Offensive Takeaways From Vanderbilt Football's Fifth Fall Camp Practice
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NASHVILLE---Theo Von and former Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia were both in the building for Vanderbilt's Monday fall camp practice, and they watched along as Clark Lea's team went through a slightly less intensive practice than it did in past days.
Vanderbilt still had a few live periods and noteworthy moments on Monday morning, though. Here's the most notable offensive storylines coming out of the day.
Did either quarterback stand out?
Monday wasn’t quite a revelation in the quarterback competition, but there appear to be some trends forming around the performance of Jared Curtis and Blaze Berlowitz.
It’s still a process for Curtis, who still hasn’t quite taken command of Vanderbilt’s offense, but has demonstrated that he can make all the necessary throws to be one of the best starters in the SEC. Curtis didn’t have that one jarring play on Friday, but he manipulated arm angles impressively and didn’t have any complete disasters of plays. Curtis appears to be throwing it away more and more willing to take sacks rather than forcing balls, which is a positive.
Berlowitz bounced back from a rough Sunday by managing Vanderbilt’s offense with a few more checkdowns than he previously appeared to be willing to take. He went over the top successfully a time or two, but didn’t force it like he did Sunday. Berlowitz has to prove that his floor is higher than Curtis’, though, and he hasn’t done it.
It’s still Curtis’ competition to lose, although neither quarterback really stood out in one way or another on Monday.
Is Junior Sherrill taking the step to elite?
Sherrill wowed as a freshman with explosive plays, was more of a factor all around in his second fall camp and developed a needed consistency last fall. Now, Sherrill is just as consistent and is making more stellar plays than he did in camp a year ago.
His best accolades include his 13 career receiving touchdowns–which is fifth among SEC returning players–his 1,488 career receiving yards–which is eighth–and the fact that he’s one of 11 returning players in the league that went for over 700 yards and over five touchdowns in 2025. All of them relate to longevity rather than All-SEC play, though.
It’s not a given that Sherrill will be elite, but he appears to have a chance to be that.
Tight end depth a question
Vanderbilt has two strong options at the top of its tight end room in Cole Spence and Jayvontay Conner, but what’s there beyond that?
If Spence or Conner go down, Walter Taylor will have to pick up significant slack in regard to the receiving aspect of Vanderbilt’s room. Taylor has had moments in which he looks like a future NFL player, Vanderbilt tight ends coach Brendan Flaherty said, but also ones in which he looks like he may not play often.
Taylor has been more consistent in the fall than he was in the spring, though, and the physical tools are standing out. The indication is that Vanderbilt feels more confident about playing hi
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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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