Local Sports
Johnson giving Vandy new look; Croom wants Bulldogs to play for SEC
By Michael A. CummingsHOOVER — What better way to turn around a program than to give it a new look?
That’s the reasoning behind Vanderbilt’s new duds this season.
After years of trotting out teams with losing records — all with the same uniform design — head coach Bobby Johnson and the Commodores are looking to turn things around this season.
“The new uniforms are very exciting,” said Vanderbilt’s senior safety Reshard Langford. “We have all-new apparel, including some nice upgrades to the stadium. The uniforms look really good on the field.”
And if Johnson has his way, the clothes won’t be the only unrecognizable facet of the Commodores this season.
“We want to see (this program) be successful,” said Johnson at the SEC’s annual media days event in Hoover on Wednesday. “I think we were extremely close last year. A couple games go either way, (and) we’re in a bowl.”
Vanderbilt stood at 5-3 with four games to go last season. But a four-game losing streak extended the Commodores’ run without a winning record to 26 seasons.
If the ’Dores do reverse that record this season, junior cornerback D.J. Moore figures to be a big reason why. A cornerback out of Spartanburg, S.C., Moore saw time on offense and special teams last year while earning first-team All-SEC honors from the Associated Press.
Such a versatile player could be huge for Vanderbilt — as long as he stays healthy.
“You have to be careful as a coaching staff when you do that because he’s very valuable to our defense,” said Johnson. “You don’t want to strip him out, not have him available to play defense in the fourth quarter.”
Vanderbilt begins its season Aug. 28 at Miami of Ohio. The Commodores open their SEC schedule Sept. 4 with a home date against South Carolina.
‰ Reaping rewards: Sylvester Croom and Mississippi State are reaping the recruiting dividends of last season’s strong finish.
Croom said the Bulldogs have already landed 19 verbal commitments from upcoming high school seniors. It’s largely a benefit of having won eight games and the Liberty Bowl last season.
“We are way ahead of where we’ve ever been in recruiting for next season,” said Croom, the 2007 SEC coach of the year.
It remains to be seen if the Bulldogs have come far enough to achieve his goal of competing for an SEC title.
“I don’t know if we’ll be good enough,” Croom said. “At the end of the day, we might not be. I think we have a chance to do that. Every year, we’ve played as good as we can. But our goal is to win the conference championship. I don’t know any other way to do it, if you want to be the best.”
Croom’s decision to make sophomore quarterback Wesley Carroll one of the two players he brought to SEC media days seems like evidence of Carroll’s emergence as a team leader.
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TALKIN' PREPS: Playoff-bound Aggies keep moving in the right direction
FAIRVIEW — Outside the home locker room at Fairview High, the celebration was loud enough that you almost thought you were part of the team.
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RECLASS SHAKES UP AREA
No one at West Point High was surprised when the Alabama High School Athletic Association released its reclassification numbers for the 2010-12 school years.
West Point’s return to Class 4A was short-lived. When the ’10 football season begins next fall, the Warriors will be playing in Class 5A, Region 6 alongside Cullman, Hartselle and Walker.
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PREP BASKETBALL: Cullman uses late push to beat Clay-Chalkville
CULLMAN — Morgan Smith didn’t deliver a freshman performance in her second varsity basketball game.
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TALKIN' PREPS: Skipper goes from unknown to asset
Remember when Dylan Skipper was an unproven quarterback? How about when he was the glaring preseason question hanging over Cullman High’s offense?
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JUCO MEN'S BASKETBALL: Farmer, Jones lift Lions to win in season opener
HANCEVILLE — Wallace State’s L.A. Farmer finished with 22 points and seven rebounds and Devon Jones added 13 points off the bench to lift the Lions past Northeast Mississippi 65-60 in the season opener for both teams Monday at Tom Drake Coliseum.
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PREP FOOTBALL: Bearcats have sights set on another deep playoff run
Ben Moore will be in an unfamiliar position when the postseason begins Friday. He’ll be watching from the Cullman High sideline.
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PREP FOOTBALL: Aggies ride early lead to win over Raiders
FAIRVIEW — For the final five minutes of their final regular-season home game in purple and gold, Fairview High’s seniors were exactly where they wanted to be.
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PREP FOOTBALL: Bearcats beat elements, Bears
DECATUR — It was simply a matter of time before the heavy rain was going to arrive. But when it did, the Cullman Bearcats were unphased.
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PREP FOOTBALL ROUNDUP: Warriors grab county win
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PREP VOLLEYBALL: Ol' Blue heads to Addison
PELHAM — Nothing against the city of Pelham, but Pam Wilkins was ready to hightail it back up Interstate 65 with a shiny blue trophy in tow.
And the sooner the better.
Trailing late in game three of the Class 2A state championship match after taking a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series, the Addison High volleyball coach called a timeout to give her team a challenge.
Or maybe just a friendly suggestion. Whatever it was, it worked.
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