Jared Curtis is “expected to return” as the starting quarterback for Vanderbilt for Saturday afternoon’s SEC showdown at home against No. 9 Ole Miss, according to a report on Thursday afternoon by CBS Sports insider Matt Zenitz.
The freshman 5-star signal-caller who committed to Georgia before flipping and staying home to play in Nashville, missed last week’s much-anticipated game against the Bulldogs with an undisclosed injury. But according to Zenitz, Curtis is expected to be back under center for the Week 6 matchup that kicks off at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The Commodores (3-2) fell to 0-2 in the SEC last week in Curtis’s absence, as Vandy lost at Georgia, 38-14, with Blaze Berlowitz taking over for the injured Curtis. Berlowitz struggled against the mighty Bulldogs, completing just 12 of 23 passes for 190 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception.
After Curtis was initially ruled questionable on the Wednesday night injury report last week, he ultimately became a game-time decision on Saturday in the leadup to the Georgia game, which would obviously would’ve pitted Curtis against the program he first committed to. But after being seen running and stretching with a trainer before kickoff of the Week 5 game, Curtis was ruled out.
That brings us to this week and the leadup to the Ole Miss matchup. According to Zenitz’s report on Thursday, Vandy fans wondering about Curtis’s status should wonder no more, as he’s expected to come back after playing in the first 4 games of the season.
So far this season, Curtis has thrown for 746 yards with 4 touchdown passes and 3 interceptions. His completion percentage is 64.3.
Curtis has shown an ability to hurt defenses with his legs in his first year, rushing 41 times for 133 yards and 2 touchdown runs.
With Curtis expected to be back under center on Saturday, here is what the Kalshi market is currently saying about Vanderbilt’s chances to pull off the home upset of Ole Miss:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
