Vanderbilt running back Rocko Griffin on today’s outing pic.twitter.com/JS8lm4IjzO
— Chad Bishop (@MrChadBishop) August 23, 2022
HONOLULU — The Vanderbilt football program completed its first day on the island of O’ahu with a team bonding and community service event designed to educate the Commodores on the importance of the land on which they’ll play Saturday’s game.
Vandy took a 30-minute bus ride to the north side of the island to Papahana Kuaola where they learned methods on how locals there are using the land to provide for the community.
“It’s been a great experience thus far with my team,” Vanderbilt running back Rocko Griffin said about halfway through the excursion. “It’s really good to know the culture and also just know what makes it so special. It’s been great. I enjoyed it.”
The Commodores divided into three groups for the afternoon. One helped cultivate a pod of taro root, another climbed a hillside and helped to remove weeds and invasive plants and another waded through a stream to remove grass and other plants.
At the end, the team was rewarded with a short hike up a hill to rinse off in a natural pond and small waterfall.
These guys cutting out weeds and invasive plants from the hillside pic.twitter.com/o8AmREZrmF
— Chad Bishop (@MrChadBishop) August 23, 2022
The Commodores began Monday with a morning practice at a local high school. Team buses arrived at 8:55 a.m. and the Dores then worked out until 11 a.m. sharp.
“Practice went well,” Vandy junior linebacker Ethan Barr said. “We were really just focusing on what we’re doing this week. We didn’t take it slow, but we focused a lot more on our details.
“(Tuesday) is more of a work day and we’ll get physical (Tuesday) and hit up a little bit, put the pads on. Today was just focusing on what we’re doing and how we’re doing it.”
Vandy went without full pads Monday as it continued to adjust to the five-hour time difference between Nashville and Honolulu. Barr said the team went into a the trip with a plan for when and when not to sleep, how to properly hydrate and how to stay nourished during the nearly nine-hour flight to the island state.
The Commodores are scheduled to practice again Tuesday morning. On Tuesday afternoon about half the squad will visit the Pearl Harbor National Memorial.
— Chad Bishop covers Vanderbilt Athletics for VUCommodores.com.
Follow him @MrChadBishop.
