Four Commodores Earn Pre-Season Recognition

Four Commodores Earn Pre-Season Recognition

5/24/2006

Four Commodores Earn All-Conference Recognition From Athlon Sports Preseason Edition

Nashville, Tenn. — Four Commodore football players, topped by sophomore wide receiver Earl Bennett, were named to All-Southeastern Conference squads by a leading preseason publication.

Bennett, the standout from Birmingham, Ala., who set a SEC freshman record for total receptions and tied another league mark with five touchdown catches in a game, was named First Team All-SEC by Athlon Sports in its 2006 Southeastern Conference Football Preview Magazine.

Stamper, a senior offensive tackle and co-captain from Windermere, Fla., was named second team All-SEC by the publication, while sophomore safety Reshard Langford and junior offensive tackle Chris Williams were recognized on Athlon’s third team all-conference squad.

Athlon’s thorough SEC football preview will be available at newsstands this week. In 2005, the publication stood alone by naming Vanderbilt senior Jay Cutler as the preseason First Team All-SEC quarterback. By season’s end, Cutler was the unanimous first-team pick, walking away with Offensive Player of the Year honors from both the league coaches and Associated Press beat writers.

A casual photo of Bennett in Vanderbilt’s black and gold uniform graces the Athlon magazine cover, which also teases to a feature story inside on Vanderbilt junior tailback Cassen Jackson-Garrison.

Bennett is a deserving all-league player. As the 2005 season developed, the true freshman receiver blossomed. Starting with a spectacular 16-catch, 204-yard effort at South Carolina, Bennett amassed remarkable stats in the Commodores’ final four games — 49 receptions, 545 receiving yards and nine touchdown catches. He followed the South Carolina performance with a two-touchdown effort at Florida, then became just the second SEC receiver ever to catch five touchdowns in a single game against Kentucky. In the season finale, Bennett had 14 receptions for 167 yards in Vanderbilt’s 28-24 victory at Tennessee. On the game-winning drive, Bennett accounted for every yards, including a five-yard touchdown catch.

Bennett also broke a five-year old SEC freshman record with 79 receptions. Bennett also established new Vanderbilt freshman records with 876 receiving yards and nine touchdown catches.

Together, Stamper and Williams form one of the best offensive tackle tandems in recent Vanderbilt memory.
Stamper, a product of Lake Highland Prep in Orlando, Fla., was named team captain in April by his offensive teammates. He enters the final season of his career as a three-year starter. In 2005, he was one of the league’s top offensive linemen, earning Second Team All-SEC recognition from the coaches. The 6-5, 305-pound Stamper did not allow a sack, helping the Commodore offense become one of the most potent in team history.

Williams, from Glynn, La., moved into the starting lineup last year, alternating between left guard and left tackle. The agile 6-6, 315-pound improved with each game, becoming one of the team’s most dependable linemen. Twice, Williams earned the team’s Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Langford was another young Commodore who earned a solid reputation in his first year as a starter. A resident of Tanner, Ala., the 6-2, 215-pound Langford became known as a hard-hitting safety while ranking among the Vanderbilt defensive leaders with 44 solo tackles. A unanimous All-SEC freshman pick by the league coaches, he also tied for sixth in the SEC with three interceptions.  

The Commodores, 5-6 last year, will open the 2006 season by facing the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor for the first time in 37 years. The opener is scheduled Saturday, Sept. 2, before an ESPN national television audience.  The Vanderbilt home opener, versus SEC Western Division foe Arkansas, is scheduled Saturday, Sept. 16.