All Times Central

Saturday, October 3

No. 3 Alabama (4-0, 1-0) at Kentucky (2-1, 0-1)
11:21 a.m.; SEC Network (Neal, Ware and Capuano)

No. 4 LSU (4-0, 2-0) at No. 18 Georgia (3-1, 2-0)
2:30 p.m.; CBS (Lundquist, Danielson and Wolfson)

No. 21 Ole Miss (2-1, 0-1) at Vanderbilt (2-2, 0-2)
6 p.m.; ESPNU (Collins and Huard)

S.C. State (3-0) at South Carolina (3-1, 1-1)
6 p.m.; ESPN Classic (Wischusen and Griese)

No. 25 Georgia Tech (3-1) at Miss. State (2-2, 1-2)
6:30 p.m.; CSS (Bell and Doering)

Texas A&M (3-0) at Arkansas (1-2, 0-2)
6:30 p.m.; ESPN2 (Jones and Davie)

Auburn (4-0, 1-0) at Tennessee (2-2, 0-1)
6:45 p.m.; ESPN (Nessler, Blackledge, and Andrews)