Could This Be Vanderbilt Football's Best Linebacking Core Of Bryan Longwell's Career? Vanderbilt Thinks So
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NASHVILLE—For a few minutes on Thursday morning, seven media members stood on Vanderbilt’s grass practice field waiting for the usually-punctual Nick Lezynski.
Lezynski had more important matters to tend to before beginning his post-practice press conference, though. Within eyesight of the media contingent on hand, Lezynski was engaged in a conversation with an NFL scout.
When Lezynski talked, the scout wrote notes on his IPad. When he was done with a thought, the scout almost always asked him about something else. The subject matter of the conversation appeared to be obvious.
If it wasn’t already, Lezynski made sure he conveyed that.
“I’m really excited about our senior guys, our veteran guys, Bryan [Longwell], Bryce [Cowan] and [Nick] Rinaldi,” Lezynski told the group of reporters on hand. “I think all three can play at the next level.”
Lezynski believes all three of his veteran linebackers have it in them to be “top level” SEC players in 2026, and wasn’t afraid to share that with anyone who would listen at Vanderbilt’s practice on Thursday.
The idea is one that Lezynski–who has been Vanderbilt’s linebackers coach since 2022–takes pride in. More than any other position on Vanderbilt’s roster, Lezynski’s linebacker room is homegrown. Every linebacker on Vanderbilt’s roster is homegrown and Lezynski believes three of them have developed into starting-caliber players since arriving.
Longwell is decidedly Vanderbilt’s defensive leader–and the brains behind the operation, as Cowan says–Rinaldi is the swiss-army knife with an NFL-like body and Cowan is the “violent,” toolsy projectable pro prospect. Lezynski also has real hopes for sophomore linebackers Austin Howard, Josiah Broxton–both of which have flashed in the first two days of fall camp–and Jameson Curtis–who Longwell says may have the best knack for the ball in the room.
As a result, nobody in Lezynski’s room is holding back.
“I think this might be the best linebacker group we’ve had,” Longwell said. “We've got multiple years we've been playing with each other. I’ve played with Rinaldi multiple years, I’ve played multiple years with Bryce. Last year we rotated all of us at all two positions, and I think that's really giving us a lot of flexibility and a lot of chemistry between each other.”
Vanderbilt lost veteran linebacker Langston Patterson to graduation, but the claim from Longwell isn’t entirely off base from what’s come out of Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea’s program all offseason. Lea told Vandy on SI in June that his 2026 linebacker room accounts for the second-level room that he feels the most strongly about of any since he arrived at Vanderbilt. The indication from program sources inspires optimism that Vanderbilt could have the strongest top three in the linebacker room since Lea’s arrival, as well.
The buzzwords were plentiful as Vanderbilt’s linebacking core met the media on Thursday, but Longwell and Rinaldi believe they mean something in regard to their room. Vanderbilt has significant continuity in the linebacker room and its pieces believe in Lezynski’s developmental track. They believe that what they’re saying in regard to what they could be is rooted in objectivity, not merely optimism.
“I think it will be, too,” Rinaldi said in regard to the idea that this is Vanderbilt’s best linebacker room since his arrival. “I’m manifesting that.”
For that to happen, Rinaldi says, Vanderbilt’s veteran linebackers have to capitalize on the relatively rare opportunities they get to make impact plays each game. Cowan says the key will be communication and being on the same page–which Longwell says shouldn’t be a problem due to the volume of on-field experiences Vanderbilt’s linebacking room has.
Lezynski took his lumps with all three of Vanderbilt’s linebacking veterans as young players, was intentional about keeping them when they could’ve bolted for immediate playing time elsewhere and now he appears to be receiving the fruits of his labor. He believes that his group will, too.
“I'm glad that they are recognizing and noticing the work that those guys have put in and the production that they've had on tape,” Lezynski said in regard to NFL scouts’ evaluations of his room, “And I still think that they're being underestimated, so that's the cool part is that we always have we have a chip on our shoulder, the underdog mentality. We're always trying to prove what we can do to help our team win and also so that we can make sure that we help our journeys for the future.”
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Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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