Black & Gold Scrimmage Cancelled Due to Severe Thunderstorm

Black & Gold Scrimmage Cancelled Due to Severe Thunderstorm

3/20/2004

Black & Gold Scrimmage Cancelled Due to Severe Thunderstorm

Day 12 of Spring Practice — The Vanderbilt Black and Gold Scrimmage lasted nine plays before a severe thunderstorm forced team officials to cancel the featured activity of the squad’s Spring Practice.

The team got through one series before the storm, packing frequent lightning, strong winds and heavy rains, forced the team into the locker room.  Commodore Head Coach Bobby Johnson waited for more than an hour before announcing the cancellation.

“One of the things you can’t mess with is lightning.  We didn’t want our guys out there with lightning overhead,” Johnson said. “When we realized another cell was approaching behind the first one, it was obvious we were not going to get back out on the field.

“I’m disappointed because I thought our guys were ready to play. You also have a lot of family members who travel to campus to enjoy this day and they also miss an opportunity to watch her sons play,” the head coach said.

The Black and Gold Scrimmage will not be rescheduled, the head coach said.  The team will return to the John Rich Practice Facility Tuesday afternoon.  They also are expected to practice Wednesday, then conclude spring drills with a final practice Thursday afternoon.

A Recap of What Did Take Place
Though the scrimmage was abbreviated, nearly 250 spectators did witness one of the best offensive drives of the entire Spring Practice.

Junior quarterback Jay Cutler (Santa Claus, Ind.) guided the offense on a nine-play touchdown drive that consumed 70 yards. Cutler was four-of-four for 46 yards on the drive, hooking up with wide receiver Erik Davis (Jr., Nashville, Tenn.) on completions of nine and 19 yards, wide receiver Chris Young (Sr., Batesville, Miss.) for six yards, and tight end Dustin Dunning (Jr., Hoover, Ala.) for 12 yards.

Cutler also contributed an eight-yard carry, while tailback Kwane Doster (Jr., Tampa, Fla.) and fullback Matthew Tant (Jr., Pegram, Tenn.) had rushes of two and six yards, respectively. Tailback Norval McKenzie (Sr., Powder Springs, Ga.) ended the possession, scoring around left end on a 3-yard rush.

For the defense, cornerback Bill Alford (Sr., Brunswick, Ga.) had two solo tackles.  Linebacker Herdley Harrison (Jr., Marietta, Ga.), safety Andrew Pace (Jr., Mountain Brook, Ala.) and safety Kelechi Ohanaja (Arlington, Texas) also contributed solo tackles. and linebacker henrfrom the 3-yardscored the touchdown from three yards out.

Commodores Named Four Captains for 2004
Before the storm arrived, Johnson took time to announce the selection of four Commodores as captains for the 2004 season. Three of the four players selected in a vote of players were captains last year – Cutler, offensive tackle Justin Geisinger (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and defensive end Jovan Haye (Jr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.).

The fourth captain, wide receiver Chris Young (Sr., Batesville, Miss.), is one of the team’s top leaders behind the scenes. Young, the younger brother of former Commodore captain/linebacker Antuian Bradford, earned three starts last year while setting single-season career highs in receptions (15) and receiving yards (202).

Upcoming Practice Schedule
The Commodores are scheduled to stage their final week of Spring Practice starting Tuesday afternoon.  They are also expected to practice Wednesday and Thursday.