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It’s hard to judge a recruiting class based on one season. But for Vanderbilt, its 2014 class is the biggest recruiting miss for the program since 2009.
The Commodores’ misfortune is a product of cruel irony. The same person most responsible for the team’s recruiting success in that span is also credited for the pillaging of last year’s class.
James Franklin “did more with less” at Vanderbilt, but had plenty of talent at his disposal. The brash coach managed to compete with in-state rival Tennessee, among other SEC programs for players that wouldn’t have given the Commodores a second look in years past.
So, when the third-year coach accepted the same position at Penn State, he decided to take several commits with him. Derek Mason, who was hired six days after Franklin’s departure on Jan. 17, was left with a single-digit amount of commits before finishing with 22 players signed on National Signing Day.
The Commodores ranked last in the SEC and No. 46 overall. Vanderbilt only managed to sign two four-star prospects and also enrolled four two-stars.
The timing was also crucial to the Commodores lack of success in 2014. Vanderbilt needed to replace several key starters, including all-time leading receiver Jordan Matthews and former starting quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels. The team lacked depth, which could have been solved by bringing in a recruiting class that has both quantity and quality.
Instead, Vanderbilt was forced into a missed recruiting opportunity that changed the course of its program.
A former freelance journalist from Nashville, Jason covers Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Kentucky
