Derek Mason has made it official: Vanderbilt’s starting quarterback will be Kyle Shurmur.

When the Commodores coach talked to Adam Sparks of The Tennesseean, he made the announcement before Sparks even asked.

“I want to just say this: We have a clear-cut one and a clear-cut two,” Mason said. “Kyle Shurmur is my clear-cut starter.”

While it was not officially announced until Tuesday, Shurmur has long been assumed Vanderbilt’s QB1 throughout the offseason, a potential advantage for Vanderbilt.

When Mason talked to ESPN in May, he said the Commodores were poised to compete in the SEC East, noting how many division teams had yet to name a starting quarterback:

“Florida still has to find a quarterback. You can say the same thing about Missouri, South Carolina and Georgia. You have a lot of guys at quarterback taking over for the first time.”

In that same interview he expressed confidence in Shurmur:

“He’s cool, and he showed me a lot of growth from the first time he stepped onto the field until the end of the season,” Mason said. “I thought he got better every game he played. The clock in his head became SEC-ready real fast, and some guys don’t adjust to that.”

With fall camp approaching, Mason told Sparks he doesn’t want the quarterback position to be a distraction this year.

“We’re not going to enter into the season like we did my first year – talking about multiple quarterbacks,” Mason said. “There is a (starter) and a (backup). That’s it. That’s how firm I’m going to be. That’s how firm I need to be. I don’t need us to get distracted by a quarterback controversy.”

Mason and a group of Vanderbilt players will be heading to Birmingham for SEC Media Days, which begin Monday.