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Johnson giving Vandy new look; Croom wants Bulldogs to play for SEC
HOOVER — What better way to turn around a program than to give it a new look?
That’s the reasoning behind Vanderbilt’s new duds this season.
After years of trotting out teams with losing records — all with the same uniform design — head coach Bobby Johnson and the Commodores are looking to turn things around this season.
“The new uniforms are very exciting,” said Vanderbilt’s senior safety Reshard Langford. “We have all-new apparel, including some nice upgrades to the stadium. The uniforms look really good on the field.”
And if Johnson has his way, the clothes won’t be the only unrecognizable facet of the Commodores this season.
“We want to see (this program) be successful,” said Johnson at the SEC’s annual media days event in Hoover on Wednesday. “I think we were extremely close last year. A couple games go either way, (and) we’re in a bowl.”
Vanderbilt stood at 5-3 with four games to go last season. But a four-game losing streak extended the Commodores’ run without a winning record to 26 seasons.
If the ’Dores do reverse that record this season, junior cornerback D.J. Moore figures to be a big reason why. A cornerback out of Spartanburg, S.C., Moore saw time on offense and special teams last year while earning first-team All-SEC honors from the Associated Press.
Such a versatile player could be huge for Vanderbilt — as long as he stays healthy.
“You have to be careful as a coaching staff when you do that because he’s very valuable to our defense,” said Johnson. “You don’t want to strip him out, not have him available to play defense in the fourth quarter.”
Vanderbilt begins its season Aug. 28 at Miami of Ohio. The Commodores open their SEC schedule Sept. 4 with a home date against South Carolina.
- Reaping rewards: Sylvester Croom and Mississippi State are reaping the recruiting dividends of last season’s strong finish.
Croom said the Bulldogs have already landed 19 verbal commitments from upcoming high school seniors. It’s largely a benefit of having won eight games and the Liberty Bowl last season.
“We are way ahead of where we’ve ever been in recruiting for next season,” said Croom, the 2007 SEC coach of the year.
It remains to be seen if the Bulldogs have come far enough to achieve his goal of competing for an SEC title.
“I don’t know if we’ll be good enough,” Croom said. “At the end of the day, we might not be. I think we have a chance to do that. Every year, we’ve played as good as we can. But our goal is to win the conference championship. I don’t know any other way to do it, if you want to be the best.”
Croom’s decision to make sophomore quarterback Wesley Carroll one of the two players he brought to SEC media days seems like evidence of Carroll’s emergence as a team leader.
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CHAMPS AGAIN
Isaac Yarbrough wanted the ball in the final inning.
And once he got it, he wanted to face the top of Fairview’s lineup.
Yarbrough got both of his wishes. And once he did, Vinemont High got one of its own — its first Cullman County baseball title in three years.
“I was looking forward to it,” said Yarbrough, who struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh Tuesday afternoon to seal Vinemont’s 8-3 win over Fairview in the championship game of the Cullman County tournament at Hanceville High.
“My arm was kind of bothering me, but I got my three strikeouts.” - Meyer pitches Vinemont past Good Hope
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WORTH THE WAIT
Larson Howse didn’t spend much time celebrating, even after his second homer of the day.
With Gregory Smith on the mound, he didn’t have to.
Howse swatted two homers and Smith tossed a complete-game one-hitter as Fairview High defeated West Point 11-1 Monday afternoon in the semifinals of the Cullman County baseball tournament at Hanceville High. -
THE TIMES ALL-AREA PREP BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM: Good Hope triple-double threat Aycock enjoyed breakthrough season
Kyle Aycock watched with pride as his father, Greg, was recognized with the Good Hope High 1988 Cullman County basketball championship team this past season.
For Aycock, it was a moment of realization. The Good Hope point guard understood why his father had been pushing him for years.
“My dad wants me to be able and enjoy the same things he did when he was a player,” said Aycock, who has been selected as The Times Prep Boys Basketball Player of the Year. -
THE TIMES ALL-AREA PREP BASKETBALL TEAM: Myrex ends storied hoops career with 3rd POY award
During her record-breaking prep basketball career at Cold Springs High, Georgia Myrex piled up enough individual awards and records to warrant an extra wing at the Myrex household.
But if the Cold Springs High senior had her way, she’d trade them all in for just one more piece of Alabama-shaped blue hardware in the trophy case at Jesse George Gymnasium.
“I would definitely trade it all in,” said Myrex, who led Cold Springs to within three wins of its third straight Class 2A state title this past season. “I’m very appreciative of all my individual honors, but nothing compares to the feeling of winning a state championship.”
Well, go ahead and make room for one more individual honor. -
Burleson coaches Cold Springs up on way to turnaround
Sitting behind the table in a cramped interview room, a disappointed Tim Burleson broke down the Xs and Os of a heartbreaking Northwest Regional loss.
Descriptive and to the point, Burleson left no question unanswered.
And then the Cold Springs High coach answered one of his own — rattling off the most important stat of all.
“This team right here, 12-17, that’s what they were a year ago,” said Burleson following the Eagles’ 42-41 loss to Mars Hill in the Class 2A Northwest Regional semifinals. “Six of them were on that team, and they worked their tails off in the offseason.” -
BRINGING BACK PRIDE
Scott Adams came to the realization slowly — and at various points of the season.
During summer workouts, the Holly Pond High girls basketball coach noticed his players making plays they wouldn’t have made the year before. And during the opening weeks of fall practice, the sharp passing and shooting continued.
But during a Thanksgiving tournament in Morgan County — that’s when Adams knew. Fully, finally and without a doubt. - PREP SOFTBALL: Raiders win pair at Heritage Park
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