Ad Disclosure
Vanderbilt looks to win its first game of the season Saturday when the Commodores host UMass (0-2). Here’s a look at five key players for the Minutemen:
5. Trey Dudley-Giles: One of two multi-year starters in the secondary for the Minutemen, Dudley-Giles moonlights as a special teams threat on the punt return team. This junior from Dade City, Fla. is still in search of his first career interception.
4. Jovan Santos-Knox: One of the 3-4 defense’s most reliable players is Santos-Knox, a junior inside linebacker from Middletown, Conn. Santos enters this season as the full-time starter for the first time in his career after impressing coaches during the spring. He recorded 32 tackles last fall.
3. Stanley Andre: This fifth-year senior’s the leader of the linebacking corps and tallied 111 tackles last season. Through two games in his final campaign, Andre compiled a team-best 21 stops.
2. Tajae Sharpe: Considered one of the team’s top playmakers and best wideouts in the Mid-American Conference, Sharpe’s a deep threat with good size and great hands. He has caught seven passes for 173 yards and a touchdown this season.
1. Blake Frohnapfel: The Minutemen’s senior quarterback is a first-year starter and Marshall transfer. At 6-foot-6, 230 pounds, Frohnapfel has the ideal size of a pocket passer but hasn’t thrown with great precision thus far, completing just 48.3 percent of his passes. He did throw a career-high three touchdown passes in last week’s 41-38 loss at Colorado. This season, UMass has transitioned to a Pro Set style attack.
