Temper The Expectations, For Now
Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason might have given Commodore fans the blueprint for their emotions this season on Saturday night following his squads near-upset of No.10 Texas A&M in College Station.
When speaking during his postgame press conference about his freshman quarterback Ken Seals and his demeanor and poise, Mason shared these thoughts on what he witnessed.
"You know, I thought Ken, Ken Seals is a mature quarterback, that's why he started today," said Mason. "When you saw him play, he looked like a two or three-year veteran out there. I thought he was cool; I thought he was calm. He was poised, and he never really got to high or got too low."
Mason's words are the perfect place for fans to begin when it comes to this talented freshman who caught the attention of everyone who watched his first career start. Fans should never really get to high or too low when it comes to this young man's performance this season.
It wasn't all ice cream and cake in game one. Seals did toss two interceptions. Otherwise, he managed the offense, made the right decisions, played with maturity and poise, and was seen on the sidelines after one interception laughing with his receivers.
There's no denying that Seals' performance on Saturday should have fans optimistic about his future and perhaps the improvement of this offense around him. However, everyone must remain mindful of his age and experience level as he guides the Commodores ship through the remaining nine games of these shark-infested SEC waters.
It's not always likely to be pretty, and while the Commodores earned rightful praise for their performance against the Aggies, every week is a new game against a new opponent, and a quarterback is only as good as their last game on the eyes of some fans.
Seals appears capable of being a solid SEC signal-caller. He has the physical skills and the arm to make all the throws, but he has a lot to learn, and until he does, maybe we in the media and you, the fans, need to temper our expectations and take this season as it comes.
It's a growing experience for us all, especially Ken Seals.
