Signing Day Review
THE BIG WIN:
There wasn't a lot of optimism among Vanderbilt fans after Kaufman decided to not sign with the Commodores back in December. Instead, he opted to explore new options from Florida State and Ole Miss in January. However, the optimism for Vanderbilt to hold on to the coveted four-star prospect began to grow back over the last couple of days. He confirmed his pledge to the Commodores on Wednesday in what is probably the biggest win for Vanderbilt on national signing day, part two.
NEW FACES:
Vanderbilt kicked off signing day with a new face to many in Co-Lin (Miss.) C.C. quarterback Danny Clark. The former Kentucky Wildcat was on West End this past weekend and becomes the fourth signal-caller to join the Commodores' 2020 recruiting class. The lefty has a strong arm and threw for 2,166 yards and 18 touchdowns in nine games this past season.
Clark was rated a 5.7, 3-star prospect coming out of Akron (Oh.) Hoban, where he carried offers from Ohio State, Illinois, and Kentucky before ultimately signing with the Wildcats out of high school.
He will have two years of eligible remaining.
TRANSFER ADDITION:
It didn't take long for Ohio State defensive end transfer Alex Williams to decide that Vanderbilt would be his future home. He committed to the Commodores just three days after wrapping up his official visit on West End the weekend of January 25th. The 6-foot-6, 270-pound just completed his redshirt freshman season in Columbus, where he recorded eight tackles in five games. He will have to set out a year due to NCAA transfer rules.
SIZE AND LENGTH AT D-LINE:
The JUCO product saw both Memphis and Vanderbilt get involved in his recruiting process in January, he ended up taking official visits to both and chose to play for the Commodores in college. Wilkins is a Chicago native who recorded 44 tackles and 8.5 sacks this past season while helping lead Monterey Peninsula to a 10-1 record this past season.
WR COMMIT WILL SHEPPARD INKS:
The three-star prospect committed to Vanderbilt back on December 17th after taking an official visit to West End earlier that month. Sheppard actually signed with the Commodores during the early signing period, but waited to make it public today so he can celebrate with the family. The Louisiana prospect caught 126 passes for 2,252 yards and 33 touchdowns in his high school career. He is also also a three-sport athlete that competes in basketball and track as well.