Vandy Trio Ready for Senior Bowl

Lipscomb, Pinkney and Vaughn playing in Saturday's showcase

by Chad Bishop

MOBILE, Ala. — Three Commodores, one all-star game, one big opportunity.

That’s how former Vanderbilt student-athletes Kalija Lipscomb, Jared Pinkney and Ke’Shawn Vaughn are approaching this weekend in southern Alabama as they prepare to play in the annual Senior Bowl at Ladd-Peebles Stadium at 1:30 p.m. Saturday.

The contest will be televised on the NFL Network.

“I just want to put on a good showing for the plays I’m in there,” Pinkney said. “Show everybody what I have to offer.”

 

 

Pinkney, Lipscomb and Vaughn will all suit up for the South Team – coached by the Cincinnati Bengals staff – in a matchup that will likely result in the last time the trio ever plays on the same squad together. All three played their final game for the Commodores in November after tremendous careers.

They returned to the field Tuesday for the first of three practices in their black-and-gold helmets with Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason, taking a brief hiatus from the recruiting road, watching from the sidelines.

“First day – I equate it to, kind of, the first day of (fall) camp,” Lipscomb said. “It was just about getting the juices flowing. They got me doing some punt return stuff – it’s been a minute since I’ve done that.

“The season ended quite some time ago so now (Wednesday) it’s about coming out here and not making the same mistakes, catch every catchable ball and just show what I can do.”

Lipscomb caught 198 passes for 2,356 yards and 22 touchdowns in 46 games for the Dores. The New Orleans native has been training in Boca Raton, Florida, in preparation for his professional career.

 

 

Pinkney, an Atlanta native now working out in Tampa, Florida, played in 39 games for Vandy and totaled 1,560 yards and 14 touchdowns on 114 career receptions. Vaughn began his career at Illinois before racking up 2,272 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns (24 total) in two years in Nashville.

“It’s kind of stressful, but it’s great experience,” Vaughn said about being at the Senior Bowl. “A lot of people want to be in this position. I feel like I’m taking it all in.

“It was a pretty smooth day for me, but I feel like I can always get better like knowing my steps and just little details that I felt like were a little off today. Still chasing greatness.”

 

 

Vaughn said he used the month of December to spend time with his family before he began training for this event and his professional future. A Pearl-Cohn High School graduate, Vaughn rushed for 243 yards in the 2018 Texas Bowl and nine times eclipsed 100 yards on the ground for the Commodores.

He and Lipscomb agreed that Saturday’s showcase will be all amount maximizing the reps they are given knowing those plays have to be split among the best of the best from around the country.

“It’s a grind. It’s definitely a grind,” Lipscomb said of the buildup to Saturday. “But I’m grateful for it. It’s something that I welcome. I’d rather be busy than bored.”

 

 

Chad Bishop covers Vanderbilt for VUCommodores.com. Follow him @MrChadBishop.