Vanderbilt recruiting rewind: Best signee, biggest bust, the one who got away and more

June 05, 2024

No Power 5 program recruits worse relative to its conference than Vanderbilt (though Kansas has come very close over the last decade). That doesn’t mean the Commodores aren’t bringing in some quality players. Vanderbilt’s average class ranking over the last 10 years is 49.8 — not great but still better than 17 other Power 5 programs.

James Franklin (No. 26 class in 2013) and Clark Lea (No. 32 in 2022) have shown Vanderbilt can be a factor nationally, but five of the Commodores’ last eight classes have been ranked 50th or worse.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the highs and lows of Vanderbilt recruiting over the years.

Best recruit, pre-internet rankings: Watson Brown, QB

Brown was a coveted quarterback prospect from nearby Cookeville, Tenn., who turned down Bear Bryant and Alabama, among many other programs, to play for Vanderbilt.

“In those days you could visit as many times as you wanted,” Brown told the Vanderbilt athletics website in 2007. “I went down there six times to visit at Alabama. That’s where I was going. I told (Bryant) I was coming there and at the end I backed out and went to Vanderbilt.”

Brown played in 28 games in a collegiate career that was slowed by injuries — he missed the entire 1971 season — and is best remembered for leading Vanderbilt to a 14-10 upset over No. 13 Alabama in Nashville in 1969.

He returned to his alma mater as the head coach in 1986 but was fired in 1990 after five consecutive losing seasons.

Best recruit, modern era: JoeJuan Williams, CB

Chris Young, a Class of 2001 wide receiver from Mississippi who chose Vanderbilt over Alabama and Ole Miss, is the highest-rated signee of the modern era, but he failed to make a significant impact (44 catches for 502 yards over four seasons). So the pick is Williams, a four-star defensive back in the Class of 2016 from Nashville who signed with Vanderbilt over LSU, Alabama, Tennessee, Penn State and others.

Many schools recruited Williams as a safety — due to his 6-foot-3, 200-pound frame — but Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason believed he could play cornerback in the SEC. Mason was proven correct. Williams broke into the starting lineup as a sophomore and started 25 games over his final two seasons at Vanderbilt. He played on two bowl teams and went 3-0 vs. rival Tennessee before declaring for the draft after his junior season. He was a second-round pick of the Patriots in 2019 and recently completed his fourth season in the NFL.

Jay Cutler left school in 2005 as the program’s all-time leader in passing yards. (Vanderbilt Athletics)

Most influential recruit: Jay Cutler, QB

Cutler was an afterthought in the Class of 2001, pursued by the Commodores after Ingle Martin — a local product from Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville — committed to Florida. Cutler was at one point committed to Illinois and also considered an offer to play safety at Purdue, but he signed with Vanderbilt as part of Woody Widenhofer’s final recruiting class.

After redshirting in 2001, Cutler went on to start 45 games over the next four years and throw for a then-school record 8,697 yards and 59 touchdowns. While the Commodores never had a winning record in his tenure, Cutler ended his career by leading Vanderbilt to its first win over Tennessee in 23 years.

His influence was felt for many years. Coach Bobby Johnson credits Cutler with raising the profile of the program and helping the staff recruit a higher caliber of athlete. And the recruits from Johnson’s final few classes, before his retirement in 2010, formed the core of James Franklin’s teams that won 24 games in three years from 2011 through 2013.

Biggest bust: David Koral, QB

Vanderbilt signed two quarterbacks in 2001 — Cutler and Koral, a Southern California native who was ranked among the top 100 prospects nationally by at least one recruiting service. Koral left Vanderbilt after one semester and, after a stop in junior college, played two seasons at UCLA. He appeared in five games for the Bruins, completing 10 of 17 passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns.

Just before signing day in 2010, Bradley Roby, a three-star wide receiver from Georgia, backed off his long-time pledge to Vanderbilt and committed to Ohio State. The Buckeyes wanted Roby to play cornerback — a smart decision, considering he went on to be a first-round pick in 2014 and is still playing in the NFL. Things turned out just fine for Vanderbilt, though. To fill Roby’s spot, Johnson and his staff turned their attention to an uncommitted three-star wide receiver from Madison (Ala.) County High. Despite being 6-3 and 185 pounds — and posting gaudy numbers over his final two seasons — Matthews was ranked No. 1,283 nationally and had only one other Power 5 offer, from Kansas.

After a slow start to his career at Vanderbilt, Matthews emerged as one of the best wide receivers in the league midway through his sophomore season. Starting with a six-catch, 151-yard performance against Arkansas in October 2011, Matthews averaged 7.5 catches and 108 yards over his final 32 games. He left school as the SEC’s all-time leader in receptions (112) and receiving yards (3,759) but has since been passed by Amari Cooper and DeVonta Smith on the receptions list and by Smith on the yardage list.

The one who got away: Trace McSorley, QB

McSorley looked to be the ideal fit at Vanderbilt when he committed as a three-star prospect out of Virginia in July 2013. Some schools projected McSorley as a defensive back, but Franklin and the Commodores staff believed he had the skill set to thrive in the SEC. They were correct about the skill set — wrong about the league. McSorley never signed with Vanderbilt, instead following Franklin to Penn State and enjoying a banner career as a three-year starter who, until recently, held the school record for career passing yards (9,800), passing touchdowns (77) and wins by a quarterback (31).

Vanderbilt, however, was not lacking in quality quarterback play during this stretch. Kyle Shurmur started 43 games from 2015 through 2018 and broke Cutler’s career record for passing yards and passing touchdowns while leading the Commodores to two bowl games.

Editor’s note: This is part of a series of stories looking back at recruiting superlatives for select Power 5 programs. The stories can be found here.

(Top photo of Jordan Matthews: Frederick Breedon / Getty Images)

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