Coach Analysis: Jacob Free
Brantley (Ala.) football coach Ashley Kilcrease knew what it took to win when he took over his alma mater in 2013. He established Brantley as a Class 1A powerhouse in Alabama, as the Bulldogs have won four state titles (1993, 1998, 2009 and 2012) and under Kilcrease’s guidance, Brantley has had three consecutive 10-win seasons. Kilcrease is 33-7 in his short time at Brantley.
Kilcrease also knows how to play the quarterback position as well. He played the position at Brantley back in the early 1990s. He serves as the quarterback coach and Brantley has a quarterback that Kilcrease has took a ton of pride in mentoring in the first Class of 2017 commitment for Vanderbilt in rising senior Jacob Free.
Free committed to the Commodores on Friday and has passed for 4,640 yards and thrown 63 touchdowns in the last two seasons as a starter. Brantley has gone 23-4 in that time.
Free has only played football for three years, as Kilcrease was able to talk him into playing the sport his freshman year. He'd been specializing in baseball, where he pitches and plays shortstop.
Kilcrease set down with Vandysports.com and talked about Free and what Vanderbilt fans can expect when he steps on campus next season.
Vandysports.com: What type of player can Vanderbilt expect to see from Jacob Free?
Ashley Kilcrease: “The biggest thing that Vanderbilt fans will really enjoy about watching Jacob Free compete is he is a big guy (6-5, 209) that can move around the pocket very smoothly.
He has a big arm and loves to compete whether it’s on the baseball diamond or the football field. Jacob is very athletic for his size, he recently ran a 4.72 at the Auburn camp and can make plays with his feet when he needs to do it.
He is definitely you’re a pro style quarterback that is a Jacob Coker-type in that he has a big arm and makes the throws all over the field.”
VS: What is his best attribute as a QB? Is it His arm strength, his size, his knowledge to read coverages and make the right play, or his ability to make a play when everything breaks down around him?
AK: “First of all, he has all those attributes that you listed there but if I had to pick one that is his best, it has to be his arm strength. A lot of his strength comes from his playing baseball and pitching as a good backdrop.
When he was going to be a freshman, I talked him into playing football and quarterback because of his arm strength, when he’s not pitching he is our starting shortstop and you have to have a big arm to play that position.
On the football field, he has improved so much every season and has made himself an SEC-ready quarterback which is exactly what he is when steps foot on Vanderbilt’s campus.
To borrow a baseball saying, he is definitely a “five tool” type player, not only does he have the big arm (had a 72 yard throw at a camp earlier this summer), he can make all the throws: the long ball, the intermediate ones, and he has a great touch on simple passes like a screen.
Because he can make the throws, he is definitely a steal for Vanderbilt, his only setback from the bigger schools not being on him heavily is we are a small 1-A school, but that was to Vanderbilt’s advantage because they did their homework and found him.”
VS: What type of leader is he? Is he a vocal leader or is he more of a quiet leader that lets his play do the leading?
AK: “Jacob’s leadership has evolved during his career at a Brantley. When he stepped in as the starter as a sophomore, we had a big senior class and several were very vocal and Jacob didn’t have to be a leader. He just had to do his job.
He played very well his sophomore year passing for 1,927 yards and tossing 28 touchdowns and only three interceptions, as we won 11 games and we made the semifinal round.
Last year, his leadership role changed as we had a small senior class and he matured as a player and knew he had to step up and talk to his teammates more in the weight room and on the field. He did a great job with that and our players followed his lead.
Now going into his senior year, this is his team and he is the one guy that the team looks to to set an example by his work ethic.”
VS: What's the best individual throw you have seen him make in his time at Brantley?
AK: “There are a couple of throws that come to mind when I think of his big time throws and both didn’t win a game for us, but they started a comeback in both games that we won.
His sophomore year we were playing a region rival Georgiana in the regular season and we were behind and before the half, he hit a 35 yard post route in coverage and a guy hitting him as he followed through with the pass. The completion kept the drive alive and and we came back from an halftime deficit to win the game 44-40.
Last year in the last regular season game against Goshen, we were down 20-0 at the half and nothing was going right but Jacob had a second half for the ages as he threw for 355 yards and we won the game 55-48.
He took what their defense gave and settled into complete a ton of passes in a row both short and long. His leadership was a big reason for the comeback.”
VS: What area of his game would you like to see him improve during his senior season before he gets to Vanderbilt?
AK: “The one thing that we are working on this summer is his foot work. He doesn’t have terrible feet, but we both know it can be better. He has worked really hard to get his feet faster in and out of the pocket.
The one thing he will thrive in at Vanderbilt is getting that constant coaching from his quarterback coach and his offensive coordinator because he always striving to get better.
Jacob’s a kid that can take and likes to be coached hard because he knows he needs to get better and this is very important to him because he wants to get better with every practice, game, and rep.”