If you want an easy stat to tell you a lot about the Vanderbilt Commodores’ 2016 football team and why things might have improved over the last two years, here’s a quick and dirty answer. Look at the number of true freshmen who have seen action in each of the last three seasons.
2014: 10 (of 23 total)
2015: 11 (of 17)
2016: 5 (of 21)
Got that? Just five true freshmen saw playing time in 2016, and the identities of those five — Kalija Lipscomb, Joejuan Williams, Bailey McElwain, Sam Loy, and Donaven Tennyson -- tells you even more.