National Signing Day Recap
VANDERBILT ASSISTANT COACHES DISCUSS THE 2023 CLASS
The dust has essentially settled for the Early Signing Period and Vanderbilt had a very successful Wednesday with 20 players signing their NLI's and a 2023 class that currently ranks 43rd nationally.
VandySports.com takes a look back at the action surrounding the Commodores recruiting class throughout the day.
Clark Lea details Vandy's class:
Signing Day Wins:
Vanderbilt was able to add a couple of notable signing day pieces on Wednesday in three-star running back Deago Benson and linebacker Jailen Ruth.
Benson, a former Washington State commit, took an official visit with the Commodores the weekend of December 9th. The three-star was originally going to wait and sign in February, but changed his mind, saying Vanderbilt "feels like home."
During his senior season, Benson rushed for 1,075 yards and 15 touchdowns while hauling in 12 catches for 207 yards and four touchdowns.
Ruth, also a former Washington State commit, put up big numbers during his senior campaign, recording 94 tackles, 27 tackles for loss, 19 sacks, and seven forced fumbles.
Flipped off:
With the good news, comes the bad. After securing a commitment from Pimpton back in the summer, Vanderbilt tried hard to hold onto his verbal pledge until the finish line. Unfortunately, the 6-foot-6, 220-pound prospect had a tremendous senior season that prompted late official visits to LSU and Texas. In the end, the Tigers were able to flip the talented three-star prospect, leaving Vandy to fill quite a void at tight end.
Portal Power:
Vanderbilt added Stanford linebacker/edge transfer Aeneas Dicosmo on Wednesday. The New Jersey native is coming off his best season with the Cardinal, appearing in 12 games while recording 26 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks. Clark Lea recruited Dicosmo out of high school, who should be a very solid, experienced piece to the Commodores' defense.
Stocking Up:
Vanderbilt filled their depth chart with young talent, particularly at the running back, wide receiver, and offensive line positions.
The Commodores secured three high school running backs in Sedrick Alexander, AJ Newberry, and the aforementioned Deago Benson. Alexander will be an early enrollee for the Commodores and with the addition of Benson, they are less likely to search the transfer portal for an experienced running back.
Vanderbilt added four talented wide receivers to their 2023 class on Wednesday in Duran Parish, London Humphreys, Maureice Sherrill, and Kamrean Johnson.
Along the offensive line, the Commodores grabbed signatures from Cooper Starks, Anthony Miles, Miseal Sandoval, and Barrett Maddox.
Top-Rated Talent:
Within the 20 signees for Vanderbilt, the six highest-rated in the 2023 class are ranked a 5.7, three-star as noted above.
That number is slightly down in comparison to last year's class, which featured two prospects (AJ Swann and Daniel Martin) with a 5.8, four-star rating and six prospects (Langston Patterson, Cole Spence, Darren Agu, Quantaves Gaskins, Jadais Richard, and Leyton Nelson) that were ranked a 5.7, three-star.
The 2021 class featured two prospects (Quincy Skinner and Marcus Bradley) with a 5.8, four-star ranking along with two (John Howse and Marlen Sewell) with a 5.7, three-star ranking.
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