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Things You Should Know About Tennessee State 9/22/2006 Vanderbilt and Tennessee State collide for the first time in the schools’ long history this Saturday, September 23 at 6 p.m. CST when the Commodores will continue their search for their first victory of the 2006 season after three close, hard-fought losses. Tennessee State Players to Watch: #16 Antonio Heffner: Sophomore QB (6-2, 195). Heffner will be looking to build on what thus far has been a successful 2006 campaign, having thrown for over 600 yards and four touchdowns. In Tennessee State’s season-opening loss to Alabama A&M, the South Carolina transfer threw for 206 yards and a touchdown and used his speed to gain 30 yards on six carries. He threw for 230 yards and 3 touchdowns in TSU’s 25-15 win over Murray State. Heffner leads the Ohio Valley Conference in passing average per game, passing efficiency and average total offense per game. #28 Javarris Williams: Sophomore RB (5-11, 215). The team’s leading rusher, Williams is also one of the Tigers’ primary pass catchers as well. The transfer from North Carolina is averaging over 118 yards per game on the ground through Tennessee State’s first three contests, and is averaging over 43 receiving yards per game as well. Williams ran for three touchdowns in last week’s dramatic 31-30 overtime victory over Jackson State. He leads the Ohio Valley Conference in average rushing yards per game, all-purpose yards per game and scoring. #19 Eric Benson: Sophomore K (5-10, 189). Benson has yet to miss a field goal during the 2006 campaign, going a perfect 4-4 to this point including a season-long 32-yarder against Alabama A&M. #9 Aaron Strong: Senior DB (5-11, 185). Strong leads TSU with 18 total tackles, including 6.5 total tackles against both Alabama A&M and Jackson State. Strong has also recorded an interception. #45 Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie: Junior DB (6-2, 170). Rodgers-Cromartie leads the Tigers with three interceptions, all of which came Sept. 9 in TSU’s 25-15 defeat of Murray State. He also is one of the Tigers’ leading tacklers, having made 15 total stops through three games. Talking Points: Despite the two universities’ close proximity to each other, Saturday’s game will mark the first time they have played each other in football. TSU’s athletics director is an old friend of Commodore athletics and an alumna. Teresa L. Phillips, who graduated from Vanderbilt in 1980, was a standout interior player for the women’s basketball team. Two Vanderbilt coaches — assistant head coach/offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell and defensive backs mentor Jamie Bryant — served on the same coaching staff of Tennessee State Head Coach James Webster prior to joining Bobby Johnson’s Commodore staff. Caldwell, Bryant and Webster worked together at the University of North Carolina. Webster was an assistant coach at Wake Forest for three years while current Vanderbilt linebacker coach Warren Belin was a standout defender for the Demon Deacons between 1988-90. Former Commodore defensive end Chuck Losey returns to Dudley Field Saturday as TSU’s head strength coach. Losey played for Vanderbilt Head Coach Bobby Johnson during Johnson’s first year with the program. Overall, Losey started 35 games during his Vanderbilt career between 1998-2002, recording 105 tackles and 10 sacks, and forcing five fumbles. Tennessee State DB Lamar Divens anchored a strong Lincoln County High School line along with current Vanderbilt defensive tackle Theo Horrocks. Divens played two seasons for Vanderbilt — he was a defensive end as a freshman and a tackle as a sophomore — before transferring across town to TSU this past summer. Tennessee State’s victory over Jackson State last week came in the Southern Heritage Classic which annually pits the two teams. The game was witnessed by over 53,000 people at a neutral site in Memphis, where both teams have significant ties. Vanderbilt’s Spirit of Gold marching band and Tennessee State’s world renowned The Aristocrat of Bands will perform jointly at halftime Saturday in a tribute to Nashville’s musical diversity. Both bands will then perform individually. TSU’s senior WR and kick returner Mike Mason, who is averaging 31.3 yards per kick return, suffered a strained PCL and will miss at least the next four to five weeks. |
