By Adam Sparks
The Tennessean
NASHVILLE — Vanderbilt’s first intrasquad scrimmage of spring practice Saturday put coach Derek Mason on the opposite sideline from half his team.
The defensive players gloated just a bit at the presence of Mason, their new play-caller, when the offense and defense divided for a 25-play scrimmage.
“It’s amazing to have Coach Mason over therewith us,” defensive end Caleb Azubike said. “I wish we could do this every day because I love it. It’s amazing for a guy like me, just learning from the master.”
Mason, a former Stanford defensive coordinator, has served as his own defensive play-caller for the first week of spring practice after firing David Kotulski in December. But the scrimmage put Mason’s new specialized role in focus, and he admitted a bias about which side won thehead-to-head matchup.
“I am a defensive playcaller and a head coach, so I am still high-fiving offensive players when they make good plays,” Mason said. “… In the end, it’s our team, and I’ll root for both sides. But I definitely have a vested interest in what we do defensively day in and day out.”
It was an abbreviated scrimmage session to cap an 80-minute practice.
The offense did not score and crossed midfield oncein four possessions.
“The defense definitely won it, but it’s amazing how everybody competed,” safety Oren Burks said.
Offensively, each of the four quarterbacks took a turn under center.
Former Maryville High star Patton Robinette completed one of two passes for 11 yards and ran twice for no yards. Wade Freebeck completed one of three passes, a 10-yarder to tight end Nathan Marcus. Johnny McCrary was 2-of-3 for11 yards.
Redshirt freshman Shawn Stankavage was 3-of-3 for 66 yards. He hit CJ Duncan twice down the sideline for 25 and 30 yards.
“It was ebb and flow, but at the end of practice I thought the offense really stepped up and executed some plays,” said Duncan, who also had a 4-yard run on a reverse.
Dallas Rivers, who played both tailback and fullback, led the offense inrushing with 29 yards on six carries.
“I still gave high-fives when I saw CJ Duncan make a great catch and Dallas Rivers make a great run,” Mason said.
Vanderbilt was one of only two FBS teams to start spring practice in mid-February, joined by Duke, as Mason wanted his team to turn its attention to next season and away from a disappointing 2014, when the Commodores posted a 3-9 record.